by Staci Stallings
I saw a post the other day on Facebook that said, “Only 45 more weeks until Christmas Day!”
For the average person, they would probably laugh that off. For me, it literally caused a zing of anxiety to zap through my body. I’ve told you here about my son’s Christmas light show, and I know for the “watchers” it seems like a 6-week project. It’s not. It’s literally year-round, and the thought of having only 33 weeks until we’re putting it up again about takes my breath away.
The same can be said for most of us who write and publish. For the readers, it seems like the books only come out once-in-a-while. I know some of my readers get a touch frustrated having to wait for the next book in a series to hit the virtual shelves. But I’m here to tell you that publishing more than a book or two starts to feel like you’re literally racing through life, and it never slows down.
It’s so funny to me because it seems like I put a book up on preorder, and it feels like I can take a breather for a couple of seconds. Then I blink, and… wow! It’s time to final polish the next one and format the next one, and wow, I’d better get serious about getting that next one written. I only have 3 months to get it finished now. Honestly, sometimes it gets a little crazy in my mind with all of the different tasks racing around that need to be done now, now, NOW!
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining, but there are moments that I do wonder what I’ve gotten myself into with this thing.
Like right now…
I just finished formatting “Only Together,” which will go on preorder in early March.
I’m final proofreading “Broken Heart Strings,” which will hit the virtual shelves March 10.
I’m writing “Hopelessly Devoted to You,” Book 6 in the Imagination Series, which needs to be ready to go on preorder the first of June. I have to do a book cover for that one and rework the book cover for the next one because in the writing of this thing that was supposed to be three books, now my characters have all grown up on me and the original cover doesn’t work anymore.
The seventh book in this series is spiraling through my brain as well, and every so often, it’s like I get a massive “download from the cloud” about it. Then, I’ve got to pull off everything else and at least put notes to that or it will be gone.
Oh, and did I mention that recently I had a great idea for a book that’s not even part of this series, and I started writing it? I have 130 pages on a book I’m not supposed to be writing. (Shhh… I know. I’m insane.)
In the midst of this frenzy, I’m getting tax stuff ready, teaching two classes, and doing all the other stuff a mom and wife does.
See, that’s the behind-the-scenes most readers never see or know about. I think it’s especially intense for us indie writers because we don’t just do the writing. We, in some way, shape, or form, do all of it. Find the cover art? Yep. At least oversee the cover design? Check. Write the book? Plot the book? Format the book? Check. Check. And check.
And then there’s the marketing once the book actually comes out. It’s funny because I feel like I literally get nothing done, and yet, when I really stop to think about how much I’m doing just to stay current… it’s A LOT!
So, anyway, that’s a quick peek at my life that’s racing by. (How are we already a week from the end of FEBRUARY?!!!!)
Take it from me (even as I take my own advice!)… just for a moment, take a breath and let yourself enjoy now… because the way this is going, it will be Christmas before we know it!
About the Author:
A stay-at-home mom with a husband, three kids and a writing addiction on the side, Staci Stallings has numerous titles for readers to choose from. Not content to stay in one genre and write it to death, Staci’s stories run the gamut from young adult to adult, from motivational and inspirational to full-out Christian and back again. Every title is a new adventure! That’s what keeps Staci writing and you reading. Although she lives in Amarillo, Texas and her main career right now is her family, Staci touches the lives of people across the globe with her various Internet and writing endeavors.