The Book Writing Process

I have recently received an E-mail from a reader concerning the fact that changes may occur to chapters during book writing, as I've observed in the "book" page.

The main question was if I was publishing "drafts" instead of the final, polished product. I guess the answer lies somewhere in the middle of the two, as I will try to explain in the following lines:

The idea of writing this book, first in comic format, has got some years now; however, without an audience for my work, I soon lost interest. I've done a lot of "comics" which few others than myself had read already, and even if this is only an hobby, made out of pure enjoyment, it's quite frustrating not to share it's results with others. That is why I saw the Internet as a way of being able to create something, and share it with other people. That was why I finally decided it was worth the work of writing my ideas about He-Man down.

Put this, I had to think what would be the best way of "publishing" the story. I could write it all down and then send it on-line, or post chapters as they were written and take the chance of having them changed as the story takes shape.

There were two main reasons why I chose the second option: First, I wanted feedback from readers; I wanted that people who were interested in the story could be able to have a part in the creative process, to give ideas about how the drama should be developed. I wanted this story to please as many people as I could, and to make it everyone's story. The second reason was that, unconsciously, I knew that I could only have the willpower to finish the book if I had interested readers demanding to see it finished.

I knew it was a double-edged blade choice I had taken; first, because I'm new on-line: I'm still leaning the Internet rules and procedures, and the way of attracting audiences. Secondly, people could not have the patience to re-read chapters because they had suffered changes, and eventually lose interest in the whole story. Finally, I had a reasonable amount of "competition" on-line, in the shape of stories from other writers, ranging from sequels to the TV series and comics, to remakes of the whole story, some of which really, really good. It was a known risk, but I decided to take it.

Besides, writing a new version is always a great risk, as a great part of the fans probably enjoy the Filmation version and may not be found of "twists" to it. And, as my first novel, I didn't knew (and still don't) how good or how bad it would result... I could go on with the inherent risks of writing and publishing the story as I am, but I guess you've got the point.

My choice was taken, and I will keep it. I've got nothing to lose, and it is the way I believe is right. Grammatical/ typing errors that may pass on the first revision will be corrected when detected, although this is no reason for anyone to read a chapter for the second time. I will keep trying not to change released chapters, but I can make no promises. If a new idea, mine or from a reader, will require part of the story to be changed, and it will improve the novel, I will do it. This is part of what it means by having readers giving their contribute to the story.

Thanks for your attention, and I wish you can understand my decision. If you have a different point of view, I would be pleased to know it. It will be a contribute towards the evolution of a site that I hope, will belong to all interested He-fans.

Gary Wolfchild