Nathan here! Well, actually it’s Nathan of November 12th writing this ahead of time.
So wow, it’s the future. Do we have flying cars yet? Did Nathan of November 19th get a haircut?
Today’s You Tell Me comes from Orange Slushie, and it’s a good one. Take it away, Orange Slushie:
“You go down to the crossroads and make a pact to have your novel and future novels published. You are given a conditional choice. Either you can receive the highest literary acclaim for your work, but a guarantee that you will never earn enough to give up your day job. Or you can always be considered a terrible hack, but make bucketloads of cash.
Which do you choose?”
shilohwalker says
I write because I enjoy it and I couldn’t care less about literary acclaim.
I’ll take the cash.
Unlike literary acclaim, cash will care for my kids, my family, my future…and their futures. Not too mention lots of other things.
Money’s not everything, but it goes a lot farther than literary acclaim.
Erik Smetana says
I think this is the same sort of question people enrolling, attending and graduating from graduate programs in writing have to ask themselves (William Lashner for example). Do you want to toil away doing something that you don’t or moderately enjoy while getting praise in various reviews or be able to do the thing you love day in, day out without the stressors of another career (all the while ignoring the book review pages)? I’m pretty sure the likes of Grisham, King, Clancy and company don’t regret how their careers have ended up (even if they might wish for a smidgeon of “acclaim,” which King has collected a bit of over the last few years). On the the other hand (and an extreme example), you have John Kennedy Toole).
With that in mind, I’d go for the cash. Of course I’m a genre writer as it is, so I don’t have any expectations for literary accolades .
JES says
My first take on this, like that of others in the thread, was that cash is a reflection — a measure — of the acclaim. Who wouldn’t want to know HOW MUCH one was acclaimed? So I was leaning towards the cash.
But now I’m not so sure. I think it would matter to me what I was acclaimed for. Money alone wouldn’t tell me that. I could write p*rn and get that message, but I wouldn’t be (heh) satisfied knowing that the source of all that $$$ was just a lot of lonely people whose plumbing works, so to speak.
So I think I’d go with acclaim, if by acclaim we meant something like “esteem” or “respect.” I shed aspirations to capital-L Literary success long ago, but damn if I don’t want people to hold my work in their hands (BOTH hands, not leaving one free for… other stuff) and say D*mn. Now THIS is a book.
Anonymous says
CASH. I have no ambition to write the great American novel. But if I wrote something that people wanted to read–and voted with their wallets– that’s acclaim enough for me. Plus, I’ve got a student loans and mortgage I’d like to pay down.
Besides, when a critic calls someone a hack, it’s because a small part of them is jealous.
Steppe says
Aclaim is easier to carry.
A million worthless dollars is heavy lifting.
Especially when wheelbarrels are going for a billion dollars a pop and a electric car with back up rubber bands two trillion.
Easy money killed publishing.
No get up and go left to get up and go.
I’ve gone back to reading cereal boxes.
Tough times like these call for Cheerios.
John Q. Pessimist Phd.
Dept Of Rainbow Inspectors
Govt. Bailout Line Position 32476A
Other Lisa says
Crap. Acclaim. I am kind of stoopid.
Nathan, no flying car, but we’re getting close on the jet pack.
Jeff says
Hmmm…let’s ask Stephen King that question. Oh wait, he answered that long time ago. Buckets of money please.
Simon Haynes says
With four published SF/comedy novels featuring a character called Hal Spacejock, which path do YOU think I chose?
😉
Paula says
Cash. I’ve learned the hard way.
SAVanVleck says
As much as I would love to be one of the very best writer’s on earth; I have grown accustomed to a roof over my head and daily food. And, as long as I can write, I am happy. Much happier than I was as a secretary or grocery security; where I was periodically drug around because I grabbed biker’s leather jackets to keep them from stealing cartons of cigarettes.
I’ll go for the money that pays me to write.
