So much to do, so little time

I admit it… this fiction-writing business is hard!

I wrote a book. A whole book! At the same time, I’m allegedly supposed to be “building my audience” so that when the time comes, there is already a group of people who will want to buy said book. At the HNSNA Conference last summer, several people said that publishers like to see their debut authors come to the table with an audience. Just this week, an industry professional told me I should aim to have 1,000 people on my mailing list before my book launches.

But the biggest challenge is… how do I find my audience when my book isn’t even published yet? The answer seems to be social media. But social media is so hard! And time consuming. And uncomfortable.

What I’ve come to learn over the last year is that time is my most valuable resource, and it’s also the resource that is hardest to come by at this stage in my life. I’m a freelancer, and mom to a 3 year old. And I’ve decided to take on entirely new job of writing my first fiction manuscript with the dream of getting it traditionally published.

Since I’m currently in the process of revising my manuscript, you’d think the bulk of my research is done. While that may be true, I’m constantly coming across new resources and information, and I can’t help but dive into them to make sure I leave no stone unturned. Writing historical fiction requires an insane amount of research to make sure everything is accurate to the time period and setting. For me, this has involved surfing library and newspaper archives, watching documentaries, and reading a ton of nonfiction. I love history. And I love Montana, specifically the North Fork. So, the research and learning has been one of my favorite parts of this entire journey so far.

It’s also important that I read in my genre. That’s obvious, and it’s the easy (albeit time consuming) part. But on top of that, in order to start querying agents, I need to come up with 2-3 “comp titles.” In other words, recently published novels in the same genre and tone as my manuscript. These are intended to show agents and publishers where my work will fit in the current market and on the bookshelf. So not only do I want to read for fun outside my genre, I need to focus the bulk of my time on reading historical fiction, and I’m also now on a scavenger hunt for the perfect comps, too.

Finally, I’m part of a critique group with three other writers. We trade ~30 pages every month and read one another’s work then we meet via Zoom to offer our feedback. It’s been incredibly helpful and enjoyable for me, and I’m fully invested in the stories I’m reading by the other women in the group. It’s been so rewarding already, and we’re all hoping to be traditionally published, so we are cheering one another on.

That brings me back to social media and marketing. Social media has been fun for me for as long as I can remember. I was on Facebook back when it was called “thefacebook” and you needed a college email address to join.

I used to post all. the. time. For years, it was part of my daily job when I worked as a digital content director in television news. And on the side, I was always posting vacation pictures, cat pictures, and kid pictures. So why is this so hard for me now? It’s because the growth and the engagement actually matter on so many different levels. Professionally, it could make or break the success of my book launch. And on a personal level, I don’t want to come across as “cringe” or desperate.

Sure, I’ll go about marketing my book in other ways, but there’s more hinging on social media than I’d care to admit. I feel like these days, people and businesses are dependent on the algorithm whether it be Google or Instagram/Facebook/TikTok in order to be seen. It’s an uphill battle to create content that the “algorithm” will prioritize. And then even if it does get seen, it needs to convince the viewer to take some kind of action. Learning the latest trends, planning and creating the content, posting the content… it’s another full-time job in and of itself just to consistently post 2-3 times per week. Uff.

All that to say, there aren’t enough hours in the day! Especially with a 3-year-old running around.

Being a fiction author is a full-time job. If I’m being honest, when I started this adventure, I didn’t fully grasp everything it would require. I’m busier now than I’ve ever been—truly, I don’t think I was this busy when I worked a full-time job. But I’m also having more fun than I ever imagined. It already feels like one of those seasons I’ll look back on and think, that was something special.