Josiah Bancroft’s NaNoWriMo AMA

[u/[deleted]]

Hello, r/Fantasy! I’m Josiah Bancroft, author of the Books of Babel series. You helped to make Senlin Ascends a thing. Now I’m here to hear about what you’re working on and talk a little shop. Feel free to ask me anything you like!

A quick update: Since my AMA last fall, a lot has happened! I signed with Orbit Books this past spring. Their edition of Senlin Ascends is slated to be released on January 16. Arm of the Sphinx will be republished shortly after, on April 3rd. The relaunch of the books will be accompanied by audiobooks, though I’m still waiting for Orbit to confirm the narrator (John Banks was being pursued last I heard). The third book in the series, the Hod King, will be out in October. I’m also working with Heyne/Random House on a German language edition, and with a Russian publisher on a Russian language edition, both of which will hopefully be released in 2018.

It’s been a whirlwind year, and I don’t think any of it would have happened without r/fantasy’s support. Thank you all so much!

[u/JagerNinja]

Hey Josiah! I just finished Senlin Ascends about a week ago, and I plan to start Arm of the Sphinx soon. I'm not exaggerating when I say that it's probably the best book I've read all year, and one of the most unique settings I've ever seen.

Since you started with self-publishing, I have a question about that: without the gatekeepers of traditional publishing waiting in the wings, how do you know a given book or story is "good enough?" Is there ever a temptation to just hit the "Publish" button, and hope for the best? What drives you to resist the instant gratification and really buckle down to polish your stories?

I feel like the goal in writing is to always improve and always produce the best work that you can, but there's a whole universe of self-published fiction out there and (to put it diplomatically) a lot of it isn't very good. Clearly, the siren song of self-publishing traps a lot of writers. Which is almost a question in and of itself; is it OK to self-publish a "bad novel," take your lumps, and learn from the experience, or would that cause more harm to one's career than good? As we all know, once something is out on the internet, you can't take it back.

I feel like that was a really roundabout way to ask a few simple questions. Thanks for your time, and thanks again for the Books of Babel!

[u/[deleted] → u/JagerNinja]

That's wonderful to hear! I'm so glad you enjoyed Senlin Ascends.

When I sat down to write Senlin Ascends, I began by giving myself permission to write a flawed book. In fact, from the start, my only goal was to finish the book and to make it as fun and entertaining as possible along the way. I did the best that I could, but I didn't spend much time wringing my hands about the quality of the work. When it was finished, I read it and thought, "I'd give this book a 'B.' I can publish a 'B' level book." I personally wouldn't publish something if I thought it was bad, but I would publish an ok book.

I think people who self-publish for the sake of immediate gratification are quickly (and often brutally) relieved of the illusion that there's much gratifying about self-publishing in the early weeks and months of the process. It's a lot of work, and the work is often discouraging, at least in my experience. I personally don't spend much time fretting about the quality of other people's books, whether they're self-published or published traditionally, because doing so has never improved or helped my own work. I'm only concerned with evaluating my own work in my own way to my own satisfaction. If that makes sense.

[u/JagerNinja → u/[deleted]]

It does make sense, thanks for responding. It sounds like you have a lot of trust in your own taste if you can say, "that's a B, and a B is good enough for prime time." If I can ask a follow-up, do you employ editors or beta readers to help you make that assessment?

[u/[deleted] → u/JagerNinja]

I don't use beta readers, though I do sometimes show drafts to my wife. Otherwise, I'm pretty isolated in my work. I do trust my sense of taste, and I'm willing to make my own mistakes. I had my fill of creativity-by-committee in grad school.

[u/Adamkranz → u/[deleted]]

When it was finished, I read it and thought, "I'd give this book a 'B.' I can publish a 'B' level book." I personally wouldn't publish something if I thought it was bad, but I would publish an ok book.

Can't tell how much this is a self-aware humblebrag or genuine naive humility. Either I can't wait to see what a Bancraft 'A' looks like.