Sculpting Your Book
“To write a book you need a lantern to light the way, a shovel to dig deep and a big, brave heart to make it to the end.” – Joanne Fedler
Recently, I've been stalking a friends sculpting
progression, and luckily he’s been making it easy by posting his development on
social media for everyone to witness, as he molds it into his final masterpiece. My quick glances at his work changed the other day, when I took a few moments to shuffle through the pictures and was instantly inspired
by all the work and love he’s giving his current project. He truly loves what
he does.
Books are no different. A manuscripts progress is usually
not seen, or purposely shown for that matter, but a writer spends days, months, sometimes
years molding their imagination into its final perfection.
I think back to when I first published, Eyes Wide Shut, and in
retrospect I realize it wasn’t complete when I hit that submit button and tossed it
out to the world to judge. I was a novice writer, still learning the tricks and
trades and was anxious to have my words read. I was even more anxious to
receive feedback.
For the first month or so, it was crickets in the wind.
Nothing was said. And no one seemed to notice the anguish writhing through my
stomach, waiting desperately for some kind of shining news. It didn’t come. In
fact, the first bit of feedback was that it had its good parts, but it also
contained its unpleasant sections. I had to close my eyes, take a few deep
breaths and calm the storm raging through my heart. All that hard work and it
was just… okay.
I had spent four years shaping this book. Yes, there were
months that I didn’t touch it, because life happens and I still had no idea
what I was doing. It was just a story at that point. But when I decided to push
forward and finish the work, I leapt before I looked. And the crash landing was
detrimental to my ego, to say the least.
If there is one piece of advice I could give an aspiring
author, it would be, TAKE YOUR TIME. Especially for that first one. Create it,
mold it, change it, breathe it in, and LOVE it. Give it your time and love, and
then hand it over to an editor and let them do their magic. Yes, it costs
money, but they’re worth every single penny. I learned that the hard way.
After a year of suffering through the rejection, I decided
to really take a good, hard look at my book and fix it. So, between writing
Enyo’s Warrior and all my other daily life tasks, I found the time to rework
Eyes Wide Shut. It wasn’t easy and there were times I thought I was losing my
mind, but I did it. I finally finished sculpting this book and I’m glad I chose
to do so. I slapped a new cover on it, courtesy of Brandon Burgon, resubmitted
it for publication and began finding more and more readers over the next year.
Since that time, I published Enyo’s Warrior and Protectors
of the Stars, along with a short story in the Shattered Time Anthology. I took
the time to mold and sculpt my later books, giving them a huge amount of love,
admiration and time, and because I decided not to quit in the face of defeat,
I’ve made a name for myself.
Now, my books might not be known everywhere, and people
still don’t usually connect my face with my name and writing, but I’ve had my
moments of recognition. And let me tell you, when it comes from someone who
truly enjoys your writing, it’s a marvelous feeling.
Moral of the story... take your time, love your work, and sculpt your writing
into a masterpiece. You will thank yourself for giving your passion the time it
deserves.
And if you do fail, don’t be so rough on yourself. I’ve had
to learn this the hard way, as well. Instead, take a step back, allow yourself
to breathe through the heartache, redirect your path, and start again. Because
in ten years, you will look back and pat yourself on the back for not giving up.
Cheers, my inspiring friendsπ₯
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