Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.
Writing getting you down? Perhaps you are feeling discouraged and even though you got published, it didn’t turn out like you thought it would? James Scott Bell has some encouraging words to help you keep your chin up and move along at Kill Zone.
~ * ~
Letter to a Discouraged Writer
My man,
Here’s the thing. You got yourself good enough to get a publishing contract back in the “old days” when you needed to impress an agent, get repped, get shopped, and then sign on with a house. Your books came out with nice covers, some marketing, some placement. You did book signings and conference appearances. Three books I think it was, right?
So what happened? Sales weren’t enough to earn back the advance. And not enough to get another contract from the publishing house.
There’s an author support group for that. It’s called “Practically Everyone” and they meet at the bar.
I don’t know the exact percentage, but most fiction authors who ever lived never caught on in a big way. Many used to manage a “midlist career” which meant at least enough sales to keep on publishing, though not enough buy a yacht.
So you went through a dry period. Your agent shopped you but without success. So you parted ways. That was a tough time for you. You wondered if you’d ever get published again.
~ * ~
If you liked this article, please share. If you have suggestions for further articles, articles you would like to submit, or just general comments, please contact me at paula@publetariat.com or leave a message below.