Balance

Every day I try to create a sense of balance in my writing life, a life that has gone beyond writing and now includes promotion. It is not always an even balance, but so far it is working pretty well, most days. It can be challenging to devote all the time and energy my new novel deserves while promoting A Better Life so it has the best chance of being successful. I am finding that these very different opportunities keep my life as a writer rich and rewarding, as long as I don’t make myself crazy.

I am attempting to write at least a thousand words a day of the new novel. My characters are beginning to open up to me more each time we are together. This phase of writing a story is the most exciting for me because it is full of so many moments of discovery.

Some days, a great deal of time is taken up with some aspect of promotion. Yesterday I spent a big chunk of the day formatting my paperback into an e-book. It wasn’t as complicated as formatting the print copy and it is now available on Amazon in both print and on Kindle.

I have a host of things to explore: writers’ conferences, a marketing course, book readings, book clubs, getting the novel into local, independent book stores, contests . . . Right now, though, I am getting back to the new story.

Who is Your Audience?

I was asked this question often while I was writing A Better Life. From friends and potential readers, it was mostly out of curiosity about what kind of book I was writing and who I thought my audience would be. I wasn’t sure; I just wanted to tell the story as well and as true as I could.

The question took on more importance when it came from potential agents as I began sending out my completed manuscript. As a first-time author, it felt a bit pretentious to say that it would appeal to a wide range of people. Agents want their authors to know their target audience. When I had to put it into a category, I said it was “Women’s Fiction,” but that never felt right. I wanted the work to speak for itself and not be restricted to a particular label.

It has been almost a month since A Better Life was published, and as of today, 90 copies have been sold. I am beyond pleased that a wide variety of people — women and men, from their 20’s to their 80’s, have purchased the book and I have had much positive feedback. I believe my audience is turning out to be people who enjoy and are moved by the story and the writing, not because they belong to a particular group, but just because they are human. I couldn’t ask for a better audience.

The Launch

The book launch for my first novel was a night of innocence and revelations and joy, of pride and congratulations and joy. Everything was perfect. IMG_1722 (1)

People asked about the story, the characters, the time it took to write the book, about where I got the idea. The conversations were easy and I signed about forty books, only forgetting a couple of names.

I chose two selections from the novel to read, a few pages from chapter two and a few from chapter five. It was the first time I read the story out loud to anyone and I felt the power behind the words more than I did when they were lying flat on the page. I looked up after the first reading and everyone looked back at me, leaning forward silently. I thought something was wrong, but found out later they were wanting and waiting for more. It was absolutely silent for a few seconds before someone clapped and there was a little nervous laughter. After I read the second time, I raised my glass in a toast to all the incredible people who came to be part of that special night and wish me well. IMG_1720 - Copy (2)

Opening Doors to Learning

The love of learning has always been part of who I am. As an educator, I tried to instill that love of learning in my students. Third graders were always eager to learn new things — multiplication, cursive, telling time, and they loved to write.

As I moved on to teaching fourth grade and then middle school, some of my students’ eagerness turned into do we have to? Like many things, if you have to, it can seem less interesting, less motivating, less stimulating. Or so I thought. I am finding I have to do many things in order to succeed as a writer, and they are no less interesting, motivating or stimulating.

When I completed my novel, it opened a new door to learning:

I learned that finishing a novel is another beginning.
I learned how to write a query letter and a synopsis.
I learned that you need an agent in order to get a publisher.
I learned that each agency has a number of agents, each with their own requirements and interests.
I learned persistence, and with every rejection I learned the importance of believing in myself and my work.

Then, I decided to self-publish, opening another door to learning:

I learned about Kindle Direct Publishing.
I learned how to format and publish a novel.
I learned that publishing a novel is another beginning.

Now, in the midst of marketing and promotion, I have opened another door to learning:

I learned how to create a web site/blog.
I learned how to create a Facebook page.
I learned about Instagram and have started posting.
I am learning to reach out to people and create a social media presence.

Most of all, I am learning how supportive people are, how genuinely my family, friends and acquaintances want me to be successful in this endeavor. It makes this writer’s journey all the more enjoyable to have such beautiful company.

Calling Myself a Writer

I have seen and read many articles over the years about how to know if you are a writer. Sometimes it seemed like a silly question and sometimes it was a serious one, when I was full of self-doubt. I know every writer has heard this before, that the most important thing you can do if you want to be a writer is to write. It is not always that simple, though. Many days it can be a struggle to find the right words, but somehow writing just took hold of me.

I write on scraps of paper, on napkins, on whatever is handy, though these days I usually have a notebook with me. I love to eavesdrop and try to get conversations as true as I can. I jot down phrases, sentences, thoughts and paragraphs, scenes that may become seeds of stories. Everything is important at that moment, crucial that I get it down.

My husband once left me for a couple of hours at The Dubliner, a bar on Market Street in Lowell that is now the Warp and Weft. I was in some kind of state and he didn’t question it. He asked how much time I wanted and when he came back to get me I was spent. We were surrounded by strangers, conversations and stories and I couldn’t bring myself to leave. I have no idea what I wrote that night, but it was important to me at the time. I wrote whatever I wrote because I had to.

I am not sure why I have not called myself a writer until recently; maybe it sounded pretentious or maybe I was waiting for that special moment that confirmed it. It was not when I published A Better Life or when I began this blog, or even when I received my first business cards a few days ago that say, Norma Murphy, Writer. My moment came last week when I was helping my granddaughter Leah with her homework. She had to come up with proper nouns for different categories and needed help with continents. I looked down and saw she had already filled in the category for “author” and there I was.

When I saw it I said something like, “Oh!” and she looked up at me and said, “Well you are.” I can officially call myself a writer now.