if I quit I'll be a slowlaner forever

[safia]

Hello,

Today I lose enthousiasm and faith.
I've been working hard on my novel, a drama story, and under the cruel and hard light of the truth I realise it is unsaleable. It's s**t written on a paper, no more than that.
My so-called great story who should skyrocket is nothing at all.
There is a crazy story line, not very realitistic
My lead character has no goals !
she's broken and despaired at the begining and still is at the end....so no evolution
The love story is too much *I love then I hate you * wich is boring (one step ahead, one step back dont do much to climb the staircaise)

This book is so full of flaws, I don't know how to fix it.

Of course there are great scenes, lot of emotion, and we travel from rio to nyc and indian reserves which is funny but this is not enough.

So here am I, ready to quit after only one week on working in it....one week : 7 days !!!! and not full time. Yes you can kick my a$$.

Maybe you know what I'm going through, specially if you write books. There are doubts and despair. And a thought : If it takes me years to write a good and saleable story, what's the point ?

MJ said we have to choose our battles. He is right. Right now I wonder. Am I in the right battlefield with this book ? dunno.
All I do know is I can't move on and write something else. This is this one or nothing at all.
Fastlane a day perhaps or slowlaner till I die.

Don't misunderstand me, I'am not here to complain. This forum is not for complainers I just wanted to share my feelings and make a statement : Not every one is a winner after all .

But if I turn my back to my dream and go back to my previous life, I lose the right to come here and be part of this community. That's sucks. You are so full of willpower and talent, and of success. You're obviously above of the masses and I want to be there too.

So here is what I'am gonna do : I'll until I fell, K.O, or I set a plan to give the readers a story that worth their monney.

The battle isn't completly over....

 

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[BlokeInProgress]

The battle isn't completly over....

As you said safia, it ain't completely over...try reading posts from different successful people in this forum and see how much struggle, challenges and blows they took but didn't quit!

EDIT - but they do know when to change an idea.

Get bruised, get punched, get knocked down - at least you're in the game, not a spectator in the sidelines. When you get knocked down, stay in the floor for a while and pickup something, some ppl are so eager get up as fast as they can they miss little lessons in life.

 

[joanna]

If writing is something you want to do - keep writing. Some people publish their first efforts, others put them in the drawer and treat as a writing exercise to maybe come back later once they honed their skill to rescue the original essence of the story.

Overnight success rarely happens. And also hating your book is quite common, most authors experience this - including best-sellers. Learning to write and push through this phase is something you will need to learn, whether it's this book or the tenth in a row that's going to be sell-able.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

You don't become an NBA basketball player overnight.

Crafts require honing.

Practice.

Sacrifice.

I write everyday, compliments of the forum. If you want to be good at something, you have to commit to being good at it. Making 1 try and giving up isn't going to cut it. There's that old saying ... you need to work at something at least 10,000 hours to be at the top level of your game. Whatever the actual hour number is, I'm sure 40 hours of effort isn't in the realm of greatness.

While I'm not saying "give up", I am saying that anything worthwhile will require a worthwhile effort. To expect great results to come easy is frankly why people quit too often, and too fast.

I could say the same lecture above about learning how to code, or designing a website. Yes, your first version will suck. However, after several months of diligent, focused effort, the 1st iteration vs the 300th iteration will be light years beyond.

Once again like everything in life, it comes down to processes versus events.

Would 1 week in the gym change anything about your health and physique??

Probably not.

 

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[Maven]

Aspiring novel author isn't a business model. You're trying to enter the fastlane through a field that gives you less than 1% chance at success. If you truly want the fastlane put the book back on the shelf for now and start a business.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

This book is so full of flaws, I don't know how to fix it.

You know what you want to change, so that is a great first step.

@joanna said, ~ If you want to be a writer, then write
@MJ DeMarco said, ~ Practice. Sacrifice.

So, ask yourself... do you want to be a writer?
If the answer is yes, then ask... are you willing to practice and sacrifice?

Then remember the wise words of @Held for Ransom ~ Writers Write.

Maybe you put it aside and work on the next thing. You can always come back to it.
Just. Keep. Writing.
This will cause you to Keep. Improving.

(and, yes, I do believe many writers feel this way from time to time)

 

[AroundTheWorld]

Aspiring novel author isn't a business model. You're trying to enter the fastlane through a field that gives you less than 1% chance at success. If you truly want the fastlane put the book back on the shelf for now and start a business.

@Maven ~ Read a few of the success stories in this sub forum, then come back here.
It's okay - we are kind. We will let you modify your statement

 

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[Maven]

The odds of writing a "NY Times Bestseller" are 1 in 220.

The average book sells less than 500 copies.

Good Luck!

 

[AroundTheWorld]

The Scholar and a Zen Master.

The Scholar had an extensive background in Buddhist Studies and was an expert on the Nirvana Sutra. He came to study with the master and after making the customary bows, asked her to teach him Zen. Then, he began to talk about his extensive doctrinal background and rambled on and on about the many sutras he had studied.

The master listened patiently and then began to make tea. When it was ready, she poured the tea into the scholar's cup until it began to overflow and run all over the floor. The scholar saw what was happening and shouted, "Stop, stop! The cup is full; you can't get anymore in."

The master stopped pouring and said: "You are like this cup; you are full of ideas about Buddha's Way. You come and ask for teaching, but your cup is full; I can't put anything in. Before I can teach you, you'll have to empty your cup."

