These are a few things that make sense to me now, which has taken the past fourteen years to seep into my thick skull.
1. If you are a writer, you write. It's what you do. It's what you can't stop doing. You can try to stop. I've watched my writing friends stop. I've stopped writing, too. I gave up my weekly column about a year and a half ago. Despite my efforts to turn my attention to my college studies, I found myself blogging or writing emails of epic proportions. Some people might be successful squelching the urge, but I don't know many. Writers write.
2. Now, for the reasons you write. I know people who write at least several times a week, and they've never been published once. They don't even go so far as to post to a website or blog. They write because they love it, and they have this undying need and desire to do it.
If you write because you must have that feedback from others, that sort of atta boy or atta girl pat on the back of job well done, you're probably doing it for the wrong reasons. I'm not saying that reader feedback doesn't stroke the ole ego. It does. It's like being on crack (I can only assume) when you see your byline and someone takes the time to say hey, I could relate to what you've written. Or man, that made me laugh until I cried.
It's like any other profession - it's good to know that you've set out to do what you intended and you are being noticed. But, frankly, if you're a needy little bitch that needs that constant reassurance from someone, anyone, and this is what propels your desire to write...well, you're going to be met with great disappointment. Sure people read stuff. Some of them even read all the way to the end. However, most don't take the time to drop a line and share their thoughts. Not unless you tug a heart string or touch a nerve. If you can make someone teary or pissed, you're probably going to get an email or a blog comment.
Write because it brings you joy and satisfaction, and the joy and satisfaction from your readers is just icing on the cake.
3. You have to learn what works and what doesn't. Somehow, you have to absorb and apply what you've read when it comes to writing query letters, outlines, crafting a 650 piece work, and advice on anything you're attempting to do. I can read a how-to on portrait painting, but likely, I'm not going to walk over to a canvas and create a masterpiece. We learn in the doing, and writing is not any different. You can find good examples of winning query letters and do your best to emulate it. You can also read really, really bad query letters on various websites. I think the latter helps more than anything. Though, if you can read a crappy proposal and can't figure out why it's crappy, there's a problem.
I suggest checking out this site. http://slushpilehell.tumblr.com/ If you don't find it amusing, you probably could learn something from the examples.
4. It seems one of the most important things is to create a following. I interviewed Bruce Cameron years ago who's had some great success in writing since those days. I think his third book was recently released. He started by writing a weekly column online. He offered it through a list where it would pop up in your inbox each week. The thing about this is that he struck when the iron was hot. When he first started, spam wasn't so much an issue, and not everyone was doing it. Nonetheless, he created a following, which helped him become syndicated because he had that following. The column and his following landed him his first book deal. You can Twitter if that's your thing. You can use Facebook and other social networking outlets to get your writing out there. Create a blog. Visit other people's blogs and leave sincere comments.
Creating followers seems to come in dang handy these days if you have aspirations of self-publishing. Start a blog, find a niche, be different, entertaining, or whatever you feel you are with what you want to write. Regardless of whether you go the traditional route or the e-format, you'll already have some people who will be willing to purchase and recommend your work.
5. Don't get caught up in the fantasy that you're going to be an overnight writing superstar. Don't start writing with the hopes of publishing because your kid is getting braces next month. Don't expect to get your bills caught up at the end of the month because you're going to publish something. I know it does happen - that crazy, whirlwind success. One example that comes to mind is the guy who started a Twitter account and offered up shit his dad says. He has a book. There's a sit-com based on a Twitter account. If that doesn't blow your mind, it should. This is not the norm. I'm not being cynical here. It's being realistic. Read about Stephen King and how he found his eventual success. You'll see why I used the word eventual. These writers who finally make the big time had heap tons of rejections. They just didn't quit. They kept writing. They kept submitting. They kept honing their craft, improving, rewriting, editing. They did the work and were persistent.
