Be Honest: Why are you Really Not Published Yet?

[Reaver]

Hey ... is this too old of a thread to bump? ... Obviously if you haven't been published by 2014 yet that ship has sailed but how about we set a new date? .... like sometime in 2017?

Thanks for bringing back this thread.

 

[JonSnow]

1. Its been 15 years and after dozens of re-writes, wholesale changes, and start-overs, its still not finished. Until it's finished, none of the other reasons matter.

 

[Rkcapps]

I hear you, Jon Snow!

 

[kinslayeur]

I finished the first book and feel very fortunate as this is my first attempt at writing fantasy. I've written military fiction prior and a friend suggested I submit it to a very specific publisher. Doing some research I did and I am now looking at a contract. I have yet to sign it until my attorney is able to look it over, but if all goes well, I will have a publisher for my fantasy series. Thankful and know the struggle is real. My military fiction series I never found a publisher for. I spent 2 years looking and sent out over 70 queries and received 67 rejections, 3 no responses. But, I never gave up. I ended up self-publishing the first two in my series.

Chin up and keep working on it. You can do it!

 

[Antaus]

Why am I not published? Probably because I've never taken any professional writing classes.

 

[Ronald T.]

Hollo. A. E. Lowan. When you say we, who is the other person (or persons involved? Just wondering.

 

[Ronald T.]

I have no problem finishing a work, so I must assume my writing skill hasn't yet reached the level that's required for final acceptance into the realm of published authors.

If that's the case, I can only work harder at studying and practicing my craft. Giving up isn't an option.

As I said, giving up wasn't an option. So I did my home work: I studied, I listened to beta readers, I edited again and again, and I refined the work to my utmost capacity. And although I gave up on traditional publishing along time ago, I now have two e-books published on Amazon, and number three is in the final editing stages. I did my best with the knowledge and ability I had at the time, and I think I did a fairly good job. But that's for others to decide. I only hope my writing skill continues to improve with hard work and experience. If my determination to increase my skill level has any effect on my talent, it will grow with each book I write. Experience helps, but an endless, focused desire to improve is an absolute necessity in gaining the skill required to make each book even more powerful and exciting. So I'll continue to learn as I write, and hope my efforts show in the final works.

If you are interested, my epic-fantasy series is called "The Blood-Rune Saga".

Book one is, THE UNNAMED RUNE.
The Unnamed Rune: Fate stained him with the mark of doom...Destiny endowed him with the power to prevail (The Blood-Rune Saga Book 1) - Kindle edition by Ronald Taylor Smith. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.)

Book two is, A DIRE ONUS.
A Dire Onus: Fate stained him with the mark of doom...Destiny endowed him with the power to prevail (The Blood-Rune Saga Book 2) - Kindle edition by Ronald Taylor Smith. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Also, you can search here, at the UK link.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dpB06XZBCMKV/?tag=brite-21

And coming soon, book three will be called, A SECRECY OF ASSASSINS.

As always, all my best to you and yours.

 

[Aurora]

Getting published is a big deal to me, one of my biggest dreams. Right now I'm still working on improving my prose and such. Hopefully these forums will help in that as I'd like to get better. One day, i'll go for it.

 

[ArbridanianQueen]

I'm not published yet because I'm still in edits. Thanks to a hard drive crash (and subsequent broken heart over having lost everything), I only started trying to write my world over again about five years ago. Add in trying to write other stories, college life, job hunts, a bout of depression (including meds that made my creativity go in the toilet) and various family health crap, it's taken me that long to get to the 3rd draft. Thankfully I think it's almost ready for beta readers, and I'm hoping to query by the end of the year.

 

[Zephon]

I still can't get my ideas on paper. This is laziness and lack of practice. I think many people like the idea of being a writer, but they hate being a writer.

When I was younger, I thought I loved writing. Looking back though, I don't think I actually did, I just liked having a story that I created- the actual writing part was not that fun. I'm just trying to learn and garner the discipline to write.

 

[Finchbearer]

I like the original energy of this thread - and I too am tired of not finishing something. Problem is, the more I write, the more I figure that there is a ton more to learn, and so it goes that I haven’t finished anything yet.

How long will it take me to learn is one variable, and the other is probably something like just having the conviction of saying something is finished!

 

[pmmg]

I like the original energy of this thread - and I too am tired of not finishing something. Problem is, the more I write, the more I figure that there is a ton more to learn, and so it goes that I haven’t finished anything yet.

How long will it take me to learn is one variable, and the other is probably something like just having the conviction of saying something is finished!

Its never really finished....cause editing is endless. You do have to accept at someplace, that it just cant get any better and you've done enough.

Looking at the published works of others ought to give you hope. Cause much of it is not as good as yours, and yet.... they managed to get it out there.

While I do have stuff out there, publishing has never really been my goal. It is now. My current WIP is very close. Have a proof copy, have learned most of the tools needed. Pretty close to launch.

But it is a book 1 of 5, and I am working on book 4. I would like to have them all finished. Book 1 is on the fast track now though, it will be out shortly.

 

[Fyri]

pmmg and Finchbearer, I got a notification that you both commented on this thread and I had to go back to find out where I must have participated in this thread--in 2014.

My post from then is hilarious to me now.

I have been writing for five years straight now (that's freshman year of high school for me), and I've finished the third draft of my series' first book. I'm reading to print it off and start editing. I... really hope that the golden glow of the publishing process (which I only ever read and spoken about) is finally in range. I've been planning to publish this series unknowingly since I finished the first book in 2010. Now... I'm on the final stretch. I see the light, but I'm terrified of the rocks between me and it. I want to make sure everything is perfect.