(copied from: http://www.prairiewindzen.org/emptying_your_cup.html)

 

[soonrich]

I would give some motivation but everyone else has done a pretty good job so heres some advise. If you are writing the novels to make money and not as a passion project i would suggest you map out your outline of the novel, send it to a ghostwriter to bring your ideas to life, then go through what they have created and improve/ add to what they have created, learn creative ways to market the book. It does not have to be the best book in the world, you just need to know how to sell it.

What @MJ DeMarco is also very relevant. If you want to be a writer then you have to perfect your craft, i HATE writing (ironic considering i publish books) but i am making an effort to learn/practise copywriting as i know it is a skill that will help me in the long run.

 

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[D11FYY]

I think everyone else has mostly covered everything that you have to do.
Just even reach out to those close to you ask them to have a short read. Ask their opinions, ask them what ideas they have, where could they see this story going, etc etc.

Just because you have a bit of mind-fog just now doesn't mean that this project is be-all-and-end-of.
Stick at it for just a little while longer.

 

[MisterBHZ]

Aspiring novel author isn't a business model. You're trying to enter the fastlane through a field that gives you less than 1% chance at success. If you truly want the fastlane put the book back on the shelf for now and start a business.

If you are just throwing something out there and expecting it to do something on its own then yeah there won't be much success. The fire isn't going to start itself...it has to be sparked. You do that with advertising.

 

[soonrich]

@MisterBHZ What do you mean when you say advertising, advertising a new business? If yes what methods do you recommend, i am starting a new online business but don't want to waste months on SEO alone. What type of advertising do you recommend if any?

 

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[MorgothBauglir]

Welcome to the creative process. Self doubt, shame, disgust, it's got it all.

You're allowed to fail though, it's your first novel. Just make the second one better. Then the third better than that.

You expected Hemingway quality after seven days?

 

[MisterBHZ]

@MisterBHZ What do you mean when you say advertising, advertising a new business? If yes what methods do you recommend, i am starting a new online business but don't want to waste months on SEO alone. What type of advertising do you recommend if any?

With any new business, you can't just throw it out there and expect it to catch fire on its own. Sure there are some exceptions but we're going to assume there are no exceptions. People can't buy what they don't know exists so you have to let people know you exist by advertising. Word of mouth can't begin until people know about you.

You could try some google ads, Facebook ads, street promo and marketing, radio ads, affiliate marketing, etc. I'd suggest that you do your due diligence on all types of advertising before you get started to see what may work best for you.

 

[Dave C]

This book is so full of flaws, I don't know how to fix it.

Of course there are great scenes, lot of emotion, and we travel from rio to nyc and indian reserves which is funny but this is not enough.

So here am I, ready to quit after only one week on working in it....one week : 7 days !!!! and not full time. Yes you can kick my a$$.

Maybe you know what I'm going through, specially if you write books. There are doubts and despair. And a thought : If it takes me years to write a good and saleable story, what's the point ?

The point is a skill set that can let you print money. Like a copywriter that gets paid to sell a product, it takes years and years to be one of the best copywriters but once you get there you can write for anyone, including yourself and make so much.

Also, just grab a cover, throw that book on Amazon and forget about it. If it sells great, if it's a turd then so be it.

The hardest step is realising your position. The next hardest step is being able to adapt your strategy, i.e. make this one book sell and start another strategy, writing like the quality of your life depends on it. Who knows, It just might.

 

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[COSenior]

@Maven ~ Read a few of the success stories in this sub forum, then come back here.
It's okay - we are kind. We will let you modify your statement

YOU are kind. I was just going to say BS. I have little tolerance for people who display ignorance in the middle of so much available knowledge.

 

[COSenior]

This book is so full of flaws, I don't know how to fix it.

As others have said, this is a common thought/feeling among authors, even successful ones. A bit of practical advice I can give you is find a trusted reader, whether a stranger from Goodreads who offers to beta read or a sympathetic friend. Maybe this first time, you need a sounding board. Study your genre, read the top ten books in it, read books that have held their popularity for a while, figure out why they work. Then do as @DaveC suggested and publish it. Write another, publish it. Write and publish until you begin to feel competent and then change your pen name and start publishing what you're proud of. It's a process, and it definitely takes longer than a week.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

YOU are kind. I was just going to say BS. I have little tolerance for people who display ignorance in the middle of so much available knowledge.

Yea well, I had to dig deep to continue to find kindness after this individual:

Read My Post.
STILL didn't go read success stories.
STILL posted an argumentative statement.

UGH.

 

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[COSenior]

Yea well, I had to dig deep to continue to find kindness after this individual:

Read My Post.
STILL didn't go read success stories.
STILL posted an argumentative statement.

UGH.

I particularly like (sarcasm) the people who step into the forum and start spouting that of which they know nothing within a few days or even hours. Your story about the Scholar and the Zen master was so on point!

 

[AroundTheWorld]

And, Maven disappeared from the thread. We are all left wondering if he/she? made the connection

 

[safia]

This sory took me a couple of years writing and rewriting. Now i read it with a more critical and a more professional eye since i read a lot of books.
I am not quitting my battlefield. Still in, still working on it. I'll improve it, sell it in french and have it translated in english.
People deserve a good stroy well written and i will do my best to give that. I am not looking for a best written title but a good seller one and i will have it or try and fell with proud.

 

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[fastattack03]

I am not quitting my battlefield. Still in, still working on it. I'll improve it, sell it in french and have it translated in english.

That's the spirit!

Pain is temporary. Keep on going because at the end of pain is SUCCESS. Use pain as your vitamin. Use it for your motivation. Every successful person experienced pain in the process. SO when you experience pain, you are on the right track.

 

[AubreyRose]

The odds of writing a "NY Times Bestseller" are 1 in 220.

LOL, If the odds were that good at hitting the NYT, everybody would be writing books.