It’s been a momentous year! Hard to believe it’s already April.
In February we welcomed our second son, Sullivan Rowan, into the world and our hearts. Our crazy household just got a whole lot crazier and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Gideon, our oldest, adores his new brother and seeing the two of them together will make you believe in love if you don’t already.
And on March 1, we welcomed another kind of baby into the world; my first novel The Boy in the Canvas.
The support I received from family, friends, and complete strangers has been overwhelming. I sold way more signed editions of the book than I expected to (I would have been happy selling five) and have had some very positive reviews of the book already.
Publishing a book is very different from most other art forms. Releasing a movie, showing your artwork, displaying photography, or playing your song for someone all have the benefit of getting an immediate, or nearly immediate, reaction from your audience. Waiting for a reaction from a book audience is…gruelling.
For one thing, not all that many people read, especially compared to other entertainment forms, although, thanks to COVID, a lot more are taking it up. For another thing, books take time to get through. Even when I pick up a copy of a book I’ve been dying to read, it might sit on my shelf for a while until I’ve finished the book I’m currently reading (never mind all the books already stacked up in my to-read pile).
Waiting for reactions to a novel is an exercise in extreme patience.
And what if everyone hates it? What if it was a bad idea to publish it? What if I offend someone?
I can dwell on all of those things if I so choose. Sometimes I do.
And the thing is, it’s out there now, like it or not. Assuming it doesn’t die the swift and painful death of obscurity, feedback will keep coming in about it. I often wonder if guys like Stephen King are still hurt by criticism of their early works. Literally every major book out there has had at least one negative review—and if there’s one, there are a thousand.
Fortunately I haven’t had to face any truly negative feedback about the book yet, but I’m ready for it when it comes.
Something else I celebrated fairly recently is the completion of the first draft of my second novel, which is unnamed for now (at least as far as anyone but myself is concerned). I’m really looking forward to chiseling this one down to its purest form and I can’t wait for you to read it.
I’m also working on a novella that I hope to release before too long. It’ll likely be an ebook exclusive until it’s paired with a bunch of short stories to be compiled in a collection—more info on that down the line.
With the summer approaching and my “real job” set to start imminently, there will be less time to write, which feels a bit like having my soul shackled. I’ll continue to read and write in the downtime I’m afforded though it’ll mainly be shorter works of fiction and exercises to keep me sharp. My leisure reading will at least partially be replaced by revision reading for the new novel.
The plan is to start my third novel in the fall, while continuing to prep book number two for the presses.
And like I said, I should have a novella available in the relatively near future. I’m hoping you can get your hands on it by mid-summer. It’s a weird one.
In the meantime, if you haven’t had a chance to check out The Boy in the Canvas yet, hop on over to Amazon (or wherever you get your books) and grab yourself a copy. Then head on back here and let me know what you think.
Already read it? I’d love to hear your thoughts. And if you loved it, or even liked it, leaving a review on Goodreads or Amazon would be super cool of you.
Either way, I hope the spring is good to you. May the icy chrysalis of winter melt away and may you spread your new wings under a clear, sunny sky.
Til next time,
-Christopher Sweet