 For Authors: October 25, 2017 Issue [#8570] |
  For Authors
This week: For Love of the Game Edited by: Jeff  
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"In three words, I can sum up everything
I've learned about life: it goes on."
-- Robert Frost
Trivia of the Week: NaNoWriMo started in 1999 with only 21 participating writers. Since then, it's ballooned into an international sensation. In 2015, more than 430,000 writers took part and more than 40,000 of them completed the task.
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FOR LOVE OF THE GAME
With National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo ) just around the corner, I thought I'd spend a little time in this newsletter addressing a topic that I rarely write about.
I'm usually the guy who talks about the practical aspects of writing; things like the logistics of self-publishing on Amazon, or the conventions of genre, or how to build an audience. If I'm being honest, the reason I tend to seek out and explore these kinds of topics is because it gives me a modicum of comfort in a subjective field like the arts. It's comforting to think about things systematically, and to tackle challenges like puzzles that can be solved one piece at a time.
The assumption for a lot of those puzzles, though, is that the end goal for a writer is some kind of material success, whether it be financial, critical, or even professional at all. And, to be fair, that is the goal a lot of writers have. Many writers have a goal of being published so they can make money, achieve recognition, or even both. But that isn't true for all writers; not all writers write for material gain. Like some athletes who just compete "for love of the game," there are some writers who simply write for the joy of it.
And there are certainly many writers who are somewhere in between, pursuing both success and enjoyment when they write.
The month-long lapse into insanity known as NaNoWriMo pushes us to frantically write a 50,000-word novel in just 30 days. For me, this month each year is an opportunity to fall back in love with the writing process. While there are some people who may not even bat an eyelash at the prospect of churning out an average of 1,667 words per day for an entire month, I typically find it fairly challenging (mostly because there's virtually zero chance that my job or personal will be nice and quiet and leave me alone to write!  ). And because it's challenging, I don't have time to do my usual (over)analysis of everything I'm writing. I don't have time to take market considerations into account, or do research on what kind of book cover or pricing structure I might want to go with. I don't have time to second-guess myself with the characters or the narrative, and I don't have time to do copious amounts of research and convince myself that I just need a few more days of preparation.
What I typically find at the end of NaNoWriMo, whether I successfully cross the finish line or not, is that I've been reminded of why I fell in love with writing in the first place. I'm reminded of the joy of creating, and how satisfying - even though the process is challenging at times - it is to create something out of nothing.
Whether you're taking part in the challenge this November or not, I'd encourage you to remember why you fell in love with writing in the first place. I'd encourage you to take some time at some point to write for the love of it rather than in pursuit of specific material goals. You don't have to abandon those material goals entirely (Lord knows I'll soon be back to writing editorials about technical and practical things!  ), but spend a little bit of time just playing for love of the game.
Until next time,
Jeff
If you're interested in checking out my work:
"Blogocentric Formulations"
"New & Noteworthy Things" |
This month's official Writing.com writing contest is:
I also encourage you to check out the following items:
{citem: 1491696}
EXCERPT: NaNoWriMo participants aim to finish a 50,000 word novel in a single month, this month. The NaNoWriMo Website says NaNoWriMo is for, "everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved."
While radical attempts at self-improvement generally don't work, see, for instance, last year's New Year's resolutions, NaNoWriMo's emphasis on alleviating the fears that can block productivity is a good one. NaNoWriMo's reminder that "you will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing," is, in fact, exactly what underproductive writers need to hear.
EXCERPT: “Write a complete novel in thirty days? Yeah Right! No Way!” That was my reaction on my initial introduction to National Novel Writing Month almost twelve years ago. A friend said, “I can’t do (whatever it was) until December first. I’m doing National Novel Writing Month all through November.”
“Are you crazy?” I asked. “I could never do that!” At that point in time my childhood dreams of writing novels (and yes, I did dream of being a writer as a child!) were just that – poorly formed, unreachable, mist-laden dreams.
EXCERPT: It’s another year and you realize that November is just around the corner. If you’re a writer like many of us, you’ve furiously been working through October NaNo Prep so you can have a better idea of what your novel is going to look like when you start writing it next month. Or, just perhaps, you’re one of those few people who have the precious gift of being able to just wing it and when November first comes you sit down somewhere and start writing.
