Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion

I like to listen to music that doesn't require my attention, so nothing with lyrics usually. I say usually because Melody Bardot is my exception. The rest of the time I listen to classical, space ambient, soundtrack that suits the mood of the chapter I'm writing or bluegrass, maybe bagpipes, maybe even Gregorian chant. As I said, it depends on the book I'm writing (domestic terrorism thriller vs. speculative fiction vs. romance)
My novel was such crap! (laughs) I didn't know enough to not tackle a novel first. In hindsight, short stories would have been better to learn my craft and hone my skills. But I did it all backwards.
The important thing is that we writers always seek to improve, and to learn, and to strive to make each chapter, each story better than the one before it.

L.C. wrote: "How long does it take everyone to write a book? If you're writing a series, which one of the books ends up taking the longest? For me, the final book of my trilogy is taking the longest. Just curio..."

I usually write a book a year, but my recently-completed WIP, "Grog Wars, Dos", took 18 months. It is now in the hands of volunteer advance-reviewers (friends and fans) for their feedback and then I will shop for representation or a publisher. I don't feel too bad that this one took a little longer to write--I did have 3 back surgeries during that 18 months, and it did slow me down.

L.C. wrote: "How long does it take everyone to write a book? If you're writing a series, which one of the books ends up taking the longest? For me, the final book of my trilogy is taking the longest. Just curio..."

Sometimes the first draft of a book can be very quick to write - but that don't mean the book is finished. It's often good to leave the first draft aside for a while then go back to it. My quickest first draft. About three months. Was actually one of the longest writes. Nearly two years.

It's a bit of a how long is a piece of string question.

L.C. wrote: "How long does it take everyone to write a book? If you're writing a series, which one of the books ends up taking the longest? For me, the final book of my trilogy is taking the longest. Just curio..."

Hi L.C.

I work full time. I get up at 6 a.m. and usually don't get to sit down to write (dinner, math homework, laundry, math homework) until after 7 p.m. My first PUBLISHED book, Lord Bachelor, is a single title and it took a little over a year to write. My latest book, In Mistletoe, a holiday romance due out December 2, 2016, took me over five years to write.

I did go to a Writer's Conference where an author said she was a single empty-nester who never cleaned her house. I think she had over 50 books she'd written. Honestly, I think it all depends on how much time you have and how many sane moments you can devote to writing.

Good luck and keep writing, no matter how long it takes.

It took me 14 years to complete my book. I did publish in 2004 and 2012 however I was never happy with the end result.
I think there`s always room for improvement and your book should be viewed like a rough diamond that needs polishing till it shines.

It took me 14 months of writing, proofreading, having my 4 adult children proofread and offer suggestions, rewriting and polishing to produce a completed manuscript. An additional 2 months were spent working with and learning from a copy editor, conceptual editor and layout design artist, to convert the manuscript into a commercially viable book. It was released August 9, 2011.

Writing a novel and having it published proved to be an enjoyable, interesting and fascinating endeavor. That first novel will probably also be the last. There are just to many other interesting and fascinating endeavors I wish to enjoy.

It takes me a LOT longer since Facebook became a distraction.

My first book, Operatio Werwolf was about six years.
I've written two in a month each, that was with NanoWrimo.
But on average about two years I would say.
Then there's the editing, cover design and marketing...

Whenever you guys are brainstorming for ideas for a new book, do you ever get an idea but then it disappears really quickly?

Does it ever happen that you get a idea for a great major twist in the book but its been too late as the book is already published?

Ƙανу Jαcкѕση Ƒυℓℓвυѕтєя~Only know you've been high when you're feeling low Only hate the road when you're missing home~ wrote: "Whenever you guys are brainstorming for ideas for a new book, do you ever get an idea but then it disappears really quickly?"
I'll forget pretty much anything I don't write down. I'm learning the benefits of a smart phone--I can make notes anywhere!

Sushant wrote: "Does it ever happen that you get a idea for a great major twist in the book but its been too late as the book is already published?"

Nothing that extreme, but I have had thoughts about things I'd like to change in published books. You have to shrug that off--and either tuck the idea away for future reference, or learn from the mistake it would have corrected, and do better next time.

