I’ve never been published.
I have to qualify this, though. I don’t have a published book. I’ve written articles for a broadsheet, had an essay included in an anthology, and my written work is all over the Internet. But no book I can call my own.
Several years ago, I began writing a graphic novel with a couple of artist friends. We all agreed the plot was terrific (I still think it is) and we thought we had it in us to do it. The problem was, I think, that none of us would take the lead in the project. We were either lazy or uninspired or just lacked motivation. Also, although the preliminary art was great, the characters didn’t look the way I wanted them to. Because I was the kind of self-absorbed writer who apparently didn’t know how to do a collaboration. Then I thought, maybe I ought to do a project on my own first before trying to work on something with others.
So I started plotting plots. Plots for novels, that is.
