I just mentioned this in an e-mail to my critique partner, and it struck me that maybe I should bring it here for some thoughts/opinions/commiseration.
Lately I've been feeling rather acutely aware of the fact that no matter how much time and effort I put into writing a novel, there's no guarantee it will ever pay off. I know the key to success is never giving up, and I won't, but as a just-starting-out writer with high hopes for securing an agent and getting book deals with good publishers, it's exhausting to realize that a large portion of the work you do isn't actually/necessarily getting you where you want to go. Not even because you aren't good enough but for any number of reasons related to marketability and timing and whatnot.
I never gave a passing thought to marketability until recently. I just wrote whatever I felt passionate about. But in the last year and a half I've gotten serious about finishing my projects with the intention of submitting/querying them, and with that seriousness has come a kind of paranoia. I'm always wondering if I'm wasting my time on things that aren't marketable enough, or unique and different enough, or conversely, things that are too unique and different to be widely appealing. I feel like I'm freezing up a bit, like I'm afraid to commit to any given idea because it might not be worth the work I'd have to put in.
Don't get me wrong, I love to write. It's a joy in and of itself. But I've been dreaming of being a novelist since I was ten years old, and all I'm getting is crickets in my querying inbox. I know the answer is to just keep keeping on, but I'm curious to know whether others have felt this deep-seated uncertainty, and what can be done to combat it.
Thanks for reading, and any wisdom.
Lately I've been feeling rather acutely aware of the fact that no matter how much time and effort I put into writing a novel, there's no guarantee it will ever pay off. I know the key to success is never giving up, and I won't, but as a just-starting-out writer with high hopes for securing an agent and getting book deals with good publishers, it's exhausting to realize that a large portion of the work you do isn't actually/necessarily getting you where you want to go. Not even because you aren't good enough but for any number of reasons related to marketability and timing and whatnot.
I never gave a passing thought to marketability until recently. I just wrote whatever I felt passionate about. But in the last year and a half I've gotten serious about finishing my projects with the intention of submitting/querying them, and with that seriousness has come a kind of paranoia. I'm always wondering if I'm wasting my time on things that aren't marketable enough, or unique and different enough, or conversely, things that are too unique and different to be widely appealing. I feel like I'm freezing up a bit, like I'm afraid to commit to any given idea because it might not be worth the work I'd have to put in.
Don't get me wrong, I love to write. It's a joy in and of itself. But I've been dreaming of being a novelist since I was ten years old, and all I'm getting is crickets in my querying inbox. I know the answer is to just keep keeping on, but I'm curious to know whether others have felt this deep-seated uncertainty, and what can be done to combat it.
Thanks for reading, and any wisdom.