Here’s a blog post written by Bob Mayer, an independent author of 42 books, sharing 13 lessons he’s learned about the writing business. In addition to being a nice prime number, which as frequent readers know is one of my geeky quirks, he also includes a reference to the Bene Gesserit from Dune. If that’s not nerdvana, I don’t know what is.
I’ve always been a big believer in his second point, which is a variation of professional athletes tanking after they sign big contracts. As soon as you think you’ve arrived the journey’s over, and so is your writing career.
I think a lot of authors fall into the trap of his sixth lesson. Publicity and sales are not the same thing. Some of that comes from the earlier days of Amazon when a free weekend would vault your book up the charts and onto Amazon mailing lists. Sure you gave away a few thousand copies, but that led to hundreds of sales and money in your pocket. While many still rely on this strategy, recent changes in Amazon’s policies/practices make it less effective than before. The post includes a video clip from Harlan Ellison about paying writers. I think Harlan is right about authors not valuing their own work. However, I should warn you that he expresses himself with language that some may find offensive.
As you’re reading through Bob’s lessons you’ll probably find yourself saying “that’s obvious” or “duh” quite a few times. To be fair, that’s part of his point. Understanding other people’s motives, not being afraid, and producing great content are obvious, but the obvious is often the first victim of the dream. In an ironic twist the obvious also kills the dream.
As always thanks for reading.
Armen
Bob’s 13 lessons:
So You Want To Make A Living Writing? 13 Harsh Truths..
He makes some interesting points. Fortunately, I don’t have to make a living at writing. I just like writing>