For the question of how long to write my first novel...maybe 10 years to draft, 5 more in revisions before I stopped trying to sell it and moved on to the next book. During that time I got a PhD and had 2 kids, so I might have been a little distracted.

Ƙανу Jαcкѕση Ƒυℓℓвυѕтєя~Only know you've been high when you're feeling low Only hate the road when you're missing home~ wrote: "Whenever you guys are brainstorming for ideas for a new book, do you ever get an idea but then it disappears really quickly?"

Yeah, but it's usually a bad idea. The good and new tend to stick and tickle my brain until I do something with them

L.C. wrote: "How long does it take everyone to write a book? ..."

My first book took about a year to write the rough draft then another year editing etc. but not including several years previous of the the idea percolating away in my mind. The second book has been in a rough draft limbo for months and months, and the third book is in the percolating stage, but I did finally get about two pages of of the third book written out.

I love to write, but I love to do a whole lot of other things too!

Hermione Granger (aka. Kavy Jackson Fullbuster) wrote: "Whenever you guys are brainstorming for ideas for a new book, do you ever get an idea but then it disappears really quickly?"

A spontaneous idea for a unique approach for a post-apocalyptic/speculative novel in which an experiment to create and maintain a near perfect social structure within a world that had nearly self-destructed actually succeeds beyond all expectations did not disappear; however, it did ferment inside my mind for several years before I believed it was worth the time, effort and dedication required to convert it into a polished manuscript.

Hello. I'm not sure if this thread is the right place to say this, but I have a question.
I have a small writing group (about 6 people) and we meet regularly to write together, discuss our books, read our books to each other, help each other etc. Whenever I read parts of my books to the other members they tell me that it's great and to not stop reading.
(Personally, I don't think my writing it THAT good.)
How do I know if my friends are just being nice-- or if my books actually are well written and I should try to publish?
I guess my question is, how many people have to tell me my books are good before I can believe them?

HailSaira wrote: "I guess my question is, how many people have to tell me my books are good before I can believe them? "

7,358 is, I believe, a good number to shoot for. Or, you could just try believing in yourself. You say you don't think your writing is that good. What do you need to work on to make it that good?

HailSaira wrote: "Hello. I'm not sure if this thread is the right place to say this, but I have a question.
I have a small writing group (about 6 people) and we meet regularly to write together, discuss our books, ..."

The simple answer is never ask a family member, friend, neighbour or work colleague to read and review your book. Their review will inevitably be biased.
Rely on what the paying public tell you. If they have spent good money on your book and write a review in general it's an honest review.
Good luck with the writing.
Tom Kane

I think that you need to push your group to be more critical, in order to be more helpful! Ask yourself what you think you need to work on, and maybe ask them some pointed questions about things with which you are not satisfied.

T.L. wrote: "(Answering as a reader first) To me, it is more interesting to hear the author answer questions or talk about what was behind their writing. I read the book to, well - read the book. No offense, bu..."

I guess I started at the beginning of this thread, but even though I think T.L.'s comment is good and something I recently had exposure to. So here goes - back to 2010 - Retro :o)

This has been my experience at Book Club events. I bring everything I can to give the readers a glimpse at the process, They really appreciate a behind the curtain look. :o) Rory

Whether or not an author's writing and story telling skills are good or bad lies in the eyes of the beholder. One reader's "best book ever!" might very well be another reader's "worst book ever!".

As long as an author's technical writing skills - spelling, grammar, punctuation, syntax, etc.- are adequate and narration skill is commercially viable, the only way to obtain honest, unbiased opinions is to submit the work to honest, unbiased people such as established copy and conceptual editors and writers who have themselves achieved some level of success in an extremely competitive field.

Very good. Thank you all for your input. It was helpful.

what do you guys do when you get stuck on a part, while writing? And how long have you guys been into writing? And what was it like for you after you finished writing your first book, and when you published your very first book? How old were you guys when you finished writing your very first book and published it? Do you guys ever set goals and plan when you're going to finish your book? And how do you work through all the distractions?

don't mind all these questions, I'm a future author, and I'm still a new writer, even tho I actually started writing my first book last february but I'm still on the fourth chapter of my first book, and the first chapter of my second book, and I'm planning to publish both of them this year, one of them in the summer, and the other one in the winter

Well, my situation was a little different in that I was literally signed by a small, debut publishing house before I wrote a book. So, keep that in mind as I answer your questions. And I have had a problem in the last few months being stuck due to my sister becoming very ill.

