I’m part of an online writers’ community that, without them, I don’t think I’d be anticipating the release of my first novel soon. They’ve pushed me to make a schedule and (mostly) stick to it. Of course, life gets in the way sometimes and I fell behind. That’s part of the reason why my debut got rescheduled from the end of 2024 to early 2025. I hate moving goalposts, especially ones that have been in place for so long.
That’s just part of the consequences of learning as I go. I have many years of writing experience, with nearly 20 of those under a professional degree. Other than still not always being able to tell the difference between affect and effect (yes, it’s true, that’s why editors exist), there’s not much I can’t do in terms of the ability and mechanics of writing. I hope you love the novel.
There’s more to writing a book than just the story, an edit, and pressing Publish on an online publishing platform. There were steps I wanted to skip – why do I need beta readers when I’ve been working on this manuscript for years? It’s perfect! Well, not quite. My beta readers, bless them, found plot holes I didn’t realize existed, and expressed needs/wants for information that was never followed up on – how did that happen!? Without them, these glaring mistakes would have made it to print.
The next step, or so I thought, was to send it to an editor. But first, the beta readers’ suggestions. I’m still working on them, with hopes to get them done by the end of the week. Only then, will I send it to an editor. After that, the editors suggestions will be applied, and sent back for proofreading. After that, I’ll be able to press publish. But again, that’s just the story.
What about the rest? What is the rest? That writers’ community I mentioned? One of the leaders gave a presentation recently about some of the things she’s working on and what stages they were in. She said she had to work on the “front matter” and “back matter” of the book? What the hell is all that? It’s the pages before the start of the story that include the ‘business’ of writing. It’s the traditional stuff you find in the front: copyright page, the ISBN number, the title page, a dedication if the author chooses, a prologue if the author chooses, and more. It’s the traditional stuff you find in the back: an epilogue, acknowledgments, a glossary if necessary, and a host of other information. It may even include an excerpt of the next book.
While I work on beta reader comments, I’m also working on these other things. They don’t take as long as the book itself, but they are things to consider for the final product. Without the knowledge gained from this workshop/presentation, I wouldn’t have thought twice about ‘front matter’ and ‘back matter’ and it’s importance. I likely would have added a copyright page and a title page, made sure the ISBN was listed, and left it at that.
So with many other things in life, I’m learning as I go. What are some things you’ve had to learn as you go? Had the learning process set you back from achieving the end goal? Let’s talk on Facebook!