So, I’m four months out from my book launch, give or take a week, and I am desperately trying to ramp up my social media presence, and build a website, and start sending a bi-weekly newsletter, and build a launch team to help promote my novel, and plan a launch party, and secure public signing events… you probably get the idea. These are all tasks recommended by my publicist and will help the success of my book launch. The thing is, they all take time, and they’re tricky. For someone who wants to be a social media influencer, who knows and loves that world, I’m sure these tasks would prove fun and rewarding, but that’s not me. I love to write. I LOVE to write. I literally can’t wait until I can sit cross-legged on my couch, grab the old pillow that serves as my desk and jump back into whatever dangerous or endearing scene I left my characters. I LOVE IT.

Now, I recognize that in order to facilitate writing, I must perform these other tasks. I’ve bought in, I’m on board. The problem is, filming social media content takes time, and sending newsletters takes more time, and writing blog posts like this one, takes more time again. The very duties that will ensure the viability of my writing compete with it. Yikes, that’s a pickle! And it isn’t just my pickle, so many of my author friends have expressed frustration with this reality. So, what does an author do? I’ve heard I need to strike a balance between the two.

Balance, that’s a great word. Authors like words. I used to compete on the balance beam in gymnastics as a kid. I could land a cartwheel on the beam, have successfully done it multiple times during competition. I would watch gymnasts much, much (much) better than I work through their routines, always so poised and focused, and strong. For me, those are the images, the descriptors conjured by the word balance; poised, focused, and strong.

Alright, so I can’t in good conscience describe myself as balanced when it comes to managing my writing and all the other promotional responsibilities. During my day, when I’m homeschooling my kids, I barely eek out time to film, post and engage with social media content. When everyone has been tucked in, and the house is dark, I sit on my couch and attempt to write if I don’t have to edit a video, or post, or fix my website. I often stay up until 1:00am and beyond, and that’s if I don’t fall asleep sitting up, fingertips on the keyboard. I don’t think I can describe any of that as balanced. Teetering on the brink seems appropriate (the brink of what, I’m not quite sure, all I know is I don’t want to find out).

But here’s the thing, I LOVE to write! So much that it all seems worth it somehow. That’s remarkable, that all the promotional work seems worth the time and effort, because it is hopefully serving the end goal of allowing me the chance to WORK some more when I write. I guess that’s the magical part. Writing doesn’t feel like work, not even for a second. It’s joy. It’s fun. It’s magic! And I will teeter on the brink as long as I can in order to have the privilege of staying up way to late to capture another 2000 words.

Funny thing, that word work… don’t people get paid to work? Another proof positive writing isn’t work for me, because that hasn’t happened yet either. 😊