A
Newbie’s Journey into Self-Publishing
Author
Martin Rouillard opens about his journey into self-publishing his debut novel,
Rise of the Red Dragon.
Writing a book is like
embarking on a great adventure. There is a lot of adversity, followed by
moments of absolute joy. There are tearful nights and mornings of inspirational
bliss (usually accompanied by lots and lot of coffee)! However, if you lived
through it and reach your goal, the reward will be unlike any other, and you
will learn a great deal about yourself along the way.
Here are some of the things
I learned about myself when I wrote my debut novel, Rise of the Red
Dragon.
Patience. When
I first set out to write a book, I had a plan. I had an idea, a plot, an
ending, and a few characters. My head was packed with obstacles for my lead and
many possible solutions. I had thought: this is going to be easy. I’ll be done
in no time. However, I quickly learned it is not that simple Picturing your
story in your head is one thing, writing 350 pages with it is a totally
different ballgame. Suddenly, you realize a dialogue you had in your head was
actually only two sentences. It won’t be enough. Suddenly, you also realize
that the obstacles you cleverly devised cannot magically appear on the road to
your dramatic conclusion. You need some back story and a buildup. Suddenly, you
realize you did not have a book at all in your head, but merely an idea.
Writing a book is almost
like taming a wild horse, I imagine. Your mind wants to go fast and run in
every direction. You have to be patient and keep it in check. Of course, you
look forward to writing that page where you reveal who the killer is, but you
need the first 300 pages before you can get there. You have to take your time
with the details and the small things. You need to build your characters so the
reader can relate to them. You need to set up the mystery slowly, delicately
and consistently. All these things take time. It’s like building a house. We
all love the part where we pick the furniture and the décor, but first, we need
to dig a hole and work with concrete, wood, and drywalls.
I Was Not a Very Skilled
Writer. You read that correctly. The second thing I learned when I
wrote my novel, Rise of the Red Dragon, was that I was not
particularly good at it, initially anyway. After I realized I had to develop my
idea into a full book, I panicked. This was not what I had in mind. I had no
clue about developing a plot and breathing life in my characters. Show me DON’T
tell me?! What does THAT even mean?! HELP!
Admitting I was not good at
something I genuinely wanted to do was hard. I don’t think I was horrible. I
just did not think I was good enough. So I read every book about writing I
could find. I joined an author’s group and asked many questions, followed all
the discussions and learned a great deal from other’s experience. I searched the
web for articles and guides, anything to teach me what I needed to know. Even
after I finally wrote the book, I hired a professional editor to look at it. He
cut 15% of my novel. It was a hard pill to swallow. Nonetheless, I would do it
all again, especially since I am French-Canadian and my English is not as good
as I thought it was (another thing I learned about myself)!
The result was a book that
I am truly proud of. The story flows beautifully, the dialogue between the
characters is intriguing and the characters are tremendously likeable. A year
ago, I would not have been able to do all this. I had to admit I was not as
good as I thought I was to succeed. I had to learn the craft and realize I
would probably continue to learn how to hone the craft throughout my life.
There is Nothing Like
Publishing a Book. That is a powerful statement to make. Obviously,
I haven’t done everything there is to do on this rock of ours. However, I’m
pretty sure publishing a book is somewhere at the top of the list of rewarding
things to do. After the countless hours you pour into a project like this,
after all the research, the rewrites and editing, to finally publish what is a
part of you is both magical and exciting. You essentially open the curtains on
your imagination and declare: “See here, this is what’s in my head. What do you
think?”
If you have taken the time
to get it right, to tidy up the place if you wish, then people will come in and
enjoy their time with you. What’s more, if they genuinely like what you have
done, they will take the time to let you know how you touched or moved them.
They will let the world know how much they appreciate the effort you put forth
and that, my friends, is the greatest reward of all.
About the Author: Martin Rouillard is an entrepreneur and writer. His short stories have consistently been among the most downloaded at online retailers. Rise of the Red Dragon, Tome 1 of the Tales of the Lorekeepers series, is his first novel. Martin's interests include travel and mythology. He lives in Boischatel, Quebec.
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