* Normally in the winter my motivation levels shoot way down. So far, I’ve been doing pretty well, staying on top of my productivity. The past week I came down with a cold, so I’ve been doing very little every day trying to stay up to date. I’m surprised I was able to work on some blog posts.
The other day I started writing down a new story opening. I think I’m starting to find my niche with writing fiction, which is Young Adult. I’m also writing in the point of view of a teenage Asian American. I watched To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before on Netflix and it was really great to have such a normal subject with an Asian American lead. I didn’t have those kinds of stories growing up.
I want to write more stories with voices that I can relate to and it’s not going to be just Asian American, but I want to add in my hard of hearing side as well. I feel that these stories are just now starting to be told and I’m so glad that I can be a part of the movement.
Anyway my new story I’m starting to work on is definitely in its early stages. I’m not sure if it will be another novella or if I can get it to be a novel length. I just wrote the opening paragraphs to get a feel for what I think the story should be about. I don’t even know how the story is going to turn out, but my main character won’t stop talking to me, so I’ve been writing down bits and pieces. This is what happens to me usually. I get a character that pops into my head, listen to a piece of their story, and then I try to figure out what part of their story should be told.
That’s what happened with my novella. Molly was the character that came to me first and then Kevin started speaking up about his side of the story. Eventually I decided to combine the two together and voila! I had a novella.
— I hope you don’t think I’m too insane and if you’re a writer you can somewhat relate to what I’m talking about.
I’m kind of nervous starting a new project when I want to get my anthology and novella published this year — and keep up with writing shorts and blog posts. I’ve heard that publishing takes a lot of time and energy. I hope I don’t burn out before then. I’m also in the process of trying to get some more freelance work in with screenwriting. I’ve reached out to a few people and I hope to hear back from them soon.
I’ve been looking into possibly starting my own publishing company so my books can look legit, but at the moment I’m not in the right space to do something like that.
Hopefully when the time is right, I can do it and then re-publish under the press. Afterall, this is like a test for me.
I was talking with my husband the other day and he asked me, “What if you don’t sell any books?”
It did send me into a bit of a worry for a minute, but I realized that it’s not about selling a ton of books, I’ll be happy if just one person bought it. My goal was to have my work produced or published. If I’m able to publish my books, then I’ve achieved it. People buying my work is just an extra bonus that I’ll gladly accept.
I don’t know if many writers out there feel the same way. Are we doing it just for the money? I hope not. It’s hard selling books these days… especially when there’s millions of kinds of books out there. But if one person got to read it, and felt inspired/intrigued/entertained then I think we accomplished something!
Those are just my thoughts on the matter, though. Let me know if you agree or disagree in the comments below.
I’m off to continue my writing day.
Thanks for reading!
-Emi
How do you handle multiple projects throughout the year? Do you work on one thing at a time or do you switch everyday? Let me know!!