For the past month or so, I have been working at my local paper as an ad rep. In essence, my job is to sell ad space in the newspaper to local businesses. It’s one of the most challenging jobs I’ve ever done.
On average, I would say more than half of the people I talk to would rather stick white hot needles in their eye. I’m not a pushy person; in fact, most days I question my ability to do this job at all. I’m not shy, but I’m not going to make anyone buy ads from the paper. But to watch how business owners act, you’d think I had devil horns and a pitch fork.
I try not to let it deter me. After all, my goal is to help these businesses be successful, but to do that, I have to get them to part with their money—and no one wants to part with their money unless they know that it’s going to be worth it. They want to know that they are going to get a return on their investment.
I don’t blame the business owners for wanting a return on their investment. That’s the name of the game: spend money to make money. And it’s their money, so they can do with it what they see fit.
When it comes to marketing, I can talk the talk. I’ve been marketing my books for a long time, and I’m always looking for ways to improve. I wouldn’t say I’m an expert in marketing—far from it—and I know there’s always more that I can do. Like the business owners I deal with, I’m pretty shrewd when it comes to spending money. I don’t have a lot of it, so I have to be careful where I invest.
When it comes to marketing, there are so many different options out there—and it’s hard to know which one is going to be successful and which one isn’t. When it comes right down to it, what works at one point in time might not in the future and vice versa, and there’s no way to know—unless you take a chance.
If you read any kind of marketing articles out there (and there are tons), they all have advice on what you should be doing. Write a blog. Get a Twitter account. Have a Facebook page. Get on Instagram. If you’re like me, you’ve done all that (with the exception of Instagram. I have a Pinterest page, but I’m terrible at posting on there).
The nice thing about these sites is that their free. At one time, I think they were novel and really helped businesses and authors get their message into the world. But like everything, they’ve grown—to the point where it’s super easy to get lost in all the other posts and messages that people put on these sites.
And let’s not even get started on Facebook and their analytics. If you have a business or author page, you are aware the FB limits the amount of people who view your posts—and it’s because they want you to pay for people to view them. If you pay, then they expect you to pay all the time, so there’s no way you can win.
Twitter is so busy. I refrained for a long time before posting on Twitter because I was afraid of getting lost. And I’m sure I do, along with thousands of others who are Tweeting. It’s chaos in 140 characters.
Blogging can be just as difficult. Once you write a blog, you have to get people to read it. Which brings you back to the marketing conundrum.
Advertising in print media can be expensive. But at the same time, people expect ads to be in papers.
There’s no magic bullet when it comes to marketing, and each medium has its share of pros and cons. However, if there’s one truth when it comes to advertising it’s this: if we are trying to sell something, we have to advertise.
Social media and print media get your information in front of different audiences. While there may be some overlap of who sees your posts in both places, more often than not you’re targeting different demographics, but how can you tell if you’re actually reaching an audience?
That’s where the marketing game gets tough. You can’t. Unless someone specifically tells you they saw your advertisement, you have no idea if your plan is working. On Facebook and Twitter you have analytics so you can see if people are interacting with your posts, but you have no idea if that interaction turns into sales.
Marketing is an incredibly frustrating pursuit. And marketing is different from branding, and advertising is a tool of marketing. The whole thing gets convoluted and confusing. It’s no wonder most business owners/authors don’t want to mess with marketing.
But we have to. If we want an attempt at being successful, we have to put ourselves out there. And just because there is no clear-cut way for us to know if Twitter or Facebook or blogging or ads in a newspaper are working, we still have to try. In the long run, it’s better than doing nothing.
My new job has forced me to look at my own marketing methods and scrutinize what I’m doing. I think a lot about how I am viewed and treated when I go in to a business to sell ads, and I can’t help but think the consumers out there feel the same way. I imagine they’re thinking, “Oh, great. Here she comes again trying to sell me one of her books.” And then they try to hide or act busy—anything so they don’t have to interact with me.
It’s hard. We want people to know how wonderful our books are and get readers to read them, but consumers, like business owners, don’t want to part with their money unless they know they’re getting something of value in return.
