What they don’t tell you about publishing.
It’s lonely.
It can be a great lift.
Or it could be a big let down.
Everyone has an opinion on how your book should have been written.
And some of them with refuse to talk to you when you don’t write it their way.
I haven’t been blogging much. Not because I don’t like you guys any more. Not because I’m being antisocial. But because I’ve been working so hard that I have pretty much run out of words.
Now Moonstone is out.
It’s done, at the sacrifice of my emotional well-being.
My friends are ditching me left and right for various reasons, and I just want to curl up into a hole and never come back out again.
Yeah, I know, this sounds pretty bleak.
But I guess I just realized that I have some words left over, and when I turned around to say them, I found out there were crickets chirping in the background.
So here’s my rant, my plea, my . . . whatever . . .
So . . . if you’re still planning to write that book, just keep in mind . . . well, THIS is why vanGogh shot himself.
Not that I have any intentions mind you. But I do understand how he felt.
Hugs. My friends don’t talk about my writing and I’ve decided that it’s their choice. Some friends even stopped talking to me, which is really their loss. I wouldn’t take it to heart.
LikeLike
Thanks, Charles. Hopefully I’ll feel better next week.
LikeLike
Hey ((hugs)). I think you need that. Wish I could do more but all I can say is don’t let these things diminish your accomplishment in getting published. 🙂
LikeLike
I think part of the problem is that my heroine in this book was severely abused. It was VERY hard to write, and now I’m feeling the effects of that, as if I was in her skin. I was completely unprepared for this “method writing’ thing.
LikeLike
Man, do I know how you feel. It is a feeling everyone gets after completing a difficult project. I remember when I finished my masters there was a void which I couldn’t explain. I invented a title for it . . .PPDS. (Post Project Depression syndrome) Coupled with JFR (Jealous Friends Reaction) can be disturbing. My cure . . . keep writing and f*ck ’em if they can’t take success. Hug to you.
LikeLike
LOL. Thanks, John. I’m glad to hear someone has had the same experience, AND survived it. Hugs back to you!
LikeLike
Thanks for being so honest. I was kind of more afraid the opposite might happen when you publish a book (everyone wants to be your friend). But I suppose when you say something that people might not like, there are consequences. I can see that potential if some atheist/agnostics read my story. Thanks for the heads up!
LikeLike
Maybe not everyone will have the same experience. But it has been mine. It wasn’t at all what I’d expected either. Kinda shocking, really. I’m a Creationist, and I believe in God. And while I don’t write about it a lot in my fiction, it comes out ‘between’ the lines.
LikeLike
Just keep writing. It’s amazing how these things have a way of working themselves out. Also, writing means you put a big part of yourself out into the world. There’s BOUND to be some kind of crazy let down once that pressure lets down.
LikeLike
You bet there is! Thanks, Katie. Maybe these posts will help one of my fellow sensitive-artist-types out there.
LikeLike
PPDS…Post Project Depression Syndrome is a great name for it. It happened badly after my dissertation, and is still happens after every project. It’s why I try to schedule vacation immediately after VBS if I’m in charge of it. Get sleep, exercise, eat well, and things will look up!
LikeLike
Thanks for the advice . . . pcwolfe… 🙂
LikeLike
You could always take a drive south to visit me. Coffee and chocolate provided. Hugs!
LikeLike
That would be awesome!
LikeLike