S.W. Lothian – Author

As a writer, one of the things I feel from time to time most of the time is the worry that I’m wasting my time. It’s one of the reasons that I haven’t shared with anyone except immediate family and a couple of friends that I write books.

Writing is such a private thing where you submerge yourself into a world that no one else knows about, which lingers in your head 24/7. You create the worlds, the characters, the situations. You have a say in everything. It reflects your own opinions, likes, dislikes. It’s based on your own experiences or prejudices or morals. It’s a deeply personal thing to put your creative thoughts on a page and then reveal it in the hope that it entertains others. Ultimately, some people will like what you do, and some people will hate what you do. Some people will praise what you do, and some people will criticise what you do.  Everyone has a right to their own opinion.

Staying focused and determined over such a long period while writing each book is like a marathon, but without the drink stands to douse your uncertainty along the way. It’s not something that you can reveal until it’s complete. So there are no pats on the back when a new character is created, or laughs at a joke that you’ve written and privately laughed about,  or encouragement to keep you inspired.

The ultimate judgement of whether what you’ve lived for so long is successful or not, boils down to the release. The only way you ever know if people approve or not is to release the book, cross your fingers and hope for more good than bad. The likelihood of a book being so successful that it changes your life big time is low. But if you don’t try, you can be sure of one thing – it will never happen. Giving things a go is the only way to see what you can do.

Whenever I have doubts about what I’m doing, and question whether it’s all worth it, I can’t help but turn to the source that inspired me to take the plunge and give writing a chance. J.K Rowling has had a huge influence on me. To meet and talk to her would be the most amazing experience. Although, I am realistic and know it’ll never happen. Her story is one that serves to remind me of what people are capable of doing if they have the right mindset.

J.K.’s journey has taken her from down and out, to one of rising above life’s challenges to achieve her well-deserved and epic success.  Her full story sits outside the pages of her books. Just watching one of the shows I have that feature J.K., always gives me that boost that I need along the way. It reminds me of what can be done. You may have guessed that I’ve just watched them to boost me as I get closer to the launch of my fourth book. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve needed a boost and watched J.K. Rowling, A Year In The Life, or Who Do You Think You Are?  I find them both uplifting, inspiring and recharging.

So, the time has almost come for me to release another book to the world. To reveal what has been lingering in my imagination since mid 2013. It’s nearly time to be judged once more. Fingers crossed that there’s more good than bad. Why do I do it? – because I can’t help it.

PS. My new book TIME SQUARE | THE SHIFT  is dedicated to my real life heroes … take a look at who they are by clicking here.