After Monday’s post on the sobering odds involved in the publishing process, I think we can all agree that being a writer is not easy. Particularly when the publishing industry is going through such a tumultuous time.
It’s not easy to pour out 250 pages, it’s not easy finding an agent, it’s not easy finding a publisher, it’s not easy for your book to catch on, and it’s certainly not easy to become the next Stephenie Meyer.
But what’s the hardest part about being a writer?
Merc says
Avoiding being assassinated by characters.
Seriously.
~Merc
Marjorie says
Nathan, thanks for replying. I was not shooting from the hip when I made my previous comment… so I will be specific.
In Meredith Bernstein’s interview at “Witchy Chicks”:
http://www.witchychicks.blogspot.com/2008/02/interview-with-literary-agent-meredith.html
When asked: “What mistakes/blunders (in a query letter) automatically net a form rejection from you?”
Meredith Bernstein replies: “I immediately reject letters that begin Dear Sirs…or Dear Ms Sands …or To Whom It May Concern. I also toss letters without an SASE.”
So, if the next Hemingway addressed his query letter as she states above or if he failed to include a SASE, she immediately rejects the submission. It seems counterproductive and rather controlling… but her response does serve to, on some level, prove my point.
(I reposted the above comment because I had to correct the Witchy Chicks web address)
EJRuek says
ANONYMOUS SAID:
“The hardest part for me is having to acknowledge, that craft matters so little to being successful….”
His/her whole post: Five thumbs up and ditto.
Anonymous says
To anon @ 4:23 PM
Sometimes the writing can be cathartic, too.
During times of crisis, I’ve always written about things, people and places that would take me far away from the crisis. And they’ve been some of my best reviewed works.
Jarucia says
At this point in the game (being unagented and unpublished), the hardest thing is feeling 100% confident about the story I’m trying to push on people. Maybe that’s not the right term.
Every time I get bad feedback I remind myself of books reviewed on, say, Amazon. Some wildly popular books with 3,000 reviews still have at least 10% that hated the book.
I remind myself…can’t please every one all the time, just try to please as many as I can with the best work I can produce.
Nathan Bransford says
Marjorie-
I can’t speak for her, but honestly 99% of the “Dear Agent” letters aren’t worth reading past “Dear Agent” anyway. And no agent I know just throws away letters without SASEs, they just don’t get responses, although, again, there’s a striking correlation between people who don’t follow submission guidelines and people who are sending bad queries. When an agent is pressed for time, tossing out the “Dear Sirs” queries isn’t bad odds.
Personally I still look at everything whether they screw up my name, say “Dear Agent” or what have you, but there’s a reason we have recommendations on these blogs.
Again, agents aren’t sitting around devising ways of missing out on the good manuscripts. There’s usually a reason behind all of this.
L.C. Gant says
For me, the hardest part about being a writer is figuring out how to tell my stories in a way that hasn’t been done a thousand times before. So much has been done already in the world of storytelling that it’s often easy to doubt your abilities.
I agree with others who mentioned the lack of accountability and support from the writing community as well. Few careers are lonelier than writing; isolation is essentially a job requirement.
And yet, in spite of the obstacles, I keep at it anyway, the little writer that believes she can…
Nathan Bransford says
anon@4:21-
Whoa whoa whoa there. Craft is essential to being a successful writer. Now, there are some things that you may not personally like about TWILIGHT, but the fact that it has become a positive obsession among teenage girls (and their moms, and plenty of guys as well) shows that Stephenie Meyer is doing something very right.
There’s more to “craft” than writing a beautiful sentence. Stephenie Meyer is a master of building tension, and craft has a lot to do with it.
Kimber An says
“Whoa whoa whoa there. Craft is essential to being a successful writer. Now, there are some things that you may not personally like about TWILIGHT, but the fact that it has become a positive obsession among teenage girls (and their moms, and plenty of guys as well) shows that Stephenie Meyer is doing something very right.”
Maybe what the annoying thing here is that aspiring authors are constantly told craft, craft, craft, hammered about grammar, and have debates about how many spaces to put between a period and the start of the next sentence. So, they work hard and, still, nothing. Then, another will submit something riddled with ‘ly’ adverbs and dangling participles, get it published, and make millions, all because he somehow managed to hit the Magic Spot in the heart of a huge group of readers. I know it doesn’t feel fair and right, but I can’t see how there’s any way to repeat that ‘Magic’ on purpose. Sometimes it just happens by accident and sometimes the author is simply born with a special intuition.
