Irons in the Fire

It started with a dream.

A few nights ago, I dreamed I self-published my current novel-in-progress (which is going through its final revision), Pirouette, as a duology.

When I woke up I totally dismissed it, but then I began mulling it over. See, when I began publishing with Turtleduck Press, it was for my poetry only. I was going to write a third chapbook and publish it through TDP. Then I discovered that poetry is a hard sell. Not a lot of people are into it, and while publishing my two chapbooks has been very rewarding, I’m not sure I want to invest more time into writing another poetry chapbook that may essentially disappear into oblivion.

 

 

So I got to thinking. What about other things? My plan has always been to get an agent, get published, write full-time. That is the ultimate dream. However, there are flaws. First of all, the likelihood of me being able to quit my job to write is very slim. I’d need at least as much as I’m making now, minimum, to make that happen. A scary thing is that sometimes writers start a series of books with a publisher and then down the line get the ax. I’ve seen this happen to two writers that I read and admire very much. Due to no fault of their own, the publisher pulled the plug, leaving both high and dry. And their loyal readers want to find out what happens. It’s not fair, but publishing is a business, and if something’s not making enough money, well, it sucks for the writer, doesn’t it?

 What if that happened to me? I think I’m good to go, publishing my series, quit my day job and boom! It’s all taken away from me. My dream. My security. Down the drain.

Then there’s the whole gatekeeper thing. Agents are the gatekeepers for us writers looking for a traditional publishing deal. You need to find an agent before you can do anything. Granted, you could skip that process altogether and go unagented, but that feels a lot like playing Russian Roulette to me. Agents have contacts and knowledge that I don’t have. Maybe even a bit of pull with a certain editor or two. It would behoove me to try, right? So, assuming I have revised and edited my manuscript within an inch of its life, would I be able to get said agent not only to read the whole thing, but offer representation to me? And then, assuming that happens, can he or she sell the damn thing? I’ve heard of writers who got an agent and then ….nothing happens. The book doesn’t sell after a year or two, and it’s just sitting there languishing.

Now, I’ve already put almost 6 years into Pirouette because I believe in it. Do I really want to wait potentially years for it to sell?

Promoting my chapbooks has taught me so much about promotion. I have a few tricks up my sleeve. I’m no expert, but I have a better handle on it than I did when I first started. And people might be more interested in a novel than a poetry chapbook. So maybe this is really something to consider.

So, while I will still pursue traditional publishing with Pirouette, I’d like to see how a novel of mine would do as a self-published novel through TDP. So, if I can get my butt in gear and get something drafted, you may see a book by me alongside the others here at TDP.

I believe that this would be a viable way to gauge what a novel will do. Money isn’t the object here, as I make so little on my chapbooks and getting rich was never the point anyways, but it would be a bonus to make a bit more. But above all else, I want to get my writing out there to the world. I’ve been doing this seriously for about 8 years, and it could be potentially longer, and I want to do something about it. And writing faster isn’t the answer, either.

So we’ll see. I have some ideas and I think I can make this work. I’ve always been a big fan of having irons in the fire all the time. Maybe this will be fly or maybe it’ll flop. But at least I can say I tried, and my writing is out there when it wasn’t before.

 

 

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