Writing Confessions: Self-Publishing Unedited Romance Novels on Amazon

 

        For a couple of years now, I have self-published romance stories on and off on Amazon. I have a confession to make, I did not have my work edited before I self -published most of my books.  It is a mistake that has lived in perpetuity.  I can’t market my books because of the editing and grammar mistakes in them. I am too embarrassed.

                After I did this, I took a step back and remembered that no one likes a badly put together book, no matter how interesting the story, or so I have been told by readers who took a chance on my romance novellas and found a story badly in need of editing.

                Truth be told, I have a fine grasp of grammar but not great, and  I  also have a college degree but  I self- published without even reading over the stories. Having unedited romance novellas out there makes me cringe and makes me glad that they are under a pen name. I thought about editing all of them; all 27 stories but it was just too much work for me. I also don’t have the money to hire a decent editor even though readers of my books have told me to do so.  When I did have the money, I had some of my romance novellas edited, but the editor did not do a good job.

                Now I go over my new romance stories, while they are better, they are not perfect. I also started writing 5,000-7,000-word romance stories which makes it easier for me to edit. If I try for anything longer it would be too hard for me.

Here are the things I have learned since self-publishing unedited books.

 

1# Do Not Publish the Minute You Are Finished Writing

This was the main thing I did. I saw dollar signs and just self-published the work without doing the work beyond writing it. You need to give it a week or two or three. You need to make the work the best you can. I think self-publishing can make you lazy. It is so easy now to simply upload and have your work published, but you must fight against it because you will regret it if you don’t.

 

#2  Write Short Stories or Novellas

If you are going to self-edit, start writing short stories and novellas. I would not say they are easier to edit but there is a big difference in editing a 5,000-word story than a 50,000-word book. It is cheaper to get a smaller work edited than a longer one too, although it can become expensive if you are prolific because it adds up.

 

#3 Read Grammar Books or Take a Class

 I started to read grammar books to remind myself of  the things I was taught in school, or you can take a  class. I don’t have a lot of money, but there are ways around poverty.  You can save up for a class or get grammar books from the library. I did not write for many years, and I had forgotten some things. It is nothing to be ashamed of, but to be a better writer, I read grammar books. It is not a quick fix. It takes time and consistent effort,  but it is better than doing nothing.

 

Conclusion

Part of being a writer is making sure that readers enjoy your stories and part of that is making sure that your book is grammatically sound. Everyone can’t afford an editor, although some people would say, “You should not publish,” because of it.  I think if you are willing to learn and grow, most readers, if they see that you are trying and your stories are interesting, will stick with you.