Such is life. I wish I’d been born a princess too, but I wasn’t. It’s not fair either. But, I’m not going to let that disappointment ruin the life I do have, because, you know what? My life is pretty darn good the way it is.
😉
Nathan Bransford says
Well, just to further expand a bit, I love Ian McEwan and Jonathan Lethem and what people would consider some of the best “craft” writer out there, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t also tip our hats to writers like Dan Brown and Stephenie Meyer, who might not have the most elegant prose, but who are able to tap into something that resonates with millions of people.
And tapping into those emotions requires craft — they’re not just putting things down on the page, their choices (i.e. their craft) all work together to create a story that people are drawn to. It’s just not an accident.
Nancy Coffelt says
I think the hardest part about being a writer is being objective about your own writing.
I’m not here yet, not even close, but I can PRETEND to be that when talking with editors, my writers’ groups or with my agent.
Inside, I may be screaming, “No, no, no! You just don’t get it!” But outwardly I’m calmly nodding my head and taking notes. Experience has taught me that stepping back and reevaluating is a GOOD thing. Faux objectivity – it has its uses.
Anonymous says
“And tapping into those emotions requires craft — they’re not just putting things down on the page”
But how do you convince your agent and editor that you are tapping into these very emotions when you don’t seem to be following the standard formula (as incomplete as it is) for finding that magic spot?
-Jon
Nathan Bransford says
Jon-
If I knew how to teach that I’d bottle it up and sell it like it’s hot.
Alessa Ellefson says
I guess it all depends on which stage you’re on in the writing process, as can be seen from all these comments already.
My current anguish is having to re-edit everything. I feel I am never, and never will be, done with corrections, just as Flaubert never was (though my writing nowhere near the same as his).
However, this has allowed me to learn much about the craft, for which I am grateful.
And, despite it all (or because of it?) I love everything about writing!
Reisa Stone says
Dear Nathan,
The hardest parts for me are isolation and rejection.
I would not be able to maintain discipline or keep my spirits up without my cherished writers group. They are a lifeline.
Because I do a fair amount of research before submitting, I am always a bit shocked by rejection. Again, my writers group keeps me on an even keel. We share ways to handle rejection, such as papering the wall, creating mobiles and building bonfires 😀
Betty Atkins Dominguez says
Letting go of it…. at least for me.
Suzanne says
Form letter rejections. I know they are necessary because of the volume of letters an agent receives…but since they offer no feedback, they offer no insight… is it the query letter that is being rejected or the work itself? At this point, I would actually be willing to pay someone to offer feedback to tell me!
Carol says
Self-discipline.
Theophagous Monkey says
There’s a very cool tune by Donald Fagan called What I Do. He wrote the song, it’s said, from something Ray Charles said regarding music as a profession. You do it because it’s what you do. The corollary is that the hardest part of what you do is the NOT doing of what you do. i.e. Not writing when you have a story roiling in your head, the characters seething, demanding that you take their dictation.
Not writing, that’s what rips your guts out. The writing, when it’s good enough to be called writing, is easy. It flows, it carries you along rather than the other way round. The selling of it…well, they either love it or they don’t. There’s no “liking” of it or “appreciating” it. They have to love it as much as you do, and this is something you just can’t gauge in advance. You do it because it’s what you do.
Regards,
Theo, the theophagous monkey
Marjory Bancroft says
Rejection.
Laura D says
The turnoil for me is stuffing down my perfectionist persona and giving free reign to my artist at first. I try to just write ‘anything’ and still find myself struggling over one perfect word. Ah, such is life. I find I write the best when I can balance my perfect side with my artist side.
Cass says
Hardest part? Finding the time. Time to write. Time to learn about writing. Time to read. Time to write some more.
Making time for all the above in between the full time job and family. It has taken a while, but I think I almost have the rythym down.
Thanks for the question.
Toni Menden says
The hardest part of being a writer, for me at least, is the daily realization that I cannot make a living writing. I have to put aside my dream, my passion, to get a ‘real job.’ I go to work every single day and have at least one moment where I need to write down something about a character or plot line, but I can’t.
That is the hardest part for me.
