tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post2109747074503406586..comments2024-03-17T06:03:00.362-04:00Comments on Fiction University: It's Not Just About the Numbers: How Many Books Can You Write in a Year?Janice Hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-4368648669062413012022-11-07T10:41:58.598-05:002022-11-07T10:41:58.598-05:00Grats! That's a big number. If that's a nu...Grats! That's a big number. If that's a number and schedule that suits you and works for you, keep on doing it. Only consider changing it if you're unhappy with the results. <br /><br />It also depends on your goals and what you write. In some genres, more-frequent shorter releases often equates to more sales and keeping readers engaged, but other genres are fine with a book a year. Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-73283873031964052152022-11-04T16:28:32.988-04:002022-11-04T16:28:32.988-04:00I finished and published 6 books this year only, I...I finished and published 6 books this year only, I thought maybe 6 books were a minimum nunber for a year and thought 1 or 2 would be laziness but reading the comments in here make me rethink whether I made a mistake accumulating all those short books in one year.Josephshttps://instagram.com/josephsquartzynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-56078254911585470982015-06-28T16:09:46.585-04:002015-06-28T16:09:46.585-04:00Elizabeth,
It's so nice to know that I'm ...Elizabeth,<br /><br />It's so nice to know that I'm not the only "slow" writer out there. I, too, work better when I can let an idea stew for months, or years. I've been working on a novel for the last 13 years--partly because I kept losing interest in it, and wanted to work on other stuff.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-1951002373206439402014-06-28T23:48:50.079-04:002014-06-28T23:48:50.079-04:00I've completed four books so far this year, tw...I've completed four books so far this year, two of them full-length novels, two of them shorter novels. I plan to write at least two more.<br /><br />I'm not a fast writer, but 1. this is my full-time job and 2. I've learned with practice to stop myself going on tangents that derail the plot that have to be majorly brought into line later. I write between 1000 and 2000 words of publishable fiction per day. Often I write more, but I edit as I go, and don't move onto the next chapter until I'm convinced that everything I have written so far works and only needs a light read-through.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-88171143606630641672012-06-11T22:00:20.967-04:002012-06-11T22:00:20.967-04:00LOL. That's a positive spin! I always apprecia...LOL. That's a positive spin! I always appreciate your articles.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-72077944543042446382012-06-11T11:19:37.142-04:002012-06-11T11:19:37.142-04:00That would be easier, but it takes all the fun out...That would be easier, but it takes all the fun out (grin)Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-37087745277090583622012-06-10T19:55:44.150-04:002012-06-10T19:55:44.150-04:00LOL. It's more systematic. You write point by ...LOL. It's more systematic. You write point by point, stressing only what you want to get across. There's no worrying about showing or telling or mood or dialogue or, or, or. :-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-9775701994422979742012-06-09T10:51:19.278-04:002012-06-09T10:51:19.278-04:00I'm the opposite. I don't know how you non...I'm the opposite. I don't know how you non-fic folks do it. :)Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-76810157781455881572012-06-08T22:09:43.622-04:002012-06-08T22:09:43.622-04:00Janice, I understand that. I teach beginner's ...Janice, I understand that. I teach beginner's photography and do the same thing. Non-fiction writing comes easy for me. It's fiction that makes me feel stupid. LOL.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-79154613800012137482012-06-08T16:08:20.074-04:002012-06-08T16:08:20.074-04:00Suzanne, me too! This blog helps with that actuall...Suzanne, me too! This blog helps with that actually. I'm always paying attention to what I do and looking for ways to explain it or improve it so I can talk about it ;)Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-50876911725797309002012-06-07T20:46:15.895-04:002012-06-07T20:46:15.895-04:00Janice, thanks that is very encouraging to me, tho...Janice, thanks that is very encouraging to me, though I am always willing to learn to write better (hence my reading this blog)!