DAMN YOU Stephen King!

With two books published and a third looking for a home, I have put together an outline for what will be my fourth book, which will be the third book of a trilogy. “Desert Son” is the title of the first book of the series, and the second book is tentatively entitled “Wayward Soul.” It’s very difficult for author’s not named Stephen King to sell a lot of books. There were over 300,000 books published in the United States alone in 2014, and over one million worldwide. The competition is overwhelming, but the advice I take away from the experts is to just write…write more books. If you have a series and book one catches on, then the sequels would likely be purchased. One can hope. So instead of sitting on my hands and thinking of the lottery-like odds of book one catching on, I tighten my seat belt and prepare for another campaign of writing, which contains a weekly quota of 5000 words per week. I set this quota as my goal for “Wayward Soul” and did not miss a beat, completing the first draft of my 88,000-word manuscript in just over four months. It is a great undertaking, but broken into 5000 words per week makes a 100,000 word goal less grueling. The first draft would be completed in just five months. There will be many more months of editing before it is ready to submit to an agent or publisher, but that’s all part of the process. You have to really enjoy writing! I also prefer the route of the traditional publisher as it is confirmation that I have something to offer from a professional standpoint and a stamp of approval. I wouldn’t feel that way by self-publishing. Either way, it’s a lot of work and you really have to enjoy it. Boy do I ever, and love the creative process. Stephen King…you a great and I love your books, but DAMN  YOU!