Karen says
The hardest part — saying to others, "I'm a writer." I write daily. Work hard at it. Toil, sweat, fret, type my fingers to the bone. Yet, because I don't (yet) have a book on the shelves at B&N, I feel like I can't say, "I'm a writer." I try it sometimes, and I always find myself sort of apologizing and talking about all of the other "real" things I do. All that writing stuff — that's actually fun for me, even when the going gets rough. But saying, "I'm a writer." Yep, it's the hardest.
Haste yee back ;-) says
The hardest part…
Keeping your spirit from breaking!
Haste yee back 😉
Heather says
For me, it’s being patient during the polishing process and the agony of waiting for feedback from that first unbiased reader.
Anonymous says
Nathan said: “that doesn’t mean that we can’t also tip our hats to writers like Dan Brown and Stephenie Meyer, who might not have the most elegant prose, but who are able to tap into something that resonates with millions of people.”
I agree to a certain extent. Cases like that are the publishing analog of movies like Armageddon. They are failures on every possible artistic level and yet there is some accidental X-factor there that taken in combination with good marketing, and perfect timing create a public sensation.
If an author is on the receiving end of that intersection of (co)incidents then I’m happy for them. They’ve certainly achieved something that few of us ever will. But let’s not mistake that ‘eucatastrophe’ for quality of craft unless it’s deserved. Any perusal of first pages in a bookstore will tell one that it is, quite often, not.
To go back to the “Twilight” example, the first chapter is not good in any sense. I doubt it would have received a passing grade in my Composition 101 class in college. Maybe Meyer improves by leaps and bounds in the next three books, I don’t know, I’ll never know. I do have faith in the judgment of my colleagues though and I trust their opinions when they tell me the rest of the series is similarly written and similarly devoid of character, tension, depth, or craftsmanship.
The point is that the way the industry and the public tend (naturally) to equate monetary or numerical success with literary success or craftsmanship is disheartening to those of us that cherish storytelling and writing as one of our most important art forms.
P.S. (I apologize for being so harsh on “Twilight”, it’s just the case foremost in my mind right now.)
PurpleClover says
Learning humility through constructive critisism.
BarbS. says
The hardest part about being a writer?
Going forward when you hit THE MOMENT when you think, “Oh, this sucks…This sucks greatly…”
Nathan Bransford says
anon-
I take all of your well-reasoned points, but I think there’s some difference between hit movies and hit novels, simply because the elements are different and the reasons for success are much more disparate. Some successful movies might be nothing more than one actor’s drawing power at that particular time rather than having anything to do with filmmaking.
For a novel to really catch on though, it has to catch on in a way that is exceedingly rare in the movie business, and the factors behind its success are almost single-handedly due to the author’s abilities. It is all on the page. Marketing can help, but let’s face it, it’s nothing like how a movie is marketed.
And yes, I do think it’s possible to draw too heavy a line between commercial success and retrospective literary merit, as this article makes very clear. We tend to overexplain the reasons behind random success rather than recognizing randomness.
But still, I do think there’s merit in books like THE DA VINCI CODE and TWILIGHT. Even if neither might be my favorite book of all time, I can still recognize and appreciate what the authors have done well. There has to be something that is working and that the author did well, even if it is more in the realm of plot and theme rather than very clearly on the page.
And of course, there’s also the matter of some of yesterday’s potboiler’s being today’s classics. But we’ll leave that to the academics.
Greenleaf says
The “you missed it by that much” personalized rejection letter is the thing most likely to drive me to tears.
Not sure I’d want to be Stephanie Meyer. Our local independent book seller had a “Twilight” prom night for the release of Eclipse and Ms. Meyer came for a book signing. Hundreds of fans showed up. The buyer for the store said that they had to sneak Ms. Meyer in the back door in disguise for her own safety.
Colorado Writer says
Anon,
On using lain and laid…
The past tense of lay is laid.
“I laid the test on the table.”
The past participle of lie is lain.
“The dog has lain in the mud.”
Sarah says
First drafts. I love revising, but the first go-round just sits there as you write it, looking ugly.
Now I see the first draft as a block of stone I’ve blasted from a quarry. I hate pulling it out, but I can’t shape something that isn’t there.
I’m not complaining. Every worthwhile endeavor is difficult- dismayingly so- at times. Besides, I never imagined myself making a living off books I authored. I love working with kids and will continue to do so. (Education is where all the money is, anyway.)
Anonymous says
The submission process. It’s like sending your children out into a dark and stormy night for a carton of eggs. Sure, one or two make it back, but at what cost?
