Why am I doing this? #AmWriting

Image by Nanne Tiggel from Pixabay

Yesterday I received notification from my bank about March deposits from Amazon. Across different marketplaces, I made a total of about thirty dollars.

I was a bit depressed by this meager return, but not really surprised. For the past few years, my intense but rewarding day job has limited my serious writing time to one day per week. My last release was in December 2025, my previous one in October. (You can find my full, twenty-six year publishing history on my website.)

In today’s competitive, algorithm-driven environment, you have to have a constant stream of books in the pipeline in order to remain visible. Right now, I can’t manage that. (Actually, I never have, since writing has always been a side gig for me.)

Meanwhile, my current WIP is stalled at Chapter Six, at least partly because there’s at least week’s lapse between each of my writing sessions, sometimes more. I don’t have a target completion date for The Ruination of Ramona Stone. I don’t want to put more pressure on myself.

I just restructured my digital presence in order to save some money. I canceled my web hosting and SSL certificate subscriptions, provided by a big and not very responsive hosting company. These services were about to renew, with price increases of course. They were costing me about $600 per year. As an alternative, I moved my website to a cheap, self-administered cloud server. I also migrated my domain email to ProtonMail. Together the two new subscriptions have an annual price tag of less than $200. Big win. Less cost, not to mention less aggravation.

Of course, I had to give up one of my writing days to do all the configuration and testing work involved in this migration. I think, though, that the effort was worthwhile.

So why do I bother with all this? Where’s the payoff? It’s certainly not financial!

I can summarize my reason for writing in one word: love. I love the written word. I love spinning stories. When I re-read something I’ve produced, I’m amazed at the paragraphs and the people I have created. There is definitely magic in the process of starting with a nebulously imagined plot and characters and transforming them into a finished book.

In addition, I love the freedom that comes with self-publishing. Anyone familiar with my work will know that I chafe at genre conventions and tired tropes. I would rather mix things up and challenge reader expectations. My back log incorporates both romance and erotica, as well as a number of titles that fall into the gray area between them. I’ve written science fiction, historical, paranormal, multi-cultural, humor, suspense, even a little horror.

When I was working with a romance publisher, I found it really difficult to follow their rules and satisfy their constraints. These days, I can write and publish according to inspiration, not prescription.

Finally, I love the writing communities to which I belong. There are so many talented authors out there. The Internet has made it possible for me to connect with passionate and creative individuals all over the planet. They’ve helped me by critiquing, by reviewing, by sharing my releases with their readers, as well as by offering emotional support. I try to do the same for them.

Love. Simple, right?

Actually, love might the only valid reason for pursuing any endeavor.