STRAIGHT RIVER
In approximately 2008. I’d been a stock day trader for almost 15 years. After the Great Recession, I decided the investing game was becoming more and more rigged to favor the big players. So, I drastically scaled my trading back. To fill the void of mental stimulation that investing gave me, I looked for something equally challenging and basically fell into writing. My wife said, “You should try writing,” and I figured, “Why not?” Sixteen years, four published books and two published short stories later, here I am.
I chose self-publishing mainly because of my age and my overall writing goals. I was 60 when I published my first book. I figured if I tried to secure a traditional publishing deal, I might die before that happened, especially in the 2010s when the number of authors and books published went parabolic.
I didn’t want writing to be a 9 to 5 job. I wanted complete control of my work. And I wanted the potential to earn more money than I thought I could by going the traditional route. Finally, because I donate some of my book sale income to a local charity, I wanted to donate to them as soon as possible.
I’m less of a “pantser” and more of a “plotter” as I write each book. I don’t feel like I’m one of those writers who seems divinely inspired and just start writing a developed story with their first draft. I’m more of a craftsman than an artist. I need to know where I’m going and how I plan to get there. I’m a big believer in story structure, so it’s important for me to have my key plot points, pinch points, hook, and inciting incident figured out and in place before I start.
Decide what you want from your writing career as early as possible. Writing simply to publish for your own satisfaction vs. writing to sell books and make a living are quite different career paths. There’s a lot of satisfaction in holding a copy of your finished book, but convincing others to read it is expensive, time consuming, and requires a different skillset than writing.
After that, writing a book is a craft that needs to be learned. Write constantly, revise, and self- edit. Over and over. Develop a thick skin because you’ll be told “no” a lot and you’ll need to accept constructive criticism with a positive attitude.
Don’t try to make a living off your first and only book and pay for advertising, reviews, contests, and other marketing tactics because your results will disappoint you. Publish at least three truly excellent books before you spend money on marketing in a big way. The key to steady income from sales is getting people to try your first book, like it, and then buy the second, third, etc., automatically without you needing to persuade them to buy each book.
Finally, take your writing seriously—write the best books you can—but don’t take yourself seriously as an author. Have fun at it and enjoy the process and the connections and interactions with other authors and readers. That’s where most of the reward comes from.
