What have you learned...

Maze Runner said:

Because the stuff I've written just for fun hasn't got me anywhere. And I suspect that even the one I hold out as my personal best has fallen short because it just wasn't good enough. The only other possible reason I can think of is the subject matter. You ready? A historical boxing novel, hahaha, did your eyes glaze over?

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I think the age of publishing we live in is another factor. Publishers are more and more risk averse. Even in my genre, the "billion-dollar romance industry," publishers are pulling back hard. "Readers don't want..." is a constant refrain, and when you put all the "do not wants" on a list, it comes up to pretty much "every subgenre there is." Which obviously isn't true, but it's enough of an excuse on a case-by-case basis when the industry is in flux.

I've learned my writing is good enough to make it past a gatekeeping level, but that my psychological profile might not be good enough for more than that. More and more I think this industry is for the IDGAF people, and my problem is IG2manyFs to stay laser focused.

I don't see that . . . maybe because I'm not down in the trenches. Seems to me, though, writers almost have to GAF; maybe it's even a prerequisite.

So, here's a pressie: "what makes?" by Bukowski.

Siri Kirpal said:

I'll hazard the guess that the guy wasn't known enough to get a publisher interested.

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I thought that the manuscript was what really mattered, not how well-known a person was.

caw

I've learned that there is so much I don't know. And that I have a lot to learn.

What have I learned?

1. "Plant butt in chair and write" is the only writing advice that matters.
2. Ignore writing advice.

blacbird said:

I thought that the manuscript was what really mattered, not how well-known a person was.

caw

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Sat Nam! (Literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

Not if it's a biography or a roman a clef. Which it was in this case.

Blessings,

Siri Kirpal

blacbird said:

I thought that the manuscript was what really mattered, not how well-known a person was.

caw

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Not sure if serious. Fifteen years ago publishers were saying to me they loved my work...if only I was already famous...

What have I learned?

Do not write to become rich and famous...that way madness lies.

I decided to get serious about writing back in 1992 and if I could have looked forward to 2018 back then...I'd be disappointed. I considered myself very different to the standard author (and I still do) and assumed that major success was just around the corner. That's not how it turned out. I did eventually get an offer from a small house but it was 2010 before I was published and even that wouldn't have happened without extreme tenacity and resilience. Being a writer means spending a lot of your life tapping away in solitude and that's a huge commitment. Many times I wanted to give it away but I just couldn't...the urge to create kept nagging at me until I got there.

And where am I? Four books published - two of which made it into the airport bookstores in Australia, and one optioned by a major UK film studio. I've not made very much money from it (nowhere near enough to give up work and be a full time writer), but I still get emails and facebook messages from strangers about my work and I never get sick of them.

In 1992, this would have seemed like dismal failure and not worth the effort, but in 2018 I'm very comfortable with myself as a writer and happy to have touched so many lives.

I've learned that there is always room for improvement in EVERY area.

The adage, I think it was by Hemingway, about writers that "...we are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master," rings true to me.

I've learned that I hate money.

If I loved money, I'd write what people are buying. Instead, I write what makes me happy which doesn't make money.

Who needs a car, anyway.

I'm better at nonfiction than fiction.

I have an excellent sense of humor and timing.

I can carve a dang tootin 550-word article out of a 2k piece.

When people knock the wind out of my sails I grab a pump and balloon them sails back up, ya'll.

I learned that writing takes A LOT of patience. A while back I used to churn out books like it was nothing because I just loved the art of writing, but when I actually wrote with even the slimmest hope of getting noticed professionally, it kind of sucked the fun out of it. There were standards you had to reach, a level of quality your writing suddenly has to reach to even be considered halfway decent, you have to keep chipping away at your story while not even knowing if it'll turn out the way you want it to. It's a LOT of hard work that requires A LOT of patience, but for whatever reason, I've learned to enjoy the editing process over the years and don't think I'll ever truly stop. To me, that requires an almost inhuman amount of patience.

I've learned that since I only live once, it's okay to write now the things I wanted to write before, but didn't for various reasons.

I've learned how to be okay with who I am and what I can do, and to be okay with being ordinary. My early writing dreams were all about being a best seller, a visionary, etc. Now that I've had half a dozen short stories published in nonpaying or token paying mags, a decent novel that didn't sell well, and about four more completed but unpublished novels under my belt, I know what I can do and what I can expect from my writing career. Being one among many who write what I do in the way I do it has its comfort. This translates into my work life, my home life, etc. Of course I'd still love to have the Big Story published to wide fanfare, but it's okay if that doesn't happen.

I've learned that writing success comes from within-- or at least it does for me. When I have done my best, I can be satisfied.

One thing, I have learned to do in my writing, is to have a Different Color writing pad for each novel I do. That way there is no confusion what book a set of pages comes from. I also have file folders for each book, and when I get a scene or dialogue in my head, I just write it out and slip it into the appropriate folder.
Another thing I do, is when sharing my work in my writing groups, I always make the first page a different color, usually a pastel color works best, as opposed to neon cover sheets.
Happy writing!

How determined I am. Over the past few years, I've faced unexpected deaths, illness, my own illness, and I managed to keep my goal in sight and not give up on writing. Have I stalled? Yeah, there were moments when I couldn't write during this time, but I kept my fingers in the writing world by coaching new writers. Now my own book is scheduled for publication next week.

