Yesterday, I was going to write a post about how pathetic this past week was: I only wrote about 1.5k per day (while unemployed), and spent most of my time on the internet reading blogs.
However, after reading some more of Dean Wesley Smith’s blog series, Kililng the Sacred Cows of Publishing, I have to admit that this week wasn’t a total loss. Because of what I’ve read this week, I’m starting to have a major paradigm shift about the publishing world, and that likely will have a huge impact on my writing career, hopefully for the better.
If I can sum up how my views have changed into one statement, it would be this: that in order to succeed in this business and avoid the common pitfalls, I need to learn how the entire publishing system works as a whole, so that I can game it to my advantage. A lot of the hard and fast “rules” of the industry are actually myths that make for bad business, for writers as well as editors and agents. But when you look at the system from a rational choice perspective, the flaws become obvious.
Take, for example, the “rule” that editors only accept unagented submissions. What does that do for the industry? It turns agents into the first tier of gatekeepers that new writers need to get past. But agents don’t pay writers; they get a 15% commission off of the books they manage to sell (which, according to DWS, is excessive, but that’s another topic). And they don’t get paid at all for reading slush.
So agents are spending more of their time doing things that pay less money, pressuring them to take less risks and work only with what they “know” will sell. This leads them to ignore the fresh, unconventional voices that turn the tropes on their heads and have the power to take the market by storm.
Furthermore, because of their newly christened gatekeeper status, they make their writers rewrite their manuscripts until they read just like clones of Harry Potter or The Davinci Code. And when the agents’ three or four closest buddies turn the book down, they come back to the writer and tell them to write something else.
It’s an extreme view, for sure, but it has a few good points. The incentives are all in the wrong places, with too many opportunities for the gems to fall between the cracks. And while the response from everyone in publishing is to cling to the myth and scream “the system works!” I have to wonder, does it really?
This comment from one of the threads struck me with particular force:
“The biggest mistake you can make is giving complete power over to someone who will never care as much as you do.”
Youch. And yet, it makes so much sense. How many writers’ careers have been ruined by doing just that? Ceding too much power to people who simply don’t care as much as they do, all in the name of some “rule” of publishing?
Of course, that’s not to say that the publishing industry is full of cheats and sleazebags. I’ve spent some time with professionals at World Fantasy and other conventions, and I’ve been very impressed with all of them. It’s just to say that writing is a business, and that writers need to approach their careers in the same way as anyone who’s self-employed. Certainly it’s important to work with other professionals, but that doesn’t mean handing over the fate of your business to them.
So anyways, what with all the business research I’ve been doing, I suppose the last week isn’t a total loss. However, I definitely feel a need to get back into writing. My deadline for WAFH is in two weeks, and the next 40k are going to require the biggest changes. So here’s my plan for the next two weeks:
- Get up at 7 am every day.
- Write at least 2.5k words per day (500 during LTUE).
- Fill out at least 5 job applications per day.
- Take a week-long Halo fast.
Probably the single biggest thing killing my creativity right now is the angst that comes from money woes. I redid my budget yesterday and realized I can get by this month without dipping too deeply into reserves, but still, that’s no substitute for a reliable source of income. Trouble is, it’s hard to find motivation to apply for jobs when most employers don’t even respond to your application, but hopefully a concrete goal will make that easier.
As for Halo, as much as I love the game, I just don’t have time for it right now. Personal writing deadlines are coming up, LTUE is just around the corner, and I’m falling too far behind to spend my time on video games.
I’m also going to make a concerted effort to get up earlier. If I stay up past midnight, I’m usually just dicking around on the internet, whereas my mornings are almost always productive. Plus, I hate sleeping in–hate it. Gotta get up earlier.
So anyhow, that’s the plan. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some writing to do…
