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[I am very excited to share with you the wisdom and perspective of my agent, Erin Murphy in today's guest post!]
Success is Like a Snowflake, Too
It’s not just writing careers that are like snowflakes—it’s equally true that the success that each writer experiences is unique.
This is something my clients and I talk about a lot as we look at the big picture of their careers. Some big quantifiable measures of success out there in the publishing world for all to see: Bestseller lists; deals that
Publishers Marketplace calls “very nice,” “good,” “significant,” or “major”; star treatment at conventions like ALA; special placement in chain bookstores; starred reviews and awards; Amazon rankings.
And those measures are even more visible today than they were just five years ago, thanks to the many authors and industry professionals who talk about their experiences on Twitter, Facebook, and blogs. Sometimes I think it must feel impossible to believe anything else is important when you’re a writer.
These seemingly quantifiable measures are simply not as concrete as you might expect. There are many articles out there about the
myth of the bestseller list and the
Amazon ranking, and about the
negatives of large advances. And the major chains (perhaps soon to be the singular “chain,” although I certainly hope not) carry such a small percentage of new books on the bricks and mortar shelves that I believe our entire industry needs to stop using a buy-in from the chains as any kind of requirement for satisfaction.
However, these things are
not the only measures of success in publishing. It might appear that way, but it’s just not true.
In Robin’s case, it was tremendously helpful for us to realize that she had reached a benchmark point in her career: her publisher values her steady contribution to their catalogs and sees her as a lifetime author, someone whose work is valuable on their backlist and continues to grow in value as she continues to publish and grow creatively. While her sales figures aren’t bestseller-level, they are steady, and most importantly, her publisher is happy with them.
There are many authors out there that don’t know or understand that their publishers are happy with their sales, or aren’t sure their publisher will want the next thing they write. So having achieved this is huge, but it isn’t quantifiable. And it certainly isn’t as sexy as a significant deal or NYT Bestseller designation.
The danger of the most obvious benchmarks is that it’s too easy to fall into the comparison game, stacking up your own career against someone else’s. You can’t compare apples to oranges, and you can’t compare one snowflake to another and declare one prettier or better.
The author whose books have never been carried by the chains is jealous of the one who has a presence there. The author who has never had a starred review is envious of others who have. The authors who are unhappy with their advances are jealous of having never cracked the elusiv
I am feeling a big need to have one hub for all my online activity--probably because I am getting older and finding it harder to keep track of everything. With that in mind, I'm going to start cross-posting from my other blogs/websites here...
How Writing Careers Are Like Snowflakes
And no, it’s not because they melt away into nothingness two seconds after hitting the ground. Don’t even let such a negative thought taint your mind!
It’s because no two are ever exactly alike. Pretty simple, huh? But one of the hardest concepts for us authors to grasp. Hell, even publishing professionals have a hard time accepting it, although they are aware of it more than the individual author since they have access to data for all their books.
Someone on Twitter last week (and I can’t for the life of me remember who it was—if it was you, let me know so I can properly credit you!) linked to
this year old post by
Christina Dodd. The whole post is definitely worth reading, a twenty year’s veteran’s look at the biz, but this nugget in particular really struck me:
9. From my vantage point, everyone in publishing is doing better than I am. From everyone else’s vantage point, I’m doing better than they are. The truth is somewhere in between — and an author who’s published is not going to get any sympathy at all from an unpublished author who’s written for ten years, finished three manuscripts and has twenty-five rejection letters. Believe me. I know. I was that author.
The fear of failure nips at our heels no matter what stage of our career we're in. It is so, so easy to sit from the outside looking in and be certain--
absolutely certain--that Author A is a raging success and has it all and their books are selling like hotcakes. But the truth is rarely that simple. The really hilarious thing is I’ve had people say that of me, and I can never hold back a snort of wild disbelief. (See previous paragraph.)
A couple of weekends ago I attended ALA. While there I became convinced of two things.
1. Twitter
does help
buzz books. I can’t tell you how many times I heard people standing in lines for arcs saying, I heard about this book on Twitter. (Which will be the subject of a future post)
2. A big web presence or Twitter following does not guarantee actual book sales. Standing in line for free ARCs is a very different thing from plunking down cold hard cash for the book
I cannot tell you how many people I’ve talked to over the last month or heard talking on blogs, bemoaning their lack of sales, and yet these people DO have really big followings. These are people who are worried about earning out their advances, whose sales are far below expectations, or who are worried about their next contract. Every single one of them has what I consider to be a pretty healthy--if not downright BIG--web presence.
