tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post172683344190086749..comments2024-02-28T19:37:14.696+01:00Comments on moments of perfect clarity: just get writing alreadyjulochkahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10884096685015570257noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-67495108498864586112020-01-17T11:45:25.369+01:002020-01-17T11:45:25.369+01:00@will - thank you for this wealth of advice from y...@will - thank you for this wealth of advice from your experience with publishers! we aren't yet at the stage where we have really thought about it too much yet - I think we want to have some of it written before we try to get an agent or submit any specs to a publisher. it will all come in good time!<br /><br />@molly, i will look for Helen on Facebook! I haven't read her fiction, but I loved that article and her honesty. Also, the sun has now shined for two days in a row and I feel transformed. I really just need more sunshine!julochkahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10884096685015570257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-28656876829882417772020-01-17T10:35:39.643+01:002020-01-17T10:35:39.643+01:00And I'm so excited for your novel!!And I'm so excited for your novel!!Mollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09678300547613778858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-71583335451102222292020-01-17T10:34:54.804+01:002020-01-17T10:34:54.804+01:00Helen lives across the water from me and is a tota...Helen lives across the water from me and is a total inspiration. Try befriending her on facebook (Daisy Den Eeden) - she is one of the few reasons I still spend any time there and has a wide and varied community of lovely people. She has many frank observations about her own procrastination, mild depression, ADHD and how she still manages to write, and so well! I loved that piece of hers too.<br />Sorry you are glum, I can't imagine that weather helps at all :(Mollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09678300547613778858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-68661258357879047992020-01-10T18:44:59.711+01:002020-01-10T18:44:59.711+01:00I had traditional publishing houses and they typic...I had traditional publishing houses and they typically have their own in-house guidelines. Such as, when they want to get a book to market, the number of pages connects with price points and, is the author's language style translatable to international cultures?<br /><br />Of course if you're famous there's more leeway.<br /><br />Once the contract was signed I knew the generalized word count and I used that as motivation - approx. 2000 a day seemed doable but to achieve that, especially after doing it for several, the tasks got more uphill. That's when the action of steady writing on a daily basis becomes valuable.<br /><br />Established publishing house are terrific to have when it comes to distribution, I believe my first book had eight reprints. Despite their reach you should prepare for what I consider the toughest part - you will need to self-promote the book. <br /><br />The publisher sent me a book, "Guerrilla Marketing for Writers" and the advice, if I want the book to sell, I'd better reach out to bookstores, libraries, social medias, radio and TV stations - and just find ways to get the book in front of people.<br /><br />Then, there's the afterward. Ego is a terrific tool to have when taking on a book but, for me, once the books were finished, they were simply became something I had done. What did matter - as a self-employed person, did the books produce revenue? At the time I was close with several successful authors and they all said, writing one book is no big deal, to be successful, to achieve notice and profitability I would need to write a series of books.<br /><br />My walk-away. If one wants the challenge, something unto itself, then do a book. And, if you're OK to basically be working for peanuts, then take on the challenge. Then, there's the question - are you willing to be teeth gnashing, hair pulling and stressed beyond belief to write something on spec? <br /><br />And, what about the biz of self-publishing? I looked into that and the money out of pocket to print a few hundred books was unacceptable - plus all the cold calls you need to make. So, a standard publishing house, with their boilerplate contracts and modest royalties should be considered.<br /><br />Bottom line. If you have something say, a story to tell and you believe in your skills to write creatively, then keep going and don't look back.willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15590217997145761582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-48518342058494864842020-01-10T12:16:48.604+01:002020-01-10T12:16:48.604+01:00@will - that's astonishing and inspiring and d...@will - that's astonishing and inspiring and daunting. julochkahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10884096685015570257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7131844.post-66386979985556606582020-01-09T22:19:37.729+01:002020-01-09T22:19:37.729+01:00Writing is the easy part. Ignoring life's dis...Writing is the easy part. Ignoring life's distractions is much more difficult. What you're doing is much the same as that of having a desk job. <br /><br />When it time to write, Norman Mailer often rented a separate room, away from his home. He typically spent the entire day writing and did so for four days a week. <br /><br />Using only a pen he wrote on average 1500 words per day. <br /><br />Mailer was also a prolific letter writer, he found the time to write 47,000 letters - using a pen.willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15590217997145761582noreply@blogger.com