It's one of the main reasons why many people never actually finish the book they're writing. I mean, if it's finished then other people will read it. And some of those people may not like it! Yes, it feels safe to have an unfinished book.
Well, let me tell you, author, it's not any worse to have a finished book. Quite the opposite. Tying a bow on a book is a liberating experience. Besides, you get the chance to start another, better, book! Who cares if some people don't like what you've written? Does every person in the world think Van Gogh paintings are amazing? Of course not. If a book pleases you, it has served its purpose. As an artist we must create for ourselves, not for others. Creating for others is a slippery slope. Sure, it may earn us some money, but it's not satisfying our inner soul. And come to think of it, if we're creating for others, how different is that to a regular day job? Hmmm. No, an artist creates things for their own pleasure, an expression of something that is important to them and them alone.
If you look at things this way, it actually becomes a little easier to write. There's no pressure to please anyone but yourself. Just get your thoughts down and see where they take you.
Yes, the life of an author can be lonely at times. It can also be scattered with self-doubt. It can seem we are cast alone in a world that doesn't understand us. So, how do we change things? It's very easy. It's actually a two step process:
- Finish the book
- Write another
There you have it. Let's all promise ourselves today we'll do something about our loneliness. Let's just finish our goddamned books!
Paul, writing is indeed a lonely business, but as writers we tend to be introspective and, well, loners. It's part of that brilliant, creative personality of the writer that we tend to live so much within our own minds. Writing gives us an outlet to release the insanity in small increments before we explode.
ReplyDeleteI am still trying to narrow down which book to write first. I guess I should just get on with it and write one..then another..then another..
ReplyDeletePaul and Jean, I so agree with you. Writing can be a lonely place, but only if you let it. I love being on my own creating the 'images' I see and sharing my thoughts with those who wish to read them. I wouldn't swap it for the world. I have created many websites with ebooks from experience, research and more and just love the artistic side of creating websites and love the writing experience of writing ebooks.
ReplyDeleteOh, thanks for this - Love it. LOL.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. Sometimes those doubts can lead one to a worse rewrite. Always, repeat always, keep a backup of the original version of something you wrote. On occasion, stupidly, I have not.
ReplyDeleteUpsetting to lose even one paragraph in my program! Hate re write!
DeleteHow many times do I need to finish it, that's my question. :-) Good advice from the Universe tonight, Paul. I actually have 5 other "better" books started so it's a good kick in the butt to finish the "finished" one to start the "new" one. :-) Seriously, thanks!
ReplyDeleteWell right now I'm tweeting and RT so I guess you could say I'm procrastinating :-) Hi Paul!
ReplyDeleteI love this post. It's all so true!
ReplyDeleteMy wife and me are both writing books now. We are using www.leanpub.com to create e-books at no up front cost and only 10% of sales. To me, that gets rid of some of the excuses of not writing since it makes distribution instantly available. If you want to see her book in progress online, go to hastingcornergas.blogspot.com - she's got six chapters up.
ReplyDeleteI quite agree. I've almost finished my final edit and it has been a bit of a lonely process but well worth getting on with it. I like that thought that we create as an expression of something that is important to us. I'm sure that's true. Thanks for an encouraging blog post.
ReplyDeleteI think it is exactly that self doubt that stops me from making that final step to getting a book to the final stages. I end up disliking it, and moving on to a project which once again makes me happy.
ReplyDeleteI can attest to the experience of writing that first book as liberating. After the euphoria dies down a bit the ideas surge again and its time to write. Its like you said-write a book,finish,write another book. Rinse and repeat. In fact I'm off to go write, right now!
ReplyDeleteRelated totally to your article, Paul. The amazing thing about the literary world now is that it is no longer a voyage of loneliness. With the advent of social media, and the necessity of it for marketing, an author can easily end up at the opposite end of the spectrum and become swamped with contacts. I feel the important thing is to have a strong theme in your writing and if you stick to your theme's authenticity it will keep driving you until the end. Hooray!
ReplyDeleteExcellent and timely!! I did exactly that. I finished. I had crying beta readers and I didn't want to edit out the feeling. It needs to be in this book.
ReplyDeleteEspecially hard for first time authors. I can't speak for others, but that self-doubt you mention is horrendous. In the end I had to say "It is done!"
Thanks for letting me know I am not alone and even the long termers suffer too!
Excellent post! Thank you :)
ReplyDelete