An integral part of the writing process should be reading your work. I’m not saying read your work when you’re editing. I’m saying that if you’ve published traditionally or self-published, pick up one of your books and read yourself. Not like the author. Not like an editor, but as a genuine reader.
Sit down with your book. Take it to the bathtub. Take it for a nature stroll and see what you think about your writing. I’ve done it before as part of my research for my urban fantasy series and am doing it again. Firstly, I read Only Human and now I’m on Shadow of a Human and it’s been quite an interesting experience and an enjoyable one at that. Since I’m the author I can bust my own chops for any mistake or perceived missed opportunity… though it’s been more often that I’ve actually surprised myself and that’s been a nice experience.
It’s one thing to read something by someone else and be surprised but to know the plot, know where it’s going, and still manage to surprise yourself, it’s been quite the quirky trip for me. Lines of dialogue I had forgotten or tiny details that are the sort of thing that hit more in a second or third reading. Seeing that I was able to do that for myself, well, it’s pretty cool.
Some people have asked me if I’ll be changing anything in my published books and beyond a typo here and there, I won’t be changing anything because that’s the story and as I’ve just said I’m happy with the story. I love the challenges and seeing how I addressed issues from Book 1 in Book 2 is also interesting. From my style to how I develop characters, I really think I grew a lot as a writer from one book to another. Is there room for improvement? Of course. There always is, but by reading honestly and looking at the story with prying, curious, and nitpicking eyes, I feel it makes me a better writer because this will be the only time where I can read a book and actually use ideas I get for the series.
By the way, by also reading like a reader and not like a writer reading his work or an editor, I also see the mistakes I made and the things that could have been done better. Eight chapters into Shadow of a Human and I’m DEFINITELY better at pacing and keeping the reader engaged. I wanted to write something dark and complex for the Human Cycle and I’m fairly certain I did that. I also see how I connected things from Book 1 to Book 2 and I see how I set things up. I think language is tighter and more concise in Book 2 but I also think people enjoyed that Book 1 was easier to follow, which I get. Only Human also has more relatable types of scenes while Shadow has dark, weird, and challenging scenes, something that might turn some people off but that for me is extremely rewarding as I reread.
Also, unlike other series, I definitely think my books are best read in sequence to have the information fresh and not get lost because the connections can be tricky at times and very subtle before it becomes very apparent. Tributes in book 2 are also more obvious than in book 1 and again, this was intentional. Is it in part to bank on someone who is known? Nope. The tributes are clearer because the artists mean a lot to me. I also think the darkest parts of Shadow are far scarier than Only Human and that the emotional scenes are rawer and more intense. That’s something I truly think I improved on, emotions and pulling no punches when I wanted to capture rage, love, or sadness.
Do I think I can strike a better balance, of course… which is why it’s a good thing there’s a third book in the works. Anyways, if you have published yourself, add your books to your TBR and become a fan of yourself, but keep it honest. We’re not the end all authors of the world… but that doesn’t mean we can’t love what we read, especially when it’s something we wrote.
Peace, love, and maki rolls.
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