Vince Guaglione: Journaling to Self-Publication
- Jul 25, 2016
- 4 min read
Indie Insight is happy to present a feature post over indie author Vince Guaglione.
A software engineer by day Guaglione, 47, is also a devoted writer in the indie community. Guaglione has self-published 11 works in a variety of genres including Personal Growth/Motivational, Journal Writing, Suspense Fiction, Dark Poetry, and Erotica.
It was through journaling at the age of 12 that Guaglione discovered his passion for writing.
“Writing has always been something I’ve liked to do in my spare time, and I seemed to have a natural aptitude for it. Over the years, I’ve learned that it’s something that I’ve never strayed far from because it’s my creative outlet,” said Guaglione.
Guaglione has dabbled in several genres, but journal entries and philosophical essays have remained the core of his work.
“As primarily a journal writer, I love being able to put my thoughts and emotions to the page… It helps me gain clarity and gives me a way to put life into perspective. It’s a calming exercise, no matter what I’m writing, so whenever I get a chance to sit and write I feel more balanced and more in touch with myself,” he said.
Guaglione looked into self-publishing after finishing his first work, The Narratives: Keeping The Soul Alive, a compilation of journal entries relating to the death of his significant other.
“I knew this type of book wasn’t exactly what traditional publishers were looking for, but I wanted to publish it as a means of helping others who had gone through what I had, and were struggling coping with their loss. Also, I wanted to leave something behind as my legacy. So I decided to look into Amazon KDP, and found that it suited me perfectly. Since then I have gone on to publish all of my books as an indie,” said Guaglione.
When self-publishing his first work Guaglione had no doubts or expectations only a desire to get this work out there for others to read. After successfully publishing his first work he found ease in releasing new material.
“The great thing about publishing on demand and being an indie is that you can experiment. I never thought I’d publish short stores or any of my poetry, but because I could control how, when, and what I published, it made it easy to keep putting material out there. Now, when I begin writing something new, I take the attitude that at some point, I’m going to publish it, no matter how far-fetched the idea might seem to me at first,” Guaglione said.
Though he had little doubts of his own with his first work, Guaglione understands the emotions that run through many authors’ heads when considering publishing.
“It’s hard to write and even harder to publish what we, as authors, write because of those nagging pangs of self-doubt that creep into our consciousness. The way I looked at it was that it didn’t matter what anyone thought about this book. I had a reason and a purpose for publishing it, and all I needed to do was to ensure that I was putting the best possible product into the public domain, so I could be happy with the finished product. Regardless of how it was received, it was an accomplishment, and was highly rewarding for me personally,” he said.
When inspiration hits, Guaglione takes certain measures to successfully transfer thought to paper.
“When I do want to write, I make sure I carve out a bunch of hours in blocks so it gives me the time to be productive. I usually do most of my writing in the evenings on weeknights and I feel lucky that I have the ability to keep much of that time for myself,” he said.
Guaglione also supports the indie author community by reading work by other indie authors.
“There are lots of great indie authors out there in every genre. Indie authors have created some of the best stories I’ve read. Just because they aren’t on the bookshelves at Barnes & Noble or aren’t on the New York Times bestseller list, it doesn’t mean they are novices. Since indies don’t get that same exposure that the notable authors do, they are very appreciative of their fans and supporters. They are a humble and thankful group of writers,” Guaglione said.
Being an indie author himself, Guaglione has an understanding of how important supporting indie authors can be.
“There are lots of indie authors out there toiling in obscurity, such as myself. Many have published great works but have yet to receive the accolades they deserve. I’d say if you really enjoyed any of these authors, give them a shout out – share the links to their books, sign up for their mailing lists, connect with them on social media, and most importantly, email them directly, letting them know how much you enjoyed their material,” Guaglione said.
Guaglione plans to expand his knowledge, try new writing styles, and continue to self-publish work into the future.
“Of course, I’d love to gain some traction and have my works reach a wider audience. That would be very rewarding. However, and most importantly, I enjoy writing so my main goal is to keep writing, keep trying things, and to keep improving my writing… I’m always looking to increase my skill level and, as an indie, I can do that at my leisure and at my own pace. Currently, I’m working on a romance novella and this has taken me far outside my comfort zone. But if I can pull it off, I’ll have achieved something I never thought I was capable of doing – writing romance.”
Check out Vince Guaglione's website here: www.vinceguaglione.com
Show your support to the indie community by checking out Vince Guaglione's different social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter @VinceGuaglione, Pinterest, Instagram, Amazon, and Goodreads.
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