Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

~ John W. Howell
“You going to play with that squid, Little One?”
“For some reason, I’m thinking of Calamari for dinner.”

 

Happy Valentine’s Day. Another Friday and a reason to celebrate. Only eight more hours until Saturday Eve. This week seemed to go pretty fast at least for me.

On the WIP, I’m very glad to say the manuscript is in the editor’s hands. Once done, I have a decision to make. Do I self publish again for the sixth time or do I try to find an agent? I guess one of the deciding factors will be how much I think the story will resonate with an agent. Another is just how much rejection and time currency am I willing to spend. This thought of agent representation always comes to me at tax time when I get a chance to look at the amount of royalties I earn vs the amount of money I spend. I don’t think I’m alone in this conundrum. We shall see.

This week also witnessed the arrival of the tree trimmers. We asked our neighbors if they would be willing to trim the trees that rub our roof. Two said yes. Two said no. So we hired trimmers to take out the tree limbs that cross our property line on the ones that said no. All is good.

This week’s JohnKu talks about why we write. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Writing by John W. Howell © 2020

Is it the money?

Or maybe some other thing . . .

That holds us captive.

 

If it’s the money,

Is it Income or outflow?

A big conundrum.

 

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Published by John W. Howell

I have been working in business for over forty years and now have the time to work in special areas of interest. My passion has always been to create compelling stories of fiction. I have authored six novels and am working on my Seventh. The first novel is still in manuscript form and being utilized as a door stop in the laundry room. The second is a contemporary fiction novel of 89,000 words and is complete and I am currently seeking a publisher. I also write poetry but have not had the guts to share any with anyone. The one time I read a piece to a person their only comment was, “it doesn’t rhyme.” I will continue to write and hopefully my blog, Fiction Favorites at www.johnwhowell.com will provide some entertainment and an interesting thought or two. I live in the Austin area with my wife Molly and an assortment of loving pets.

77 thoughts on “Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF”

  1. Lovely Haiku for today, John. One that resonates with me. I’ve seen a drop in sales in recent months, and then I found out that Blasty has closed its doors … so now I have nothing helping me tackle the vast piracy of my books. I have neither the time nor the energy to trawl the web and submit DCMA notices for each and every offending website … there are just so many! All of which has left me questioning … is it worth it? The thing is, I love to write!

    Have a wonderful weekend, and give the girls extra pats from me 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

  6. “For some reason, I’m thinking of Calamari for dinner.” LOL! I hope little Twiggy gets some calamari tonight. 🙂 I enjoyed you JohnKu. For me, writing isn’t about the money. Honestly, I found more pleasure putting words on the page when I didn’t make any money. Less stress! Wishing everyone in the Howell household a wonderful Valentine’s Day. I’m off work and plan to spend the day with my mother. ❤

    Liked by 1 person

  10. I’m definitely feeling that same conundrum about income vs out flow, John. As for the agent, I’ve never tried to get one, because I already know I couldn’t. Besides, from everything I’ve read and heard, neither the agents nor the publishers do much in the way of marketing or getting books sold… I’ll be interested to know which way you go. Hugs on the wing!

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  12. I’m still considering searching for an agent too, John, I just dread the thought of the effort it will take. I’ve also considered submitting to an online publisher again, but then I waffle on going indie. I’ve had good years and bad years with income vs expenses, but when all is said and done, I know I will continue to write and publish even if I end each year in the red. I enjoy writing too much to stop.
    Happy Friday!

    Liked by 1 person

  13. John, you’ve brought up a subject ALL writers can identify with (and probably a few other creative types as well). Part of me wishes the entire publishing industry would revamp and get back to basics: marketing, promotion, and so forth, while leaving writers to do what we do best — write! The idea of having to go on public speaking tours, constantly try to sell books, run a business (because that’s what it’s become) makes most of us jittery. Happy St. V. Day to you and yours!

    Liked by 1 person

  19. I’m with Twiggy – bring on the calamari!
    And conundrum indeed. I think, however, there must be the love of writing for the sake of it. The rest, one hopes, is bonus.

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  20. The costs of self-publishing most certainly are on the heavy end of the scale versus the income we receive from our hard work. I pitched to Editors and Agents this week through a Pitchfest on Savvy Authors. I am crossing my fingers. The biggest problem is that traditional publishing has undergone significant changes and traditional publishing is all but gone. Perhaps a hybrid publisher? Just a thought. The story is compelling. I can attest to that fact. Whatever you decide to do, I’m sure it will have a great outcome! Happy Valentine’s Day!

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Yes, it’s a big conundrum. You have to weigh the positives and negatives. Money does seem to hold us captive. Dab Dab the duck finally had to say to Doctor Dolittle, “Oh, do be sensible”, to which the doctor replied, “Oh money. I wish it had never been invented.” 🙂

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