One of the best ways for me to ensure I’ll do something on my blog is to commit to something contrary. Along the same lines, one of the best ways for me to ensure I’ll need to add a chapter to a novel, or remove one, is for me to put the book in a format that makes it less-than-automatic to renumber chapters (like exporting to Word as opposed to drafting in Scriviner), and then get a few days into heavy edits.

Just a couple of days ago, I said I may not want to talk about writing as much around here. That’s probably why I’m back today with a writing related thought. I said I felt like I’d seen most of it, written about most if it, exhausted the topics.

But this is one I don’t see covered in many places. Not at this level. Sure, a lot of people talk about feedback, and the importance of good critique partners, and beta readers, and making sure your manuscript is finished before you start querying.

And a lot of people say if you’re not at any of these places yet, that you need to make it happen.

Not a lot of people talk about what goes on between knowing it needs to happen, and making it happen.

I’m getting off track (seriously, I just deleted about ten paragraphs of tangent). My point today is about feedback. And how it’s easy to say “I need CP’s and/or beta readers” and it’s easy once you have them to say “I have the best CP’s/beta readers in the world, they get me!”.

What very few people mention (I have seen it, just not a lot. It’s easy to forget the pain once you’ve achieved the nirvana), is that the part in between doesn’t just happen. Just because you get someone to read your work and give you feedback doesn’t mean you’re there.

I’ve written a few novels over the last five years. Um…six, maybe? And I’ve heavily revised a couple of them. And during that entire time, I searched for people to read them. To give me an outside perspective on what was working and what wasn’t.

I hear people talk about how long it takes to write a novel, to revise a novel, to find an agent, to find a publisher, to get a book on shelves, all of that. I don’t hear people say “it took me years to find the right readers to offer feedback on my work”.

That’s me. Several times, I considered giving up just because the people reading my stories didn’t like them. After all, that’s an indicator of whether or not a writer is any good, right?

And then I found a person who not only liked what I wrote, but had constructive feedback. And then another. And then over time a couple more. The book I wrote four years ago languished, and has been read start to finish in its various incarnations by a total of maybe five or six people.

The book I wrote two months ago has been read start to finish by almost as many (and a lot of them are the same people). The older novel certain isn’t as well-written, but that’s not the entire issue. The point is, it took me four years to find a solid group of people I trust to exchange work with.

Not a lot of people mention that bit. So if you’re in that spot – you’ve written a novel and you just can’t find the right people to give you feedback – and you’re sick of seeing everyone say “I love my CP’s, they get me!”, because yours don’t, you’ll get there. Don’t despair and probably don’t decide the book is good enough without another set of eyes.

It may be, but…

Publishing takes time. Even if you self-publish to work around the slow time schedule of traditional publishing, writing them, editing them, and packaging/marketing them takes time. So if this one more step takes a little while – finding the right people to exchange feedback with – it’s okay. It won’t halt the process. Opportunities will still be there when you’re ready, even if they’re different (new and exciting) opporutnities.

And with any luck, you’ll be relieved you waited.

So, what about this whole writing/publishing process has surprised you as far as timing is concerned?