*YAWN*
Good morning, everyone. I hope last night treated you well. I was up way too late writing, but I have no regrets. My characters might, but I don’t.
Just wanted to share a quick link to something I found interesting. Nothing I hadn’t read before, but I like the way it’s presented, and the writer’s personal experience really fills out the information. Not information that all of you need, but I’m going to leave it care in case anyone wants to take a peek. 🙂
How Not to Publish a Novel in Seven Complicated Screw-Ups
What do you think? Would you debate any of these points? I can at least see the wisdom in all of them, though I know many writers do leave a lot of time between their first and second publications because of marketing pressures and stuff. I might try to have a second book almost ready before I publish the first one… if I decide to go that way, yadda yadda.
I’m going to leave you with this. Writing is fun, isn’t it?
disregard the prologue 
May 18th, 2013 at 9:54 am
Yes, I see the wisdom in all of them. But there are exceptions to every rule. (And I’m thinking about the first one on her list.) I’m not debating the aspect of making sure a book is publishable. And yes, perhaps, some books need to marinate a bit. But if you are an outstanding writer, maybe you can pull off publishing your first book.
May 18th, 2013 at 10:05 am
I think you can (I certainly hope you can!), but it will definitely need work. I’m still working on making my first completed one good enough, two years after I finished the first draft. Putting it aside and writing something else before revising might not have been the worst idea.
I actually liked this one; I think every other list like this I’ve read has said “lock your first novel in a drawer forever, never touch it again, it’s guaranteed to be irredeemable crap.” I respectfully disagree. No first draft will ever be perfect, but I see nothing wrong with learning as you go if a story has potential.
How are you feeling?
May 18th, 2013 at 1:28 pm
I’m better. Not 100% though. Thank for asking.
May 18th, 2013 at 12:18 pm
Good advice, thanks for sharing. Technically, this is my fifth book, not counting those that were aborted early on. The first four will never see the light of day. My present WIP will be the first published and there’s another first draft story that’s about 40% written. Two others have loose outlines.
May 18th, 2013 at 6:55 pm
Wow. Congrats!
May 18th, 2013 at 3:33 pm
1. This is the rule I don’t agree with. It depends on the talent of the writer and whether enough rewrites/editing goes into it to make it worthwhile.
2. When you do this, check if it’s listed at Writer Beware and other such sites. Don’t be naive.
3. This depends on a lot of things. It may definitely be worth it for nonfiction. For fiction, I believe it’s best to have at least some work in progress when the first one comes out.
4. David Gaughran talks about this too in Let’s Get Digital. Sales can be improved by small things like changing the cover. But the book has to be discoverable somehow.
5. I can’t agree more.
6. I haven’t published anything yet, nor received bad criticism from beta readers and peer reviews; but I agree, it’s pointless.
7. Do enough research to be able to filter the good advice from the bad ones. It’s not too difficult.
May 18th, 2013 at 4:13 pm
Thanks for your insightful comment! Glad you stopped by again. 🙂
People seem to be responding to the first one like she’s saying you can’t publish your first book. She’s not saying that at all. She’s just saying that it needs work, and before you do that, you should set it aside and gain some more experience. You say it depends whether enough edits/rewrites go into it to make it worthwhile and I agree; I think she’s saying the same thing, just with a longer time frame. My first completed novel will probably be the first thing I publish, but it’s taken years to get it the way I want it, and I’ve done side-projects in the meantime to gain experience and perspective. Maybe the key words are “don’t rush out and publish,” whether it’s the first or fifteenth thing you’ve written. That, I’m fully on-board with.
As I was saying to L. Marie up there, I can’t even count the number of published authors/agents who say to never even consider publishing your first novel. Ever. End of story, no matter how much you revise or edit, no matter how talented you are. Like, it seems that it’s all I read when they mention first novels. So I think advice to let it stew and come back with fresh eyes is far more encouraging. This is the first time I’ve ever read someone saying “Yes, it can be good if you have the talent and commitment, but it needs work.” You’re free to disagree, of course. I just wanted to clarify how I read it.
I totally agree with you on #2; there are a few sites that will warn about scams. The problem is that new ones aren’t always listed; maybe we should add, “check there, and never assume that no news is good news!”
Thanks again!
May 18th, 2013 at 4:26 pm
Yes, you’re reading me right. I am saying “it can be done with commitment and hard work.” Those who read a lot tend to pick up the storytelling and writing habits of what they read. But it still takes willingness to learn and improve to get the first story in a publishable form.
Unless people just want to put it on one of the free story sites. I don’t judge people who post their first stories er even drafts there.
I advice people who don’t find any news to write Writer Beware and ask. Sometimes they have information that’s not public.
May 18th, 2013 at 4:29 pm
100% agreed, and thanks for the tip. I’m very wary of small publishers and not likely to deal with them, but it’s good to know there might be more information available than what’s searchable there.
May 18th, 2013 at 6:58 pm
John Grisham didn’t publish his first book (A Time to Kill) until after the second (The Firm) hit big.
May 18th, 2013 at 5:49 pm
Hey guys, thanks for checking out the article! Don’t worry, never did I say you *can’t* publish your first novel–I just said don’t rush out and do it right away. Put it down for a while, look at something, anything else. Some people say never–I think if you are a talented story teller anything is possible.
Also there is a huge difference in a reputable indie publisher (as in any pub separate from the big six) and the multitude of fly by night ebook publishing operations that spring up daily and don’t provide any services! Never give anyone money/share your money in this business unless they are providing a service to you can not do better for yourself.
May 18th, 2013 at 9:22 pm
I couldn’t agree more with #5. Not only do I dislike it when an author tweets excessively about her book, but I also dislike it when she blogs only about her book. I don’t want to follow an author who doesn’t have more to say than that, and when I stop following her, I forget about her and her work.
May 18th, 2013 at 10:21 pm
That’s funny, I came across that post yesterday and found it helpful too. I do think the publishing two books close together is a good idea, but like you said not always all that practical.
May 20th, 2013 at 12:35 pm
I think too many people trade what they want most (success) for what they want right now (having a “published” book). I’ve seen a lot of stuff self-pubbed on Amazon way before it was ready. That’s not to say self-pub is negative, just that they put their unedited, early draft dribble on their before polishing it up. I found out a writing friend of mine is having her book self-pubbed. Her cover looks amateur, and I’ve read her story. It’s a great story, but the cake isn’t ready to be pulled out of the oven yet. I guess some people are happy with a few hundred sales, and I don’t disrespect that. It isn’t my journey, it’s theirs. But still, people should take their time. It’s harder to win readers over after they’ve already been disappointed by a first book that came out too soon, know what I mean?
May 20th, 2013 at 12:37 pm
I do know what you mean. I woudn’t self-pub without an editor and a cover artist, that’s for sure. The thought of anyone seeing less than my best… *shudder*