Tricia Sanders says
In this day and age—CASH. Acclaim won’t pay the bills and keep me fashionably dressed. Look at all the wierdos in the news. Anybody can make a name for doing God Knows What–just look at reality TV. Those folks keep recycling on other shows and making the talkshow rounds. But cash always spends. And a hack by any other name…
Laura Anne says
Cash, please. I love a glowing critical review just as much as the next neurotic writer, but a reader telling me I made a bad day better is worth all the literary acclaim in the world, and a hundred thousand readers waiting for the next story will take the sting out of any bad review.
However, I will admit that my short fiction tends to skew literary [and short fiction pays bupkis], so maybe that’s my wiggle room?
Leslie says
Acclaim. I like my day job too.
Sam Hranac says
Sigh…
Acclaim. I’ll be dead far longer than I will be alive to enjoy the money.
Lisa Melts Her Penn says
PLEASE put me down in the ACCLAIM column. The cash would get spent, and then there would be nothing. But, yeah, I’d like the cash, too. But in part because it would speak to the acclaim.
Anne-Marie says
Cash. I doubt I have the talent to be acclaimed.
John Darrin says
Terrible hack with bucketloads of cash. I’ve already got the terrible hack part down. When do I get the bucketloads of cash?
Scott says
Back in my 20s there would have been no question. I would have gone for the acclaim.
Now, though, nah. The acclaim would be great, and so would the immortality, but I’ve got kids to put through school and a pitiful amount put away for my retirement.
There’s another plus side to being a hack who sells a ton of books, one that makes up for the loss of acclaim. Tons o’ people would read my stuff, and I might be a favorite of many of them and bring them a lot of joy, instead of pissing off the college students who are forced to read and analyze and write papers about some professor’s self-described brilliant interpretation of my immortal masterpieces, a professor who makes more publishing articles about my literary brilliance than I ever made off the books.
Nope. Gimme the money.
Linda says
Acclaim. My narcissism wins over hedonism any day. Plus, my day job provides me muchos cashola and fodder for my books. Peace, Linda
philologia says
Depends. If I loved writing the hack, then sure. But if what I loved left me penniless, that’d be fine too.
I can really enjoy hack, and I can really hate things that get boatloads of acclaim. (Does ANYONE else out there dislike the film Citizen Kane? Anybody?)
Jeanne says
Oh, this is a question from the past. I recall being asked this in College. The answer for me was acclaim. Which is why I’ve never attempted publication. The fear of being published and mocked is greater than the fear of being rejected.
This is a great question and the answer is supposed to be very revealing.
Jeanne says
And yes, the revelation of my answer is that I’m vain. My ego is more afraid of succeeding and getting egg on my face than not trying at all.
But, I’ve hardly had the time to write, much less think, raising three kids over the past 18 years. And parenting is a pretty humbling experience. Just a little more privately humiliating than being the Jessica Simpson of the literary world. She’s the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of hack.
Ello says
What’s wrong with hackery?
Linda Lou says
In my case, I’d take the literary acclaim. As a technical writer, I already make buckets of money writing drek. People read my software documentation and say, “Oh, you poor thing.” It would be nice to have somebody read my memoir and say, “Wow! That’s so inspiring!”
Anonymous says
Authors who rake in the money shouldn’t have to endure being called a hack. Call them entertainers, call them great story tellers…but please, don’t call them hacks. That’s just so mean. Let them enjoy their success.
There’s room in this world for both writer’s who aspire to acclaim, and writer’s who just love being writers and happen to write books people love to buy.
Okay, I’ve said my words of peace and love. Now everyone hold hands and sing kum-bye-yah.
Shannon Ryan says
I like my day job. I would probably go for the cash anyway though. I would rather have my books in people’s hands in airports and malls than have the love of a few academics and critics.
David Weisman says
They both sound wonderful beyond description. If I never get published I get no acclaim and can’t give up my day job anyway – so getting acclaim but not enough money is better than the statistically average result for an unpublished author like me.
I may be considered a hack, but if my work is out there, it might be reevaluated after my death. And people who read someone everyone considers a hack love them anyway.
Gimme either one! Gimme I say!
