'Tis done

The Nano book is done. My challenge is complete and not without angst, girly hair pulling and swear words. It is 120k of first draft; some of good writing, some of it bad writing and some of it mediocre. No doubt it has plot holes you could drive a truck through, but no book ever written is a total loss. Re-written, yes, great gobs of it thrown out, but not a total loss.

If the idea is sound, it can be worked into a book; if the idea is unsound it won't progress no matter how much you try.

That should give hope to all those who want to write, who need to write. Those first few attempts, while exciting at the outset may not have had a workable idea, and so failed. Of course, motivation may have flagged into non-existence, too, thus scuppering the writer in his/her tracks.

What happens, though, if the idea is sound? For the writer, the idea won't go away, no matter how much your try. For those wannabes, the idea drifts into obscurity, never to be thought of again.

I know I've had some brilliant ideas, but didn't have the motivation to write them down. That is my loss, for they went away in a fit of pique into the universal pool of muses to sulk.

Now if I get an idea, I write one sentence down on anything I can find. The muse has a sense of humour and is continually testing my patience.

Every creative person has a muse who whispers in their ear. Some may not hear it, but others do. And not every creative person achieves public success. The private thrill of having a book written in enough.

This is my tenth book, but none have yet made it to publication. It's a tough world out there, with thousands of books being printed each year. Worse, trying to get noticed is like being one rice bubble in a bowl of many.

No matter how crackly you are with the milk of inspiration, you're still one of many other cracklies. (Huh. Strange analogy that. But it shows my point adequately, I think.)

Luck plays a big part, but so does professionalism. No fanciness with your manuscript, no diatribes on how wonderful the book is, no threats. Be professional, adhere to the submission guidelines. Make sure you find out everything you can about the publishing company you want to publish your work. Make sure it's the right one. Then cross your fingers.

Never stop writing. One book is fine, but publishers like to know they can rely on you for more work.

That's my next job: to get this manuscript, or another one I'm thinking of, ready to submit. It will take a while, but that's okay. Next year looms large, for it is the to get my work out there. Short stories, longer stories, books - out there in the world at large. I have enough of a back list to work with and more ideas.

Hopefully, 2006 will see me in print, not just excerpts on various sites.

Now, though, I have another book to write while NaNo is still on. That inner athlete won't quit and while she doesn't, neither will I.