As I work on the publishing process for my debut novel I want to take a minute to reflect on the journey of writing this novel (and others). I have been telling stories since I could speak and once I could write there was no stopping me from filling notebook after notebook with what I thought would be a book. Many of those early ideas will stay just as they are the musing of a child left behind in dusty old notebooks, but some of them will be dissected and used for new stories. The novel that I wrote right before The Ascension, which was around the same length but incomplete, ended up shelved because I fell out of touch with the story. I am glad that I wrote each of these stories because each one helped me grow as a writer and led me down a path where I am ready to start my publishing journey.
I have to say that the actual writing of The Ascension was the easiest part of this process for me. I honestly cannot say there is anything more satisfying then finishing that first draft. I attribute this to the fact that I could work at my own pace and I didn’t have to wait to do more. Sending the draft out to countless beta readers, waiting to edit it, and the repeating the process several times felt like an eternity in purgatory. I just wanted to work on the novel more instead of waiting. Even now as I wait to hear back from my editor about the most recent draft, I am on the edge of my seat. I just want to be writing or at least editing more. When I first finished The Ascension I had decided to try out traditional publishing avenues. I absolutely hated the querying process. Just waiting to see who liked and didn’t like my work before I could move on and wait more for the same thing. After a while I decided that it wasn’t worth it. I wanted to have more control over my work timeline and the final product that I was putting out into the world.
I have to say that the actual work of starting the publishing process has been much more difficult than I expected. There are so many moving components to keep track of and so much more for me to roll out still. This website and blog are just the beginning of this process. I plan to release more content soon, both on YouTube and TikTok, in order to start getting the steam rolling for my novel’s pre-sale and give away in 2024.
If you have any questions about my writing process for this book, want any other writing tips or tricks use the contact me form on my homepage. To stay updated on all of my content and upcoming bookish news join my newsletter!!
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