What have i learned about my own writing? There is always room for improvement, so I am always working on my craft.

The last few years have been a journey of self discovery for me. That is not primarily due to my writing, but it sure as heck impacts not only my writing but all parts of my life.

All through my twenties, I sort of gave up my own identity. I moved across the country to be with my then girlfriend whom I adored and very nearly worshiped. As she struggled through mental illness, my focus was on accommodating her and creating a world for her that was as free of stress and triggers as I could make it. Clearly, at least in hindsight, that wasn't healthy for either of us.

As I moved into my thirties, we married and started a family. I added Dad to my list of identities, but I was still totally lost on who I was as a person. It is only in the last three years that I have made an effort to discover the core of myself, bringing to light some of my own painful mental health issues along the way. The difference is now, my wife and I are supportive of each other in our personal journeys, allowing each other to deal with the difficulties with a partner instead of a chaperone.

All of this has meant that my writing was placed on the back burner for a while. I am hopeful that now I can come back to it in a healthier, or at least more grounded state of mind.

PS in case it wasn't clear, I still love and adore her. We just don't rely on codependency to hide each other from the hard parts of life anymore.

I'm almost embarrassed to admit this, because I'm not normally so dense (HA!), and I'm sure it's lesson one in every creative writing course ever taught (which I've never experienced), but I'll share my personal epiphany anyway. There may be other obtuse creatures out there who can benefit from it.


One of the first things I heard when I began writing was "to be a better writer one must READ". It made perfect sense on a broad level, but, other than the remote possibility of achieving greatness through osmosis, I didn't understand what possible "practical" applications could be gained. All I felt I learned through reading was that some books I loved and some I couldn't get past the first chapter (I'm still unclear as to why that is specifically).


Then suddenly, some long dead synapse sparked in my brain and it all became clear. It felt like God throwing up his hands in frustration and calling me a moron before explaining it all in words a toddler would understand.


In my current WIP, several murders must occur. The first had been covered almost immediately, but round about the sixth chapter (10k words give or take) the second was nowhere in sight, and I started feeling antsy—as though I'd missed an opportunity...was just blathering on about meaningless shit when I should be getting to the POINT...was more than likely just a try-hard impostor who had no business even ATTEMPTING to write a novel.


And I pouted and whined "X had the exact same thing in her novel, and SHE got to the point—"


I grabbed up my Kindle and began reading. First murder at 8%... second at 25%... ooh, there's a first kiss 35% in... third murder at 40%... getting steamy at 46%... Well, you see where I'm going here. I was READING and learning about structure. And I suddenly realized it would work for everything else as well. Character development and world building, exposition vs. dialogue, description, backstory and foreshadowing... It's all there, and it's all quantifiable.


Granted, this was all in hindsight (you don't know what you'll need until you need it), and it takes the artistry out of a well-written story, but, OMG it saved my writer's backside!! I feel now as though I can actually DO this thing with confidence!


So, umm, yeah. TL/DR: You gotta READ to be a better writer!

Oh, well done, you! It's true, tho', that the more you read, the more you absorb.

And good on ya for noting the "%" feature on Kindle; it really does help for learning structure.

Ari Meermans said:

Oh, well done, you! It's true, tho', that the more you read, the more you absorb.

And good on ya for noting the "%" feature on Kindle; it really does help for learning structure.

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It's also made me rethink my whole modus operandi.

Up to this point I've been a pantser, which has resulted in 3 stalled then trunked novels. But now I realize if I have even the vaguest notion of what needs to happen, and WHEN it needs to happen, I can much more easily fill the gaps in between. (Yes, Captain Obvious, I hear and understand now.) And even though what I said above is just making use of a few random numbers, it's actually the barest bones of an outline...

Though I'll never be one who fills notebooks full of character sketches, plot points, etc., before I sit down to write, from now on, I'll consider myself a "plan-ster".

What haz I learned?

That what I'm comfortable writing/think I'm good at/comes easy to me and what I want to be writing are not the same thing. But that's good, the discomfort forces me to be ambitious and keep trying to get better.

Kjbartolotta said:

What haz I learned?

That what I'm comfortable writing/think I'm good at/comes easy to me and what I want to be writing are not the same thing. But that's good, the discomfort forces me to be ambitious and keep trying to get better.

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Ha, twinsies! What I WANT to write are lyrical, literary epics, and what comes out are the makings of tongue-in-cheek, snarky penny-dreadfuls!

I'll never be anything but a pantser, but I have learned that the story I consciously think I'm writing isn't necessarily the one I am writing. Case in point: my last Sisyphus story, while intended to be horror, wasn't initially intended to be a vampire story, but vampiric elements crept in. Never fully defined, but still there.

paddismac said:

Ha, twinsies! What I WANT to write are lyrical, literary epics, and what comes out are the makings of tongue-in-cheek, snarky penny-dreadfuls!

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Yep, same here. I want to be writing lyrical, literary stories, but I'm not quite sure what they end up being. hah!

Ari Meermans said:

Yep, same here. I want to be writing lyrical, literary stories, but I'm not quite sure what they end up being. hah!

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Hopefully there's room for all of us! (at the top??)