Daily writing prompt

What is the biggest challenge you will face in the next six months?

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I started this journey as a middle-grade fantasy author a long time ago, more precisely, 12 years ago. Back then I had only a story to tell but no idea how complex the publishing world is and everything involved in making a book reach the reader’s hands.

The good thing is that I could put out a book exactly as I wanted, mingling fantasy with high fantasy, covering serious subjects in a fun way, and with lots of epic scenes and plot twists that make me proud of them. However, as Cassandra Alleister, a character in my book, says, “What value has a trunk full of gold in the depths of the ocean? None!”

Now my book is like this trunk. I’m not saying it’s the world’s eighth wonder, but it surely is a good book, crafted following all the good practices of literature and with lots of cool things never seen before. The wild imagination I have had since I was a kid surely helped me with it (I may write a post about how I used to see crazy and scary things when I was a kid, all coming from my imagination).

The challenge I face is obvious: I wrote a book to a public who has no purchasing power—kids. So, besides having to manage to write a book that they will love, I have to convince the adults around them to buy it.

But it’s not all about money. A few days ago, someone asked on a Facebook group if money was the main reason to write. I replied to this post saying that I’d rather have 1 million people reading my book than 1 million dollars in my bank account. Money is important for sure; I have bills to pay and an old dad who is ill and needs special care. But at the end of the day, the flame that keeps me moving forward in this journey as an author is to make my book known. Johnny, its main character, is so real to me that I feel I have the duty to make people know about him and his saga.

But hey, I have to put my feet where my mouth is. And since you decided to click on this post and read it, I’m offering you 12 years of my life in the form of a PDF. Click here and download Johnny Rikkens’ Fantastic Worlds for FREE (promo ended, sorry). If you like it, you can leave a review on Amazon—that would mean the world to me! But if you like it even more, you can grab a physical copy of it for your kids here. I’m sure they will love every bit of it!

Feel free to post your comments below and tell us about your personal struggles. It’s good to know we are not facing challenges alone.

Happy reading!