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-66699906016759473322012-06-07T07:25:27.976-04:002012-06-07T07:25:27.976-04:00Suzanne, I have a friend who writes slowly, and ge...Suzanne, I have a friend who writes slowly, and gets everything perfect before she moves on. If that's your process there's nothing wrong it with. You're much better off doing what works for you than making yourself nuts trying to what "everyone" says you should. It's not just you! :)<br /><br />Roni, that's a lot. Romance readers are voracious, so you guys have a lot more demand. I bet it does vary a lot with genres. I keep hearing good things about that Fast Draft class. I can draft fairly quick if I plot enough beforehand, but I'll have to look into that and see if I can pick up any new tips. Nice to hear YA is slower still :) Eases my mind, hehe. <br /><br />Tracy, aw thanks! This has been on my mind lately and I figured I wasn't the only one :) Guess not!<br /><br />Hcfbutton, totally. The creative process isn't "standard." You can't follow a format and get the same results every time, even with the same writer. It's good to remember that.<br /><br />Star-Dreamer, sad about your friend :( How much more would he sell if he really polished those novels? I think authors can produce quality and some can't. Series writers with established worlds and characters can probably write faster because half the work is done before they start. Writing full time would also help a lot. <br /><br />That's great about your novel. Nice to have a publisher interested and so supportive. Takes some of the pressure off! <br /><br />Totally agree about quality. If we're not putting our best out there why bother?Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-34816424774216749742012-06-04T22:34:28.041-04:002012-06-04T22:34:28.041-04:00I have several stories I’m working on now, and man...I have several stories I’m working on now, and many, many more that I’ve started plotting, but to be quite honest, I’m still pouring most of my heart, time, and soul into the novels I started in 2004 and 2007. Both have potential, both are completely different stories that are in no way connected, and both have the first drafts done, but it’s the rewriting that is taking so long. These books have gone through multiple drafts, and I usually finish rewriting a draft in a year… maybe a little more. That, of course, doesn’t mean that the product is anywhere near polished.<br /><br />Most of my time is currently going into the novel I started in 2007, “Song of the Daystar”, and the reason why is because after the 4th draft at the end of 2010, I actually had a publisher interested in the story idea… but he felt like the writing was lacking (which it definitely was) and asked if there wasn’t a way I could do a rewrite. By the time I got his message, however, I’d already started rewriting!! And the plot has changed so much since then – grown deeper, more developed, more complex. I keep in touch with the publisher, the owner of which I was lucky enough to meet in person and host at an event in my area. He’s still interested in the story and told me to go ahead and take as long as I need to, to complete this rewrite: he’s seen some of the new chapters, and seemed sincerely excited about them. He says he still wants to be the first to look at the completed book when it’s done, which is encouraging to me, of course.<br /><br />But that just goes to show you that my writing process is not a fast one. I mean, come on! It’s been five years since I started writing “Song of the Daystar”, and I can honestly say that I’m nowhere near done yet. Sure, I plan to make this latest draft my very last one, but that requires a lot of time and patience… if this is truly going to be my last draft, then I must be extra thoughtful about my word choice and flow and how all the plot points work together throughout the book so that I don’t have to go back afterwards and correct anything major. That’s not even counting the time it takes me to think about the story and plan it out, and connect everything that needs to be connected… I may be a fast typist, but those sorts of things take time… lots and lots of time.<br /> <br />And being a full time student with a double major who’s working part time, starting my own business, taking illustration and design commissions for other authors, and looking for my own apartment at the moment does not help my writing life at all, I can tell you. A lot of the time I come home to find that I’m simply worn out and feel too tired to even attempt immersing myself in my story: I just want to go to sleep.<br /><br />So how does all this talk affect me and my writing life? Quite honestly, just thinking about it makes me tired. Not nervous… just tired – worn out, really, in a sympathetic sort of way. I don’t know how anyone could keep up with that pace and still dole out quality work. And quite honestly, my belief is, if it’s not quality, then what’s the point?Star-Dreamerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14298850366884374226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-38766564216201809112012-06-04T22:34:18.121-04:002012-06-04T22:34:18.121-04:00Quite honestly I don’t know how on earth writers m...Quite honestly I don’t know how on earth writers manage to put out so many books in a year. I know I have a friend who has put out at least two finished series of novels, several novella’s, and a few short stories, and he’s managed to do all of that in little over a year. I swear that he does nothing but write – ever. He does self publish, and yet his works have proven to make him money… he’s done well with his writing, that’s for sure.