In any case, I have had a problem being stuck (writer's block) before and I don't know what other authors do but because I write "linear" (actually I've only me one other author who does that) it's easier to keep the continuity going in my books. (FYI: there are 2 ways to write linear: vertical in which you start at page 1 and continue down the page until you are stuck or until you run out of time. And horizontally, in which you look at your story and timeline as a horizontal line where your characters are leapfrogging over one another to reach their individual goals.)

When I was young I wrote scenes out of sequence which was one of the reasons I never took my fiction writing seriously. That doesn't help me unless it's a critical point in the story. These days I never do that, having seen the futility of it and the resulting frustration and stagnation in writing.

On to your actual question, lol, I just keep thinking about it, where I left off and where I need it to go. Lately, I've done that when I'm in bed when I have quiet and time to think. Of course, if I am on a deadline for a publisher I get up, get to my computer, and sit down and write. Things work out better that way. I've said this a thousand times before but I am a huge believer in the subconscious being able to work out things I'd never have thought of while awake or even writing. I have to be REALLY stuck before I quit writing for a day, a week, or a month or more.

I've also said that I'm writing that movie that's playing in my head. My characters are doing things, saying things, thinking things and I'm just writing that script down as it happens. Don't force your characters to do something they resist. If you're fighting with them let them win. Many times they know better than you do what comes to them naturally.

I think I was about 53 when I started writing fiction and my first book came out in 2009/2010. That was the moment. Everything I'd worked on with my publisher and cover artist gelled when I held my book in my hands. And my second and third and my newest series.

Goals? Never set them. My only goal is to get that story out there to my publishers and making sure it's cohesive. For me, setting goals is like setting myself up for complete failure. I always let myself and my stories down, so I only think of what MAY happen in the end. Like I said, I'm watching that movie in my head.

Distractions? Since that first book and every one thereafter, I used a corner of my living room with the television blaring and my deaf mother arguing with Fox News as if they could hear HER! I've had to answer harassing phone calls. I've lost complete sentences & paragraphs due to that distraction. You just have to tough it out and FOCUS.

Plus you have to learn discipline. I used to only write after 3:00 p.m. because that was when I felt most awake, but in order to get a book out you have to start as early as you can in the a.m. You have to work at it if you're serious. I used to have two or three stories going on at once but you don't really get anything done. If you want to publish a book you have to finish it first. That one book that is most involving you is the one you should finish.

Re-writing over and over (and over) again is a sign of fear. You're either afraid of finishing it and getting it out there for criticism OR you don't really know what you're doing and because other authors say they've re-written a dozen times you think you need to do the same. Editing is one thing, revision for no concrete reason is something else entirely.

As for when you publish, that is your decision. Whenever you feel a manuscript is completely done is when you feel confident enough to publish it. That's all I can tell you right now. Hope it helps.

And you can't use it in another book? But that's why there are more than one edition I guess...

Sushant wrote: "Does it ever happen that you get a idea for a great major twist in the book but its been too late as the book is already published?"

This question might have been asked before, but where do all of you get your ideas for the books you write?

I know this was a while ago, but I'm responding anyway, because I missed it for some reason.

what do you guys do when you get stuck on a part, while writing? And how long have you guys been into writing? And what was it like for you after you finished writing your first book, and when you published your very first book? How old were you guys when you finished writing your very first book and published it? Do you guys ever set goals and plan when you're going to finish your book? And how do you work through all the distractions?

I'll take a stab at answering some of the questions.
When I get stuck, I may go work on something else, or I may try to outline in more detail, so that I know where I want to go. I very seldom stop entirely.

I've been writing all my life, but I didn't get the hang of writing like it's a job until about 6 years ago. Or maybe less, because I think it was after I published my first book (for the record, since you ask, I was 48. I chose to self-publish, so after the book came out I began to try to learn about marketing (which is backwards, for the record). Publishing my first book came WAY after finishing the first one; I wrote a couple of novellas or very long short stories in high school, and spent from about age 25-35 writing and revising my first full-length novel. I then wrote 2 more unsuccessful books before publishing my 4th attempt (one of those 2 abandoned books I later re-wrote and published).

