A couple reminders:

This is a first draft, silly. When it comes to the first draft, I’m literally just pooping out the shittest words I can so I can polish them into something that makes sense later. Gaiman once tweeted: “Write down everything that happens in the story, and then in your second draft make it look like you knew what you were doing all along.” He also said: “No one is ever going to see your first draft. Nobody cares about your first draft. And that’s the thing that you may be agonizing over, but honestly, whatever you’re doing can be fixed. …For now, just get the words out. Get the story down however you can get it down, then fix it.” Except, you are seeing the first draft. Hahaha. I’ve taken the risk of letting people see this stage. I'm literally not legally allowed to show you later stages because when I sell the book, I would have to delete these chapters, meaning you can't ever read them for free. I still might have to take the chapters down depending on the contract, but doing it this way has the highest chance of keeping the first draft free. So, when I see comments from readers getting incredibly emotional about the story and saying something on the lines of “I’m out because this is stupid,” my usually response is, “Well, yeah, it’s the first draft, silly.” Most writers on Royal Road aren't pros or even trying to be pros. They just want to share their stories and make a connection. Most importantly, these writers aren't putting up heavily edited chapters. They are putting up first drafts. I'm a veteran of Royal Road. I can handle the criticism because I'm confident in my process, and writing books is the way I put food on the table. BUT, there are many writers in this community who haven't developed that confidence. So when readers on this platform don't take the time to edit their comments to sound encouraging rather than just angry, then that budding writer usually wants to quit, Most of these authors on this site aren't trying to make a living off of their stories. They are just putting themselves out there in hopes of making a connection with someone. I'm friends with a lot of authors, both professional and those who just like doing this for fun, and they all talk about how a huge portion Royal Road readers can be incredibly toxic. They tell me don't bother. So far, I'm fine with dealing with that toxicity because the supportive readers outshine the super negative readers 10 to 1.

Don't let my shitty writing piss you off. I'm honestly not worth the trouble.

If something pisses you off in one of my stories, there is usually a good reason for that. In First Song Book 1, a ton of readers were pissed about how Noah acted in the first 15% of the book, but as soon as they flipped the next page, they completely understood why that had to happen. Look at the reviews, and nearly all of them are about that, and how it was necessary. In The Crafter series, I get emails every other week from one reader out of thousands telling me they hate how Wick is practically a sociopath without ever mentioning the hints that he's set up to fail with that line of thinking and that he's most likely going to change. lol. I write fun stories quickly so I can eat. I'm not trying to change the world with my writing or become the next Brandon Sanderson. But, when I can afford to, I'll add plot/character elements that invest in the long narrative. You know when people post on Facebook about how they hate Facebook and make a big hullabaloo about leaving Facebook? They could have just left, and it would have been less energy wasted. Have you noticed no one ever replies to those posts with, "You're sooo right" or "No! Don't go!". Sometimes, I just write something and completely overlook it because I tend to write an entire book in a single month with limited editing passes. But most of the time? It has a purpose. Just be patient. Or, not. This story just isn't for you, and that's okay. No big deal. But leaving an angry comment about why my story sucks before you leave certainly isn't a good way to change anyone's mind about anything. On top of that, it just pisses you off more. Trust me, I've been there as a reader, and it never actually helps me in any way. In Stoic philosophy, it's often remarked that if you stay angry at a problem, then you have two problems. The problem and your anger. Limit your problem to just my shitty writing.

Point is, be kind to yourself by not getting worked up over free fiction. Be kind to others as well. Maybe not to me because I suck. Hahhaha. But definitely be nicer to other authors on here. Many are just normal dudes and dudets trying to have fun. And if they are trying to make a living at this in the future, don't shoot them down while they are trying to learn the craft. You wouldn't get angry at a foreigner learning English with grammar, right? You'd be kind and patient.

Finally, this has nothing to do with the post. I'm currently in talks with two different publishers who are thinking of signing me for this series. If a certain one signs me rather than the other, I'll be forced to take these chapters down as per the contract we discussed. On top of that, I'm working on two other books as well, all at the same time. Gotta eat!

Anyway, thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

Spread Peace. Give Love, Eat ice cream.

Outspan