If I Knew Then What I Know Now About Writing
by J. Keller Ford
If I knew then what I know now about writing, I would still write. It’s like breathing to me. I have to do it, even if it’s a paragraph a day. Still, there are lessons I’ve learned along the way that I wish someone had warned me about. Below are my top five.
1. Writing is easy. It’s the editing that will kill you. It’s easy for me to put ideas and thoughts on paper. It’s easy for me to put conversations in my head on paper. To make it all come together in a cohesive manner? That’s the hard part. What sounds good in your head doesn’t alway sound good in someone else’s head. Ernest Hemingway once said “Write drunk but edit sober.” It’s so true. Editing is the hardest part of writing. Don’t worry if it takes you 20 times to read your manuscript to the point you’re sick of it. That’s what editing does. It’s painful. It’s ugly, but it’s necessary.
2. Don’t rely on your friends and family to give you honest reviews. They love you. They usually won’t hurt your feelings, and will tend to gloss over what they really think because they want you to believe in your dream. If you want honesty, hire a professional editor. Round up some beta readers who will tell you like it is. Your feelings may get hurt. You may end up with a few emotional bruises of the ego, but if you want your manuscript to shine, ask someone else other than those who love you to review and edit your book.
3. Never write on a computer with a cat hovering nearby. You may momentarily leave your keyboard only to come back to find what you wrote has been replaced by 46667ddsdd98wmsndod9. To your cat, it’s genius. To potential readers (unless they are other cats), not so much. Save your work every 5 seconds. Seriously.
4. Back up your manuscript 4 million ways. I’m not joking. Save it to thumbdrives. Send it to yourself via email. Save it to your hard drive. Save to external hard drive. If you hand-write your manuscript. scan it into the computer just in case you spill your coffee on those precious written pages or you let chocolate melt on it.
5. Learn to let it go. (Ok, someone turn off Elsa in my head). Seriously. Let it go. The manuscript will never be perfect. You will always find something that needs to be changed. You’ll always think of a better way you could have worded a conversation, but at some point, you have to let it go. You have to set it free in the world. Have faith in your writing and know that somewhere out there, someone will love the words you’ve written, but you have to release them into the wild so they can run free. It will also give you more time to write something new.
1. Writing is easy. It’s the editing that will kill you. It’s easy for me to put ideas and thoughts on paper. It’s easy for me to put conversations in my head on paper. To make it all come together in a cohesive manner? That’s the hard part. What sounds good in your head doesn’t alway sound good in someone else’s head. Ernest Hemingway once said “Write drunk but edit sober.” It’s so true. Editing is the hardest part of writing. Don’t worry if it takes you 20 times to read your manuscript to the point you’re sick of it. That’s what editing does. It’s painful. It’s ugly, but it’s necessary.
2. Don’t rely on your friends and family to give you honest reviews. They love you. They usually won’t hurt your feelings, and will tend to gloss over what they really think because they want you to believe in your dream. If you want honesty, hire a professional editor. Round up some beta readers who will tell you like it is. Your feelings may get hurt. You may end up with a few emotional bruises of the ego, but if you want your manuscript to shine, ask someone else other than those who love you to review and edit your book.
3. Never write on a computer with a cat hovering nearby. You may momentarily leave your keyboard only to come back to find what you wrote has been replaced by 46667ddsdd98wmsndod9. To your cat, it’s genius. To potential readers (unless they are other cats), not so much. Save your work every 5 seconds. Seriously.
4. Back up your manuscript 4 million ways. I’m not joking. Save it to thumbdrives. Send it to yourself via email. Save it to your hard drive. Save to external hard drive. If you hand-write your manuscript. scan it into the computer just in case you spill your coffee on those precious written pages or you let chocolate melt on it.
5. Learn to let it go. (Ok, someone turn off Elsa in my head). Seriously. Let it go. The manuscript will never be perfect. You will always find something that needs to be changed. You’ll always think of a better way you could have worded a conversation, but at some point, you have to let it go. You have to set it free in the world. Have faith in your writing and know that somewhere out there, someone will love the words you’ve written, but you have to release them into the wild so they can run free. It will also give you more time to write something new.
Bane of the Dragon King
Chronicles of Fallhallow #3
J. Keller Ford
Publication Date: November 13, 2018
Genre: YA Fantasy, Dragons
Fallhollow is at war. The sudden deaths of the only two heirs that could have saved it has plunged the entire land into chaos. Despite all the magic thrown at him, the Dragon King still lives. Hope for any sort of victory seems faint until Charlotte discovers a secret that could change the course of history.
Armed with the power to set things right, Charlotte embarks on a perilous journey with the sly and cunning Prince Izmayel Ascatar Venniver IV, Lord of the peaceful Edryd dragons. But her journey of peace is thwarted, and Hirth's most fearsome enemy plans to use Charlotte to destroy the kingdom and claim the universe as his own.
As Fallhollow and the Kingdom of Hirth descend into a battlefield of bloodshed and death, David, Trog, and the warriors of Hirth march toward war with an impossible plan to bring down the Dragon King, destroy his armies, and return the kingdom to its former glory. All they need is a little faith, a few extraordinary surprises, and a lot of magic of the most unexpected, generous kind.
This book is the final dramatic and magnificent conclusion to the Chronicles of Fallhollow trilogy.
Check out the other books in the series
About the Author
J. (Jenny) Keller Ford is a scribbler of speculative fiction and YA tales. As an Army brat, she traveled the world and wandered the halls of some of Germany's most extraordinary castles in hopes of finding snarky dragons, chivalrous knights, and wondrous magic to permeate her imagination. What she found remains etched in her topsy-turvy mind.
When not torturing her keyboard or trying to silence the voices in her head, Jenny spends time collecting seashells, bowling, screaming on roller coasters and traveling. She is a mom to four magnificent and noble offspring, and currently lives in paradise on the west coast of Florida with a menagerie of royal pets, and her own quirky knight who was brave enough to marry her.
Jenny is the author of The Chronicles of Fallhollow series. The first two books, IN THE SHADOW OF THE DRAGON KING, and RAGE OF THE DRAGON KING, are currently available. The third and final book, BANE OF THE DRAGON KING, is due to release in the Fall 2018.
Please stop by her website at www.j-keller-ford.com for additional info or email her at: jenny(at)j-keller-ford(dot)com
When not torturing her keyboard or trying to silence the voices in her head, Jenny spends time collecting seashells, bowling, screaming on roller coasters and traveling. She is a mom to four magnificent and noble offspring, and currently lives in paradise on the west coast of Florida with a menagerie of royal pets, and her own quirky knight who was brave enough to marry her.
Jenny is the author of The Chronicles of Fallhollow series. The first two books, IN THE SHADOW OF THE DRAGON KING, and RAGE OF THE DRAGON KING, are currently available. The third and final book, BANE OF THE DRAGON KING, is due to release in the Fall 2018.
Please stop by her website at www.j-keller-ford.com for additional info or email her at: jenny(at)j-keller-ford(dot)com
One (1) winner will receive a $25 Amazon Gift Card and a digital copy of Bane of the Dragon King
Nice to read more about you, Jenny!
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