The Challenges of Writing a Novel in 2024

Late Morning, Wednesday, November 6, 2024, Miami, Florida

Hello, Constant Readers,

It’s a warm and windy day in my corner of South Florida. The temperature is 84°F (29°C) under mostly cloudy conditions. With humidity at 80% and the wind blowing from the east-southeast at 19 MPH (30 Km/H), it feels like 89°F (32°C). Today’s forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies and a high of 85°F (29°C). All in all, it’s a good day, weather-wise, in the Greater Miami area. And with Hurricane Rafael moving away from Florida, we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

Unfortunately for me and everyone else who cares about democracy, the rule of law, and basic decency, the weather is the only thing I don’t have to stress about. Donald J. Trump, whom I consider the worst person elected to the presidency in my lifetime and now a convicted felon, defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to win a second, non-consecutive four-year term in the White House.

That’s all I have to say on the topic; I feel too disappointed in a large portion of my fellow Americans to devote any more time and energy to the 2024 elections.

On Writing and Storytelling: The Ups and Downs of a First-Time Novelist

Yesterday was not a productive writing day for me. I tried hard to focus on outlining a third scene for the 20th chapter of Reunion: Coda, but Election Day jitters and a collectible Millennium Falcon that inexplicably played John Williams’ “Main Title” from Star Wars at random times from inside one of the moving boxes in my new bedroom distracted me to no end. (The musical Falcon, by the way, mystified me; I didn’t know it was the source of the music until my friend Eric pinpointed where it was coming from.)  The resulting headache and aggravation were too much to bear, so instead of working on my novel, I did my laundry here for the first time.

On the other hand, I did get a bit of good news last night: Kindle Direct Publishing confirmed that one paperback copy of Reunion: A Story – the novella that kicked off the Reunion Duology – was sold in the United States this week. Sales have been rather meager recently; last month, Amazon reported a single paperback edition of Reunion: A Story was purchased in October. Before that, I bought a copy to donate to the Conway Public Library in New Hampshire. Unfortunately, that one was probably relegated to the Little Free Library program because, as of this writing, it has not been added to the main library’s catalog in either the New Adult Fiction or New Young Adult Fiction categories.

I hope – fervently – that I see more reports like that on my Kindle Direct Publishing account. Each sale contributes $2.80 (from the book’s MSRP of $8.50) to my earnings, and I need every royalty payment I can get, especially considering the unexpectedly high costs of my move from Madison to Miami. Writing is not just a passion; it’s my career. While I don’t mind writing blogs for minimal ad revenue, my goal is to achieve financial stability through my storytelling. To reach that goal, I must sell more books, particularly now that I’ve relocated to a more expensive city. This pursuit is not just a preference—it’s a necessity.

On Writing and Storytelling: Action This Day

As for today?

Today, of course, is a working day, and because yesterday was frustratingly unproductive, my mission for Hump Day is to pick up where I left off with Reunion: Coda on Monday and begin outlining a third scene for Chapter 20.

If (and this is a big “if”) I can quiet my mind and stop fretting about both the election results – which I must accept as gracefully as possible – and lackluster book sales, I will resume this task sometime between 2 and 3 PM, depending on when I start my two-hour midday break. I’ll re-read what I have written in Chapter 20 thus far, then ask myself, “Well, what happens next?” to trigger my imagination into providing plausible scenarios for the next scene. Hopefully, I’ll then either outline the scene step by step or, perhaps more spontaneously, I’ll allow the story to unfold naturally once I have an answer to the “What happens next?” question.

I need to get ready for my break soon, but before I go, I want to share a couple of Amazon reviews of Reunion: A Story to hopefully encourage you to grab a copy. As I mentioned earlier, storytelling is my passion – that’s why I blog on WordPress and write novels. So, if you haven’t already, I’d really appreciate your support by picking up a paperback or Kindle e-book edition.

High school memories!

Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2018

Verified Purchase

Reunion: A Story is a sweet, sometimes bittersweet story of days gone by. It takes the reader back to the last day of high school and tells the tale of teen love and missed opportunities. Several years pass and success and time don’t always dull those feelings you had as a teen. Mr. Diaz-Granados captures the awkwardness of young love and how it can influence the rest of your life. – Betsy M.

The big “what if”

Reviewed in the United States on January 21, 2020

Verified Purchase

A successful history professor is forced to confront the fact that he allowed a love interest to slip away because of insecurity as well as because of the lure of promising opportunities. This novella presents a profound “what if” scenario that is poignantly but beautifully told. It is a sad love story about regret and loss but also a story about friendship. The book reminds us about how differently a teenager and an adult views life and themselves and what the consequences could be.

The character development is excellent. The characters have personality and depth. The author describes the feelings and the thoughts of the characters in a manner that is both realistic and easy to relate to. The story is compelling and well written, it draws you in, and it has something important to tell us, especially young people.

I was planning to read it over a couple of days, but after I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down, so I read it in one sitting. Later on, I read it again, more than once, which is why I updated this review. It is a really great story, one of the best I’ve ever read, and you can read it many times. I highly recommend it. – Thomas Wikman