Blogger: Wendy Lawton
Location: On the Road–Heading toward North Dakota
Weather: Sunny and hot
Will someone remind me that the next time I blog I need to write about happy things? Why is it I am always coming up with such upbeat themes as “Kiss of Death,” “QueryFail,” “Worst Case Scenario,” and “Career Killers”? I think someone needs to stage an intervention.
Oh well. . .
For the final day of this cheery little series on career killers, I want to touch on a subject that is connected to yesterday’s speed writing blog. Today’s career killer is impatience. If you’ve been in this industry long, you know that nothing will cause you to throw up your hands and walk away faster than impatience. If you are used to instant gratification, this is not the career for you. If you are in the habit of developing a plan and having each piece fall into place on your schedule, this is not the career for you. If you’d like to make a six-figure income right out of the starting gate–you guessed it–this is not the career for you.
As agents we talk a lot about career planning, but we always do so with a humble spirit because we know the truth of the old saying taken from Robert Burns poem, To A Mouse, On Turning Her Up In Her Nest With The Plough: “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an ‘men/ Gang aft agley,/ An’lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,/ For promis’d joy!”
Yep, we know about the best laid plans when it comes to publishing.
Consider this comment I had from an editor a few weeks ago: “Let’s take things step by step. She should finish her manuscript and submit that. Then I’ll consider a proposal from her for a new contract.” Or, even worse, one I’m hearing more often these days, “We don’t want to look at a new proposal until the book is released and we can track sales for a few months.”
When you are trying to build a career not to mention building a readership, nothing is more frustrating than hearing that your publisher is taking a wait-and-see approach. If a proposal can’t even be submitted until the previous book is published and performing well, chances are that there will be more than a year between books. Frustrating.
But here’s the rub–if the writer gets impatient and decides to try to find another publisher, he runs the risk of breaking any momentum and continuity that may be building. A change of publishers needs to be strategic move, done at the right time and for the right reasons. During the building process the author and his agent have many issues to consider, and it may take an inordinate amount of patience. If the truth be known, career building is far more in the hands of God than in the hands of humans.
I love the verse from Ecclesiastes 7:8, “The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.” Good advice for those of us in this crazy book industry.
Okay, now I need your help. What kind of happy topics do I need to blog about next time? Puppies and publishing? Chubby babies and equally plump advances? I seriously need an intervention.
This has been a helpful and harrowing week. No intervention needed. Some of your success stories might be slightly encouraging. Thanks.
Please don’t feel bad about the topic you chose this week. Your articles contained a wealth of usable information–the truth spoken in love. It’s a very good idea to take stock, now and again, of our motivations and habits. You’ve done me a great service!
Naah. It’s a tough world. Better to see it as it is than through the fluff perspective.
“If the truth be known, career building is far more in the hands of God than in the hands of humans.”
Amen. I don’t know any other remedy for the stress of impatience than remembering that. A writer could drive herself crazy fretting the details that are out of her hands. Why do that? God has each of us well in hand.
While I understand the frustration of having to wait a bit longer for a second book if the publisher takes a wait-and-see attitude, the silver lining in that scenario is that the author would, presumably, have more time to make her next book better than it would have been were she rushed to complete it. Or, if she chooses not to write whatever book the proposal proposes until that proposal is contracted, she can begin the book that’s been stirring in her heart to write, the one there hasn’t been time for until now. There are always ways to use that extra time, and see it as a gift instead of a delay.
Very informative week of posts! I like the chubby babies and plump advances idea. I’m holding my new chubby baby as I type this comment. 🙂 Well, she’s not super chubby yet, but she’s well on her way.
What about a positive spin off of QueryFail? QuerySuccess. I always find it interesting to see what makes an agent say, “I have to see more.”
It’s okay, Wendy, seriously. You’re helping to get the truth out and that’s always positive.
At first I was eager to get accepted immediately, but now I understand more how authors mature in their writing and how good it is to have more books under my belt. After all, that’s often one of the questions authors get: do you have anything else?
We’d love to hear what makes you go “wow!” when you get a query. Other than reading the guidelines. : )
Kittens. Kittens are a great topic 🙂
Nah, its been great to hear all of this. Better to learn now via your blog than later by experience.
Wendy,
Yes. You have created a real heart of darkness amongst the persecuted brethren and sistren. I hope your time wandering through the Dakotas gives you time to ponder the damage caused. Here are some topics which will brighten our disposition and lead us in the direction of forgiveness. The series would be titled “Shortcuts To Author Success”:
* Be a bestselling author without writing a single word.
* How to develop a John Maxwell sized platform in one day.
* Why revisions should be left to your underlings
* Demanding a Super Bowl commercial for your debut novel.
Count it as grace that we’re extending the olive branch.
Wow, Michael. I think you are hiding your light under a barrel. You need to forget your writing career and open a book marketing agency.
I had that same problem with my blog–what mood did I get into? So I had to delete some I wrote weeks ahead of time just to start a new vibe–happy vibes. LOL.
Actually, this is a good post. We all need to be reminded, old and new, that writing is definitley not a sprint, but a marathon.
I’m always “happy-happy,joy-joy” but right now I’m covered up in the ordeal of kittens and puppy and you can’t convince me that this a sunshine and joy type topic (the puppies and kittens.) Arggh.
I see the publishing industry as a one-step-forward-ten-steps-back, but it must be just my current state.
As to “happier” themes (I’ve really enjoyed all your other posts) I would like to know how you help your clients find their “sweet spots” or how to make those stair step decisions to come onto a platform. What fits? What doesn’t? How do you know? Just a gut feeling? Or is there a bit of science to it sometimes?
Thanks for telling it like it is, Wendy.
I’ve always felt that the true optimist is actually a pessimist at heart. If you pack up the car for a family vacation expecting nothing but blue skies and familial bliss, you are going to be frustrated and disappointed. But if you pull out of the driveway knowing that you are probably going to face schedule disasters, road construction, and the occasional whine from the back seat AND you are ready to drag out an extra measure of patience to deal with it when it comes, you are far more likely to have a rewarding trip.
I like to know what I’m up against, whether it be vacation or publishing that first novel, so I can face it with a smile. Thanks for giving this newbie a good grounding. Now…on to the chubby babies!
Yes, I think it’s helpful to divest ourselves of unrealistic expectations and settle in to the serious business of learning our craft. Then, hopefully, we’ll busy ourselves producing works that will sell and bless.