Polenth says
I don’t equate acclaim with good writing. Possibly because I’m a science fiction/fantasy writer, and there’s a tendency to label authors in those genres as hacks regardless of the quality of the work.
So it’s got to be the money. I’d rather write what I love and be seen as a hack. If I can do that whilst having money to feed me and my cockroach, all the better.
(And I’m predicting yes to the haircut)
Eva Gale says
I’m with the last commentor. I don’t equate acclaim with good writing, and I don’t equate being hack with bad writing.
That said-bring on the $.
Moth says
I’ll take the cash, thanks. Who says the critics know what they’re talking about anyway? Millions of people buying a book aren’t wrong. Besides, I’d rather be able to WRITE for a living instead of slave at something I don’t love but have pretty plaques waiting at home saying how brilliant I am.
Sue says
Cash. Literary snobs annoy me, and if we’re choosing between a best seller and critical acclaim, I definitely choose the best-seller, because that means a whole lot of regular people liked it.
Diana says
Ooh! I want to be a hack! And the best part is down the line, some lit student might discover you and you’ll become “literature,” and they’ll study your writing and its effect on culture. You know, just like Charles Dickens!
mkcbunny says
Acclaim.
That is not a criticism of anyone who chose financial success. I have been up and down the ladder of $$ vs. art enough times in 45 years to know the tradeoffs, but artistic praise pushes my happy buttons more than money. So there you have it.
And really, it’s a stupid decision, because (a) being broke sucks, and (b) why would you not want a ton of people reading your work? “B” seems the obvious choice.
usman says
Acclaim.
BJ says
Depends on what you mean by literary acclaim and bucketloads of cash. I’d be very happy if I could make a reasonable, even lower-middle-class living off my fiction. Is that ‘bucketloads’?
For acclaim? The Nobel Prize? I’m not interested in writing like that. A Hugo? Maybe.
Acclaim is a pretty iffy thing, anyway. You never know if your work will gain it or not. That’s something you can work fo and never get. Someone rlse said it’s subjective. Very.
Someone else said they’d rather be remembered than make a lot of money. Literary acclaim doesn’t lead to being remembered. How many people know who won the Nobel Prize for Literature this year, let alone a decade ago? How many people have heard of Sue Grafton, Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, or other best-selling authors?
In agreement with yet another post: I want to be read!
Kim Stagliano says
Well, my husband just lost his job for the second time in a year so…. If I were a rich hack I might well be entertaining millions of readers. Like this reader who turns to books to escape the grim reality of life! So I’ll take the cash and entertain the masses rather than a great NYT Book Review and playing the churchmouse. I am the churchmouse right now, it’s not that great.
KIM
magolla says
I’ll take hack with loads of cash. Literary acclaim doesn’t put food on the table.
Rich says
I’ll take the acclaim, and live happily with that, and what my day job brings in. What, you thought you’d give up your day job? Who’s zoomin’ who, here?
ClassicsLover says
Nathan,
Can you please make a post where you address the fact that so many of the writers reading this blog nurse a hatred for people whom they term “literary snobs”?
IMHO these “literary snobs” HELP all writers by paying attention to and publicizing writing, and no, they don’t all “trash” genre writing.
I love some literary writing and some genre writing, and I hate it when people intolerantly lump other people (on either “side”) into categories.
And why is it okay for a genre writer to trash “classics” or “literary fiction” and call them boring, snobbish drivel? Aren’t you then doing the EXACT THING you decry “literary snobs” for doing? Just asking.
Axioo says
Acclaim, like duh…….
Anonymous says
I have to agree with Classics Lover (above).
I read a mix of genre and lit fiction, and it’s always interesting when — in my opinion bookstores and sales are driven mostly by genre fiction readers — that those that write genre fiction continually feel oppressed by the smattering of people on blogs that like lit fiction.
Genre books outsell lit fiction ALL the time and have the MOST readers. Who, exactly, is oppressing you? Is the 25 year-old cashier at the bookstore giving you the evil eye for buying Grisham? Are you being strip searched by the fellow book buyers for purchasing Patterson?