I wish I had an easy answer for a way to fix the problem, but I don’t. It’s like shooting in the dark and hoping to hit something. Every so often, we get lucky. The one thing I can offer is to not give up. Keep trying new things, revisit some old attempts and see if they make an impact now.
Another thing I can tell you is this: make a connection. It’s not always about selling things, it’s about forming relationships. Don’t always talk about your books or whatever it is you’re trying to sell, talk about other things—your passions, things that make you happy or ask your consumers what they’re passionate about and what makes them happy.
The hardest thing I do as a writer is marketing. I’m trying to get better and looking for different ways to get my name out there, but I’ll be honest, it’s exhausting. Still, if I keep at it, I’m sure my efforts will eventually pay off.
Showing posts with label frustrations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label frustrations. Show all posts
My Challenges as an Author
One of the biggest challenges I face as an author is marketing myself.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I love talking about myself and my work. I love talking about things that I’m passionate about, whether that be my family, my dogs, horror and zombies, or writing. The problem comes in when I try to turn those passions into sales.
To be honest, having a book sale isn’t the be all end all. However, sales are a tangible number that shows exactly what kind of impact my PR campaign had. For some people, it’s the only number that actually counts. There are some who believe that you aren’t a real author unless you have a certain amount of sales. And maybe it’s true. Maybe that is the true benchmark of “making it,” but maybe it’s not. Personally, I believe that we have to set our own standards and measure against those. This is something that is taking me a long time to learn.
When I do my presentations, I don’t even take books to sell. That’s not the reason I’m there. I’m there to have fun and talk about topics I enjoy talking about and maybe teach my audience something they didn’t know.
In some cases, I definitely could have made sales. While at MAPACA, there were several attendees at my panel that wanted copies of my books. They asked if I had any extras, and I didn’t. I even told them flat out that wasn’t my goal. I told them that I was there to meet cool people and geek out. One of them responded with, “You’ve done that, and now I’m missing out on a book that I have to have.”
The sentiment was sweet, and I really appreciated it, but it didn’t change the fact that I hadn’t brought any books to sell. Did they get online later and order my books? Maybe. It’s hard to say. I hope so, but without asking directly, there’s no way I can know for sure.
While I’m not necessarily the best at marketing myself, that doesn’t mean I’m not willing to try. In addition to my presentations and workshops, I also do blog tours and look for reviewers. I write guest blog posts and I’ve done radio shows. I’ve set up at holiday craft fairs to sell my paperbacks. I’m always trying to brainstorm ideas of how to get my work into the world.
Sometimes I’m successful, and sometimes I’m not. And the unsuccessful times can be frustrating and disheartening.
I’m not an optimistic person. For those of you who know me personally, you know that I’m pretty cynical and pessimistic. More often than not, I’ll look at the negative side of things just so I’m not disappointed when things don’t work out well. It’s a way for me to protect myself.
When a marketing campaign doesn’t work out the way I wanted it to, I tell myself that it was to be expected. At times, I even ask myself what I did in a past life to have this kind of karma, then I say, “Past life? It was probably this one.” I let the irritation and disappointment settle into a bitter little ball in my chest, and then I attempt to let it go.
I allow myself to recognize that the situation didn’t work out the way I wanted it to and I allow myself to be upset, but then I try not to dwell on it. I try to look for the good things that happen. After all, the bad can’t happen without the good and vice versa. I live and learn and move on to the next endeavor.
I’m still looking for that magic bullet that is going to catapult me into superstardom and make me a famous author. I keep plugging away through the frustrations, disappointments, and small victories because I know that one day, I’ll be able to look back and laugh, saying, “Remember when this marketing campaign failed? Well, look at me now!”
Even if that never happens, that’s okay, because I’m not going to stop trying. Facing challenges only makes me stronger, and the way I’m going, I’m going to be an incredibly strong person. I hope you can say the same.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I love talking about myself and my work. I love talking about things that I’m passionate about, whether that be my family, my dogs, horror and zombies, or writing. The problem comes in when I try to turn those passions into sales.