<br /><br />But here’s the thing: I own several of his novels, and though the writing is not bad by any means, I feel that the stories have so much more potential than where he left them at. He wrote them, rewrote them, and edited them, all within the span of a couple weeks to a month… how he managed to do that is far beyond me, but more power to him, I guess. And yet I feel that there could be so much MORE to them. You know? I can’t help but wonder if these authors who put out so many books a year, as my friend does, are not really sacrificing true quality for their quantity. And quite frankly, I’ve come to the point where I simply refuse to read authors who put out much more than 2 books a year… not unless I really, really, REALLY like that author’s work. I’ve found in the past that quality is definitely being jeopardized in books like that. <br /><br />As far as I go, I know I could never manage more than one book in a year, IF I could even manage one. Maybe a rough draft, but certainly nothing polished. And besides, I have this perfectionist inside of me that simply won’t let me allow any of my writings out of my hands until they are the very best that they can possibly be, or at least the very best that I can make them on my own.Star-Dreamerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14298850366884374226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-20475441826126235222012-06-04T18:02:42.840-04:002012-06-04T18:02:42.840-04:00I think there are a few issues with comparing quan...I think there are a few issues with comparing quantities. It's not an apples to apples situation, it's a novels, to novellas and poetry and anthologies, and co-written books situation. It's also a full-time/part-time writer situation. Finally, no one mentioned quality of writing here. I'm sure I could pump out numerous short stories, and at least 2 novels a year despite my full time profession (of which I'm supposed to live and breathe), but I'm going to strive for quality writing, and that takes time.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17105758478146493749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-48571830687521986852012-06-02T15:02:45.803-04:002012-06-02T15:02:45.803-04:00Hi Janice:
You must have written this post for me....Hi Janice:<br />You must have written this post for me. Awesome.<br />Just thought you might like to know, I wrote a post today on other writers who inspire me and you're on my list. <br />Thank you!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-14591694801876451232012-06-02T14:24:02.566-04:002012-06-02T14:24:02.566-04:00I feel your pain. I'm on a two book a year (90...I feel your pain. I'm on a two book a year (90k words each) and a novella (30k) a year. It's a lot and I'm not a naturally fast writer. But in my genre, it behooves me to have stuff come out at least every 6 months. I recently took Candace Havens fast draft class and that seems to be helping. I managed 35k this month, which is way more than my norm, but it definitely doesn't come naturally. It seems the deadlines are a little more spread out for YA writers though and that a book a year is still the norm. At least that's what I heard at the last conference I went to when authors were talking about that "Is one book a year slacking" article.Roni Lorenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02719679344024635326noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-46127130475244371292012-06-01T16:22:06.458-04:002012-06-01T16:22:06.458-04:00I am a slow writer, and I thought it was just me, ...I am a slow writer, and I thought it was just me, so your article makes me feel much better. I have heard to write your first draft without re-reading or worrying about little mistakes. But this doesn't work for me because I am a professional proofreader and mistakes is what I find. I want the first draft to say exactly what I want the final edit to say, and though I know the final edit will have major changes in it. I can't just spin out stuff saying, "Oh, I'll fix that later." This goes against who I am as a writer. I think 2 books a year is pushing it for me, for sure.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-61197813371068884772012-06-01T13:34:22.188-04:002012-06-01T13:34:22.188-04:00Stacy, first, GRATS! on the debut. Second, I hear ...Stacy, first, GRATS! on the debut. Second, I hear you. I do a lot of school visits, and I struggled with whether or not to continue to promote my trilogy or focus on writing the new book. It's hard sometimes knowing where to put your focus. And harder still to back away from the easy stuff, like social media and blogging, which give immediate rewards for the work.Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-51743181449312642072012-06-01T09:15:18.939-04:002012-06-01T09:15:18.939-04:00This is something I've been stressing over a l...This is something I've been stressing over a lot lately. My first book is out in November from a small press, and I've got a WIP I want to follow up with. I'm going to be releasing some short stories in between, and I'm planning a series. I feel like I have to be doing something with the books at all times, because it seems like for most authors, the best way to be successful is to write more books. I want to be able to keep my name out there, and yet, I don't want to burn out. Constant challenge!Stacy Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16229267954848881569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-43354654345820999992012-06-01T07:38:19.895-04:002012-06-01T07:38:19.895-04:00Chicory, long winded is fine :) I do it too, hehe....Chicory, long winded is fine :) I do it too, hehe. It's a hard balance between putting out a good book and putting out books in a timely fashion for readers. I know there are a few I've been waiting on a long time, and I'm sure I will have forgotten a lot by the time they do come out. But I'd rather have them good than fast :)<br /><br />Angela, yep, those "formula novels." That might be one reason why I lose interest with a lot of series. The books become the same basic story over and over. Though some like that aspect of a series.<br /><br />Robyn, I know. I think some can and some can't. If I JUST wrote I could probably do more every year but most writers have day jobs. <br /><br />HS Contino, me too :) And a good two cents it is. I agree.<br /><br />Atsiko, I hear ya. Sometimes I wish I could since I have all these ideas I want to write, but I know they'd all suffer if I pushed too hard. <br /><br />Nicole, most welcome! Sometimes it's good to just hear other opinions on a topic. <br /><br />Jo-Ann, 500 words a day is a solid goal. That's a lot of words in a year and something to be proud of. (and thanks)<br /><br />Linda, very interesting to hear you say that since it seems like indie authors feel *more* compelled to put books out faster. (and do). Being able to publish at your own pace is a definite bonus to doing it yourself. Smart!Janice Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-42352154120320665662012-06-01T05:56:36.382-04:002012-06-01T05:56:36.382-04:00It's one of the lesser reasons I decided to go...It's one of the lesser reasons I decided to go indie. I don't want to be pressured so much by the publishers to have multiple books in a year that I end up turning out bad books. I've read authors I've liked and it's been obviously they were trying to squeeze a deadline. It may get immediate sales that makes the publisher happy, but if the quality suffers, over the long term, it'll erode sales.Linda Maye Adamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07203020058437093901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-25408776225438023432012-06-01T04:31:20.944-04:002012-06-01T04:31:20.944-04:00I'll pretend that I write quality - as opposed...I'll pretend that I write quality - as opposed to quantity - because even 500 words a day is a challenge. Time contraints and fatigue take their toll. <br /><br />I envy the 1500 per day (plus a fabulous blog) Janice.Jo-Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15705983780352542190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-59180354857541460062012-05-31T22:58:21.341-04:002012-05-31T22:58:21.341-04:00This is such a great reminder, Janice! Sometimes I...This is such a great reminder, Janice! Sometimes I get a little panicked by that kind of math myself. You've got a good perspective. Thanks!Nicolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10680066584646789184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-4611723547189395832012-05-31T20:46:23.587-04:002012-05-31T20:46:23.587-04:00Ugh... I have tons of book ideas, but no matter h...Ugh... I have tons of book ideas, but no matter how much I want to explore all of them, there's nothing in the world that could get me through writing four books in one year. Even without school and wanting to have a social life. Plus, you know, there are other things I enjoy doing besides writing. I haven't compared books per year to quality for anyone, so I admire the fact that these authors can do this, and I'll give them the benefit of the doubt on quality. But it's not something I could ever do, and I don't know that I'd want to even if I could statistically manage it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com