Oh, So You're an Author Now?

I wish Instagram did not automatically recommend new accounts to those in your sphere. Then I would not have had to explain why I created a new account with the word "author" in the user name.

If my bucket list were tangible, something you could hold in your hands, somewhere on that list would be “Write a book”.

I have always loved writing, or at the very least, talked about loving writing, though never practiced it. This bucket list item always has taken a back seat to every other dream or goal. After all, photography was my thing. I was a photographer. That was my creative outlet. It would be too hard to transition to writing. That was not my identity anyway. I have spent years taking photos. I have spent far less time writing. Besides, it takes too long to write a novel, and I would be a fraud to try and lay claim to the title of “author”.

Yet, the right social messaging has been reaching me lately, most notably that of Jon Acuff. I have had a goal but never applied myself to truly reach for this one. And all it takes is a goal. Well, at least Jon says that is the case.

The more I read, the more I want to write. Except now when I read, I imagine the author holed up in some dimly lit library, earbuds in, hammering away on a keyboard. Or if they are lucky, sipping coffee in a cabin, the only noise coming from the wildlife in the forest surrounding them.

This year, I am changing all of this.

One of the most important steps that has been suggested has been to write. Just write. I have been blocking off time to put blinders on and do just that. Usually setting a timer for one hour, I have found a quiet spot away from normal distractions and started writing.

When I left the library last night after writing, I passed an entire display of books about writing a book. Maybe it was the new year and writing a book is on enough resolutions where they felt the display was warranted. Maybe it was another sign I was on the right path and just needed to keep going.

What’s the book about?

For the few people I have discussed this with, that has been the first question asked. When I reply with, “I don’t know yet” I am met with a puzzling look, much like how a dog looks at you when you talk to it and they try to understand what you are saying.

What I know is this: I have about 3,500 words written so far. That might not seem like much, but that is 3,500 more words than I had before the year started. Also, the book will most likely be horror and something I will do my best to prohibit my family from reading. It took some time for me to fully release any bindings and expectations of what others would want me to write and to approach this like I did my photography: create what I want to create.

Even without knowing the exact path this book will take, I could not resist the urge to create a mockup, mainly to see what my name would look like on the cover. That was when I realized my name was bland as it was. We kicked around a few ideas about possible abbreviations, using my middle name, etc. It reminded me of a local author who wrote under his full name, but later changed to his first and middle initial as he found it sold more books.

No, this is not the cover, nor is it the title. But that image is great, right? It is an AI depiction of me in the morning searching for my first cup of coffee, trying my best not to murder anyone. I dropped a fictional title in and then had fun with name variations. The abbreviated versions did not look as good as they had sounded in my head.

Still, I am a long, long way away from even entertaining any of these, though it was a fun exercise.

I have no illusions of being published, having my work turned into a movie, or becoming a household name. My only goal is to finish the manuscript for my first novel before the end of the year.

Stay tuned.