There is a saying: You're only as good as the last book you published.

The newer writer might look at that statement and suddenly panic about not yet having a publication. Let me alleviate those fears right now. It's okay if you are still working on your first publication.

The saying above is just a reminder to us writers that we have to continually evolve. Just because you have published a book doesn't mean that you can stop learning. With every book that we write, our skills should be improving.

While some writers are able to take the same formula from one book into the next, for most readers, the same-old book quickly becomes boring. So, we writers need to adapt as a consequence.

The industry is constantly changing. New technologies are becoming available to us. As such, we have to be prepared to change too… or get swallowed up by the evolution of the industry and be left for dust.

So, how is a writer meant to survive when you are only as good as your last book?

Well, for every book that I write, and with every stage of the production process, I aim to learn something new to help me along my journey.

In today's post, I want to talk about setting learning goals for our projects.

Defining success for a book

When a writer moves into the published phase of their career, it is so easy to get absorbed into the idea of making money. However, just to get to the published stage, many writers have spent years writing and editing that story.

Using money as a way to define the success of a book can be defeating. When you start writing that book, you have no way of knowing with any certainty if that book will see any financial return. And if you do see financial return, it might be years before you see it. So, it is recommended that we use something else as a measure of success for a book.

I use learning goals.

At every stage of a book's production cycle (i.e., drafting, editing, production, publication, and post-publication), I find something that I would like to learn more about. It might be how to use a particular writing device, or how to use a particular type of software. By creating learning goals, I devise a way to know if a book is successful before anyone else reads it. And I know that my efforts are worth my time.

Defining the learning goals for the drafting phase

Taking a manuscript from concept to completed draft can take me years. I'm will gladly admit that I'm not the fastest writer on the planet. As such, when I start a new manuscript, I choose a writing technique (or storytelling concept) that I want to try to use in my story, something that I have never done before. In doing this, I turn my writing into an experiment to see if I have the skills to do what I want to achieve with that story.

In my current work-in-progress, my main character is constantly having their memories wiped. As a consequence, my character needs to learn about certain events over and over again. (It's an important plot point.)

My writing challenge was to figure out how to do this without the narrative becoming repetitive for the reader. When the pieces finally fell into place, I was one giddy little writer.

But my work-in-progress isn't finished yet. During my most recent read-through and editorial pass, I decided that the manuscript would work better in first-person. But I've never written a full novel in first-person before. So, my current learning goal is to learn how to write in first-person and sustain that voice over the length of an entire novel. And let me tell you… It has been so much fun getting into this character's head.

When I first started writing fiction, all those years ago, my default was to write in third-person, multi-POV, shallow perspectives. (This is a commonplace for many writers to start.) So, when I came to write my assassin thriller, I decided that my challenge would be to write in third-person, deep POV, using a single perspective for the entire manuscript. That criteria presented challenges of its own: like how to write a massive takedown sequence of an entire complex when my main character could only be in one place… and she was waiting for the word that everything had gone as planned. (Trust me, in a thriller, you can't just glance over a massive battle sequence. You have to have it on the page. And if the main character is not present for the battle… Yeah, it wasn't easy, but I made it work… and every reader of that story has loved my solution. For your reference, I took advantage of radio.)

When I came to write my crime thriller, I wanted to write in a dual perspective story using deep POV, where each POV had equal screen time, and each POV used a different voice. Let's just say that it helped to have two characters who were vastly different in their outlook.

And I once wrote a short story in second person, just to see if I could do it. It was exhausting to write, and I would have never thought that the narrative style would work like that… but it did.

And when writing nonfiction, I'm currently trying to learn how to use dictation properly. I'm still trying to figure out how to train Microsoft Dictate. If possible, I would like to teach it how to swear.

Learning goals for the editing phase

The learning goals associated with the editing phase might be similar to those used in the writing phase, or they might tackle a different skill set.

At one point, my learning goal for the editing phase was to learn how to properly use ProWritingAid. (And MS Dictate wants to call that prorating aid. Hmm… I really need to figure out how to train this thing properly.)

But a new writer might decide they want to take on the goal of understanding how to take feedback from beta readers and critique partners. Learning how to read past the feedback to get to the heart of what your readers are really pointing out is a skill that rarely comes naturally.

And learning where to find those elusive beasts known as critique partners and beta readers is something that many writers struggle with.

Learning goals for the production phase

When I refer to the production phase of a book, I'm talking about working with editors, typesetters, cover designers, and turning our manuscripts into a book. There are a lot of things to learn during that phase.

During the production phase of Hidden Traps of the Internet, I wanted to learn how to use the program Atticus. But I also needed to learn how to talk to a graphic designer to convey the idea of what I wanted for my cover. (Graphic designers might speak in English, but it's still a different language.)

Learning goals for the publication phase and beyond

For those who elect to head down self-publication roads, the learning curve is huge. You have Amazon, Draft2Digital, IngramSpark, distribution, marketing, ARCs, preparing for launches, obtaining reviews, and the list goes on.

And those heading down traditional roads have a learning curve of their own, which includes contracts, royalties, and more editing. And they still need to look into marketing and launches. The job of releasing a book is never easy.

To make matters worse, just when you think you know what you're doing, the technology goes and changes on you. There is always something new to learn.

However, a quick word of advice: Don't try to learn it all at the same time. Pick one thing and focus on that. Then move on to the next thing. One step at a time.

I know my book is a success, because I've learned something.

It might sound egotistical, but I know that the books I write are successful… because I've learned what I've set out to learn while working on them.

In the comments below, I invite you to declare your own learning goal for the current stage that your manuscript is in. And when you achieve that goal, come back and let me know. I like being the cheerleader in the corner, celebrating with my writing peeps.