I am a writer by virtue of the fact that I must put words on paper every day for sanity’s sake.  It is how I process my world and learn what I feel and think.  I journal a lot.  I am also a writer of essays, non-fiction, and fiction, and for these, I am not only a writer, I am an aspiring author.

I am an aspiring author in a time of great change in the publishing industry.  Definitions are changing.  The concept of story remains (mostly) the same, but everything surrounding it is in metamorphosis.

I have written for a long time. Decades. Novels, short stories, flash fiction, and essays stack up on my hard drive.  I am not in the same place today that I was in 2007 when life-changing illness set me on the course of re-evaluating my life and ultimately deciding to do something with the piles of bursting notebooks in my bedroom.  Back then, I was blissfully ignorant of just how long it would take to build knowledge, confidence, and polish multiple pieces before I approached publication.

I am no longer ignorant or innocent.  However, I am better prepared and realistic.

This series is a chronicle of taking stock before making the leap toward publication.  Here is what I have accomplished to date:

• Three novels (others don’t count, they were more than a decade ago)
• 12 short stories
• 7 flash fiction pieces
• Free-lance work on the web
• Writers Group (joined, led, now in small critique group)
• Edited for others who sold their projects
• Alpha and Beta reader for others, a small list of Alpha/Beta readers for my projects
• Gained industry knowledge
• Evaluated return on investment for various publication paths
• Set clear and realistic goals
• Undoing past errors
• Educated myself on craft

I will be sharing my (sometimes painful) lessons so you don’t have to repeat my mistakes.  In the coming month, I will confess my sins and share this process of preparing to seek publication, including platform and mental preparation.  Why am I sharing this?  In part, it is to help me become more comfortable with sharing my inner self, and in part because I have found I am uncomfortable with anything less than honest transparency, and that includes pen names.  If it helps or inspires someone else, so much the better, and I hope it does.’

Coming up:

Part Two:  Pie in the Sky – what do I really hope for by publishing?  What is realistic?

Part Three: Creating a Plan – defining the steps to get from here to there.

Part Four: Undoing Past Progress for Future Gain – Pen Names, platforms, relationship with social media

Part Five: Gathering Support – putting together a personal support network from family, friends, and mentors.

Final Thoughts