Posted by I love to write. It’s creative, cathartic and fun. I have an idea and once I start writing I usually have to hold on and let the words take me on an adventure. But is it worth it to put all that time (it takes months) and effort (it takes discipline) into a novel only to sell a few books? YES! And here’s why.
I’m not writing for the money, which is a good thing considering there isn’t any. I rarely break even on my books anymore because of paying an editor, buying stock images for the book covers and paying for a website. Oh, and then there’s the taxes which I pay H&R Block to do because it’s way over my head. And neither am I doing it for the prestige or distinction although I admit my books get high ratings (thank you, readers).
As I said before, writing is creative and cathartic. If I have an opinion I want to share I write it into my books. If I have a personal connection to a subject, such as COVID-19, (I work in a hospital, non-clinical), I write about it. I had one reviewer tell me they had no idea what nurses were going through until they read my books. That was worth all the money in the world to me. Nurses are our unsung heroes!
Bottom line, I write because I love it. You’ve got to do what you love and let the rest go. You may think that you’ll never be the next Patricia Highsmith or Alice Walker but you need to remember, neither were they when they first started out.
Mairsile Leabhair, Author
Check out my books.
Mairsile 