Here we go!

Most of us assume writing a novel is the hard part. And it IS hard. My go-to metaphor is a house of cards, that feeling that everything could collapse at any moment from one of thousand thin premises, improbabilities, and glaringly (after the fact) inauthentic details. On top of that, if you're a pantser, er, I mean, a discovery writer, you don't exactly know where things are headed until you get there.

My current status as of July 2023 is: finished novel. I have a few Critique Circle friends doing beta reads to check the newest revision and hone a few last additions. Although I started looking into publishing tips a year or two before that, I retreated back into the safer world of revising. My novel needed more revising, so it wasn't wasted time, but one could revise forever. That is one of the traps I'm trying to avoid.

The first thing I did and the first thing I'd recommend for anyone who feels nauseous at the words "marketing" or "social media" or "writer's platform," is to find a reputable online course or webinar on the topic. The one I attended was through Jane Friedman's site, cost $25, and was taught by Catherine Baab-Muguira.

Since that course, at the end of July, I have made a website (this one), joined Instagram specifically to follow and reach out to writers, and started writing reviews on Goodreads. I would have done none of those things on my own, and I have several more items to tackle on my list. In the Writing Journey portion of the blog, I will break down some of the tasks I've done and take you with me as I start some others. Here's to not taking ourselves too seriously while seriously trying to get published.

Welcome aboard!