THE Group for Authors! discussion

I've been digging around, and not really finding any answers on this.

I see many people posting their writing here, whether excerpts or full works, chapter by chapter, as it is written.

I have some thoughts about doing crowdfunding, and would appreciate any advice given, before I decide on exactly how to proceed (beyond just continuing to write, naturally.)

My main questions are:

1. If I post my writing here, how - if at all - does it affect me in any legal or copyright way?

2. If I post my writing here, would it affect me were I to try for a crowdfunding project for the book? I'm thinking maybe inkshares, maybe indiegogo. Just something to generate a bit of interest in, and, potentially, income from my writing. The crowdfunding I want to do is both for the novel, and potentially for RPG supplements for the world the book is set in. Most of my writing centers on the world I've been running my games in for years, and I have some 20k words on the 'campaign setting' and then about 42k words on the first novel, then maybe 5k or so words in short story setups or the start of another series of novels.

3. Have authors who have posted their work here been able to go on and publish that work, either on their own, or through traditional methods?

Again, any advice appreciated.

Many people on here are self-published, we do what we can with limited resources.
Apart from buying a professionally made cover, which can be a premade for around $45, you can get your book betaread by posting on the appropriate group. You don't need 'cloudfunding'. Do the writing, make it the best it can be and publish it yourself. If it's good enough, you might sell some copies.
Fact: most indies don't sell a dozen copies of their book and most of those are from relatives. Be realistic, treat it as a hobby, not a livelihood, and one day, you may be one of the lucky ones who makes a living from your hobby. But don't hold you breath.
I'm not being pessimistic, just realistic.

Good advice, Emma. Thank you.

At the same time, I've seen amateur authors selling their books on Amazon and making six figures. I'm not saying that is what will happen for me, but, well, that's the dream, right?

I've also seen Kickstarter or IndieGoGo campaigns that generate a lot of money, for fictional books and worlds, for travel memoirs, for children's books. Some from established authors, others from first-time authors.

I've kind of come to the realization that I will never make it with "yet another job." Lost too many due to no fault of my own, and am literally circling the drain here right now. This is not, will not, be my one and only plan or anything. A risk of putting the work in and hopefully getting something out of it.

But I think I have a pretty good idea and plan; naturally others will be the ultimate judge of that. Finish the first novel; if it gains traction (whether in sales, or as a crowdfunding project), expand out and publish other materials in the setting. Much like the worlds of George R.R. Martin or countless others, most of what I have planned shares this one world and setting. Worldbuilding; I eat that stuff up, as do many others.

So I'd like to focus not on 'whether this will work' so much as 'how does it / could it work' so far as collaborating between Goodreads and other sources. Be it traditional publishing, or crowdfunding, or outright self-publishing.

That is kind of one of the reasons Inkshares caught my eye. It seems to be something between the traditional method and the internet self-publishing / independent route.

I'm trying to ensure I... go about things in the right order. I don't want to make a decision with limited information and find out later that was the wrong decision.

I'll humbly apologise if you are the next R R Martin, J K Rowling or E L James, but there are a million hopeful authors on amazon, all with the same goal and faith in themselves. Even with fantastic world building, most don't make enough to buy a posh coffee once a week. Marketing, not writing, is what most of us fall down on.
If money is your aim, you'd be better off finding ways to successfully promote other people's work. There are a lot of desperate authors out there, think about ways to exploit us if business is your thing, rather than join our 'starving artist' ranks.
I'll be first in the queue for your services.

Again, I realize all of that and appreciate the advice, I do.

My questions are more... about how to do things 'right.'

Let's say I opt for the traditional publishing route; if I post any of my work here, would that damage my chances of being published?

I fully realize the odds here. Depressingly so. It is one of the primary sources of my writer's block when it happens - "Why am I wasting my time on this, it will never work."

And yes; I'm looking to cheat. Because I'm tired of being cheated. :D

Josh wrote: "Let's say I opt for the traditional publishing route; if I post any of my work here, would that damage my chances of being published?"

The answer is it depends. Some agents and publishers consider posting your work online to use your first rights. Now first rights are very important if you want to try the trad route, so *potentially* you will close some doors by publicly posting your work. On the other hand, some agents and publishers don't care if you have a big enough following. For example there are a number of success stories emerging from Wattpad, with books with millions of reads are being offered publishing contracts.