Ann Victor says
It’s been said numerous times above, and in different ways, so I’ll keep it short.
The hardest part of writing for me is the self-doubt and the spin-off from that: continueing to write without external validation (where validation = publication). I spend more energy motivating myself to continue writing than I do actually writing.
I’ve found a lot of inner peace on writing blogs because I don’t feel so alone in my struggle.
Hilary says
For me there is no hard part about being a writer. The hardest part about being a writer is all the time I can’t spend writing! Instead I have to do other crappy stuff like work or eat or sleep. Even submitting is ok; I would write whether I got published or not so rejections just maintain the status quo.
Jo says
The hardest part is whatever you’re doing at the moment.
Ann Victor says
Sorry. Haven’t had my early morning rooibos tea yet, that should be “continuing” and NOT “continueing”. 🙁
Constantine K says
For me, it’s knowing that the words on the page will never be as cool as the scene in my head.
Lupina says
Ooh, ooh, one more.
The other hardest thing about being a writer is when my better half speculates out loud on how much money I’d be making by now had I only stuck with my former vocation. That’s the hardest thing for him, anyway, not me.
Maniac Scribbler says
Kind of the fact that right now I’m an English major at a university, and I’m scared to take out many student loans because I don’t want to have to pay them back based off of what my day job/writing career will be like.
For actually writing, I would say that the hardest part for me is getting the setting in…Which I am working on. That and getting published (which is likely redundant to say, but I will say it nonetheless because it is hard).
ManiacScribbler =^..^=
Scott Jones says
Let’s face it. We all want to write, and we all want to be published. The two goals suck valuable time from each other. Cormac McCarthey spent years in solitude before he could become the icon, and stop devoting time to selling. Imagine trying to sell the Stone Mason, before you had written All The Pretty Horses. Writing is not publishing, writing is of the self, but publishing is family.
Newbee says
When I am one, I’ll tell you. I don’t consider myself a writer. I look at myself more as a story teller, not a writer. I feel that self doubt tells you the truth; Your book lacks something and you need to figure out what that “something” is. Many are commenting here about not wanting to do much unless there is a deadline. This troubles me somewhat. Don’t you have any passion for your story?
I am like Scott (Thinking Man), I have three kids, work fulltime, and work everyday out of state. My day starts waking at 6:00am and ends at 2:00am after a night of writing or preparing myself for being baptized into the waters of publishing. Self doubt is not an option. I believe that through this process I will educate myself and indoctrinate myself into this business.
Maybe others might think I’m just way… too positive? They can think anything they want to. For me, the hardest part of being a writer is calling myself “a writer”. Once I am published and have sold my book I will be able to say that I per say, am a writer. But, the title of “writer” isn’t really my goal. I see this as much more than writing.
StrugglingToMakeIt says
For me, it’s the same that’s the hardest part about anything else–not feeling like I’m good enough. This is why I’d rather get my query rejected than my full MS. When I get a full MS rejected, it’s hard not to take it personally. If the full isn’t requested, I don’t start questioning everything about my writing capabilities (regardless of whether this questioning is rational, I compulsively do it).
Feelings of inadequacy always burn. They did when I started getting last semester’s grades back. And when I get rejected from numerous summer associate positions I interviewed for last fall.
But it’s all about onward and upward movement, right? Just gotta keep going. And since I’m always going to write – even if I never get close to being published – I might as well keep submitting what I write, right?
Kim Kasch says
”Waiting is the Hardest Part”
Ali Katz says
The hardest thing about writing is doing it even though you know every word is drivel and every character a zombie walking across the page. And then doing it again and again and again until you’re so disgusted you toss it into a corner to rot.
The best part is picking it up a week later and thinking, “I wrote this?”
lovemotherhood says
People’s personal definitions of a writer.
lovemotherhood says
She said it so much better . . .
The hardest part — saying to others, "I'm a writer." I write daily. Work hard at it. Toil, sweat, fret, type my fingers to the bone. Yet, because I don't (yet) have a book on the shelves at B&N, I feel like I can't say, "I'm a writer." But saying, "I'm a writer." Yep, it's the hardest. – Karen
Whirlochre says
Every thing — from the crafting, the waiting and the likely returns — is based on thin air.
markwise says
The hardest part of being a writer is… writing – sitting butt in chair and writing every day even if you don’t feel like it.