The best and worst of being a writer

The best things about being a writer

Writing

I’ll start with the obvious – I write because I love it. I love bringing my characters to life on paper and creating worlds for them to live in. Those first meetings, plot twists, dramatic climaxes, and happily ever afters. I still laugh and cry when I read my own stories, even though I wrote the freaking things.

Research

Oh, the things I’ve been able to justify as “research.” A trip to Jordan because I wanted to see what the desert looked like (Into the Black). Windsurfing lessons (Back to Paradise). Scuba diving (Trouble in Paradise). Visit to the 24h du Mans motor race in France (24 Hours of Trouble). Eating waffles (Lithium). Staring at endless pictures of naked men (Life). Buying an Aston Martin (Pitch Black). 

Now, I’m thinking I should set a novel in the Maldives where the main character gets waited on by a topless cabana boy who serves up cocktails on the hour, every hour.

Who wouldn’t want to be a writer?

Yoga pants

It’s practically mandatory to write in yoga pants. After all, we want to be comfortable, don’t we?

The office

I write all my first drafts on an iPad mini, which means my office is anywhere I want it to be. Okay, so it’s mostly in bed, but over the past couple of years, I’ve also been able to work on the beach, a boat, planes, trains, parks, restaurants, and a few co-working spaces where I’ve met a bunch of interesting people.

The community

I’ve met so many amazing people, both online and in person. Other writers, readers, bloggers, artists, entrepreneurs. There’s a real spirit of camaraderie in the indie world, and I love being a part of that.

The worst things about being a writer

Deadlines

Douglas Adams said “I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.” I only wish I could be that relaxed about them! Once I have a project plan in mind, I like to stick to it, and if I’ve told my readers that a book is coming at a certain time, I hate to let them down. But having to constantly write and edit around my day job sometimes leaves me exhausted.

Uncertainty

What would happen if everybody stopped buying my books tomorrow? I still have my day job, so I wouldn’t starve, but this question is also the reason why I still have my day job. 

Accounting

I’m a chartered accountant. I spend all day looking at other people’s accounts, and the last thing I want to do when I get home is my own.

Organising things

I love being an indie author. I get to pick my own editors, and my own cover artists, and my own titles, and my own release schedule. But all that means I have to be organised, and I hate being organised. Calendar apps and to-do lists and little coloured folders for my emails. It doesn’t mesh well with my naturally scattered mind.

Not writing

Writing is the easy part, but that’s only a small fraction of actually publishing a book. Editing, making graphics, formatting, networking, answering emails, booking promo, the aforementioned organising… None of it is writing, and that’s the part I love most.