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My first ISWG Post

Posted on December 4, 2013February 4, 2014 by Loni Townsend

Forgive me if I do this wrong. I’m new.

I’ve been stalking Melissa Maygrove for a while now, and I’ve seen her do this thing every month. And then I think to myself, ‘with as many times as I’ve freaked out over writing, I should really do that.’ So here I am.

My biggest fear is being disliked.

For over a decade, I never told anyone except my parents that I enjoyed writing. What would people think when they discovered how twisted and messed up my mind was? The story that’s been brewing in my head for 15 years isn’t exactly rainbows and kittens. And it gets darker as the series progresses. Book 3 in my series is the darkest of the bunch, which is what I worked on for NaNoWriMo.

I overcame my fear with my first book, which will be published tomorrow. Well, I kinda overcame my fear. Okay, not really. What if people don’t like it? What if I fail?

My goal has always been to write the best darn book I can possibly write. To draw readers in and absorb them into this world I created. To entertain and excite. Failure is not doing so. I may never become a household name. I don’t measure success with a $. I want to be read. Did I do right by those who dared to pick up my book? I certainly hope so. Because if I didn’t, then I failed.

Thank you for stopping by and listening to me be insecure. I hope you find a reason to stay.

22 thoughts on “My first ISWG Post”

  1. Aldrea Alien says:
    December 4, 2013 at 3:37 AM

    I get the same feeling, especially with The Rogue King.
    I think all authors do for their first novel. You’re handing a piece of yourself to the world. It’s scary, but it’s also amazing when someone … gets the story you were trying to put down using words that will come close but will never be exact because another person can never be you.

    And you changed the prologue of Thanmir War on me. All I need now is a paperback…

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 9:10 AM

      Exactly! Handing yourself out and hoping they’ll get it but knowing that what you see in your head probably won’t be what they see in theirs… That’s some terrifying stuff.

      Heh. Changed more than the prologue. πŸ™‚ The paperback should be live tomorrow–on the actual release date. >_<

      Reply
      1. Aldrea Alien says:
        December 4, 2013 at 11:52 AM

        You change more stuff? That’s awesome! It’ll be like reading a new story! Will be such a pain to wait for it to arrive, but this story demands a physical copy!

        In the meantime, I’ll finish these other two books I’m reading…

        Reply
  2. Melissa Maygrove says:
    December 4, 2013 at 6:15 AM

    Twisted, messed up mind? Ha! You haven’t read the opening scene of my dystopian. πŸ˜› When I sent it to another CP for an pre-diving-into-a-new-WIP-opinion, I told her: I’m not sure if people will consider this bizarre-brilliant or bizarre-sicko. hahaha

    Thanmir War is good, Loni. You have nothing to fear. πŸ™‚

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 9:12 AM

      Thank you, Melissa. πŸ™‚

      And I love bizarre! I look forward to reading your dystopian.

      Reply
  3. Wendy Tyler Ryan says:
    December 4, 2013 at 7:08 AM

    You struck the nail on the head – I want to be read.

    I don’t worry about being liked, I worry about not being found.

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 1:53 PM

      That’s the greatest part about the Internet–getting to know people and building relationships with people we would otherwise never meet!

      Reply
  4. River Fairchild says:
    December 4, 2013 at 9:17 AM

    First of all, welcome to IWSG! It’s a great, supportive group of people.

    I’m in awe of you writing on several stories at once. The squirrel must be tired! πŸ™‚ I wish I could do that. Tried it, didn’t work.

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 2:25 PM

      Thank you!

      I have a tendency to jump around in my head, and just write what scenes are alive in my head. Sometimes the scenes change, or I get one idea that has a chain effect on other stories and have to write it all down before I forget. Thus multiple stories. πŸ™‚

      I see you have a book coming up for release! Awesome! It sounds great and I look forward to picking it up.

      Reply
  5. Sarah Chafin says:
    December 4, 2013 at 10:23 AM

    Congrats on your book coming out!
    I relate to your fears. I got some odd reactions from some of my family when I mentioned my writing so I stopped talking about it. I’m petrified to show my work to anyone cause it might be terrible. I love writing though and I love my stories so I’m keeping at it. Good luck with your endeavors!

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 2:59 PM

      Thank you!

      It’s great that you’re keeping at your writing. If you did want to share with someone, critique partners are a great way to start out. You can find some great ones out there who will give you helpful feedback in a constructive way. I read your blurb that you put on your blog (Monday’s Post) and it sounded awesome. Just sayin’…

      Reply
  6. Julie Flanders says:
    December 4, 2013 at 12:04 PM

    Oh, our books are going to be released on the same day. Yay!! Congrats to you!
    And I can relate, I write dark stories and worry sometimes that people think I’m morbid or disturbed LOL. I’m really not, I just love tragic and dark tales.
    Glad you decided to join the IWSG!

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 3:03 PM

      Grats on your release too! Tomorrow’s going to be a big day!

      Reply
  7. ML Swift says:
    December 4, 2013 at 1:11 PM

    Hey Loni!

    Thanks for coming to my blog, and WELCOME to IWSG. Love the look of the place in here. You know, I recently put an excerpt of my NaNo piece on my blog (titled, “Would YOU Turn the Page?”) and I was a bit insecure about it. Number one, it was a rough draft, and number two, it contained language that I normally don’t use. But cha know what? It was how the story wanted and needed to be told. I went with my gut.

    I didn’t finish NaNo, but got started on a good roll, and that’s all I set out to do. Congrats on your book and the release of your paperback! Again, welcome.

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 3:15 PM

      Thank you!

      And so you know, I would turn the page. πŸ™‚

      Reply
  8. Nana Prah says:
    December 4, 2013 at 1:21 PM

    Congratulations on your book release tomorrow. Whether people like it or not is not the issue. Whether you are happy with your work is.

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 4, 2013 at 3:21 PM

      Thank you! I am happy with it, but the people-pleaser side of me keeps popping up. πŸ™‚

      Reply
  9. Heather M. Gardner says:
    December 4, 2013 at 4:53 PM

    Your thoughts and feelings are completely normal. Everyone wants to be liked but the truth is we will never please everyone. We should write to please ourselves first. Everything else is icing. Best of luck. Keep writing.
    Heather

    Reply
  10. Sakib Khan says:
    December 4, 2013 at 10:17 PM

    Don’t worry, you have done (and doing) your best. So don’t be afraid, If you believe in work and your motto is to build a place in the heart of people then you’ll be succeed and you’re.Congrats for your book.

    Reply
  11. Alex J. Cavanaugh says:
    December 5, 2013 at 4:37 PM

    First, welcome to the IWSG! Best group of writers on the Internet.
    Second, congratulations on your book release! I’m a day late (sorry, the IWSG list is really long now) so it’s today.
    Writing the best book you can is all you can do. Some people won’t like it. That’s all right – you didn’t write it for them. You wrote it for the group of people who will really dig it.
    Enjoy your release day! That first book is always something special.

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      December 5, 2013 at 5:11 PM

      Thank you for the welcome. It’s an excellent community you’ve built, and I’m honored to be a part of it. You have such a wonderful view on things. You’re a real inspiration!

      Reply
  12. jeremy bates says:
    December 7, 2013 at 4:38 PM

    crazy u can write several stories at once! i read different books at the same time, but can’t do that with writing πŸ™

    Reply

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Welcome to my blog. I post here on Wednesdays most of the time, but you can find me on social media any day of the week. My topics include my stories and writing, life at the Town's End, creating and tinkering with graphics, things I learn and think might be helpful to others, and the occasional amateur photo. Thanks for stopping by! I hope to see you around.

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