Thanks for the Reminder!

“I put a lot in to my writing so that you can get a lot out of it.”

Earlier this week, this quote by suspense author, Alan Chaput, appeared on my Twitter feed and it really spoke to me. Not just for its content but for how well timed this message was.

One of the most difficult things about being an author with little to no budget has always been editing my work. In every work I’ve ever produced I’ve always made every effort to make sure my editing is tight. I want readers to focus on the story and not its mechanics.

Still, no matter how hard I try, I always seem to manage to miss at least one thing, usually more. It could be anything from a missed word to incorrect punctuation. Once, I even used the word lightening when I meant lightning. Of course, my spell check didn’t catch that since lightening was spelled correctly. I’m also notorious for using the word titled when I wanted to say tilted. Again, this isn’t going to be caught by my spell check.

One of these days I might be able to afford an editor. Until then, I’m on my own and I have to do what I can to make sure there aren’t any mistakes.  With the decision to release all of my novels on my own, that becomes even more important. 

Being that I’ve made a conscious decision to self-publish, I’m doing my best to be diligent in my editing. I’ve added a new technique that I haven’t tried in the past and is proving to be quite effective. Of course, while I’m doing all this editing, readers are stuck waiting for the release of my novel, This Time, the first in a four book series that I actually wrote in response to multiple readers’ requests to see more of the characters from my young adult novel, Like You Mean It.

With as much time as I’ve spent, and am still spending, on editing This Time, I’ve been a little worried that readers are going to lose interest after waiting so long.  After seeing Alan Chaput’s quote, I realized I’m not the only author with this concern, but I also realized something more important. All the effort I’m putting in to producing the best product is because I want my readers to get the most out of the experience. I could hurry through and put something out there, but there’s a high probability it won’t be my best or what my readers truly deserve.

Like Chaput, I put a lot of effort in to my writing so that my readers are given what they deserve; the best.  So, thanks Alan Chaput. Thanks for making me feel better and reminding me of one of the fundamental principles of being a good writer. 

“I put a lot in to my writing so that you can get a lot out of it.”  I couldn’t have said it better myself, but I wish I had!