Photo Courtesy of The Word Zombie
Just Go For It
by Samie Sands
This might seem like silly advice—Just Go For It—but when I speak to many aspiring writers, they say that’s the thing that they really needed to hear to give them the boost to at least give writing a try!
It’s very difficult to actually get started, I know. I had the idea for Lockdown rolling around in my head for a long time before I put pen to paper. I wrote out plans, I brainstormed, I thought about plotlines, but I couldn’t actually work out how to just start. It was intimidating.0 What if I failed? What if I was rubbish at writing? Then my dream would be over, just like that. In the end, I spent far too much time worrying, and not enough time writing.
Then one day, I decided to just give it a go and now I’m so grateful that I did. Sure, my first draft might have been terrible, repeating things I forgot that I’d already written, missing major plot points that I’d intended to include, but I had something written down, something real from which work—and that was an achievement in itself. I’d worked out a basis for how I was going to get the story from beginning to end and that gave me what I needed to get the book written.
Of course, then the real hard work started. Then I needed to get everything right, I needed to make it flow, make it interesting—funny and gory in equal measures. It took a few times, a few re-dos. I even left it for a while, so I could go back to it with a fresh perspective, and that helped me a lot because it meant I was looking at it without the tunnel vision that you get when working closely on something for a very long time.
One day I decided to just give it a go and now I’m so grateful that I did. My first draft might have been terrible, but I had something written down. [I had] what I needed to get the book written.
Once I had the story written and up to a standard I was happy with, I had to decide what to do next. I chose to send it out to a bunch of publishers because why not. I’d spent a lot of time on it, so I wanted to do something productive with it! I was expecting rejections—everyone will get them, you just have to be thick skinned enough not to let it bother you. (It’s the same for bad reviews. You will never be able to write something that everyone on the entire world will like because everyone has unique, individual tastes.)
Of course I got a few rejections. But then I got offered a three book contract by Limitless Publishing. My trilogy is on its way to being released. I guess I’m writing this because I want to give other people the advice that I wish someone had given me.
Just Go For It.
You’ll never know if you don’t try and isn’t it better to fail than always wonder, “What if?” It may even lead to some really great things, so stop worrying, stop procrastinating and simply start writing!
Find more writing and publishing tips at Nothing Any Good.
Samie Sands is a 28 year old freelance graphic designer who has recently decided to follow her lifelong dream and use her creativity in a new way by writing. She has a degree in Media Studies and PR, and has already had articles published in a number of e-zines, including one of the most popular pieces at Zombie Guide Magazine. She has also had short stories included in a number of successful projects. She lives in a small seaside town in the UK, but loves to travel to gain inspiration from new places and different cultures. To follow Samie’s work, please check out her website and her book Lockdown.
