Tuesday, March 6, 2018

I'm An Author!

Jennifer finally believes in her career...

I have decided that I must be a real author.

I know, this sounds crazy, so let me explain. I’ve been writing professionally for twelve years. I have a long way to go to before I can completely support myself doing this, but I make money off of my books, people buy them and even enjoy them. It’s something I love doing.

But no matter how many books I publish, how many readers tell me they like what I write, I’m filled with doubt. I think that’s normal—at least I hope it is.

In order to achieve my goals, I set to-do lists. They include things from my real life as well as my author life, and I know the importance of sticking to the list to make sure I’m productive. Without an office and a boss making sure I hit my targets, it’s too easy to get distracted. So I do my best to stay on task.

Until Friday. This past Friday, we were hit with a Nor’easter that knocked out our power. Without power, our basement flooded. Temperatures in the house went down to 46 degrees. We moved into my parents’ house a town away, but went back and forth, trying to protect our things, deal with the insurance company, get our stuff, etc. During that time, the things I needed to get done for my upcoming book launch didn’t happen. The writing and editing I intended to do didn’t happen either. And I stressed.

Now, some would say that’s a natural reaction to what was going on, and I agree. Of course the situation was stressful. Even though we were all safe, had a warm place to be, and didn’t lose anything that can’t be easily replaced, it’s stressful. I’m not saying I shouldn’t have felt it. But this was the first time I stressed over my writing career.

Which means, in a very roundabout way, that I’m a real author. Because if I wasn’t, I wouldn’t have even thought about it. So while I definitely need to work on ways to manage my stress, the good thing I’m taking away from this is I’ve got enough of a career to worry about. Yay!


By the way, my upcoming book that I’m now woefully behind on marketing  is available for preorder here.

12 comments:

  1. You are definitely a professional author, Jen.
    How's your house? Flooded basements are no fun.

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    1. Thanks, Ana. My basement has been dried out, carpet ripped up, baseboards out and drywall cut out. It's a mess but we didn't lose anything sentimental and it will all work out. It's just a hassle.

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  2. Hope you manage to get your basement sorted -what a nightmare :-(

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  3. I loved that moment when I finally felt like a 'real' author. These days I feel like I'm backtracking a bit, kind of starting over, but hopefully it will all get back on track.

    Thank goodness everything turned out okay with the storm. Scary stuff.

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    1. I think this is the kind of profession that is constantly changing, morphing, adapting. So while it might seem like moving backwards when we compare it with other careers, I don't believe it actually is.

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    2. Debra, what was the "moment" for you?
      Paula, what was your "moment"?

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    3. My moment? Must be when I held the hardback copy of my first novel - 50 years ago this coming May!

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  4. Wow! That's an anniversary I want to celebrate!

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  5. Hope the basement and the rest of the house is all sorted or nearly by now.
    Its a weird life isn't it. I've only just managed to say 'writer' to people, 'author' is still unreal.

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    1. Thanks! It really is weird. Good. But weird. :)

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