To be honest, having a book sale isn’t the be all end all. However, sales are a tangible number that shows exactly what kind of impact my PR campaign had. For some people, it’s the only number that actually counts. There are some who believe that you aren’t a real author unless you have a certain amount of sales. And maybe it’s true. Maybe that is the true benchmark of “making it,” but maybe it’s not. Personally, I believe that we have to set our own standards and measure against those. This is something that is taking me a long time to learn.
When I do my presentations, I don’t even take books to sell. That’s not the reason I’m there. I’m there to have fun and talk about topics I enjoy talking about and maybe teach my audience something they didn’t know.
In some cases, I definitely could have made sales. While at MAPACA, there were several attendees at my panel that wanted copies of my books. They asked if I had any extras, and I didn’t. I even told them flat out that wasn’t my goal. I told them that I was there to meet cool people and geek out. One of them responded with, “You’ve done that, and now I’m missing out on a book that I have to have.”
The sentiment was sweet, and I really appreciated it, but it didn’t change the fact that I hadn’t brought any books to sell. Did they get online later and order my books? Maybe. It’s hard to say. I hope so, but without asking directly, there’s no way I can know for sure.
While I’m not necessarily the best at marketing myself, that doesn’t mean I’m not willing to try. In addition to my presentations and workshops, I also do blog tours and look for reviewers. I write guest blog posts and I’ve done radio shows. I’ve set up at holiday craft fairs to sell my paperbacks. I’m always trying to brainstorm ideas of how to get my work into the world.
Sometimes I’m successful, and sometimes I’m not. And the unsuccessful times can be frustrating and disheartening.
I’m not an optimistic person. For those of you who know me personally, you know that I’m pretty cynical and pessimistic. More often than not, I’ll look at the negative side of things just so I’m not disappointed when things don’t work out well. It’s a way for me to protect myself.
When a marketing campaign doesn’t work out the way I wanted it to, I tell myself that it was to be expected. At times, I even ask myself what I did in a past life to have this kind of karma, then I say, “Past life? It was probably this one.” I let the irritation and disappointment settle into a bitter little ball in my chest, and then I attempt to let it go.
I allow myself to recognize that the situation didn’t work out the way I wanted it to and I allow myself to be upset, but then I try not to dwell on it. I try to look for the good things that happen. After all, the bad can’t happen without the good and vice versa. I live and learn and move on to the next endeavor.
I’m still looking for that magic bullet that is going to catapult me into superstardom and make me a famous author. I keep plugging away through the frustrations, disappointments, and small victories because I know that one day, I’ll be able to look back and laugh, saying, “Remember when this marketing campaign failed? Well, look at me now!”
Even if that never happens, that’s okay, because I’m not going to stop trying. Facing challenges only makes me stronger, and the way I’m going, I’m going to be an incredibly strong person. I hope you can say the same.
There’s a Light at the End of the Tunnel
This summer was terrible for my writing confidence. Sales were awful. One month I didn’t sell any books. NONE! How does that even happen? I got to the point where I would hesitate opening me email when I received a sales statement because I was terrified to see how horrible they were.
I received rejection after rejection for the biography I’m working on. It gave me heartburn to think about sending out more queries. It seemed like an exercise in futility.
I struggled getting answers out of people over the summer. I’m not going to go into details, but I was frustrated and irritated because email was the only way I had to communicate with these individuals, and they weren’t responding.
I wondered for the eight hundred billionth time why I was wasting my time writing. It obviously wasn’t getting me anywhere.
But then, there in the distance, was a beacon of hope; moments that reminded me writing and the publishing world wasn’t always so dark.
I read several blogs and posts from other authors that talked about how dismal their sales were this summer also. Some postulated that the reason for the summer slump was because people were outside enjoying the nice weather and spending time with family rather than sitting inside and reading. I know for a fact that was how most of my summer went. I had very little time for relaxing and reading—although I would squeeze it in whenever I got the chance. I’m sure others did the same, and I couldn’t blame them for wanting to enjoy life.
I released the third book in the Road to Salvation series, Good Intentions, in July, and for a few weeks, it had a low ranking on Amazon. It never made it to the best seller list or the top 100, but it had the highest ranking any of my books have ever had, and that made me incredibly happy—especially if you consider no one was buying books over the summer!