As an aside here, persistent means what I suggested - write, rewrite, get better. Ditch a project that doesn't deserve to be finished. Brainstorm. Keep on keeping on. It doesn't mean when you're told no that you try to change a publisher/agent/editor's mind. You've got one shot in a query letter. Be confident, but not cocky. Don't be needy. Don't be whiny, apologetic, clueless, verbose. Don't tell the agent what to do or what you'd do if you were the agent. Don't promise that you're the next best thing after sliced bread. Sell your idea without coming off as a huge pain in the ass. After all, if you represent yourself as some sort of fruit loop in that letter, I'm guessing no agent no matter how great the idea sounds is going to want to babysit your ass through the final product.
Meanwhile, back to the point that writing isn't a get rich scheme. Do the research and you'll see that few writers can earn a living from it. Sure, it might make the mortgage payment and buy you a package of bologna each month. Do a little reading about royalties. Research how many books you'd need to sell to make a profit (even if you're going through CreateSpace or publishing electronically). Take into consideration you're probably going to want to give away books to those willing to do reviews on their blogs that might get you more readers.
6. Okay, so, I'm not putting these ideas in any particular order, but it occurs to me that I should mention letting others read your work for feedback before you're looking to acquire an agent or go the self-publishing route. By others, I mean people who are avid readers. Find a few people who dig the genre of your work. Ask people who have had some success with getting a byline or their name on a book cover. Sure, you can ask family and friends to read, but likely, they aren't going to be fully honest with you. No one (usually) wants to hurt someone else's feelings. And, as I mentioned previously, if you need that positive feedback in order to survive, people are going to be reluctant to tell you the truth.
I understand what it feels like to be told you suck. Writers have this connection to their work, and when they're told something doesn't quite work, it's like being told your child is ugly, has B.O., is unliked by his peers, and shows great promise of one day riding on the back of the garbage truck. Because of that personal attachment to one's work, it's hard to tell someone that they should give it up or even that they need to get better at the craft. I have to agree with King when he wrote that you can make a good writer better. You can teach someone to write well enough to write office memos and college papers. I don't know that you can take someone who has no talent and teach them talent. Either you have it or you don't.
There are reasons your writing is rejected. They are various, and perhaps, even painful. Maybe your work isn't the right fit. Maybe it's a topic that has been a gazillion times and the market is saturated with stories about vampires and werewolves. Maybe your writing style isn't a good fit. Maybe the agent isn't looking to represent memoir or romance. It could plainly be that it's not good enough. Or not good at all. A storyline that is believable to you quite possibly isn't believable to anyone, and everyone was too damn polite to tell you as much.
At some point, the reason you're being rejected could simply be that you're deluded about your abilities. If you can't even get your work in a venue that doesn't pay, it's time to have a little coming to Jesus meeting with yourself. That's why I believe anyone who encourages someone without offering constructive criticism is doing a real disservice if the writing is plain bad. Though, it is one person's opinion. They could be wrong. But, chances are, if more than one person suggests your writing needs work, they're probably right. Just remember - your mother or grandmother is going to love anything that you do.
7. I recommend this book Self-Publish Your Novel : Lessons from an Indie Publishing Success Story by Robert Kroese. It was recommended to me by a writer who has found a bit of success going that self-publishing route. This book is straight, to the point, without any of that sugarcoating, let's hold hands and sing kind of crap that you find in some works or at writer's conferences.
While on this topic, if you have a Kindle, you can download sample chapters of books or topics that might be similar to what you're trying to do. It helps to see what grabs the attention of a reader in the first couple pages that would make you want to read the book. Something as simple as formatting has made me read a couple pages and promptly delete it off my Kindle, not even considering spending the $1.99 to read it.
8. Because I like lists with even numbers. I'll sum up a few things. Be professional. Expect to be rejected. Rewrite and edit - seldom is anything perfect in the first write up. Follow your dream for the right reasons. Do your homework and be knowledgeable Figuring out what doesn't work is a good way to understand what does. Ask for help from people who know a thing or two and not the homeless guy near the river. These are things I've learned, and continue to learn as I work towards self-publishing.
Great post. Lots of really solid advice. And thanks for that tumblr link. It cracked me up!
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