Nerine Dorman
Hello Everyone-
For the very first time I am hosting a guest blogger at my site, and it seems fitting that it should be my wonderful, insightful, witty, and long-suffering editor (and amazing writer in her own right) --Nerine Dorman.
Without further ado:
Writers, visionaries and reaching for dreams
This writing thing. It all has to start somewhere. It helps to have a love for shaping words, which I've had since I can remember. I always have my nose in a book, in fact I used to get into trouble all the time for reading during class. My teachers were constantly confiscating books from me when they caught me reading while they were trying to teach a lesson.
Problem was, the lessons were boring and I tended to get good grades without much effort, so it never occurred to me to apply myself during class. Granted, this became more difficult in high school with subjects like physics, maths and chemistry, but I still had my music, which I loved and was good at. Somehow I scraped through, narrowly missing having to study electrical engineering (my mother's idea for my career path, not mine).
The problem was, you see, no one believed that I could get my writing published. I was, after all, writing either SF, horror or fantasy. I was reading authors like Neil Gaiman, Poppy Z Brite and Storm Constantine. I wanted to write those kinds of stories, not some high-browed literature exploring the meaning of life. I love vampires, for goodness sake.
I toed the line for a while. Even had a boyfriend tell me my writing is "too sentimental, romantic" and, for a good couple of years I believed everyone else. But at the age of 26 something happened. I think some call it the "quarter life crisis". I'd had vague notions I'd be famous for something by that time. Instead, I was living the average Joe middle-class suburban nightmare of a job in marketing communications, a two-bedroom cottage with a picket fence in a gated neighbourhood and a husband. Luckily no kids. I still thank my lucky stars I haven't had kids. I don't want them. I have my writing. I have my music.
At age 26 I started writing again: magazine articles, short stories... I made a complete career change getting a job as a sub-editor at a newspaper publisher (that graphic design diploma turned out being good for something). Most importantly, I was writing. I think I completed my debut novel, Khepera Rising, in 2007. I sold it late 2008. I haven't looked back since. Between then and now I've written many more novels, and have even dipped my toes in writing erotic romance (with the pen name Therése von Willegen), and now have five sales under my belt.
Yes, I got my start with epublishing through the small presses, but it's a good, solid base, and I've had a literary agent tell me it's always good for authors to have their feet planted in both traditional and electronic publishing. Whether an author decides to self-publish, run with a small press or wait until a big break with the larger publishers, each method has its pros and cons. It's important, as an author, to understand these, and to constantly look for ways in which she can improve her craft.
I don't just write novels, however. I've taken what is, essentially, a very limited position as a commercial features (read:advertorial) sub-editor and turned it into a dream job. I work on a travel supplement for a weekly paper, and occasionally get sent to write stories in foreign destinations. It's not easy. I have to wade through a lot of grunt-work and often work overtime, but rewards include having visited exotic destinations such as Mauritius or Zambia, or writing book reviews and lifestyle-orientated pieces, guest columns and interviews. This is stuff I do over and above my day-job, and I don't get paid to go the extra mile. I do this because I enjoy it. I don't have a degree in journalism. I've learnt from my peers, have taken constructive criticism, and have pulled myself up by my bootstraps. If you love something so much, you won't let anything stand in the way of achieving your dreams.
It's all about seeing an opportunity and, although it's not what you think you want, it can teach you many skills and help you build a network that will later start paying dividends.
My advice to authors who have day-jobs. Keep your day-job but find ways in which you can expand your enjoyment thereof by writing. So, you're a plumber? How about starting a plumbing blog or offer to write a weekly advice column for a newspaper? I know it sounds crazy but when you start creating a presence, and you spread out using all your skills, doors start opening. People talk. You get noticed.
Never lose sight of what it is that you want to do. Set yourself realistic goals. They may be as simple as writing 500 new words a day, or querying enough literary agents to say that you tried. What it boils down to is that most people don't achieve their dreams because they don't try. Don't let people tell you you're being crazy, or that something isn't possible. With enough elbow grease and dedication, you can do anything. Just remember that it won't happen overnight and you have to take many small steps before you've reached that milestone.
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Nerine Dorman is published through Lyrical Press and Siren. Although she works as a sub-editor by day, she spends her spare time as a content editor for Lyrical, and always welcomes queries from authors with complete manuscripts.
Query her at nerine@lyricalpress.com
Twitter: @nerinedorman
