I am taking part in the monthly blog hop, Insecure Writers’ Support Group. Started by Alex J. Cavanaugh, it is meant to do the following:
To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
I felt it was a good idea for me to do this. Not only does it give me an excuse to vent my fears the first Wednesday of every month, but it is nice that so many other authors are doing the same.
Anyway, allow me to talk about the doubts I’ve been experiencing while writing the sequel to my eBook, The Dark Proposal. It is not easy to write a follow-up, and I wonder if I was crazy for even thinking about doing so in the first place. Heck, did I really think it all be easy for me? Of course not. I probably would’ve had it easier if I had written a stand-alone novel first, and then another stand-alone next. This way, I wouldn’t have the pressure to make part two of my trilogy better than the first installment.
I’d like to make my protagonist, Claire McCormick, more stronger and not so rash in her decisions. I also need her to face the reality of how her decisions led her to being transformed into a vampire, as well as being stuck with Daniel Bertrand as her maker and superior. At the same time, I can’t make Daniel continue on being a smug evil bastard. He still will be, but other aspects need to come out, or else he’ll become a caricature.
It can be done, I’m sure, but the pressure is on. I wonder if I am capable of doing it. I worry that I may not be. I wonder what I got myself into. Should I had ever written The Dark Proposal? Should I had ever ventured into novel writing? Did I have any idea what I was doing when I told myself I will finally write books? Was I foolish?
No, it was something I’ve always wanted to do. Granted, an elementary school teacher encouraged me to be a writer and got the idea in my head that I can write books one day. Did she really see something or got too excited? I was never a genius, so I don’t know what exactly made me stand out. OK, I was able to read earlier than my classmates, I drew pictures that had stories to them. Yeah, I always was reading and writing. So I maybe I do have what it takes.
But talent and dreams are not enough; there needs to be blood, sweat and tears – almost literally. Time to get dirty with this sequel. The Dark Proposal was like a first try, if that’s the word. But, now it is time to be a real author and get dirty.
If you’re a writer and want join on this blog hop, click here to join!
Megan Cashman 