Whatever your plan is for next month with regards to your technique of writing your novel, remember to take as much time in planning your workspace as you did your how to write your novel. Depending upon the type of person you are, there are a few things you want to make sure you need. |
Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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Feedback from my last newsletter about the power of 1,000 true fans ("For Authors Newsletter (September 27, 2017)" ):
Creeper Of The Realm  writes: "Once again, wonderful NL, Jeff, as well as informative. While a starting out writer may be desperate to make any kind of sale at first, down the road it is better to get a true fan rather than just hope to get anyone to buy their book. I don't think any writer has it easy when it comes to publishing. Didn't J.K. Rowling hit the bottom before she hit stardom? I hope no writer has to experience that, but I also think it's what made her who she is now. And her true fans list is enormous in size now."
I can only imagine what life looks like when you have millions upon millions of true fans!
Mary Ann MCPhedran  writes: "Hi I'm Mary Ann MCPhedran and I enjoyed reading your news letter. I love your theory and if I had your confidence I would be a rich old lady. LOL I'm not too bad as writer but my computing skills let me down, and sell books on Amazon but I don't buy from amazon I collect my orders for my books from who ever will buy but they buy from me and I buy from author's discount prices and make my profit. I enjoyed reading keep up the good work.Mary Ann MCPhedran."
Thank you, Mary Ann! There are a lot of services and individuals who will help you with the technical aspects of self-publishing if you're interested. Most will cost you, but I know a lot of self-published authors who are not shy at all about outsourcing their technical needs so they can spend more time and energy focusing on the writing itself. 
Azrael Tseng  writes: "Thank you for featuring my short story in your newsletter. I found your article on 1, 000 true fans very enlightening, and it is now one of my aims to cultivate this fan base!"
You're very welcome. And thank you for the kind words!
hbk16 writes: "How to earn money from writing is a complex equation.Indeed Fans can play a great role in promoting someone's work and lets a writer get a certain popularity. I have appreciated it."
Thanks for taking the time to send in your feedback!
Brandiwyn🎶  writes: "Just wanted to point out that the model applies to net profit, not gross margin, if you're planning your income stream around your fan base. $100k in gross margin is vastly different from a $100k paycheck, so take production cost and overhead into account when calculating the number of true fans you need to sustain your lifestyle.
That said, I'm a huge fan (heh) of the "true fan" model. I run a music school business in which clients are invoiced on a recurring monthly basis. I don't know that it's any easier than, say, retail, which relies on casual purchasing, but I think it's more predictable, and my clients are loyal because I build relationships with them over time. Word-of-mouth is among my top three sources of new clients (client referrals, Google, and "I saw your sign.") As a reader, I rarely ever read anything that wasn't recommended by a friend these days, so building loyalty among your true fans to encourage referrals and grow your fan base seems like the most logical marketing strategy in self-publishing."
Oh, absolutely. And when writers ask me when they should quit their day job, I also remind them that they have to factor in other costs that you tend to not think about with a day job. Who's paying for your insurance now? Do you have enough to also put some away into a retirement account every month? It's kind of shocking how six figures of book earnings can really be not all that much "net" profit at all, and why it's so important to have an honest assessment of your expenses and lifestyle before you make any big life choices!
Quick-Quill  writes: "Jeff, I concur. I bought 100 copies of my novel to sell on my own. ($10.00 per copy) the e-read version was $2.99. Cautiously I approached friends and most of them were happy to buy my book then others came along on their recommendation and bought one. Some bought for birthday's and Christmas. I booked my own book signing and bought my own postcards (after a year the publisher provided bookmarks as was agreed on signing) I have pimped my book handing out postards to anyone I see reading in the mall I work or walk in my job carrying a BnN bag. At the end of my relationship with my publisher, He told me at indi conventions they attended, my book out performed any other publisher. I'm back to square one. But I know how to sell my book. I do have a large database of readers and people from my church organization. I made my initial book investment and still have books to sell. I even sold one on Ebay."
Way to hustle! Whether you're an author interested in self-publishing or traditional publishing, the one constant is that your books probably aren't going to sell themselves. The more you put yourself out there, the better your chances of a healthy return on investment.
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