The Paris Review and The Standard hotel are offering one soon-to-be-novelist the writing opportunity of a lifetime: “The idea is this: in January, a writer with a book under contract will get a room at the Standard, East Village, in downtown Manhattan, for three weeks’ uninterrupted work.” The application consists of a sample and a letter from your editor for a chance to stay at this new boutique hotel for three weeks.
In honor of the late Tom Clancy, click here for words of inspiration for individuals from every industry.
Just like many of you, I am constantly working on book projects…novels, nonfiction, and marketing of the books that have already been published. While I usually manage my days so that I am able to address every portion of these different aspects at some point throughout each week, I took a break from the blog to finish the first draft of my novel-in-progress.
This represented a new path for me. It’s a YA novel, whereas before I’ve written only for adults. It is also the first in a series while all my other works are stand-alone projects. Finally, it is a historic novel compared to all my other projects which have been contemporary.
It was a wild ride! The first draft poured out in less than four months. There is a lot of revision ahead (because, as I’ve always said, writing is rewriting) but it was worth taking the time off from the blog to move ahead on this.
I continued with the other necessary components of life: operating Writer’s Resource, the publishing consulting business this blog mines information from; helping individual clients move forward with their own projects; and marketing the existing books. When you are pressed for time and something has to give, know that it doesn’t have to be a permanent shutdown. Not only will you gain the confidence of having completed a project, you’ll likely find that you return to the task with a renewed sense of vigor…as I have with this blog!
As the owner of a small business, I read a number of magazines targeting people like me. One is Entrepreneur. Recently they had an article about what entrepreneurs need to succeed, and I found nearly every point appropriate for the successful author.
–You like feeling like a kid. This might be my favorite one. Authors have to have a sense of curiosity about their worlds…the ones they live in and the ones they create. Immersing yourself in that world can be enough to spark the joy of youth.
–You are overwhelmingly optimistic. Well, I don’t have to mention rejections, low advances, rejections, rude agents, rejections and poor reviews (did I mention rejections?) for you to understand this one.
–You’re probably a gear head. These days, with publishing’s foundation shifting so completely to new technologies, writers need to keep informed of the latest advances in technology. From creation to publication, knowing what’s available can ease your path.
One of the most important traits of a successful author is confidence.
Of course you must have confidence in the quality of your work. There are so many opportunities to receive rejections that authors have to know beyond any doubt that their work is worthy of being published.
The value of your work might come from the message it offers, how it tackles some social issue, or simply from the fact that it is a heart-stopping, fast-paced read.
Know the value of your work and allow that to inform your confidence. Be rock steady with this. No matter whether you work with a traditional publisher, print your own books, or strike a hybrid balance, you’ll need confidence to build your career over the long haul.
Chapter breaks are an important moment in a novel. They provide the reader with more time to breath before plunging ahead into the next chapter. They serve much the same function as scene breaks but do so in a bigger way.
And so there’s always the question, How long should a chapter be? The answer can depend on the kind of book you’re writing. Generally, however, 8 to 10 pages is about the norm.
Some authors will go shorter…much shorter, using as few as 4 pages per chapter. There should be a reason to go this short, though. The pacing should be lightning fast, the plot straightforward, and possibly even multiple shifts in POV characters. Otherwise you risk shaking readers too far out of the fictional world with too many pauses.
I’ve long told my clients that passion is one of the key components to becoming a successful writer. You can’t win this game if you stop writing. Rejections, slow sales, trouble finding the time to write, and the rest of the problems must be countered by your passion.
]Here’s a great quote from Bob Mayer that says the same thing:
One lesson I learned is for every 50 things you try, only one will happen. But you have to try the 50.
Here’s a link to a great roundup of inspiration and tips from bestselling authors like Anne Rice and David Morrell. There is also wisdom from agents and acquisitions editors.
My favorite: “Write the book that only you can write.”
I once met a man who told me that five books he’d written had hit the bestseller list…but that no one knew his name because he’d ghostwritten all five. He seemed very bitter about the lack of recognition. I wanted to tell him he was in the wrong business. If he couldn’t let go of his books at the end of the project, he needed to stop ghostwriting!
He seemed to have forgotten one of the key differences between a ghost and an author: Ghosts write the work then disappear. Authors build the platform for the book’s sales and market the work.
I have had clients ask if I will go on tour with them after ghostwriting their books. I tell them they’re the experts; readers want to see them, not me. And with the new focus on branding for all authors, really a ghost can’t help with the marketing aspects. The author is the brand, not the ghost. No matter how high on the charts the book climbs.
Michael Krüger, publisher at Carl Hanser Verlag in Munich, recently bemoaned the number of bad books out there. He explained that they are present in such numbers because they sell…and he can’t figure out why.
Let’s put aside judging whole categories as bad and focus on the real issues.
First, it’s about story. The MFA programs have been hammered because they churn out writers who focus on the florid beauty of their words at the expense of their characters. Thus no story. Without story, a book is just a jumble of words.
Second, it’s about story. Readers are willing to buy even poorly written books because the story tells them something they can’t find elsewhere. Look at 50 Shades…panned everywhere for awful prose yet sold oodles of copies because the storyline contained something women wanted to read about.
Third, it’s about storytelling. Bad books might be poorly written or have worn-out plotlines yet they clip along at a fast pace (nearly always, anyway). So storytelling, getting to the heart of the matter through action and forward movement, is present in a way that might not be as obvious in a pretty MFA grad’s work.
What’s YOUR story?
Titles are important. Any author can agree to that. But are subtitles as important, less so, or possibly more important?
One consideration is how subtitles impact algorithms that help readers find a book. Subtitles that seem unwieldy because they are so long can actually boost sales on websites.
A second consideration has been around for a while: a descriptive subtitle tells readers exactly what they’ll get from the book.
Finally, a subtitle can indicate the author’s voice (funny, academic, etc.) or tone (the emotional quality of the work). That can be attractive to readers and thus generate sales.
Subtitles are clearly not more important than titles…but they are equally important.
Here are quotes from famous authors on writing.
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When self-published author Ezekel Alan was asked to name the single best thing he’d ever done to help him achieve success, he said, “I wrote the novel the way I wanted.”
While you’re in the creative mode, don’t allow the judge (the logical side) to interfere. The judge will be worried about things like market trends, publisher picks and what agents are taking on right now. Those things can short-circuit the creative flow. Just be with the work until the draft is finished.
Then, once you’ve made the work the best it can be, you can think about those other issues. Logical considerations are important, of course, but write what you want. Adapt your pitch to present the work in the best possible way after it has been written.
Poets & Writers published a cool guide to literary and writing sites in different cities here. But the list is far from inclusive. If you know some great sites in your area, why not pitch them a round-up from your hometown?
Writer's Resource/Sunspot Lit 