Writing is a mysterious business. It’s a lot of smoke and mirrors; living with imaginary people, crazy google searches and staying in my head a lot. My imaginary friends talk loudly to me sometimes and too quietly for me to hear at others. Sometimes they fight me. I’ll want them react a certain way, and they won’t! My fingers take on a mind of their own and write the characters story without my input!
But there’s other parts of this industry which people find mysterious.
So imagine everyone’s surprise when I say I have deadlines.
‘Really? I thought you’d just write and when the mood took you?’
‘Nope, not possible.’ Publishing is a business and publishers must know what books they are to be publishing, at what time of the year. Their budgets need to be set, editors booked, strategic marketing campaigns organised, publicity and so on. Publishing isn’t about authors flicking off their manuscripts whenever they feel like it and them being published.
Another surprise is when I tell people I don’t base my characters on people I know.
‘How do you make them up then?’
‘I have a very good imagination! And if you think you can see yourself in any of my characters, then I’ve done my job well. I’ve created someone who could very likely be real.’
If anyone is using my computer I suggested they don’t look in the google search history. If they did, I suspect they might feel uncomfortable staying the night at my place because I know how to get rid of bodies, burn off finger prints and tie a hangman’s knot!
And did you know everything I do, is a tax deduction? Books I buy, holidays. so on and so on. I took my daughter on a wine tour for her 21st and then wrote about a wine tour in once of my books, so I claimed my ticket because it was research!
Have you got anything you’d really like to know about publishing – the process of writing, editing and beyond? If so, ask away. I’ll do my best to answer it. But I’ll be posting little snippets about the writing life here over the next few weeks.
