professional jealousy

Let Your Green-Eyed Monster Make You Insanely Successful

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This post by Marcy McKay originally appeared on Bestseller Labs on 10/14/14.

Every writer has experienced this emotion. When ‘it’ happens, your head explodes, rage swirls through you, while an imaginary fist pounds your gut.

When? Why?

It so happens that overnight, the internet has been buzzing with the latest literary whiz kid, who hit the New York Times Bestsellers List.

“It was my first try at a novel,” she chirps.

Your bitterness tastes like bile.  Rage and resentment flood your veins.  That poison you’re feeling is…

Jealousy

No matter how the scenario plays out, the end result is the same.  You hate another writer for having what you want: fame, fortune and fabulousness.  All that glory should be yours.

This emotion is so all-consuming that its evil twin – envy, is listed as one of the Seven Deadly Sins.  The desire for others’ traits, status, abilities or situation is such an offense here in the human realm that your punishment is to spend eternity in the freezing waters of Hell.

I didn’t even know that Hell had freezing waters, but I’d rather not find out.

Jealous Much?

Jealousy does not work and play well with others.  There’s no room for abundance.  Only you get to be king of the mountain.

This recent Salon article showcases how one author’s deep envy for John Green on his success with “The Fault in Our Stars” almost destroyed their friendship.

 

Read the full post on Bestseller Labs.

 

NaNoWriMo Dialogues: “On Doubt, Talent, Failure, And Quitting “

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This post, by Chuck Wendig, originally appeared on his terribleminds site on 11/18/13.

You: I made a terrible error.

Me: You tried to punch that coyote again.

You: No.

Me: You huffed wood varnish and got lost in the mall.

You: No. Well, yes, but that’s not the mistake I’m talking about.

Me: You ate all the bacon again.

You: That’s not a mistake. That’s me fulfilling my manifest destiny.

Me: It’s a mistake because when you eat all the bacon, I turn into Bacon Hulk and I rip your puny form to Kleenex ribbons out of sheer, baconless rage.

You: I see your point. I didn’t eat all the bacon, it’s still downstairs, chillax.

Me: Nobody says “chillax” anymore. The new word is “coolquilize.”

You: JESUS GOD WHATEVER can I tell you my mistake now or what?

Me: Bleah, sure, go for it.

You: I’ve been reading other people’s work as I write.

Me: Reading is fundamental. Writers who don’t read are like screenwriters that don’t watch movies, like architects who don’t strop up sexually against elegant skyscrapers, like professional killers who do not admire the work of other professional killers from the telescoping lens of a distant hijacked drone. Writers have to read. It is an essential spice to this broth we’re brewing. Writers who don’t read are missing their souls.

You: Fine, yes, yeah, I just mean — some people have been posting their NaNoWriMo projects. Like, snippets or whole sections and, hoooo heeee unnnnh — *rocks back and forth while massaging temples* — I have discovered through this that I am not good enough.

Me: Oh, god, more of this again. Okay. Huddle up. Writing a story is in some ways an act of obstacle management and you’ve gotta manage all the obstacles accordingly — jump all the fences, hop all the ditches, elbow all your enemies right in their spongy tracheas. One of the biggest obstacles is self-doubt. Doubt is the vampire you invite into your house. Doubt is bedbugs and hobos — it fucking lingers, man, like the scent of cigarette smoke in your curtains, or the odor of cat piss in your carpets.

You: So, what do I do about doubt? It sounds like a demon. AN ACTUAL DEMON THAT REQUIRES SOME KIND OF EXORCISM IS THERE A BOOK A HOLY BOOK PLEASE HELP.

Me: The book you’re writing is the holy book.

You: Wuzza?

 

Click here to read the rest of the post on terribleminds.

 

PayLoadz

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I am publishing an ebook. I seriously considered using PayLoadz.com — until I read this post on Jonathan Coulton’s blog.

I strongly advise anyone thinking of using PayLoadz to read these posts first and then decide. I decided not to use them.

Visit: www.jonathancoulton.com/2007/08/22/e-junkie-vs-payloa.

 

I-Pad Lust

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I’m not an Apple customer, but I confess I have I-Pad lust.

Having shlepped a laptop around for years to use in libraries, research venues, or speaking engagements, more often than not I felt burdened by equipment rather than assisted by a handy tool. I have a far different sense about I-Pad.

I see I-Pad as a useful tool for researching in libraries, or anyplace else for that matter, though I wish it had a camera for copying books pages or documents. I’m confident a future I-Pad will provide one. For now, this is a tool you still can take deep into the library stacks, or into the court house basement.

I also see the speedy I-Pad as useful when giving lectures. My specialty is history extracted from genealogy. I try never to respond to a genealogy question, or historical event or date, without access to my database for an accurate reply. It’s tough keeping track of countless dates, events, and 5,000 characters and cousins, even if you are brilliant. Having my database online, the I-Pad becomes a fast & handy, immediate response tool.

For writing books and articles, I’ve learned the electronic format differs from the print format greatly. e-Books fundamentally have changed the way I write, because of the way an e-book appears on the screen, and because of the way an e-book is read. Writing to the I-Pad increases a writer’s clarity & communication.

I’ve always been a voracious newspaper reader and magazine subscriber. But I don’t like reading a computer screen in a dedicated seat. I firmly believe I-Pad is the newspaper’s salvation, as well as that of the magazine publisher, simply because the tool re-incarnates the use of a newspaper or magazine. Read it at lunch, or on the throne. Flip the pages. Set it aside. Pick it up again. It’s as easy as a newspaper or magazine. Just don’t line your birdcage with one.

What author, historian, or genealogist doesn’t have a library of old and new images, news clippings, reference articles, book citations, or document copies? Face to face with a book buyer, show-and-tell always has been a problem. I-Pad solves that. All your research is right at hand. Carry volumes of clippings, photos, research anywhere you go. Pull them out anywhere, anytime. Pass them around. Try doing that with a laptop. Then offer your book for purchase. Right now the book buyer can take home that same information in your book.

I believe this Apple tool is one to latch on to. Simply because of it’s capability and probability to change computing, researching, writing, reading, and the computer’s use, as we know it. Already Apple has discarded the physical keyboard for the virtual one. I’m sure one day very soon Apple will sell the ultimate mouse trap. And I can’t wait to play Exterminator!

Practically speaking, for the writer of history I-Pad is a tool sent from the lives of the past, making it easy to stay in touch. Come on Charlemagne, send me an I-Pad now.