Welcome to ‘Unpopular Writing Advice.’

Hello!

My name is B.B. and I am the author of The Blood Society, the very first book in my Department of Vampire Extermination Trilogy. 

I have spent the better part of my life telling myself I would never be able to follow my dreams because of the non-exhaustive (but very exhausting) list of excuses below:

• I’m not good enough.
• People won’t like me.
• People won’t like my stories.
• I’m too scared.
• I won’t be successful.
• People say the niche is dead.
• Someone has already written a book about vampires, magic, aliens, faeries…etc.
• I’m not good at it.

If you’re still reading this, maybe some of these ring true for you too… 

The fact of the matter is, so many people feel one or more of these self-made excuses above. Now, that’s not to undermine those feelings because they’re very real and the effects they have are even more legitimate. 

As someone who has been professionally diagnosed with severe anxiety, depression, and PTSD, I understand all too well the way these thoughts can affect your life and dreams. Even if you don’t suffer from disorders similar to these, the feelings occur naturally and I am here to remind you they’re totally normal and okay, but you cannot let them control your life and actions.

In my quest for support, I came across a lot of posts, blogs, and videos on all the things wrong with writing which was more discouraging than motivating. I started to feel like I was the only one who liked certain genres or writing styles which of course convinced me I must be an awful writer and had no business pursuing my dream to publish my own stories.

Recently, that changed for me. 

After having my daughter Emberly, I realized that I would be spewing hypocritical advice to her as she grew older. I knew I wanted her to believe she could do anything, be anything and achieve whatever she put her mind to, but I would be saying that knowing that I didn’t pursue any of my own dreams. 

How could I say any of those things without feeling like a liar? How could she trust and believe in me and thus herself? 

I could do the age old, “do as I say, not as I do” talk, but was that truly what I wanted?

So began the countless hours of finishing my incomplete draft. The sleepless nights, the feelings of wanting to cry and pull my hair out. Then the rewriting, and rewriting again, then plotting the story when it didn’t work (I know I cry just thinking about how backward that is) and rewriting yet again wishing I would have at least attempted a half-assed plot to begin with, pushing against my pantser ways. 

Which brings me here, to a blog I again tried to talk myself out of creating.

My reasons?

• Who would want advice from an author who hasn’t published yet? (though that changes in August, the thought will just morph and stay with me.)
• You will make spelling and grammar mistakes because you’re not a strong enough writer. 
• People won’t like it.
• You don’t have the same advice as others.
• Your advice is not helpful.

And again, the list goes on…

However, here’s the thing. 

IT DOESN’T MATTER. 

I’m going to say it again for the people in the back. IT. DOES. NOT. MATTER.

That’s right, I said it–– twice. It doesn’t matter what my brain tries to come up with to get me to believe I am not good enough. I am good enough…and so are you! 

And that’s what I want to share with you, the writers and authors that are struggling to remember that, you only have to be good enough for you. 

Do you like the genre?

Do you like your story?

Does what you’re writing make you happy?

Then do it. Write for you, not because you might become famous or make money off of it. Write because you have stories that you cannot bear to keep from the page. 

Sure, money and fame sound great in theory, though I truly believe if that’s the only thing you’re in this for, your stories will reflect that. 

Now that I have rambled on, here’s my conclusion.

I want to create a blog that uplifts and encourages writers to pursue their dreams and finish their work whether that be to publish or hold on to. My goal is to publish posts that remind us that writing is subjective, and everyone has different tastes. It will never be a one size fits all, so advice should be given and taken that way to avoid deterring people from exploring their creativity.

So, without further ado… 

Welcome to my blog! 

Unpopular Writing Advice 

B.B. Palomo