I used to just beat myself up for not working on the books. Now I do set plans and schedules, so I can beat myself up about not meeting them. Seriously, though, I think that targets are good--but you also have to be realistic.

I'm curious how you did with your goal, because to me January to summer is WAY too short a time to write, revise, and publish even one novel (at least for most people, especially first-time writers). That is especially true if, like many of us, you are bartering for things like editing.

Marie wrote: "This question might have been asked before, but where do all of you get your ideas for the books you write?"

That's an FAQ :)

Ideas come from lots of places. Life, the little things you see and hear every day, stuff you read in the paper, writing prompts. What I find is that the most important thing is to keep writing. The more I write, the most ideas I get for stories and books and whole series of books.

There is no set period of time it takes to write a book. It took Austin Tappan Wright 30 years to write ISLANDIA. It took Tolkien decades to write LORD OF THE RINGS. There is no point in beating yourself up about how long it's taking. You are not baking muffins here. Every author is different.
You also must distinguish between completing the first draft, and getting the thing into its final format. Rewriting is an essential part of the process for nearly everybody. Rare indeed is the author who can write it perfectly the first draft. Gene Wolfe crunches the ms ten times before he feels he's achieved the first draft; then he really gets in there and works on it.
The only exception to this rule is if you've signed a contract, to have the work done by a certain date. If you have done this you will know it, it's not a surprise. And hopefully you will not have signed up for something that is impossible for you to do.

Hello!

I'm probably sure that this was asked many times before:

What made you decide to take up writing; and how serious are you about it?

Bye!
Marcell

Marcell,

The same thing drives me to write a novel as it does to pursue a story I need to cover for NPR. It's when you find an that idea that makes me go "huh?" or "ha!" and just won't let you go... That something that incites incredible curiosity or just relieves all tension in a flood of laughter.

Writing is a very serious thing, but it's also a joyous exploration. It's research and play combined. It's science, craft, and art. It's the ability to get lost in color, texture, composition, and rhythm, but in doing so weave a map that others can follow.

I took up writing because I had questions I needed to answer. I took up writing because I had answers I wanted to communicate. I took up writing because I had questions I needed to ask and wrestle with.

Writing is hard. Storytelling is breath.


Marcell wrote: "Hello!

I'm probably sure that this was asked many times before:

What made you decide to take up writing; and how serious are you about it?

Bye!
Marcell"

Andrew wrote: "Marcell,

The same thing drives me to write a novel as it does to pursue a story I need to cover for NPR. It's when you find an that idea that makes me go "huh?" or "ha!" and just won't let you go...."

Very informative Andrew; thank you for the insight! :)

Anita wrote: "Why are there so few nonfiction writers as compared to fiction?

In a nutshell, it is a great deal harder to write non-fiction as it should be done: with deep and thorough research. Now, I'll admit that there's a fair pile of bad non-fiction out there, no research, no method, and no sense. But to do it right? That's work.

For myself, I write fiction because it's where my ability lies. I like making up stories, and have been doing so all my life. Even if I research a setting, I'm really just making it all up, and that's fun! (and maybe because my main experience with non-fiction is academic prose from graduate school--a form designed to kill any joy in writing, and one that has to be unlearned before you can write readable prose).

deleted user wrote: "Hello!

I'm probably sure that this was asked many times before:

What made you decide to take up writing; and how serious are you about it?

Bye!
Marcell"

It would be hard to better Andrew's answer, but I'll try for my own answer. I never "took up" writing. I've been doing it all my life. For most of my life, I've even been trying to make it good, and to find ways to share it. So I've always taken it fairly seriously, but in the last 6-7 years, I made a choice to take writing seriously *as a job*. That means applying some discipline, not just relishing the fun stuff. I take it seriously enough to not release anything until it is as good as I can make it.

Anita wrote: "Why are there so few nonfiction writers as compared to fiction?

_____
FOREVER YOUNG means positive attitude and love for life. We grow old when we quit playing. http://amzn.to/1eHWKA2 https://goo...."

