Cintia asked Claire LaZebnik:

I'm an aspiring writer, but I'm dealing with two things: I get discouraged every single day because 96% of manuscripts are rejected, and I haven't had an idea for years, literally. There's too many people wanting to be writers, and knowing there's so much competition just kills me a little every day. When I get motivated, immediatly something appears about the industry that kills it. Any tips on how to deal with this?

Claire LaZebnik I know this sounds corny, but the answer sort of has to come from inside you: think about why you want to be a writer. Do you love the act of writing? Then write every day and lose yourself in the act of writing without worrying about the future of what you write--when you have something you like, you can send it out and hope for the best. Do you want to be famous? That's definitely a longshot for any writer (I've been doing this for almost two decades and I'm still not famous.) It's going to be tough to stay motivated if that's your goal. But I'm guessing it's more that you love to read and to write so just do what you love to do and don't worry about whether or not it will sell. Just enjoy being creative. And don't read anything about the industry or about how many books are out there--it'll just make you crazy. This is about you and only you and being creative. Good luck!

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