Being An Author... Part 1
Once of the things that I have found interesting as my career and popularity grows (and there are MANY), is that my job consumes me constantly. Although, in part, I think that is because I also own a new clothing line, which I am basically building from the ground up with no help other than my amazing wife. But it seems crazy to me how much work is involved in promoting my books and brand as a whole. It is a constant work in progress, a sun up to sun down (more like midnight) operation. And of course when I was in prison, the naive me figured I'd just publish my fist book within a few weeks and be a millionaire in a year, two at most. Haha, the joke is on me. It takes a crazy amount of work. And time. Not just from me but my wife also, who has a life of acquired skills in the publishing industry under her belt. Between the two of us, we probably work 30 hours a day. Its like a baby. It needs constant attention and nurturing. The marketing constantly needs to be fed. Dirty diapers (old promos) need to be changed and updated. And damnit, why am I NOT a millionaire yet?!?! The other thing is fans. As I gain more and more of them, the creepier they get. Now that is NOT to say I don't enjoy interacting with my fans and readers. I do. I waited my whole life for this. But what the heck, there are some weird ones. And I'm not just talking about your run-of-the-mill overzealous fans who read my books and suddenly think I'm the main character in the book, or think they know me personally, so they send me messages telling me about their days or kids birthday or bad day at work. Nor am I talking about the occasional drunken person who pours their life out to me on Facebook messenger, telling me how their boyfriend ran off with their dog or grandma's wedding ring. Those are two real examples. I'm talking about the straight up weirdos! They message me strange pics of themselves or their kids. No explanations. Or the ones who comment on threads of my posts, bizarre remarks, like we grew up together when I have never even heard of them. I could go on all night about the weirdos and crazies I encounter now that I have thousands of "friends" on social media. Most people are kind and nice and have encouraging things to say. But spattered amongst them are all facets of freakazoids! I am still getting used to it. As is my wife. And that is another thing. Women. Some of them have no morals or class. They act like me being married means nothing. Say things that are desperate and inappropriate. Sometimes public! I've received my share of inappropriate pictures too. I'm sure they feel two inches tall when I reply, "I'm happily married. You're desperation makes you look sad and pathetic. Unfriended!" Anyway, that's my author's rant of the day. I think a lot of people think the life of a writer is easy, all glitz and glamour. Nope. It takes hard work to be success, even when you have a masterpiece to sell, which I do--check the reviews at Amazon, 5-stars. It is a fun job, don't get me wrong, but my mind never stops. It is constantly in work mode, thinking how can I gain more exposure. At least when someone goes to work at a standard 9-5, they know what they have coming at the end of the week. The routine is what makes it easy, and yet also oh-so-mundane. For me, everyday is a new job, a new way of marketing my book and clothing line. It's a constant "who, what, when, why, where" kind of job. If I want to make a living and fulfill my dreams of seeing my books movies, I have to grind. All day, everyday. And you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way. I was born and built for this. I love every minute of it. Well, maybe not the freakazoids!
