7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Delilah Marvelle
This is a recurring column called “7 Things I’ve Learned So Far,”where writers (this installment written by Delilah Marvelle, author of THE PERFECT SCANDAL) at any stage of their career can talk about writing advice and instruction as well as how they possibly got their book agent -- by sharing seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning.
1. Practice doesn’t necessarily make perfect. No matter how many books I write, I feel like I’m never quite where I need to be. And it’s made for countless frustrating days and nights. I think I’ve lived with the illusion that practice makes perfect, when in fact, there is no perfect. There’s only the art of honing the craft and praying that it’s good enough.
2. Being a genre writer comes with a set of boxing gloves. Genre writing, such as romance, gets very little respect from the public, even though romance makes up for a little more than 50% of all books sold. If money talks, it’s not talking loud enough.
3. Hate mail comes with the territory. I got sooooo excited about being a published author that I totally didn’t think this aspect out. I knew there would people who wouldn’t like my writing and would post bad reviews, but I was unprepared for those whackos who decide that bad reviews aren’t enough. They need to personally email me and tell me all about it as if I were a Nazi in need of a moral lecture.
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4. An author is responsible for most, if not all, the promotion. I think this was the biggest kicker for me. Realizing that a writer doesn’t just write, they also have to juggle promotion, the readers, signings and everything under the moon. It makes it difficult to stay focused on writing sometimes. I had this illusion that once I sold a book, I just had to write. That may have been the case 20 years ago, but it sure as heck ain’t the case anymore.
5. The term starving artist applies to a writer. No kidding. I knew there wasn’t much money to be made as a writer starting out and while trying to climb to the top. But I didn’t realize how little money I made until I put in my hours and counted out the pay. As of today, I make $1.25 an hour. Mind you, I do put in a lot of hours. But still. Don’t assume that because you’re published with the big 6, you’re going to get 6 figures. It takes time. And sometimes, it may never happen.
6. Don’t think that because you’ve landed a contract, you’re golden. Because in the publishing world, you’re not golden until you’ve proven yourself to be a cash cow. And needless to say, it takes time to become a cash cow.
7. Writer’s block is a state of mind. It only exists if you let it exist. I always lived in fear that I’d be under contract and would suddenly be slammed by writer’s block. It hasn’t happened yet. Why? Because I haven’t let it happen. I’ve worked too hard to get to where I’m at to let freakin’ writer’s block set it on me. Enjoy the journey, not the destination is what I’ve learned. Because if you don’t enjoy the journey, you most certainly won’t enjoy the destination, whatever it may be.
While there’s no shortage of writing advice, it’s often scattered around—a piece of advice here, words of wisdom there. And in the moments when you most need writing advice, what you find might not resonate with you or speak to the issue you’re dealing with. In A Year of Writing Advice, the editors of Writer’s Digest have gathered thoughts, musings, and yes, advice from 365 authors in dozens of genres to help you on your writing journey.