Rebecca, as a non-fiction author my book was personal for me and something that I am deeply passionate about. It was my first book but I felt compelled to write it. I cannot speak for others. I have always admired those who do write fiction for their creativity. I don't believe I have that talent. As an avid reader I love both fiction and non-fiction but the majority love fiction only unless they are searching for a specific topic. My book doesn't have the power to change minds but perhaps by offereing a different perspective it can open them. I believe non-fiction can create powerful dialogue.

Not sure what you mean. There are more nonfiction books published every year, certainly. Go into any book store -- there are more shelves of nonfiction than fiction. Consider all textbooks, all school books, all history and biography. No, there's a lot more of them than us.

That you see more fiction writers here, or on websites or blogs frantically marketing their stuff, simply means that fiction authors are expected to help sell their stuff. A lot of authors are scrambling for a very small slice of pie.

Of the fiction sold in the US, fully half -- every other book sold -- is a romance novel. There are people who HAVE to read one romance novel a day, and I don't mean rereading. They need a new fresh romance novel, 365 days a year. These are the women (they are almost always women) who have a standing order at B&N to set aside every paperback romance novel that comes in.

And this says to you that, if you can, write nonfiction. If you have to write fiction, write romance. If you can't do either of these things, then ONLY write what you really love. Because it's likely that all you will ever get out of it is your own satisfaction. Don't waste valuable time writing vampire novels solely because someone told you they make a lot of money.

Donna wrote: "as a non-fiction author my book was personal for me and something that I am deeply passionate about. It was my first book but I felt compelled to write it. I cannot speak for others. I have always admired those who do write fiction for their creativity."
Sounds like as usual we look at those who do what we don't, and are amazed at how hard it must be! :)

There are a few things I hope may be helpful to those who are writing:
1. Don't write what you know, know what you write. Don't write what you feel, feel what you write.
2. Write like a Trollope. The story goes that Anthony Trollope got up 3 hrs. early (he had a "day job"), sat down to write, gave him self a quota of 250 words for every 15 minutes. This is first-draft writing. The purpose of the first draft is to give yourself something material so that you can begin the actual writing.
3. Learn the markets - Publishers and editors have web sites now that are very specific about when they are reading, what they're looking for, what they're not looking for. Don't submit your time travel fantasy to an agent/editor/publisher who only handles nonfiction. Don't submit in June if they only read January through March. If there are guidelines about formatting (font/size) follow them.
4. Learn the rules of writing a good query.
5. Always be polite when communicating with agents, editors, publishers. There is a lot of communication among people in the field; if you are rude, unprofessional with one person, chances are others in the field will hear about it.
6. There are different categories of rejection - sometimes, you may be given the opportunity to resubmit.
7. Acceptance is only the first part of publication - you will find yourself working with editors, copy editors, cover designers, PR people. You will have to follow the deadlines they give.
8. The always-be-polite rule applies to social media. If your social media presence is rude, trivial, X-rated or suggestive of a potential problem or liability for the agent or publisher, you may want to clean it up before you submit.

Don't ever give up on yourself, hon! You've done the best you can and if the rest of us don't like your "baby", that's just too bad for us. 😄
Besides, there's all different tastes/likes and dislikes in literature. Even if someone doesn't like your book, it may just be a personal preference, and not necessarily a bad reflection on your book in any way. 😉

Caroline wrote: "I would like to know (readers)--what gets you to come to a bookstore reading? Do you want to hear the author talk or just read or both?"

I wouldn't mind hearing the author read from the book but I'd rather spend the limited time with him/her by asking questions, getting to know the "brains behind the book", etc. 😄

I have a question for all the lovely writers out there:

Does it bother you when we download books off the internet?

I know some authors feel they're losing money when people do this but I think of the Internet as a library; I read a book and if I like it, I buy a copy. If I can't read it first, I never purchase a copy (unless it's written by a "tried and true" author whom I've loved his/her previous works). So actually, being able to download ebooks helps sales. At least in my case.

When I travel to other countries, Amazon won't even let me buy ebooks, evideos, etc. from the U.S. (I have a foreign IP address then.) So a lot of people who download books from peer-to-peer sharing websites/forums couldn't buy ebooks even if they wanted to.

Any thoughts?

