Make a plan and follow it

You don't need to wait for permission or to be told what to do

I’m a sucker for directions.
Give me a product (ebook or course) that will tell me step-by-step exactly what to do, and I’m all over it.
If I hear about someone who had success, I will ask them for the details.
Several years ago, I was in a private mastermind group with Leighann Dobbs (not her real name).
She wrote fiction, I learned.
“How’s that going? Okay?” I asked and she laughed and said, yes. More than okay.
My dream has always been to make a living as a fiction writer, so I wanted details.
“Just write until your fingers bleed and get eyeballs on your books.”
Back then if you made your book free for three to five days, you would get a lot of sales afterward.
Of course, that reply wasn’t detailed enough for me, so I bought and followed course after course.
Here’s the secret I learned:

You learn by writing

Learning is good.
But if it’s not followed by writing, then it’s almost worthless.
I bought my first expensive course in 1993. Before that I’d borrowed books about writing from the library.
I wrote my first short story in 1994. The biggest Danish magazine bought it.
Then I waited seven years before I had a second good idea. I sold that short story to another Danish magazine.
Then I stopped writing again because I didn’t have big ideas.
Yeah, I know. That was stupid.

Ideas rarely just drop on their own

It’s incredible what writing can do for inspiration.
I waited for inspiration to come.
It didn’t.
Now that I just start writing, I invite inspiration to come.
And it does.

Make that plan

A couple of days ago, I read a book for the third time.
It’s a book about short fiction, publishing regularly.
The author made $10 her first month and more than $1K in her third month.
Does it come work-free? No, of course not. Unless you publish AI-written books, which I don’t recommend.
Every time I’ve read this author’s story, I thought that perhaps I should try the same.
Last week, I decided to go for it.
As an experiment.
The first three months will be hard work. Here’s my plan.
Write and publish one book per week for six weeks.
Each book will be part of the same series.
Then bundle them in week seven.
Then go for another six weeks with a second series.

Evaluating the experience

I write for a living.
Even a short book takes time to write. My plan is 8,000-word books, written over four days, so that’s roughly 2K words per day.
At the moment, it takes me two hours.
Over time, these two hours should pay off.
I’ll check my numbers after three months.
The competition is harder than when the author I just mentioned started to write.
So I don’t expect $10 the first month and $1,000 the third.
If I make $100 in my third month, I’ll know that this can work.

Keep it up

For three months, I’ll follow this plan.
After that, I’ll have 14 books out there already and I can slow down a bit.
Unless I’ve gotten so used to writing two hours every morning, focused, that I’ll choose to keep going.
My point is that you should just get an idea, make a plan and go for it.
My idea here was to:
Plan the book Sunday. That means find the names of the characters and the setting.
Write 2K words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday...
Publish Friday.
I treat it as an experiment, and no matter the result, I’m winning.
If it works, then I know it works, and that’s a win.
If it doesn’t work, then I know it doesn’t work, and that’s a win.
Plus, three months of writing 8K per week, 12 books, is 96K words.
That’s a thick novel and lots of experience and hopefully better skills.

My biggest breakthrough

In 2012, I had a mentor.
She told me to just write.
No big idea?
Nope, just write.
“But I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.”
And she was right. For the first time, I managed to write a novella. Before that, I hadn’t been able to go further than a short story.
After that experience, I learned that ideas come as you write. You can start with one if you have one.
But you don’t need to wait for it.
I’ve gone through many phases since 2012.
I’ve followed a detailed outline. And I’ve written completely into the dark. (This is so much fun when you write a cozy mystery.)
Now I combine them and write into the dark, but with pointers. Beats.
I’ve preached, “You need an outline” and I’ve preached, “You need to write into the dark.”
I’ve stopped preaching.
I think it’s more important that every writer finds what works best for them.
What I will say, though, is that if you dream about writing fiction, go for it.
It’s a magical experience.
Come up with a plan and follow it.
And if you need help, let me know. I’ve written books especially to help beginners, because I remember how I struggled for years.
And I’ve written books for writers who are already writing and who want to increase their skills.
Because being a writer means you keep learning all your life.
Just know that you don’t need details to start.
And you don’t need anyone’s permission.

Years ago, I couldn’t finish anything longer than a short story.
Today, I know that finishing is a skill you can learn. That’s why I created the Two Week Romance Challenge.
It shows you exactly how to go from idea to completed romance novella.
https://writerbychoice.com/two-week-romance-challenge