Jaka Tomc

Imagination is my reality

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I’m a dreamer. You should be, too.

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While I’m writing these lines, I should really be writing my novel. I don’t really feel like doing either, but sometimes things just have to be done. So I guess I’ll write a short post (that no one will read anyway) and then shift my attention to a fictional world. Go team Tomc!

I figured out I have too many roles. Some of them I don’t want to put aside. Being a father and a boyfriend (such a funny word when you’re almost 40) is a true blessing. Being a writer is a cool job. You know what’s even cooler? Having your own publishing house. So I started one. But we can’t (not yet) live from my writing or publishing so I have a day job that materializes currency on my bank account. That compensates the fact that it takes more than a third of my day. One of the remaining thirds I spend in a semi-conscious state called sleep. That leaves me eight hours to be the best father to my son, the best boyfriend to the woman I love, to write as much as I can, to manage three web sites, two Facebook pages, two Twitter profiles, and run a publishing house.

Maybe you don’t need more time but a better system. I agree. Everything mentioned above can be done. The point is I don’t want it all. Not any more. If I had to pick three, I’d be a father, a boyfriend (sounds even funnier when you say it out loud), and a writer. Hey, but you already have all of that! True, but currently the writing is more of a hobby. I want it to be the main source of my income.

People say I’m a dreamer. Yes I am. Always have been. And you know what? Dreamers find a way. A decade ago people thought I’ve lost it. Most of them even thought that I’m never going to recover. Yet here I am today with so many roles and so little time. That’s what dreams do to you. They hide and wait and at the right time they come true.

Never stop dreaming.
Never stop believing in yourself.
Never listen to other people’s advice.

Being indie author is hard work (but it feels good)

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People ask me what it’s like to have a book on Amazon. “Hard work,” I reply. It feels good, and I’m not hiding it, but behind the prospect of selling millions of books, there’s a lot going on. Especially if you’re an indie author, like me.

Visibility

The most important thing, for an aspiring author, is visibility. I went through the painful process in my home country, Slovenia, and now I’m in the same position again. With one important difference. Instead of two million people, I have to present myself to seven billion. No pressure. Of course everyone on the planet will never know me, even every Slovenian doesn’t know me, but you know what I mean.

So what does one do to achieve a fair amount of visibility? First of all, it takes time. I mean, you can always buy fans of your Facebook page, Twitter or Instagram followers, but is it worth it? It looks nice to have 100k followers, but it only functions if they’re organic. Meaning that people followed you because they’re genuinely interested in you. And here’s where time comes into the picture. It’s virtually impossible for an indie author to get a thousand followers over night. Except in case of an extraordinary event, like Sarah Jessica Parker sharing your book.

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It feels good to be on top!

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A week ago a wonderful thing happened. I won my first book award! 720 Heartbeats won 2018 Breakthrouth Fiction Award in Suspense Thriller category.

I was super excited when I found out I took the award. But to be honest, a part of me expected it so I kept telling myself I’m gonna win. And I did.

I still remember the day I got rejected (with the same book) in a Slovene Book of the Year competition. The book came back untouched. A memo they sent with the book hangs on the board in my office. As a reminder and motivation.

Maybe I’ll take part in other competitions, maybe I won’t. But it feels damn good to be on top!

It took me a lot of time to write the original version of the book and a lot of money (and my own effort) to translate and edit it. Publishing a book (especially if you’re an indie author) is hard work. And when you finally publish, there’s little time to rest. Another book is waiting to be written. A better one. The best. And so on, until the end of time …