Don’t make these mistakes if you’re thinking of self-publishing
Photo by Siora Photography on Unsplash
It had been years since I regularly used social media. I was one of those young and foolish writers who assumed that my work would speak for itself — that I wouldn’t ever need to lower myself to using social media to — gag — promote myself.
Then I rediscovered my passion for reviewing, and here I am, posting my reviews on every social media app I can because otherwise I’m screaming into the void. (To be honest, it still feels like screaming into the void, but at least I know there’s a few people floating around with me)
Part of my — urgh — social media strategy is to link up with newer writers. I’ll never be friends with Brandon Sanderson and Stephen King no matter how much I praise their books, but maybe someone close to my level might appreciate a review, a like, a retweet.
This is how I discovered Author X. No, I won’t be naming them or their book. Call me weak, but I feel like it would be too mean. This fresh-faced author has obviously put a lot of effort into their self-published debut novel and is clearly doing their utmost to promote it online and I wouldn’t want this getting their attention at such an early stage in their writing career.
So, after connecting with Author X and seeing that we had similar tastes, I decided that it would be fun to read their newly released fantasy book, give it a review, and solidify an acquaintanceship with an up-and-coming author who seems by all accounts to be a genuinely lovely person.
Then I started to read the book.
Oh boy.
1. Worldbuilding
To begin with a positive remark, it was clear that Author X had put a lot of work into building their fantasy world. The problem, which presented itself almost immediately, was that they didn’t know how much of this world they were supposed to share.
While there isn’t anything inherently wrong with a third-person omniscient point-of-view (where the writing isn’t grounded in a single character’s perspective), opening your novel with a four-page description of the physical geography of your fantasy world is a sure way to bore a reader.
I can see what Author X was trying to achieve — Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time books all open with a short passage tracking through some landscapes before reaching a character — but Author X didn’t know when to stop. They also didn’t know that worldbuilding is only interesting when viewed through the eyes of an interesting character.
Lists of fantasy-sounding locations and made-up words for days of the week and months of the year does not a good story make.
2. Melodrama
Just when I thought that I must’ve accidentally purchased a copy of Author X’s notes instead of their novel, the lengthy worldbuilding passage ended. I was relieved. Finally, I had a character I could ground myself in. I had a reason to keep reading. I —
Uh-oh.
The character was pounding their fists into the ground, screaming to the heavens, and sobbing uncontrollably. The source of this emotional outburst was the character recalling a now-dead loved one, and while that might seem understandable, I had no context for what was going on, I didn’t feel any of the emotions of the character, and this was our main character.
It betrayed a lack of craft on Author X’s part. It read like something you might see in student’s short film. Some writers talk about a ‘characteristic moment’, i.e. how you introduce your character to audience. What do you want the audience’s perception of them to be? It should give you an indication of their character arc, or at the very least convey some simple biographical information, like age or occupation or status or really anything to hook the reader.
Author X gave me none of that. After beating their chest for a few minutes, they moved onto a totally different scene, which left me scratching my head. That was how they wanted to introduce their main character? I knew practically nothing about them, nor did I care to.
3. The Hook
You might wonder why I didn’t just stop reading then and there. Honestly, it was only out of a sense of obligation to this enthusiastic author that I kept reading. I decided that I would wait until I found out what the driving plot of the story was before I made my decision about whether I would keep reading.
So, I read. And read. And read. And then I stopped, because this book was giving me nothing.
I’ll admit that I didn’t even read the blurb before starting Author X’s book, but only because blurbs don’t do much for me. The content of a plot rarely piques my interest in a story — I pick my books mostly on recommendations from friends and trusted online resources. Execution is what matters to me, not specific tropes.
And Author X’s book was a poorly paced mess. I approached and passed the point where an inciting incident should’ve taken place and I was still meandering through page after page of meaningless character backstories and jarring, unnatural story beats.
I finally read the blurb, just to see where this was all going, but it was too late. My interest was dead. I had better books on my shelf that I was excited to read, and I’d given Author X enough of my time.
Conclusion
Looking back on it, Author X made mistakes in what some writers (like Brandon Sanderson) believe are the three most important factors in any story: setting, plot, and character. The setting wasn’t put to any interesting use, the main character was dull and off-putting, and the plot simply wasn’t happening.
I don’t think Author X is a lost cause. They’re clearly passionate about storytelling and worked on hard on this particular story. They just didn’t channel that effort in the right direction and made some basic mistakes that could be rectified in the future.
I’ll still maintain my connection with Author X. Judging from reviews, not everyone disliked their debut novel as much as me, which helps with feeling guilty over ‘DNF’ing their book the way I did. I hope they keep writing because I’m genuinely interested to see their craft improve.
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