Through the journey

Rewinding to a past post, I remember mentioning my time management skills are horrid. Summer is at full throttle and very distracting. I have had every intention to get up and write every morning, but obviously that hasn't gone exactly as planned. I can tell you that I have made probably twenty-five jars of blackberry jam, applesauce, blackberry cobbler, and apple crisp all from the fruits growing around us. Writing ... hmm, not so much. I need to get my focus on.

I want to leave a bread trail of my writing experience for my personal reference and for those embarking on becoming an author. I had given a little glimpse in my last blog as to when I started writing, but I want to really leave a journal of the whole experience. 
 
Never Again ... and the path I went with it. I had a coach telling me how to write, but I felt like the response time was not fast enough for my pace. I sought out more help from another colleague. I took to heart what both of them were telling me, and tried to polish up my book.

I was probably a little too eager. I wanted my book out. I wanted to watch it soar to the top of the charts. I am a little ambiguous.  I thought my novel was perfect and that I had some serious mad writing skills. Reality check! I have a lot of growing still to get my mad skills to the top. That's okay. It's alright to know that I need to sharpen my writing skills. I'm determined. I will put a book in my readers hands that they just can't put down. Until then, we'll travel the path.

January 2015 I have a manuscript in hand. I am ready for the world to see it. Then I get talked into doing a Kickstarter project to help launch the book. I think this route can be a great way to really get some help with costs that you as an Indie writer will have. Publishing, printing, editors, covers, advertising; all of that is your responsibility to cover. It will not just pay for itself, and Kickstarter is one way to help you cover those costs. My expectations for my Kickstarter were probably higher than they should have been. Like I said, I thought everyone would see my work as a  masterpiece. I set my goal at 1200.00 dollars, not much right? The average amount people were pledging were between $20-$30. If you divide that by 1200 really that's only 60 pledges, guesstimately. As the days ticked on, I watched my amount grow a little at a time. After thirty days, I only was able to get $800 pledged. Needless to say, my Kickstarter project failed. I was still happy to see that it got that many pledges, but I was still left feeling a bit inadequate.

I think the part that was frustrating for me personally, was how much time and effort I put in to that book. A lot of heart and soul go into a novel. I think so many readers believe that writing a few words down is an easy feat. Let me say ... Hardly! Writing a full size novel took me a year and two months. Daily typing away at my keyboard, I diligently tried to make a piece of entertainment. I still work at it. I love creating stories, but it is not easy. The world is hard to entertain ... everyone is a critic.

After my failed Kickstarter, I created an account through Createspace and started my self-publishing journey. so... write your book, polish it with a professional editor, and then if you decide you need the extra boost of help with your book launch, try Kickstarter.  More to come.

RJ Heaton