Authorpreneur Magazine Issue 3 | Page 6

fictional friends rather than real ones. I might have thrown off those bowlines and set sail, but sometimes I still feel like a tiny cork bobbing on an ocean of wanna-be best-sellers.

Sometimes, I find myself drowning in self-doubt and channelling Louisa May Alcott:“ I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” And learn I did...

When your passion has been a hobby( lifelong or, like me, a midlife crisis) thinking of it as a business is awkward. But being an author requires both heart and head. New York Times Bestseller, Eloise James says:“ To be a successful writer, you must be half businessperson and half writer. And businessperson must come first.”

In other words, losing yourself in the romance of writing is not enough.

The reality of being a published author is not all book signings and Sunday brunches.( Sad but true!)

Did you have a plan or wing it?

I’ m not afraid of hard work and as an ex-corporate gal I’ m familiar with words such as planning, objectives, strategic thinking, and goal setting, even though I was never a great planner, preferring to fly by the seat of my pants. That goes for my writing as well.

I’ m a loud and proud pantster. That is, I fly by the seat of my pants – no planning, no plotting. Just an idea, a title, a tagline and NaNoWriMo – a process that demands no editing, no daily revisions, and no pedantic perfecting; just get as many words on paper as you can every day.

That’ s how I wrote the first draft of House for all Seasons – my debut novel.

Did you choose to selfpublish or take the traditional publishing path?

I was fortunate my House for all Seasons found a home with Simon & Schuster Australia who were looking to grow some local( Aussie) author

careers. They contracted two books in 2012. My second book – The Simmering Season( due March 2014) – is a loosely linked novel set in the same fictional town I named Calingarry Crossing.

Did you publish in multiple formats or just print or eBook?

House for all Seasons is available in trade paperback( bookshops and online) and as an ebook on Amazon, iTunes, Kobo, etc.

What would you do differently next time?

I’ d throw off those bowlines and start my publishing journey much earlier.( Not at an age when a book title like Fifty Shades of Grey makes me think more about my hair colour rather than my love life!) Being a Linkedin, Blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking 53-year-old did not come easily and finding my way around the necessary social media side of the biz was a bigger challenge than writing the book. But engaging with readers is essential. Authors have to connect with readers because readers want to connect with authors – and the numerous social media platforms available means they now can. While proud of my DIY website and my learn by trial and error method, I might have benefitted from a few courses.

I might also have done a creative writing course.

Interestingly, however, I heard Carrie Tiffany( Mateship With Birds) credit the networking opportunities( connecting with likeminded people) afforded by formal studies more beneficial than the actual creative writing studies.

I might have read more. I’ ve heard it said that to be a great writer you must be a great reader.

Finally, I might have been less fatalistic and more proactive. But the truth is I do believe everything has a time, a reason and, yes you guessed it, everything also has a season.

I think it was J. K. Rowling who said( about getting published):