I’ve never understood this. Ever. MOST people write genre fiction. You ARE the majority. No one is asking you to justify why you like to write thrillers, suspense, or romance. So why call lit fiction books boring, unreadable and their readers snobs?
Jeanie W says
A strong sales record can be construed as popular acclaim, and it can fund me doing more of what I love to do most. Y’all can keep your Harold Blooms; I’ll take the cash.
freddie says
Cash, baby, cash. Because a lot of writers that are considered hacks really aren’t.
terri says
Jeanie beat me to it while I was reading comments!
Who ever said that cash isn’t acclaim. When King won the big literary medal, the literati poo-pooed it saying he was a ‘hack’.
An editorial on the subject said, with some envy, ‘yeah, a hack with 100 million books in print.’
Cash will bring you acclaim with those who matter, the people who read your books. I would gladly trade that for acclaim in journals I have never heard of and by the five lit profs who stuffed my books down their students throats in the name of literature.
So . . . hack, hack, hack . . .
freddie says
Are we talking a William Hung-type of hack, or a John Grisham-type of hack?
I’m sorry, but William Hung did not even qualify as a hack. To be a hack, you’ve gotta have some talent. Maybe not as much as Cormac Mccarthy, but some.
Ulysses says
I find myself realizing that this is a trick question.
Before I revise my answer, I’d like to see the big money. I don’t believe it exists.*
—–
* That is, outside of Stephen King’s bank account. Or J.K. Rowling’s. Or John Grisham’s.
Jeanne says
My husbands “people” are all from Oxford, Miss. They would fall into the “literary snob” category. They own local newspaper, “The Rebel Press.” But, they’d be really surprised that Grisham has been used as an example of a hack in this discussion. They knew him before he was an author and still keep a bit in touch now. He really doesn’t spend a lot of time at his GORGEOUS home in that area. At least, he wasn’t living there much a few years ago, when we were last there. But, he’s very, very highly regarded there. So, I guess this is relative.
If I could be a Grisham hack, I’d do it all day long. I’ve seen what that can get you. A beautiful home in your hometown you don’t even live in, and the respect of people who really know you.
I guess my idea of hack involves some sort of embarrassment. I would never be a sell-out to succeed.
That woman who wrote Peyton Place comes to mind. She wrote a best seller that she swore wasn’t based on the people in her Connecticut community, but, sounded awfully familiar to the people in her town, and she was loathed. Her book was made into a movie – etc.. but I think she was run out of town on a rail.
If I wrote – I’d have to write what I know- and it might blow up in my face. If I had a great imagination- I’d hack it up.
Lastly, whoever referenced Dan Brown- that’s a good example. He’s hugely successful but has twisted something many people consider sacred for profit. I have an ignorant relative who believes the Davinci Code is real. That another sort of hack I’d hate to be. Someone who really messes with peoples heads. Like a talented psychiatrist without scruples. 🙂
Good discussion Nathan!!
WitLiz Today says
Oh my, I didn’t realize Mr. Bransford was so diabolically clever. Answer this question and you’re royally screwed.
But since that’s my natural state of being, I’ll answer anyway. I’ll write for anything. Cash, money, acclaim, fans, glory, fame. I’ll take bribes, make a pact with the debil, and sell my ragtop Mini.
Just publish my damn book!
Thanks.
Josephine Damian says
Screw the critics, show me the money!
Anonymous says
It’s funny you should ask the question because for the first time in my life I’m thinking: Show me the money. I’ve written two lyrical beautifully illustrated picture books that are about to get published. They are my publishing dream come true, but the pay is a joke. Until now, despite the money, I thought I’d spend the rest of my career writing lyrical picture books and saving money other ways (i.e. soup for supper). Now with our retirement fund perilously low, one kid in college and another one getting ready to go, my husband waiting for the NY state and city budget cuts to wreck his job security, I’m rethinking everything. Acclaim or even pride in one’s work without cash for survival isn’t good enough.