What they don't tell you about being a writer...

There is seriously so much I could say here...

The list of: 'HOLY CRAP WHAT DID I SIGN UP FOR?!?!' is quite extensive when it comes to being a writer, but my personal favourites are below! I've also put in some handy tips that have helped me as a writer so take them as you will.

I am sure each author has there own list of headaches, but mine has the added complication of being an illustrator as well... I never do things the easy way XD.

So here's the list!:

1. The amount of free labour you will have to do to make the dream a reality. Having to get into the mindset that it isn't a hobby anymore, and that you have to treat it like a job with hours and responsibilities is super tough but totally worth it.

2. The 'Imposter Syndrome' you will feel as your deepest and darkest thoughts tell you that your story is not worth it and you will never be successful :( Honestly, you kinda have to roll with the punches on this one. Some days you will smash out thousands of words and sometimes you can go an entire month without doing ANYTHING remotely related to the books.

3. Writers block... Duh haha. Though, I personally found that extensive world building and character creation really helps with this. If you really flesh out the world and it's story, before you begin writing the book itself, you won't encounter writers block

4. How insane you will sound to others when they ask about your story and you're like: ahhh it's something to do with something and hey, dragons! It will always sound crazy until people have the chance to read it... which leads me to my next point.

5. ACTUALLY FINISHING! I'm sure every author experiences this in a variety of ways, but one of the toughest things to do BY FAR is finishing the damn novel. If your story is complex like mine, you have to spend a lot of time on world building, and though the end result is wicked (check out the Compendium of Beasts as an example), it still derails you actually writing the story.

6. Time. I have heard every bit of advice that comes with writing and writing schedules, and I can honestly admit I don't have one AT ALL haha. I just get these mad inspirational periods where I smash things out and then I won't write for months. Which once again leads to the next point:

7. Guilt. The amount of times I have beaten myself up for not writing... I genuinely have no idea. It's a really self-destructive thought process to have, creating an imaginary expectation that you have to be writing all the time and if you don't, you're an automatic failure. It's totally not true, and an unfair expectation to place on oneself. But when the work is super important to us, it's hard not to be hard on yourself... no idea if that made sense haha. I heard a really good metaphor years ago that has helped me with this, and allows me to take this creative process at my place and no one elses: Do What You Can, Where You Are, With What You Have.

8. The loneliness. This, by far, is the hardest one for me to work with. Being a writer is a solitary pursuit, as only you can bring to life the worlds that exist in your mind. No matter how you try to explain it, no one else will understand the struggle of being an author and having to build everything you have on your own.

9. Modern technology. This one is a major concern of mine right now! the amount of crap you have to copyright and attempt to protect is astounding and disheartening. I've literally watched authors have their names and books bastardized by AI Generators stealing their work and selling it to make money. You even have those arguing that AI Art and Novels should be considered as real art. I wholeheartedly disagree. if you're going to cheat, at least own that fact. Don't plagerise others works then claim you worked just as hard. I'll be heart broken if that happens to me, and I am making a lot of efforts to ensure that doesn't happen.

Well, there's my general headaches during the creative process and some tips I have learned to deal with them. The true piece of advice here is to simply keep going no matter what.

But most importantly: If you aren't in love with the story, why bother at all? My books make me sound like a damn lunatic to anyone who asks me about it, and yet I keep coming back for more!

You should to :D