I recently noticed I don't make as much writing related blog posts as I would want to, so with my first novel coming out soon, I decided to share with you a glimpse of what my journey as a writer has been so far.
If you are a writer struggling to write your first book, or looking for a book deal, I hope this post inspires you into pushing forward.
I have been writing short stories ever since I first learned how to write. Though my storytelling journey began way before that, when I first learned how to speak. I remember telling stories to my friends in kindergarten, about a monster chasing a family who wanted to pee so badly they couldn't decide if they should run away from the monster first, or use the bathroom. Okay, maybe it wasn't the best story I ever came up with, but it was the first I remember.
So, I started writing stories at school, as we all do in the first years of elementary (before they kill our creativity and make us write essays instead). The more stories I wrote, the more ideas came. So I kept on writing, and writing. I was the kid who wouldn't go out with friends or relatives because I had this great idea in my head that I had to put on paper or else it'll suffocate me.
When I was ten, I read the Harry Potter Series for the first time and realized I wanted to write stories like that. But I didn't know how. That was also the year I was introduced to The Diary of Anne Frank. I vividly recall that day I read that Anne Frank wanted to become a writer. I was astonished at finding out that being a writer could be a career choice instead of a hobby. That was the day I decided that I was going to be a writer. And even if I didn't know how to write stories like Harry Potter, I was planning to find out.
The next years were a mix and match of genres and copying my favorite books and movies. I wrote one short story after the other, spent all day dreaming about what happens next, and stayed up all night to write in the secrecy of my bedroom. Each summer, I would make a list of things I wanted to accomplish the next school year, and every year, on the top of my list was: Write a book.
I completed my first novel at fifteen, and my second a year later. I saved those novels in a box of memories and moved on to study hard to get into uni. I always thought I'd come back to my manuscripts, eventually. But I never did.
From ages 16 to 20, I wrote nothing but poems. I went through this crazy phase of poetry, which I was out of as fast as it started and can't seem to get back into ever since. But that's okay, I'm a terrible poet.
So at 20, I had this conversation with a friend of mine from uni, Anna P., who suggested I started sending out my manuscripts and poems, because publishers don't approach you, suddenly, while you're daydreaming. She guided me and helped me send out my first cover letter. We both had no clue what we were doing, so rejection was inevitable.
After that, I started writing short stories again. And the more I wrote, the more ideas came. Sometimes, as I would edit my stories, the ideas would grow, and 5.000 words were too few. So in 2019, I decided to write the first novel I would publish.
It took me a year to complete the story. And 6 more months to edit it. A few friends gave me feedback and, now, after a shit ton of more editing, it is finally handed over to my publisher.
So far in my journey, I have published 4 short stories and a novelette. And I can't wait to hold a printed copy of my novel.
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