You are talking about 'free' books, right? Did the author make it free, or is she selling that exact same e-book on Amazon? There are tons of really free books out there, books that the authors are not asking money for. If you find a 'free' copy of a book that is actually for sale, then who is offering it? The author? Someone who stole it from her? Someone who is using a freebie to smuggle a virus into computers?

Leehla wrote: "Does it bother you when we download books off the internet?

...So a lot of people who download books from peer-to-peer sharing websites/forums couldn't buy ebooks even if they wanted to."

Yes piracy bothers me. It's illegal and it's stealing from authors. I know authors who have had to stop writing because piracy takes away legitimate sales and their publishers drop them because of low sales numbers. Or self published authors who can't afford editing or covers anymore because of the high level of piracy.

I have seen pirate sites already asking for illegal copies of my latest book and its not even out yet. And no, these aren't poor people who can't afford an ebook but people with the latest devices and tech who feel entitled to free content.

In countries who don't have an Amazon store, most books can be purchased from Kobo, iTunes, or GooglePlay. For those people who can't afford to buy books there are libraries. All you have to do is ask your local library to order in a particular title.

Don't try and justify piracy to authors who are seeing a diminishing bottom line :(

Why would you buy a book after you already read it? Most readers wouldn't. I don't buy bootleg movies or steal music. Artists and producers pays millions to produce and market. It's simply wrong and the same goes for books. I found a few sites that managed to put one of my books up for free. They had no rights to the book. I reported it and they took it down.

Effie wrote: "Why would you buy a book after you already read it?"

I have on several occasions, books I am certain I will reread. Happens a lot as I replace my moldering paperbacks with ebooks,

Then, too, I had a reviewer on one of my mine that said he had read it on Kindle Unlimited for free, then went out and bought the ebook because he expected to read it again. Just about brought a tear to my eye. Wish I had two million fans just like him!

Anyone can take a kindle file from Amazon and make it into an epub. Worse, most of these sites that offer pirated copies of our books seem to be based in countries that have no rule of law. Good luck getting them to stop doing anything. Personally, I wouldn't subject any machine of mine to even being on their sites, let alone opening a file. Doing either is like playing Russian roulette with your computer's health on the line.

At the bottom of those pirated sites there is a disclaimer that if a book is there unlawfully it can be reported to the link provided. There must be some sort of law that requires these free sites to have it and they must bank on authors not knowing. I google my book titles and my name every so often and that's how I found the bootleg sites. I clicked the link reported it and within days my book was off the site. It happened several times. It hasn't happened to me in a while.

Great for you, Michael to have that happen to you. Of course, I don't consider kindle unlimited readers reading for free because they do pay for the subscription and we get paid per page read.

As a reader, there are very few books I reread. The classics and a few rare contemporaries I'm obsessed with.

Brenda wrote: "You are talking about 'free' books, right? Did the author make it free, or is she selling that exact same e-book on Amazon? There are tons of really free books out there, books that the authors are..."

No, hon. I'm talking about a book that someone probably bought, removed the DRM, uploaded it to a peer-to-peer file sharing website/forum, and other people download it from there. (The author didn't make it free and we'd have to buy it if we got it from Amazon, B&N, etc.)

I'm wondering if authors feel bad when they know people are downloading their books (and the author isn't making a profit off of the download - which they might not anyway, especially if the reader wouldn't have bought the book sight-unseen anyway).

When a library purchases a book and makes it available, the library isn't stealing it. So maybe if authors can think of their books being downloaded in that way (and the fact that we tend to buy books that we can firstly download for free - if we like them), then maybe authors won't feel so bad if they find out their book is being shared on those file-sharing websites. Just a thought.

Leehla wrote: "Brenda wrote: "You are talking about 'free' books, right? Did the author make it free, or is she selling that exact same e-book on Amazon? There are tons of really free books out there, books that ..."

Honestly, nowadays any type of intellectual property worth shit is pirated. Songs, books, movies...it doesn't matter. Can you think of any popular song, movie, or book that you can't get for free on the Internet if you knew where to look? I can't. Honestly, if people care enough about your work to try and pirate it, you're doing something right. You should congratulate yourself and move on. The library analogy is an excellent one, I feel.