My proposals were accepted for THREE different conferences—two this year and one next year. And I have an outstanding one that I’m still awaiting a response for. In the last two years, I’ve only submitted one other proposal, and it was rejected, so to have the next THREE accepted, that was pretty amazing and incredibly exciting.
I scheduled multiple workshops/presentations later this fall around the state of Wyoming. I honestly can’t tell you how magical it is to get an email or a call from a librarian asking me to come visit their libraries. It gives me warm fuzzies just thinking about it!
And it seems like right when I need it the most, an amazingly wonderful reader will post a review about one of my books. And love it or hate it, they still took the time to read it and comment, and that makes me so very happy.
And that leads to the characters in my head trusting me to write their stories. Whenever my confidence takes a hit, I always think that I’ll never have another story idea—ever! The characters will grow silent and believe the other voices in my head—that I’m a hack and should just give up.
But they don’t. They talk over the naysayers and tell me about their adventures, and I’m compelled to write them down. I’m reminded that writing is fun and that no one can tell these stories but me. It makes me feel special.
When it comes to the rejections, sending out queries was an exercise in futility. I didn’t have to send them out; I already have a publisher that’s interested in the book and said they would publish it for me. For some reason, I thought I needed to shop it around. I thought someone else deserved a chance at publishing it. It didn’t work out. Oh, well.
My point is that there are always ups and downs for an author. There will always be doubt. There will always be irritations and frustrations. Hell, that’s life. But I can’t let them get me down. I can’t let those moments control my decisions. Times may get dark, but there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. There’s always those moments that will lift me back up, and those are what I need to hang onto.
Whenever I think about those things, this song from the Rocky Horror Picture Show comes into my mind and reminds me that everything is going to be all right.
I received rejection after rejection for the biography I’m working on. It gave me heartburn to think about sending out more queries. It seemed like an exercise in futility.
I struggled getting answers out of people over the summer. I’m not going to go into details, but I was frustrated and irritated because email was the only way I had to communicate with these individuals, and they weren’t responding.
I wondered for the eight hundred billionth time why I was wasting my time writing. It obviously wasn’t getting me anywhere.
But then, there in the distance, was a beacon of hope; moments that reminded me writing and the publishing world wasn’t always so dark.
I read several blogs and posts from other authors that talked about how dismal their sales were this summer also. Some postulated that the reason for the summer slump was because people were outside enjoying the nice weather and spending time with family rather than sitting inside and reading. I know for a fact that was how most of my summer went. I had very little time for relaxing and reading—although I would squeeze it in whenever I got the chance. I’m sure others did the same, and I couldn’t blame them for wanting to enjoy life.
I released the third book in the Road to Salvation series, Good Intentions, in July, and for a few weeks, it had a low ranking on Amazon. It never made it to the best seller list or the top 100, but it had the highest ranking any of my books have ever had, and that made me incredibly happy—especially if you consider no one was buying books over the summer!
My proposals were accepted for THREE different conferences—two this year and one next year. And I have an outstanding one that I’m still awaiting a response for. In the last two years, I’ve only submitted one other proposal, and it was rejected, so to have the next THREE accepted, that was pretty amazing and incredibly exciting.
I scheduled multiple workshops/presentations later this fall around the state of Wyoming. I honestly can’t tell you how magical it is to get an email or a call from a librarian asking me to come visit their libraries. It gives me warm fuzzies just thinking about it!
And it seems like right when I need it the most, an amazingly wonderful reader will post a review about one of my books. And love it or hate it, they still took the time to read it and comment, and that makes me so very happy.
And that leads to the characters in my head trusting me to write their stories. Whenever my confidence takes a hit, I always think that I’ll never have another story idea—ever! The characters will grow silent and believe the other voices in my head—that I’m a hack and should just give up.
But they don’t. They talk over the naysayers and tell me about their adventures, and I’m compelled to write them down. I’m reminded that writing is fun and that no one can tell these stories but me. It makes me feel special.
When it comes to the rejections, sending out queries was an exercise in futility. I didn’t have to send them out; I already have a publisher that’s interested in the book and said they would publish it for me. For some reason, I thought I needed to shop it around. I thought someone else deserved a chance at publishing it. It didn’t work out. Oh, well.
