Why I’ll Never Be A Famous Writer

It’s fine, I don’t need to be a famous writer (my ego disagrees). When I first started out I had a motto that I plan on sticking to, “I’ll either be a writer, or a failed writer.” Essentially that means I am going to write whether people buy my work or not. Although, I can’t really say that any of my books have gotten a fair chance at gaining readers.

My passion for writing has always outweighed my need for recognition, but here are a few things that have convinced me that I’ll never get the recognition my poor ego incessantly hopes to achieve. 

1. In 2009 I published my first book, AN AFFAIR OF CONCOCTIONS just as the Great Recession took hold. The house my family lived in was almost foreclosed. I had to take a job far away in order to save the house. Book sales suffered as I worked seven days a week and did not get to market it.

2. In 2010, a few weeks before the publication of my second book, LOVE AND MALADIES, a life-altering tragedy occurred in my family after a car accident. I prefer not to get into specifics about this, but trust me, it was devastating.

3. In 2014 when LIGHT OF THE DIDDICOY was published, I did an interview with The Guardian. The review and interview were going to be run in print and online in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Canada and elsewhere. On the day of the publication I received a call from the interviewer who apologized. He explained that a new editor had been hired and she pulled both the review and interview on the day they were supposed to run. 

4. One month before the infamous 2016 elections, EXILE ON BRIDGE STREET was published. No one was buying books when the realization that Donald Trump was to become the 45th President. Also, I received emails from people who bought my book saying that they had received refunds. The reason was that there was a problem with distribution through the publisher. Eventually, after a week of trying to sort out the issue, the distribution issue was fixed, but hundreds, if not thousands of sales were lost by then, as well as valuable time. 

5. In April of 2020 when DIVIDE THE DAWN was published, the world was rocked by the Corona Virus. Book sales, as well as retail sales in general, plummeted as millions of people lost their jobs or were furloughed. 

6. In March of this year CHIN MUSIC RHUBARB will be published. I have no idea what will go wrong, but I have told myself not to be surprised, lol. Also, maybe the world should be concerned about what will happen when my sixth book is published.

But you know what? Maybe my books just stink. Maybe the real reason my books don’t sell is because I’m a crappy writer? In that case I have at least lived up to my motto.

Luckily, as frustrating as this has been, my passion for writing has not abated. I have plans to publish many more books. Maybe karma will be in my favor(?).