{"id":764,"date":"2025-07-20T14:25:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T20:25:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/?p=764"},"modified":"2025-07-22T12:31:44","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T18:31:44","slug":"publishing-a-book-is-like-posting-a-nudes-folder-with-better-grammar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2025\/07\/20\/publishing-a-book-is-like-posting-a-nudes-folder-with-better-grammar\/","title":{"rendered":"Publishing a book is like posting a nudes folder with better grammar"},"content":{"rendered":"
2\u20133 minutes<\/div>\n\n\n

There’s no modest way to publish a book. You hit “upload,” you hit “post,” and you know \u2014 in your guts, bones, and soul \u2014 that someone somewhere is about to see something they weren’t supposed to. Something you didn’t even know you were exposing until it was already printed in 12-point serif on a cream page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can polish the prose. You can edit the syntax. You can even disguise it in fiction \u2014 put a murder on top, name the main character something dramatic, give her a more complicated childhood. But let\u2019s be real: they\u2019ll still know it\u2019s you.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because publishing is not just \u201csharing a story.\u201d It\u2019s undressing. Emotionally. Psychologically. It’s putting all your strange, obsessive thoughts, intrusive memories, and deeply personal metaphors on full show and hoping someone thinks it’s beautiful instead of weird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the digital equivalent of saying: \u201cHere\u2019s my internal chaos. I spell-checked it for you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

It’s vulnerable because it’s you<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Every book I’ve published has some piece of me I once swore I\u2019d never admit out loud. A feeling I thought I\u2019d buried. A person I used to be. A truth I disguised just enough to survive its retelling. An experience so deeply ingrained in my being, I have a hard time recalling the exact dates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I write about obsession. I write about guilt. I write about the things people try to cover with polite conversation and a refill of wine. So of course it feels terrifying to publish. I don\u2019t write about grief, heartbreak, or emotional rot without expecting someone to say: “Wait, is this based on a true story?”<\/em> and pulling up in my DMs to ask about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(And the answer is always: kind of<\/em>.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

But it’s also seductive<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a thrill in it, too. A beautiful shamelessness. Like saying, \u201cYes, I felt that. Yes, I lived through something like that. And I made art out of it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s power in offering people something real \u2014 not sanitized, not softened \u2014 and watching them connect with it. Maybe even need it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because even if your book doesn\u2019t go viral, even if it doesn\u2019t win awards, you still did something brave: you stood in front of the world and said, \u201cHere I am. Read me.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And maybe, just maybe, they\u2019ll see something of themselves in your mess.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

So yes, it’s like posting a nudes folder<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

But one with cleaner grammar, better metaphors, and a plot twist you didn’t see coming but needed all along. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because, truth is: I don’t write to be understood. I write to understand myself \u2014 and hope someone can find comfort in that. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if that’s not intimate… what is?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Montse<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Publishing a book is an intimate act of vulnerability, exposing personal truths and emotions. It blends chaos with art, daring readers to connect with the author’s authentic experiences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":134972872,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[782781758,63377],"tags":[178,1747,3330,349,59708],"class_list":["post-764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-indie-author-confidential","category-the-writing-life","tag-books","tag-fiction","tag-publishing","tag-writing","tag-writing-tips"],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pfZGWd-ck","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2517,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2026\/07\/14\/my-books-contain-terrible-advice-and-honest-feelings\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":0},"title":"My books contain terrible advice and honest feelings","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"July 14, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Authors often hope readers don't emulate their characters' flawed choices, as stories expose personal values and questions, encouraging self-reflection rather than imitation of poor decisions.","rel":"","context":"In "Bold Banter"","block_context":{"text":"Bold Banter","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/pen-punch\/bold-banter\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1577,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2026\/01\/15\/everything-is-fine-totally-fiction-please-dont-read-into-it\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":1},"title":"Everything is fine, totally fiction, please don’t read into it","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"January 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"A revelation on how personal experiences influence my fictional writing and connect with readers.","rel":"","context":"In "The Heart of the Story"","block_context":{"text":"The Heart of the Story","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/the-heart-of-the-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2024\/08\/26\/why-all-my-books-add-up-to-26\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":2},"title":"Why all my books add up to 26 (and other signs I need help)","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"August 26, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Each character I create breathes in a rhythm you'll learn to understand, tied to numbers and hidden meanings. But none of it is random. Every decision, every name, every fate is tangled in a web I spun long ago, when the idea of control was just as seductive as the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Pen & Punch"","block_context":{"text":"Pen & Punch","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/pen-punch\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1107,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2025\/11\/13\/mistakes-i-made-so-you-dont-have-to\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":3},"title":"Mistakes I made (so you don’t have to)","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"November 13, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Independent publishing is a challenging journey filled with pitfalls. Learn from common mistakes like neglecting editing, poor formatting, ineffective marketing, isolation, and forgetting to celebrate achievements.","rel":"","context":"In "Behind the Drafts"","block_context":{"text":"Behind the Drafts","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/the-writing-life\/behind-the-drafts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1076,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2025\/11\/27\/no-your-book-doesnt-have-to-be-marketable\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":4},"title":"No, your book doesn’t have to be “marketable”","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"November 27, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Writing should prioritize personal artistic expression over marketability, emphasizing that true passion resonates with readers and defies commercial trends.","rel":"","context":"In "Indie Author Confidential"","block_context":{"text":"Indie Author Confidential","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/the-writing-life\/indie-author-confidential\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1082,"url":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/2025\/10\/30\/i-write-about-murder-but-i-swear-im-nice\/","url_meta":{"origin":764,"position":5},"title":"I write about murder but I swear I’m nice!","author":"Montse \"M.B\" Benavides","date":"October 30, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A cheeky, candid piece in which the author explains her obsession with murder in fiction: not as celebration, but as a blunt tool to probe grief, fear, and what people become when faced with death.","rel":"","context":"In "The Heart of the Story"","block_context":{"text":"The Heart of the Story","link":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/category\/the-heart-of-the-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/134972872"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=764"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":947,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions\/947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbnovels.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}