Thread by @TheKateDylan

So, with the new year just around the corner, you've decided to finally write that book, huh? Here’s what you’ll need to know!

1) It’s going to be hard. Harder than you think. But that’s okay. Hard is normal.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying, or a demon.

Trust me, if it was easy, most of us wouldn’t be on this hell site complaining about it every day and OMG I just realised Twitter is the circle of hell Dante reserved for writers.

2) It’s going to be bad. Badder than you think. But that’s okay. Bad is normal.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying, or a demon.

That perfect story you have in your head is going to look downright awful on paper. And it’ll stay that way for a while.

That’s why editing exits.

No book you’ve ever bought started life that way. Most have gone through 5-20+ rounds of editing and multiple pairs of eyes.

None of us do this alone.

3) You are not Stephen King.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying, or WAY too big a fan of SK.

Seriously folks, if you see that piece of advice that says SK writes 2k a day therefore 2k a day is the magic number, please remember that SK writes *for a living*.

You don’t need to rack up the same numbers as SK. Not at first, at least. Maybe not ever.

If you’re writing 100 words a day (or as often as life allows) you’re doing fine.

Words add up and this isn’t a race.

4) Your first book probably won’t be a bestseller.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying, or J.K. Rowling.

And we can’t all be JKR. We just can’t. That’s just how the law of averages works.

Even if you think what you’ve written is the best thing ever (I did), it probably isn’t (mine wasn’t) but that’s okay!

No book — no matter how bad, is a waste. Every book you write is teaching you how to write *the* book.

5) But your first book doesn’t have to be trash, either.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying, or an ass.

Just because most people *don’t* sell their first book, doesn’t mean it’s impossible and you should set that dream on fire.

Most first books aren’t publishable because the writer ultimately decides that the story is not worth the amount of work it would take to get it right.

But if you truly believe in your story, then don’t let the ‘your first book will ALWAYS suck mentality’ bring you down.

Your 1st draft of that book will probably suck, yes. But that’s why 2nd drafts exist. And 3rd drafts. As long as you’re willing to put in the work, there’s no reason you can’t get there.

But there’s no shame in recognising your story's fundamentally flawed and moving on, either.

6) THERE IS NO ONE WAY TO WRITE.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is literally JUST AN ASS.

Every book is different. Every writer is different. Our processes are different. And no one way is inherently better than another.

The only thing that matters is getting to the end. If your process allows that - then your process is RIGHT.

If it doesn’t, then maybe ask around and give some other methods a try.

7) Writing a book is an awesome achievement even if it's never published.

Anyone who says otherwise is again, just an ass.

Seriously though, if this is your first book, just have fun with it. Write for yourself first, worry about selling later.

AND FINALLY...

8) Remember to have a little fun, folks.

You are literally creating a universe from nothing then throwing in human shaped trash fires so you can play with them and make them hurt.

SO ENJOY BEING A GOD, GUYS.

IT'S THE BEST PART.