Writing as Precarious Existence
I wanted to write today about something freeing. Often, I feel crampt in my little house in the backwoods of Missouri. Tucked away from light and sound – noise and culture; while at the same time also excluded from what I’d call the Wild, too.
It’s a precarious existence around here.I mention this because as a writer, this isn’t my native grounds. I wasn’t born here and I’m not ‘from ‘round these parts’. The sense of isolation gets to me sometimes. Feeling full of noise and clamor – cell phon...
It’s a precarious existence around here.I mention this because as a writer, this isn’t my native grounds. I wasn’t born here and I’m not ‘from ‘round these parts’. The sense of isolation gets to me sometimes. Feeling full of noise and clamor – cell phon...
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Sarah
(new)
May 16, 2018 05:58AM
Hang in there, Ryan. We all have these thoughts and these moments. You're absolutely right that there's no clear path for writers and for the right way of doing things, esepcially in today's publishing world. Indies are making up a higher and higher percentage every year of those authors who are actually making a living doing what we do, and the industry is spinning trying to figure out why. The reason is simple. Publishers are by necessity too focused on the sure bet: the author who has already had a successful title or two, the celebrity with a recognizable name, the re-hash of whatever they've determined is hot in the market (which is impossible to predict enough to write for intentionally). Yes, traditional publishing comes with some perks, like not fighting so hard for the opportunity to share your book with readers, but it comes with a lot of downside, too, like the painfully slow timeline and loss of autonomy. It's a step up if it's your goal, but it's also not the right path for everyone, and because that path is getting narrower all the time, it's not even possible for a lot of really great writers, in many, many cases, writers who are much more skilled at their craft than some of the ones getting through. Don't get me wrong, I'm not exactly down on traditional publishing, though I've personally been badly burned by it, but we truly do not live in an era in which you shouldn't be proud of your work as an indie author, either. You're getting your work out there and connecting with readers. That puts you way ahead of so many people dreaming of playing this crazy game. Keep on plugging away. And good luck pitching!
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Sarah wrote: "Hang in there, Ryan. We all have these thoughts and these moments. You're absolutely right that there's no clear path for writers and for the right way of doing things, esepcially in today's publis..."Thanks, Sarah - I guess it's easy for me (and most writers, I hear) to get stuck, feel stuck sometimes.
Cheers,
Ryan
