Writing For Publication: Harder Than It Looks
by Jennifer James
When I began the query process, I fully expected to receive hundreds of rejections. I never actually expected to receive any acceptances. There is the self-publishing route, but when I finished my first novel; my website was only a month old. I had no contacts, I’m terrible at Google search, and finding blog topics was a mystery.
So, I went the traditional route, figuring that if I got a good publisher, they could help me not make a fool out of myself on the web.
The rejections came, followed by acceptances. A month after that first contract offer, I got my first editing letter. It was long. Detailed. And to be used in conjunction with the comments left all over my manuscript in red bubbles. A daunting task lay ahead of me. That first sale, LOVE KINECTION went through four rounds of edits, and along the way I learned that writing for my blog or even a college paper is nothing like writing for publication.
When we read a book we really enjoy (strictly as a reader, with the writer hat off), we zip through it effortlessly, engrossed in the prose. But if you break it down as a writer, you begin to see the effort and hard work that went into those sentences and paragraphs. The variance of verbs, the lack of adverbs, making sure that a certain word isn’t used too close to its match in a previous paragraph mean months of hard work went into the construction of the story.
When you’re knee deep in a book you’ve been staring at for months, polishing and perfecting, and then are expected to go through it again…and again… and again…it becomes a slice of Hell.
Fatigue creeps in, disgust with your lack of ability, disbelief that an editor ever wanted the manuscript in the first place, hatred of comment bubbles overwhelms. The track changes lines overwhelm the saved black text and you feel like you’re trying to read some new language invented by a sadist.
I want my stories to be the best that they can, the most polished and beautiful work I’m capable of producing. What an eye-opener to realize that while the writing was good, it needed hours more work to make it ready for readers. Cleaning up and varying sentences to improve their readability is difficult and acid reflux inducing.
It is true that the easiest to read books, the ones we devour in hours, are the ones that had the most work, the hardest slash and rewrite of them all.
Buy Now @ Amazon Kindle
Genre – Erotica
Rating – 18+ (High Sexual Content)
More details about the book
Connect with Jennifer James on Facebook
Buy Now @ Amazon Kindle 
Genre – Contemporary Romance
Rating – R
More details about the book
Connect with Jennifer James on Facebook
My Seryniti 
Excellent article. Gives a little peek into the real work of publishing and writing. Thank you.
Terrific guest post, thanks to Jennifer and Seryniti for this peek into the publishing world. I’m hoping to begin working with an agent, who requested samples of my work, soon, and/or self-e-publishing my collection of true-life personal stories called KISS ME LIKE YOU MEAN IT in the next 4-6 months, so this was a great and helpful read for me! =)
–Love and Liberation–
Jan @ TheRewildWest
Oh my!! That’s fantastic! Ohhh if you need help promo’ing … I’d love to do whatever I can!
I would be honored and love that so much and be so very grateful!! ❤ And trust me when I tell you I could give a great interview, hehe =D
Sweet! That’s my favorite part!!!!