Bond & Baddies

It's been one of those weeks again. You know the ones I mean. It's when you have everything organised and then something blasts in and scuppers all your plans.

Well, that pretty much happened to me. I had my writing week sorted. I was finally going to finish the final read through of my latest romance novel, ready to be published on Smashwords at the end of October. Unfortunately, life had other ideas.

My dad has been poorly for a few weeks now and, although he is improving a little with each day, a chest scan last week revealed a shadow on one of his lungs. That resulted in the hospital scheduling an emergency CT scan. So, as you can imagine, this wasn't exactly conducive to focussing my head on my writing. I doubt that this next week will be much better, as he has to go see the consultant for his results. These are worrying times, but I'm trying to teach myself to take each day as it comes for now.

Anyway, on a brighter note....

Are any of you excited about the forthcoming Bond film?

I have to confess, I am a Bond junkie. I just love the books, and am looking forward to Skyfall. I heard Adele's theme this week and loved it. Hubby pronounced it "boring" and muttered some comment about "it sounding like Coldplay was doing the backing". Hmm. Of course, the cynical out there will probably say that the main reason Adele has done it, is because the Bond franchise knows a thing or two about successful marketing. Adele and Bond- recipe for success. And why not?

Personally, I think that the theme has the sound of a classic Bond song with hints of Dame Bassey. It sounds like a Bond theme should. Yes, I enjoyed the last two. However, I think that they tried too hard to be hip, and to fit into a modern world.

And this brings me round to writing...

Do you somethimes feel that you're trying too hard? By this, I mean two things... Do you sometimes think that you're forcing the words out because you're not in the mood to write, or don't feel inspired? If so, do you think that this actually has an adverse effect on the work you're producing?

I have read interviews where authors have proclaimed that some of their best work came out of writing when they didn't want to. I have to admit, there have been days when I've forced myself into my study and, once pen in hand, have enjoyed a couple of hours scribbling and ended up with some half decent material. As someone once said, you can't edit a blank page. Something is better than nothing...isn't it?

The second point to my question is this: What are your views regarding the writing market and, more specifically what you write? Again, there are different views. Some write to fit the market, whereas others follow the path laid down by their writing muse, wherever it takes them.

Of course, the latter might find it harder to find a market. Or at least they would have done in the old days before e-publishing and self publishing became popular. Is this good? I think so. Yes, you can argue that there are a lot of badly written books out there because of self publishing. However, who are we to deny someone the chance to follow their dreams? Besides, I've read actual copies of books from major publishing houses that have contained numerous typos and continuity errors. Thus, it would seem that the poor editing and writing baddies aren't only terrorising the virtual world.

I also believe that by putting yourself out there, not only are you opening yourself up to criticism, you're also entering a world of endless possibilities. Look at Fifty Shades. Whatever your views, it started off as a self published book and has was scooped up by a major publisher. That is a success story.

So, is writing to fit into the market good or bad? Do you lose any integrity by writing to make money? Are there lots of writing "baddies" out there? I don't think so. For those who think they can write to earn a few (or lots of) notes, it will soon become apparent that it's not as easy as they think, unless you're Jeffrey Archer, who shamelessly wrote his first novel because he needed money and was highly successful.

For others, such as myself, I write because it's in my blood. It's like an itch you never lose, a yearning you never sate. If, at the same time, I can earn a few pence from doing something I love and enjoy, well, so much the better. Yes, I write what I love to write, but I also try to fit it to a market. This can only have mutual benefits for author and reader alike, can't it?

Let me know what you think? And if you make it to the movies to see Mr Bond....enjoy!