The Benefits of Sharing

One of the best decision I made while writing Angst was to share early drafts.  I had written about half the book, further than I had gotten with any other writing project.  I felt good about what I had accomplished, but that didn’t mean readers would enjoy it. My insecurity grew and I was about ready to take one of those really long breaks that some people call burnout. Rather than give up, I began sharing the first handful of chapters.  My wife was kind enough to edit them so it didn’t look like a 1st grade writing assignment.

I was still apprehensive, but sent the chapters to some nearest and dearest that I knew enjoyed fantasy. The batch of chapters I sent ended with a mini cliff hanger.  Call it egotistical, but I wanted them to ask for more.

The first day was disappointing.  Everyone was quiet like they had lives. After a very long couple of days, feedback started trickling in.  I expected, “oh, you’re my friend so here is a free pat on the back,” but they seemed genuinely excited about the story. Everyone asked for more chapters and so I kept sharing. Their enthusiasm and support inspired me to finish the first book.

It gets better.  New friends on Twitter, and old friends through Facebook, are reading Angst. Their feedback and encouragement is helping to drive my progress on the sequel to Angst.  My sincere thanks to everyone who has read and commented on my first book. You’re helping more than you know.