Sometimes I read what I wrote a few years ago and feel embarrassed. It's not necessarily bad - it's just that my priorities have changed. I look back and am relieved I didn't publish it. You've studied numerous books. What is the trend that you've noticed between an author's earlier works and later works?
Imagine writing a poem, posting it up on the web, then seeing it shared... not so bad, unless you want to sell or control how that poem is distributed. That involves copyright law. Copyright laws protect the work of writers and poets, and that of musicians, painters, and photographers, among others...
If the author is the mother giving birth, I am the midwife making sure that the baby comes into this world safe and sound. Each work of creation is different, and comes into this world through a different passage. Having worked with lots of writers and writing styles, I know that it's a different experience each time. No two births are ever the same.
To authors, a book is a precious baby that they’ve nurtured and brought into this world. But giving birth is almost never a solitary process. The editor is the midwife – the one that stands by the author and pushes the writer as they labour through the long hours before the baby is finally born.
Every time I feel this way, I shove my write-up aside, as far away from me as possible, even if the guilt chews me from inside. No matter how hard I try, I don’t seem to come up with anything at all. I went through this feeling about a couple of thousand times before I understood something very important about writing and writer’s block.
Traditional publishing is a long time-consuming process. Big publishing houses are highly selective when choosing content. If an author doesn’t have an existing audience, it becomes even more difficult to crack a deal. On the other hand, self-publishing favours the author in many ways. The author has full authority to decide when to publish the book. He or she also retains all rights relating to the book.
"Trying something new is always exciting. When I got the proposal to do character sketching, I was quite excited and a bit anxious. For me, giving life to imagination is a huge task as I mostly draw using references. But once I started the work, I felt good. It was a pleasure to work with the author. She always had a clear view about the work and how to develop it."