My point is that there are always ups and downs for an author. There will always be doubt. There will always be irritations and frustrations. Hell, that’s life. But I can’t let them get me down. I can’t let those moments control my decisions. Times may get dark, but there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. There’s always those moments that will lift me back up, and those are what I need to hang onto.
Whenever I think about those things, this song from the Rocky Horror Picture Show comes into my mind and reminds me that everything is going to be all right.
Things Can Get out of Hand Quickly
Recently, I witnessed a meltdown on a social site from several authors who were unhappy with their publisher. It began as one author’s opinion about their experience and quickly devolved into mudslinging, name calling, and other unsavoriness. It made me sad to watch. I stopped following the thread and distanced myself from the mess.
I understood where both sides were coming from, and I felt they were entitled to their own opinions. However, it was not OK for them to attack each other and give baseless arguments—that’s when it became ridiculous. But at the same time, I still knew exactly how these authors felt.
Back in the day, when I first got serious about sending my work to publishers and/or trying to find an agent, I felt like the world owed me. I felt like they should be so lucky to have my amazing work. I would get angry and jealous when I saw other authors being picked over me. After all, their work was crap. They didn’t put in the same time and effort I did. They only got the contract because of who they are, not because they’re good writers.
I threw fits. I threatened to give up writing. That would show the world. They would beg me to write again.
And then I got over myself.
I stopped being angry and jealous of people who had more success than me. It was a waste of time and energy. I had no control over them, I couldn’t change anything. Wouldn’t my time be better spent working on my stuff rather than worrying about what they were doing? Absolutely.
As harsh and depressing as it seems, the world doesn’t care if I succeed or fail. It’s going to continue doing what it does whether I’m writing or not—and so are publishers. I’m not the only author out there. The only person I was hurting with quitting writing was myself. Writing is an impulse for me. It’s like an itch at the back of my brain that won’t go away until I put words to paper. It’s annoying. When I don’t write, it drives me crazy. I couldn’t just stop cold turkey.
So I re-evaluated what I wanted out of my career. I thought about what it meant to be a success and what I had to do to attain my goals. I still have my dreams, but I’m much more realistic about my chances of attaining them. And I’m OK with that. I’m happy with where I am.
The publishing road has not been an easy one. It has been littered with frustration and disappointment. It has made me angry. It has made me want to quit writing—for the millionth time. I’ve dealt with some incredibly irritating people. Publishers have made me want to scream.
Life is never what we expect it to be, but we have to make the best of what we have. I decided a bit ago that I wanted to be happy, and that meant focusing on the positive things that have happened in my life. Writing happens to be one of those things. Whenever I feel down about it or upset or irritated with what’s happening with publishers, I focus on where I am. I remind myself of the progress I’ve made over the years. And I remind myself that there’s plenty of time for things to get even better.
I’m an author. My work has been published and is available to the world. Readers can find me and enjoy my stories. That wouldn’t have happened if I had given up and withheld my work from the world.
I’ve wasted my time pointing fingers and saying, “YOU have to do this for me! YOU are the reason I’m failing!” All that did was make me even more angry and frustrated. I really, truly understand what these authors are feeling. And I sympathize with them. But in the end, blaming others for their lack of success will get them nowhere. I’ve experienced that firsthand.
I understood where both sides were coming from, and I felt they were entitled to their own opinions. However, it was not OK for them to attack each other and give baseless arguments—that’s when it became ridiculous. But at the same time, I still knew exactly how these authors felt.
Back in the day, when I first got serious about sending my work to publishers and/or trying to find an agent, I felt like the world owed me. I felt like they should be so lucky to have my amazing work. I would get angry and jealous when I saw other authors being picked over me. After all, their work was crap. They didn’t put in the same time and effort I did. They only got the contract because of who they are, not because they’re good writers.
I threw fits. I threatened to give up writing. That would show the world. They would beg me to write again.
And then I got over myself.
I stopped being angry and jealous of people who had more success than me. It was a waste of time and energy. I had no control over them, I couldn’t change anything. Wouldn’t my time be better spent working on my stuff rather than worrying about what they were doing? Absolutely.
