Hi all.
I am totally new to the website and writing (anything worth reading).
Go easy on me.
So my problem is that i have had no writing experience whatsoever. One day as i took a bumpy flight back to Botswana i had an idea to write a book. i had absolutely no clue where to start. having no writing experience and barely reading novels (due to time constraints) i decided to sit down and actually...write.
so here i am 350 pages later. Although proud of myself (350 pages is a lot, from a person who doesn't know much about writing) i felt so emotional once done.
i sent out the first chapter to some proof-readers and surprisingly, they absolutely loved it and begged for more.
thing is, i am editing at the moment and i feel so low and down about everything. i actually feel as if i hate the novel. is that even normal??? i hate it but love it. i dont want to look at it anymore yet cant go a day without editing.
my narrative voice stinks! i can see so much of ...me...in it.
are these feelings even normal? where to from here?
Hi everyone.
thank you to all who took time out to respond to me. I really do appreciate it.
I have not paid anyone to read the first chapter. Rather, family members. I stressed that i do not want praise just because they know me or fascinated with the idea that someone they know has actually attempted to write a book.
i did get honest opinions from them but most of them were very eager to know what happens next.
i guess i did not know how much it actually takes to write a book. when i had the idea, i thought that this would be easy. wow, when i researched its requirements and the time-frames i was shocked.
i also learned that doing this is a lonely experience.
i must add though, i truly enjoyed writing. . it's just me...at 4am...with pencil and paper. yes at that hour my eyelids are scraping against my eyeballs but the experience is so...soothing.
i have doubtful days, but, i know that doubt is a component of the unknown. oh and, yes, i finished the book.
will keep pushing :-)
If you can't go a day without editing, I think that that's a good sign.
It shows that your book is important to you. Even couples who love each other deeply sometimes feel like they hate each other.
But Jimmy gives good advice. You're dealing with proofreaders now. Someday you might be enticed by "vanity publishers". These tell you that they really, really want to publish your book... but that you have to "contribute" towards the costs. Sometimes as much as £3,000! And their "costs" are less than £200. Because they don't print a single copy until someone orders one at their website. (This is called "print on demand".) And that £200 is for salaries of people who try to fool other hopeful writers like you to pay them £3,000 for another book...
And they do NOTHING to try to sell your book (aside from showing it on their website... which doesn't cost them very much, and writers would get suspicious if there was ABSOLUTELY nothing there!) Why should they pay for publicity when they already have your £3,000 safely in the bank??? It's up to YOU to advertise your book... after you've paid them.
There's a whole industry dedicated to conning hopeful writers out of their cash... offering next to nothing in exchange. On the other hand, I know that Jimmy - who's an editor/publisher - spent over 100 hours on editing a children's picture book which was never going to earn him a single cent (100% of profits to a worthy cause). Because he LOVES children's books (the good ones: and this is going to be a good one!) and because he wants to help worthy causes and is very generous.
One point that isn't 100% clear I'm your question is whether you've completed the first draught of your novel and are now editing the whole thing or whether you're editing the first 350 pages before finishing. I guess the former. But in case it's the latter, I'd strongly advise you to finish the story before you start editing. Why?
Because you may polish the prose of the first 350 pages and then, when you sit down again to finish the story, page 354 might hit you over the head with a completely new direction which will mean that you have to go back and rewrite pages 72-162!
Don't lose faith!
Hi, Razia!
I definitely don't want to burst your balloon, but for a first,-time author to have professional (were they professionals?) proofreaders "absolutely love [your first (?) draught] and beg for more" sounds either unlikely or suspicious to me. Do they want you to pay them for reading the whole thing? Then OF COURSE they'll say 'please send me more!'
Most reputable agents won't ask money for reading your ms... but they're a lot more likely to reject it (without giving a reason, besides "not for us").
I advise you to work on your novel until you REALLY love it. Then ask friends to read it for free. But MAKE SURE that they understand that empty praise just to humour you is NO HELP AT ALL!!! Tell them that they'll be saving you a lot of time and energy (and maybe money) if they tell you, 'Sorry, Razia! But it's shit." If it IS shit. Once you're sure that they HONESTLY like it, you can send it to agents who DON'T charge a reading fee. That's the way to get an honest, PROFESSIONAL opinion. Not from people who earn more money the more time they spend reading (or pretending to read: there are some REAL sharks out there,!) your book.
Some people feed on other people's hopes.
I HOPE that it's really good! Best of luck!
Jimmy