Here we go!
Part 1 in the For Writers! program is a fundamental concept for all authors. It requires a brutal and difficult look at ourselves by ourselves and from the perspective of others. It honestly doesn’t get much more terrifying or difficult than that. It’s a step that must be taken if we are to step out of our comfort zone and become the author and live the life that we want.
You can’t just claim to want it here. You have to be open to and willing to take the steps necessary, no matter what. This survey is meant to be difficult and get to a place of deep perspective and understanding of yourself as an author, and the people who become your readers. If you can’t take this step, you can’t be surprised when you fail, and it isn’t anyone’s fault but your own. If you think this is harsh, you might want to reconsider your decision to be an author. You can make all of the excuses that you want, but if writing your life into what you always wanted it to be is really what you want, this is a big part of the process. You can’t just skip it. It will always come down to this.
The back story
I’m not immune to the lesson I’m giving you here. I learned it the hard way and it wasn’t all that long ago. I gave up some control of my books in exchange for some marketing help, and it didn’t go according to plan. Quite the opposite really. Things went south and resulted in me pulling my contracts 30 days in. In the process of getting all of my rights back, some damage was done to my reputation. I went from being labeled as a bully publicly right to being compared to Faleena Hopkins (the girl that tried to trademark the word Cocky). Things escalated for weeks with broken links being sent out on social media to having to threaten to sue before the damaging posts stopped and I could get my books fully under my own control a