A writing journey

I've been reflecting on my writing journey since the publication of my novel Sakhira, and thought it worth writing about. 

It's been said that everyone has a novel within them, and that's probably true - we all have a wealth of stories to tell. It has also been said that 'writing is easy. You just open a vein and bleed.' (mostly likely attribution is Red Smith, a columnist). There is no doubt that writing involves a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Unfortunately, getting the words down on paper is the easy bit.

I've been writing, since I was sixteen, and even naively sent out my first story to a journal at that tender age. Needless to say, it was rejected. I still have it somewhere, and even I think it's dreadful, and most likely beyond redemption. 

Over the years, I have finished around 200 pieces of writing - a combination of short stories; novels and children's stories. Of these around 91 have been published which is actually quite a good record. (I keep a database of submissions so I can track them - most serious writers do keep a record of some sort.) However, most of these pieces went through mutiple rounds of rejections, revisions and resubmissions before becoming published. I've often said that a writer needs the hide of a rhinoceros! Most rejection letters are generic, a few encouraging, and the odd one or two is nasty. (Google writers rejection letters and you'll see them - J.K Rowling famously published hers. Yes - even the famous Harry Potter author had her stories rejected multiple times before finding fame! I don't know of a single author who hasn't experienced this.) I have previously written about the writing pendulum, where you go from wondering whether you can write to knowing you can.

Writing does not pay well, so I have always tried to fit it in around other work, with varying degrees of success.  The most I have ever received for a single piece of written work is $200. Many journals don't pay at all. 

I've learned a lot on the journey (much of it is in these blogs), but I have also taken multiple writing courses, and read about writing. As with any job, there are skills to learn, develop and hone. 

I wrote Sakhira over a period of ten years, writing on and off, revising, editing, and when I'd finished the story, starting to send it out. A lot of it was written on a train commuting to work in London. Writing is never simply putting words on the page - they have to be refined, checked, edited, and of course you have to go over what is written to make sure it is free of errors. Publishers won't accept work that is full of errors

I sent it out to 34 publishers. Most publishers don't take 'unsolicited submissions - that is submissions from authors not agents, and not in response to a request for the submission. I did approach a number of agents, but mostly, agents don't want to take you on if you haven't published before - it's a bit of a vicious circle! There was an open submission call from Gollancz and I submitted Sakhira. They received 1400 novels, and I made it into the second round of 180 novels, which I was delighted with. Unfortunately, they didn't accept it for publication. 

Given the length of time I was writing, and my slightly OCD tendencies, in addition to the novel text, I kept spreadsheet of the characters and their descriptions, and movements throughout the stories - to avoid having someone in the same place twice, or changing hair or eye colour. I also had summary cards for each stage of the journey, and a workbook detailing the world in which the story takes place. Not all writers do this, but it's an approach that worked for me. 

Once I felt it was ready, I started sending it to publishers. This involves researching who is likely to be interested in it, and then sending an email, and the details they ask for in the format they ask for. Most publishers are very specific about fonts, font sizes, line spacing, synopsis etc and if you don't follow their guidelines, your work is unlikely to be read. 

When it was finally accepted for publication, I was delighted, but wary until I received the contract, to which I requested some small changes. Finally, it was signed. The publisher edited the book, and sent me the 'proofs' - the advance copy of the book, to check for any errors. Of course, there were some, and changes were made, and then the e-book was released. I'm now doing the same checking for the paperback version. Now it's down to promoting the book, and hoping for sales. (Incidentally, authors often only receive a very small percentage of the sale price - usually less than half per book.)

Once it was finally published, and I announced it on my social media, the self-doubt crept in, and I was worried that it would receive bad reviews, or that there are typos in the text that we didn't spot. To my absolute relief a wonderful review was left by a reader.

The next stage of course, is the next book, which I am currently writing, again around the day job, and other writing bits. (I'm also ghost writing a poetry analysis workbook at the moment.)

At this stage, you're probably wondering why anyone bothers to write - and it's a question I've asked myself more than once.  Writing isn't easy, but it's like any art, it's an urge I can't resist. When I am writing and it's going well, it is the greatest feeling in the world. Being creative is a balm to the soul, and the elation does make up for all the effort. As a writing teacher once said to me 'I can't not write.'

Wherever you are in your writing journey, I hope my story inspires you to keep on writing.