Trudging Through Hectic Times

Life has been crazy for me lately and I've neglected my blog, twitter, facebook, and updates for the website since the beginning of Summer (it's Autumn so what does that tell ya?).  I also neglected working on the editing for Sadie's War, which is the worst part of this.  Without the novel, the rest is pointless.

The break, although lacking in productivity, was good and well needed.  My life had been turned upside down with some family business and I needed to focus on my children and not my novel for a little while.  Thankfully everything has managed to sort itself out and I'm able to get back on the ball.

I think part of the problem is that, at the moment, I'm working very hard and not making any money.  When you don't have a steady paycheck, and know that it'll be many years before you do, it can be hard to keep yourself motivated enough to finish your project.

I've learned that there are 4 things I'm going to have to hold onto if I'm going to make it as an indie novelist.

1. Dedication
2. Hard Work
3. Perseverance
4. Passion

The dedication and hard work go hand in hand with this.  Without either of those, I won't be able to unlock my full potential as a writer.  It takes hard work and dedication to improve my craft and finish my projects.  Writing a novel is no small task, even for those who have been doing it for over a decade or two.  If I drop the ball and don't put in the full effort my books deserve, then I'm not going to get anywhere anytime soon.

Perseverance is important because, as a novelist, it can take years before I see any real profit from my novels.  For most authors who are just starting out, our names are completely obscure.  Hardly anyone has read our work (or only friends and family have read them ) and readers are what sell novels.  More dedication and hard work are needed after the novels are finished to help promote, market, and advertise.  Without perseverance I won't have the energy to continue putting in all of that energy with little payout.  But, with perseverance I can find the energy to continue, knowing that one day all of this hard work will pay off.

Passion, though, is the glue that holds it all together.  My passion for writing and the stories I produce is what allows me to write in the first place.  My passion for this craft is what will fuel the other three traits and keep me going over the next few decades.  I honestly can see myself writing until my brittle bones can't sit and pound away on the keyboard anymore.  Even if my novels never make a dime, I can't imagine not writing.

So, here I am, 3 1/2 months from publishing my first novel, and doing everything I can not to procrastinate.  The thing is, I've managed to finish all of the work I had intended to do on the novel even though I had taken a few months off from writing it.  Being able to view the work with fresh eyes helped considerably.  And, so long as I keep those 4 traits, I know my writing will take me on a journey I never expected.

I just need to keep on trudging through the chaos and find my way.