Wow, it’s been four long years since I started Insecure
Writer’s Support Group---wait, hold on, I can’t count. It’s been FIVE YEARS!
Five Years.
It seems impossible that so much time could have passed
since I decided to jump in on these Insecure Writer’s Support Group. When I
started on this journey, I imagined I’d be farther along by now. Little did I
know, publishing is VERY slow.
Did I mention slow? Glacial would be more accurate.
It takes forever to hear back from agents. Then it takes
forever to hear back from acquisitions. Then it takes forever to hear back from
editors. Always the waiting. When I remind myself of how much time I spent just
waiting to hear back, it doesn’t surprise me that it’s taken me this long to
get a book out into the world.
So, if I could give any new writer one piece of advice, it
would be to not wait. Write more, wait less.
That doesn’t mean skip directly to self publishing—that can
take a long time too! What I mean is that while you’re waiting for responses,
don’t just sit on your thumbs. Get back to the writing, it is the only thing
that will help your career as a writer that you can actively work on while you
are waiting. #LearnFromMyFail
Don’t forget to visit the Ninja Captain, Alex, and this
month’s co-hosts: Eva @ Lillicasplace,Crystal Collier, Sheena-kay Graham, Chemist Ken, LG Keltner, and Heather Gardner!
Yes, I completely agree - there's no point waiting on one novel, because if you get 'the call' it's good to have something else to offer them immediately! Happy New Year, Rena
ReplyDeleteIt is slow! And I am an impatient person. ;)
ReplyDeleteYep. Make sure by the time the agent calls you back you can tell him/her that you've got the sequel done now too.
ReplyDeleteYou've been with the group from almost the very beginning!
ReplyDeleteThere are so many things we can accomplish while waiting.
Happy 2017!
I'm glad I've learned before about how slow publishing is, else this would be discouraging. :P But I agree with you. I always have a bunch of things to work on, so there's no time wasted with waiting.
ReplyDelete