I met Louise for an initial discussion about helping turn my scribblings into a proper book. Phase 2. I will definitely be self publishing, and will send copies to various agents and publishers, and to whoever else it might be prudent to approach. I’m aware that the better presented and error free the work is, the more likely it will be taken seriously.
Getting a publisher isn’t the be all and end all for me, which is probably just as well, there are many ways to get noticed and read. But if you don’t try, you won’t succeed.
We met in the Charleston Exhibition coffee shop in Lewes, Sussex, near both Charleston House, of Bloomsbury Set fame, and Monk’s House in Rodmell, where Virginia Woolf once lived before tragically taking her own life. The coffee shop was closed due to unforeseen circumstances, but the proprietor kindly let us use a table, and the quiet made for an excellent meeting.
Subject to formalities, Louise has agreed to take on the challenge of editing, proofreading, and doing some artwork, so in many ways, I suppose, it’s a bit of a collaboration. I always knew she’d be perfect. Any apprehension I had, born of my evergreen lack of confidence in writing, dissipated almost immediately. We were clearly singing from the same song sheet.
It never occurred to me before, but she suggested creating an audiobook as well. Louise has a beautiful, natural ‘Radio 4’ voice, it will work perfectly as a foil for the more outlandish and pithy elements of my material.
It’s now up to me to finish and send over the five remaining stories I need to surgically improve, which I’ve committed to doing by the end of November. As I’m not a procrastinator, hopefully it’ll be sooner rather than later. We can then review the material and decide if we need more stories, not a problem, as I already have others planned.
Louise liked the four stories I’ve already sent. I wasn’t sure if she might suggest major changes, but her feedback was reassuring, for what they are, they work fine.
With her laptop, Louise showed me her editing process and a few examples. It was inspiring to watch her transform a tricky sentence that had previously refused to click. That was all I needed to see, proof that the finished product will stay true to my voice, with the cranky, misshapen bits neatly ironed out.
Obviously, Louise didn’t yet know what my expectations were, but I’m neither fussy nor precious. In fact, I believe giving her free rein, trusting in her instinct that she’ll only change what’s necessary, will give the book the flow and polish it needs to reach its potential.
I now have a clear framework for completion. Once the writing is finished and Louise begins the editing and artwork, I’ll turn my focus to marketing, something I’m slightly apprehensive about, but also curious to learn and master.
I already have a successful football blog , I’m not entirely sure why it does so well, but that’s probably not a bad thing. So I’m not clueless about the basics. I’ve also started exploring platforms like Substack and Medium.
When the writing phase is over, I’ll have plenty of time to delve into the fine art of getting read.
I’ll probably pause my regular diary blog posts for the next month or so while I focus on finishing the stories, but I’ll post the occasional connected article, about the creative process, the use of AI (both good and bad), and other relevant musings.
It’s been tricky at times, balancing a busy business with writing. Finding the time, and sometimes the inclination when dog tired, hasn’t always been easy. But in many ways, that disjointed rhythm has helped me produce and enhance collection of stories I never thought I’d be capable of.
I’m delighted that a route map to completion has now evolved, though I’m under no illusion that there’s still plenty of work ahead.
#Writing A Book #Content Creation #Novice Novelist #Writing Fiction #Writing for Dummies
Welcome to Denham nr Lewes 