Ask several people what comes to mind when they think of an author, and most responses will probably fall somewhere like this:
“They love to spend all their time reading and writing.”
For some authors, this might be true. But to assume all authors are this way is a grossly misconstrued notion romanticised by Hollywood and biographies.
Because here’s the greatest myth about authors that needs debunking:
We are not all these keyboard-worshipping creatures who lock themselves away while we pound out book after book.
Sure, there are times this hermit behaviour is required (like what I’m doing now, combing over my proofreader’s notes and producing the audiobooks for my current stock of books), however, I also know in the writer circles I lurk in that if this was what it looked like ALL of the time, many of us would pack up our quills and work the street corner.
Some readers may be aghast at such a claim.
“What do you mean you don’t like spending all your waking hours hunched over a keyboard?”
Well, exactly that, Gloomsweaver.
I DON’T.
As much as I love hanging out with my characters, Milo-the-Muse, and typing a stream of hallucinations into the computer, spending all day — every day — on the computer is not why I got into this gig.
More:
It would be doing a massive disservice to my readers.
If I simply locked myself away in my writer’s cave for the rest of my life, my stories would become stale and repetitive. Fiction (especially of the speculative kind) is built on diverse and interesting characters doing interesting things, and to keep stories fresh, one needs to constantly feed their imagination.
And you can either do that by:
- Consuming a lot of stuff (reading, watching, listening)
- Stepping out into the Great Outdoors and experiencing life
Ideally, you want to do both because I’d hate to stumble upon bloody sword fights in real life or only ever “meet” fun characters on parchment.
The same thing applies to these emails.
Some days, I’ll share a seemingly small and insignificant story about my day; other times, I will share something poignant and meaningful. But they all “add up” to tell a grander narrative of D.J.J. Watson.
And you guessed it, the same applies to my books.
Every time I step out of the house for Vitamin D to undo hours of sitting or watch hours of YouTube, new ideas find me. Most of them are useless, but among the hundreds of duds will usually sprout a couple that steer my creativity in a direction that leads down new and exciting paths.
Like The Divided Region.
Not only is this fantasy series an amalgamation of thoughts, interests, experiences, discussions, characters, and moments I’ve personally experienced in my life or borrowed from others…
It is also built on the idea that fantasy novels CAN be shorter and fast-paced without compromising on the lore, world-building, and cast of characters.
If any of that appeals to you, then I invite you to dip your toes in The Divided Region before Book #5 (The Great Betrayal) is launched later this month.
Of which, you can find here:
https://djjwatsonstore.com/products/TDR-Bundle
DJJW