As harsh and depressing as it seems, the world doesn’t care if I succeed or fail. It’s going to continue doing what it does whether I’m writing or not—and so are publishers. I’m not the only author out there. The only person I was hurting with quitting writing was myself. Writing is an impulse for me. It’s like an itch at the back of my brain that won’t go away until I put words to paper. It’s annoying. When I don’t write, it drives me crazy. I couldn’t just stop cold turkey.
So I re-evaluated what I wanted out of my career. I thought about what it meant to be a success and what I had to do to attain my goals. I still have my dreams, but I’m much more realistic about my chances of attaining them. And I’m OK with that. I’m happy with where I am.
The publishing road has not been an easy one. It has been littered with frustration and disappointment. It has made me angry. It has made me want to quit writing—for the millionth time. I’ve dealt with some incredibly irritating people. Publishers have made me want to scream.
Life is never what we expect it to be, but we have to make the best of what we have. I decided a bit ago that I wanted to be happy, and that meant focusing on the positive things that have happened in my life. Writing happens to be one of those things. Whenever I feel down about it or upset or irritated with what’s happening with publishers, I focus on where I am. I remind myself of the progress I’ve made over the years. And I remind myself that there’s plenty of time for things to get even better.
I’m an author. My work has been published and is available to the world. Readers can find me and enjoy my stories. That wouldn’t have happened if I had given up and withheld my work from the world.
I’ve wasted my time pointing fingers and saying, “YOU have to do this for me! YOU are the reason I’m failing!” All that did was make me even more angry and frustrated. I really, truly understand what these authors are feeling. And I sympathize with them. But in the end, blaming others for their lack of success will get them nowhere. I’ve experienced that firsthand.
The only person that can hold me back is me. Sure, it’s more convenient and easy to blame other people, but it doesn’t change anything. If I want to be successful, I have to go out and get it. I’m the one who decides where my career goes. I’m stubborn and motivated, so I’m willing to do what it takes to be as successful as I can be.
A Week of Frustrations
I apologize for not posting yesterday. I had some things to get done in the house, and I needed to get my head back on straight. Last week was an incredibly frustrating week, and it was all stupid sh*t too. Things like having to go to the paint store four times before they got the color to match or waiting in line in a drive thru for 10 minutes and still not having my order taken or trying to figure out the intentions of an agent when I only use my mind reading powers for evil.
I realize how silly all of these things are and that getting upset over them wasn't going to change anything. I mean, eventually we got the paint to match, and I'm the only one who suffered at the drive thru because I didn't get any ice cream. With the agent, well, that will turn out how it's going to turn out. But I'm still human, so I'm allowed to have emotions, and those emotions aren't always pretty.
BUT since I can't change any of these things now, all I can do is move on and make this next week better than the last. Things WILL be better. I hope the rest of you have an awesome week too!
I realize how silly all of these things are and that getting upset over them wasn't going to change anything. I mean, eventually we got the paint to match, and I'm the only one who suffered at the drive thru because I didn't get any ice cream. With the agent, well, that will turn out how it's going to turn out. But I'm still human, so I'm allowed to have emotions, and those emotions aren't always pretty.
BUT since I can't change any of these things now, all I can do is move on and make this next week better than the last. Things WILL be better. I hope the rest of you have an awesome week too!
A Legitimate Author?
This week has had its fill of frustration. I always try to focus on the positive and look on the bright side, but as a human, I sometimes fail. Plus, I used to be a really grumpy and angry person, so it doesn’t take much for me to revert to my natural state.
It started on Sunday when I received a rejection. It was a very lovely and thoughtful rejection, but it was still a rejection. I allowed myself a moment of anger and frustration (and by moment I mean at least a day). Now, don’t get me wrong, the critique the agent gave me was invaluable and her heart was in the right place. What frustrated me was the process.
It started on Sunday when I received a rejection. It was a very lovely and thoughtful rejection, but it was still a rejection. I allowed myself a moment of anger and frustration (and by moment I mean at least a day). Now, don’t get me wrong, the critique the agent gave me was invaluable and her heart was in the right place. What frustrated me was the process.
