Focusing on the Author Thing (Alissa Grosso)

I've been a published author since 2011, when my first YA novel Popular came out from Flux, but I've been an author for far longer, at least as far back as second grade, as I recall. Maybe that's the reason I've had a hard time seeing writing as something more than a hobby, something to do when all my other chores and duties were done. Well, that and the fact that I don't exactly make a lot of money from my writing, but all of that is going to change in 2018.

In 2018 my goals is to focus more on this whole Author Thing. It's a combination of shifting my own mindset, taking concrete actions to publish some books and figuring out a way to actual make a buck or two from my writing.

One thing that's going to change is that writing is going to become one of my regular scheduled work tasks. No more of this writing as a guilty pleasure thing. I enjoy writing, true, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't take it seriously.

Then, I need to take some action. I've got semi-concrete plans to self publish at least two books this year including my first adult novel. To that end, I've been studying and educating myself about indie publishing and marketing. There's a lot to learn and a lot to take in.

Although I would probably still write even if it didn't bring in a dime, I have some long term goals about actually earning an income from my books. Certainly, if they are a money-making venture for me, it will be harder to dismiss writing as nothing more than a hobby.

In 2018 I'm going to do this author thing for real, and I'll report back to you in about a year to let you know how it all went.

Alissa Grosso is the author of the YA novels Popular, Ferocity Summer and Shallow Pond. Watch her author vlog Awkward Author on YouTube and get a free copy of her book Popular at alissagrosso.com.