Whatever route you ultimately take (trad publishing or self publishing) both require an enormous amount of work. Yes you can succeed. Yes you can make a good living from writing but it takes WORK - which seems to be a 4-lettered word to some authors who expect it to be easy...

I don't expect it to be easy, and it has not been. As this is my first work, it has been trial and error and trial again, write and review and re-write and edit, since 2012 now.

And that puts me at only 42,000 words, maybe 14,000 of which are "done" and possibly ready to submit for any review or editing or proofreading. Probably 200 hours of work thus far, half of that researching, ensuring I include those little details that make it all come to life, make it all make sense and not be essentially fan-fiction or schlock.

Naturally, Goal #1 is to finish the first novel.

Josh wrote: "And that puts me at only 42,000 words..."

If you're only written 42k since 2012 (which is about half a novel, given 80k is the average, or only a third if you're writing fantasy where 120k is standard) then you would be better to consider the trad route. To make traction self publishing you need a catalogue, which means releasing a couple of novels a year. Trad publishing is much more forgiving of slow writing speeds.

Also keep in mind that first novels are seldom of publication standard. Most writers have drawers full of their early novels that will never see the light of day, as those first few attempts are used to hone the craft and learn about characterisation, plot, and pacing.

Keep writing. You might find its book 3, 6 or 12 that is good enough to be published.

Well, the bulk of those 42,000 words were written in about 6 weeks while unemployed and job hunting. Then the project was shelved other than sporadic periods; partly due to "thinking it was a waste of time" and partly just due to other priorities and problems.

The last month - again, unemployed and jobhunting - I've re-written those 14,000 words, the first 3-ish chapters, with about 6,000 words of new writing after cutting out about 3,500 that were useless text or needed more impact or whatever.

I'm aiming for 100,000 words or so, and feel that if I continue current pace, that can be ready to send to a proofreader or editor in maybe 6-ish months. If I go that route. And I am fully aware this will not be my best or even necessarily a "good" book, but it sets the scene for the later events and stories. I have enough plot and ideas for 2 books in this cycle, and then more that occurs later in the timeline of the world.

So, brass tacks. Would you recommend I do as others have here, and post this first work chapter by chapter as I write it? Any odds on that helping vs. hurting me?

Josh wrote: "So, brass tacks. Would you recommend I do as others have here, and post this first work chapter by chapter as I write it? Any odds on that helping vs. hurting me? "

As I already said - it depends. Some agents/publishers consider loss of first rights a deal breaker. You're the only one who knows if you want to take the chance or err on the side of caution and not post your work on a public forum. Another alternative is to join one of the many password protected critique sites (like critique circle) if you specifically want feedback.

Alright; thank you, I do very much appreciate it. Had not heard of critique circle and will look into that. I have an english major friend who helps me here and there, but I don't want to rely on that overmuch, and know that friends don't always give you the blunt honesty you might need to hear.

I guess one last angle on this: Creative control. I have heard, and don't know the truth of this, that some publishers will just... edit your work as they see fit. With little or no consultation with the author. I suppose that is one other thing attracting me to self-publish or crowdfund. That and my desire to publish supplemental stuff tied to the setting later on; RPG supplements, short stories, artwork compendiums, etc.

No. I wouldn't consider publishing it chapter by chapter. If you give it away then a trad publisher may refuse it on those grounds and potential readers won't want to pay for something that was given away. If you self publish, it would also stop you from using kindle select which means no Prime or Kindle Unlimited income.
Many writers link their blog to Goodreads which allows people to sample your writing style. This is primarily a social network and many writers focus on that social aspect to build a following.

Yeah, no blog yet and honestly not sure what I'd put up on one. Most of my effort is focused on the writing itself, right now. Nor am I terribly good at the whole social media thing in general, though I have ideas on how to leverage such, eventually.

That, again, is a question or quandary - to me - of 'order of events.' I sincerely believe, right or wrong, that I have nothing of interest to say about writing until this first book is done and I'm looking toward the next project.

I also find it hard to switch gears. I've gotten a lot of advice about writing various pieces as the mood or the inspiration for a scene or story hits me. But my mind works very linearly; one thing, one story, one project at a time. Start to finish. That is a skill I'll hopefully gain over time, as my confidence in my writing builds.