Some days, it feels like querying agents is some kind of masochistic act. I know that the vast majority (if not all) are going to come back as a NO. If I get a response at all. So why do I put myself through the process? Why do I bother? I already have a publisher interested in the book, so why am I dragging out that process?
I voiced these issues to an author friend of mine, who knows all too well about the trials, tribulations, frustrations, and anger that come with finding an agent. (She actually has one, but she had to go through the same heartache at one point.) I asked her why I was wasting my time. And her response was so that I could be legitimate.
Part of me knows that she’s right. An agent would make me feel like a “real” writer and that I finally made it in the publishing world. It’s what I’ve strived for with every book I’ve ever written and am still trying to attain. But as the week went on and the frustrations (not related to writing) mounted and piled up, I came back to her statement.
What does it really mean to be a legitimate author? It would be so easy if having an agent meant that, but how do you go about getting one? I’ve read the articles and advice and sent out my queries and done resubmissions and I still don’t have an agent.
I know writers who have had agents, but then the agent downsized because they were too busy and dropped the writer. I’ve known writers with agents that couldn’t sell manuscripts to publishers so the author decided to self-publish—and has been completely happy with the decision. So I asked again: does having an agent make me legitimate?
I’m still not sure I have an answer to that question. And I’ll admit, if an agent emailed tomorrow and said they wanted me as a client, I would jump all over that opportunity like zombies on a human. There’s nothing wrong with having dreams and going after them. But, at some point, I feel like I need to re-evaluate those dreams and figure out if they are truly attainable. After all, I have some wonderful publishers who are willing to take my work because of my name alone. Technically, I’ve achieved my dream of becoming a published author.
In the end, I took the agent’s rejection for what it was. I appreciated her insight and criticism, and I moved on. It’s not the end of the world. It’s not even the end of my writing career. I have to write what I want to write, and someone, somewhere will enjoy it. That made me smile. Literally, a grin broke out on my face when that realization hit me.
All I can be is who I am. And that means there will be ups and downs and bumps along the way. But the best part of that journey is that I’m doing what really makes me happy. I’m writing. If there’s something in that process that takes the fun out of writing, I need to stop that, not writing.
I voiced these issues to an author friend of mine, who knows all too well about the trials, tribulations, frustrations, and anger that come with finding an agent. (She actually has one, but she had to go through the same heartache at one point.) I asked her why I was wasting my time. And her response was so that I could be legitimate.
Part of me knows that she’s right. An agent would make me feel like a “real” writer and that I finally made it in the publishing world. It’s what I’ve strived for with every book I’ve ever written and am still trying to attain. But as the week went on and the frustrations (not related to writing) mounted and piled up, I came back to her statement.
What does it really mean to be a legitimate author? It would be so easy if having an agent meant that, but how do you go about getting one? I’ve read the articles and advice and sent out my queries and done resubmissions and I still don’t have an agent.
I know writers who have had agents, but then the agent downsized because they were too busy and dropped the writer. I’ve known writers with agents that couldn’t sell manuscripts to publishers so the author decided to self-publish—and has been completely happy with the decision. So I asked again: does having an agent make me legitimate?
I’m still not sure I have an answer to that question. And I’ll admit, if an agent emailed tomorrow and said they wanted me as a client, I would jump all over that opportunity like zombies on a human. There’s nothing wrong with having dreams and going after them. But, at some point, I feel like I need to re-evaluate those dreams and figure out if they are truly attainable. After all, I have some wonderful publishers who are willing to take my work because of my name alone. Technically, I’ve achieved my dream of becoming a published author.
In the end, I took the agent’s rejection for what it was. I appreciated her insight and criticism, and I moved on. It’s not the end of the world. It’s not even the end of my writing career. I have to write what I want to write, and someone, somewhere will enjoy it. That made me smile. Literally, a grin broke out on my face when that realization hit me.
All I can be is who I am. And that means there will be ups and downs and bumps along the way. But the best part of that journey is that I’m doing what really makes me happy. I’m writing. If there’s something in that process that takes the fun out of writing, I need to stop that, not writing.
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