That's why I'm not published yet. I know my children aren't ready yet. They just weren't ready for the big world. But now, one of them might be. Almost. This next year... 2015... It is so full of possibilities. I'm terrified of this unknown. But my natural instinct of a writer is curiosity. There is no way I could turn back and return to the Shire now. I'm going to walk into this mist and see what is to become of this journey. It's scary, but also exciting.

*deep breath* I'm ready.

So! Update?

I am technically published now. A friend and I did some short story translations and retellings in 2017 and some of them are published in various small magazines--The retelling that is solely my work is in my portfolio here!

But! I have not published the WIP I was exicted to publish in 2015. The third draft? I look at that draft now and it says this. In 2018, I believe, I tried to get an agent with the 5th draft, but after 32 rejections, I got one with useful-ish feedback and a new beta reader showed me many things I could improve on.

My 7th draft now sits in google docs while I work on the 2nd draft of book 2 (recently called Dumpster Fire Wheee). When I finish that, I will be looking over beta feedback for book one, draft 7, and decide on if I am making small changes or accepting that perfection cannot be reached and try to get an agent again.

Draft 3. Ha! Man, I was so poetic back then too. Golden glow. The Shire. I think I must have meant the world of not being a writer, but honestly, being a writer is the Shire. The world is dark and scary without art.

 

[pmmg]

You need to unwatch it

 

[Finchbearer]

I didn’t realise you were on the thread Fyri! Or the ghost of you anyway. I look back at old things I write and cringe so no doubt I shall be doing that in a few years time.

So interesting to hear how you progressed…32 rejections, wow, somewhat both encouraging and yet discouraging at the same time - how great that you submitted it that many times though! Just shows that failure is truly the way forward. —not that I see you as a failure but…you know what I mean.

 

[Fyri]

You need to unwatch it

No. XD

So interesting to hear how you progressed…32 rejections, wow, somewhat both encouraging and yet discouraging at the same time - how great that you submitted it that many times though! Just shows that failure is truly the way forward. —not that I see you as a failure but…you know what I mean.

Oh! Yes, I mean, I think I heard recently that on average you may be looking at closer to 100 and some rejections before you find the right "yes."

I could have kept going. I had sooooo many more agents on my list. But I'm glad I stopped to rewrite. Ohhhhh the improvements! I've been told by a family member to give up and try writing something else, and I actually have tried that (a really bad Lent journey).

Nope! This is my chosen life and I will sit in it. *etches more drawings on the cave walls* Also! During my time editing, I have collected even mooore agent names that could be interested! My rejection list will be unstoppable!!!

(I will see this post in 5-10 years and cringe too. Hi, future meee! )

Edit: Plus, since I've made substantial revisions, I'm actually allowed to resubmit to the agents that rejected me before! Never give up! Never surrender!

 

[skip.knox]

I like the original energy of this thread - and I too am tired of not finishing something. Problem is, the more I write, the more I figure that there is a ton more to learn, and so it goes that I haven’t finished anything yet.

How long will it take me to learn is one variable, and the other is probably something like just having the conviction of saying something is finished!

I cannot recommend too strongly the benefits of simply finishing something. You say there's more to learn and that's true, but I have two codicils to that maxim. First, there's *always* more to learn, no matter how much you have written, so that's not a valid or a useful reason for holding back on finishing.

Second, while there's more to learn, only some of that matters to you, at this point. In order to finish, you need above all to learn what it feels like to finish. Not what it feels like in general, though anecdotes can be interesting and even inspirational, but what it feels like to you personally, and at this particular stage of your life as a writer. Along with that feeling will come a bunch of practical lessons, some of which might even prove useful in your second project (none of your unfinished projects count, I'm afraid).

But it's that feeling that matters. What it feels like starting. What if feels like starting over. What it feels like partway through when everything is clicking. What it feels like when nothing's working. What it feels like when you're sure the whole thing's a mess and really ought to be burned on a pyre atop a distant mountain. What if feels like when the story's finished but it's not ready to be published because you've got a score of niggling little issues to address. What if feels like when you get feedback and realize you have continuity problems.

What it feels like when you get accepted by an agent, or when you click publish, or when the work really is truly done because now it's out of your hands.

With every work I've written, I've hit all the above bases and more. And every time, I can call on the feeling from earlier _finished_ work and know for a certainty that I can finish this time, too.

There's only one way to learn that.

Finish the first one. All the way to published.

 

[Aldarion]

I am not published because I am still working on my worldbuilding. And I am still working on my worldbuilding because I am a bloody perfectionist and I just know that if I start writing a book and come to a place where something doesn't make sense, I will just rewrite it all from scratch. Kinda like George Martin and his novels.

 

[skip.knox]

Here's the difficulty I have with perfectionism: how does one judge perfection? Here am I, as imperfect a specimen as anyone would care to encounter, setting myself up as so expert as to know when something falls just *this* much short of perfection, and so I must keep on keeping on.

It seems a version of Zeno's Paradox. I get halfway to perfection, to perfectly completed. Take a breath. I get halfway closer. Breathe. Halfway closer yet. But I can never reach it. I can see I can never reach it, but I keep claiming it's reachable and that I'm the one to get there.

Perficio means to complete, to do thoroughly and completely. I'm happy to settle for ficio, just doing.

 

[Finchbearer]

I do need to learn to stop and walk away and say ‘it’s finished’ and feel okay with that. Otherwise I will happily let it burn on a pyre on some distant mountain!