Which proves precisely what I’ve suspected all along: Big blog/Twitter followings propel a teensy percentage of people to publishing success, but no more and perhaps even less than a greatly written book, an award nomination, or the full force of
And no, it’s not because they melt away into nothingness two seconds after hitting the ground. Don’t even let such a negative thought taint your mind!
It’s because no two are ever exactly alike. Pretty simple, huh? But one of the hardest concepts for us authors to grasp. Hell, even publishing professionals have a hard time accepting it, although they are aware of it more than the individual author since they have access to data for all their books.
Someone on Twitter last week (and I can’t for the life of me remember who it was—if it was you, let me know so I can properly credit you!) linked to
this year old post by
Christina Dodd. The whole post is definitely worth reading, a twenty year’s veteran’s look at the biz, but this nugget in particular really struck me:
9. From my vantage point, everyone in publishing is doing better than I am. From everyone else’s vantage point, I’m doing better than they are. The truth is somewhere in between — and an author who’s published is not going to get any sympathy at all from an unpublished author who’s written for ten years, finished three manuscripts and has twenty-five rejection letters. Believe me. I know. I was that author.
The fear of failure nips at our heels no matter what stage of our career we're in. It is so, so easy to sit from the outside looking in and be certain--
absolutely certain--that Author A is a raging success and has it all and their books are selling like hotcakes. But the truth is rarely that simple. The really hilarious thing is I’ve had people say that of me, and I can never hold back a snort of wild disbelief. (See previous paragraph.)
A couple of weekends ago I attended ALA. While there I became convinced of two things.
1. Twitter
does help
buzz books. I can’t tell you how many times I heard people standing in lines for arcs saying, I heard about this book on Twitter. (Which will be the subject of a future post)
2. A big web presence or Twitter following does not guarantee actual book sales. Standing in line for free ARCs is a very different thing from plunking down cold hard cash for the book
I cannot tell you how many people I’ve talked to over the last month or heard talking on blogs, bemoaning their lack of sales, and yet these people DO have really big followings. These are people who are worried about earning out their advances, whose sales are far below expectations, or who are worried about their next contract. Every single one of them has what I consider to be a pretty healthy--if not downright BIG--web presence.
Which proves precisely what I’ve suspected all along: Big blog/Twitter followings propel a teensy percentage of people to publishing success, but no more and perhaps even less than a greatly written book, an award nomination, or the full force of the publisher’s marketing department behind the book.
It is ONE way in a myriad of ways to achieve success.
And the important thing to remember is that no one really, truly understands how one book becomes a success and the other one does not. Sure, there are certain things that must be in place: good storytelling (notice I did not say brilliant writing), publisher support, usually co-op of some kind, but not always. But any given publisher can have two books that should by all intents and purposes appeal to the same audience, and yet the marketing efforts th
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful post - I believe I'll have it tattooed in reverse on my forehead so I can read it in the mirror every morning. Seriously, these are words to live by. Thanks Erin, and thanks Robin!
So true that all of our successes are different - for each book and for each person.
One of my recent successes has been a large number of fans who are using portions of my first novel in verse in live poetry performance competitions in Illinois and Texas. It's so exciting! Not many other authors would know about it, but for me, what an honor and thrill.
Great post Erin and Robin!
Thank you for reminding us that all successes should be celebrated. As much as I'm looking forward to seeing my books on shelves, I'm looking forward more to the connection I'll make with readers.
This is lovely. I'm filing your very helpful list away.
That last one on the list is especially wonderful. Thank you so much for the whole post!
I've been talking about some of this very thing on my blog lately, because it's been on my mind a lot. It can be hard with all of the internet "noise" to feel successful some days. But really, there is success in simply being creative. In having the opportunity to do what we do! And with so many of the other things you mentioned as well.
"Appreciate your successes; don’t downplay them." This is what I'm trying to do more of. Instead of wishing for things I don't have, appreciating what I DO have.
Great post - thank you!
Wonderful post! Thank you! I don't have a book published yet, but last week I had the opportunity to speak to my daughter's class about writing as a career. Now half the kids want to become writers!
Sharing my love for the craft is my snowflake of success today!
Love this. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, everybody! I'm so glad you like the post. I mean every word!
So, so wise, Erin! I need to print out this post and make copies and tape them all over my house!
I am not proud that I read that list of healthy ways to measure success and was checking off the ones I've not yet achieved. Probably not what you had in mind.
So I'm going back to read the whole post again, and I'm pretty sure this time it will sink through my very thick skull.
Thank you for the healthy reminder to focus on the right things.
I only started calling myself a writer a few years ago, though I have been one a whole lot longer. It just took me a long while to realize it.
The "success" trap almost brought me to the point of never writing again because I don't have my own books or anything so substantial. But this past year, my productivity has increased, I am getting positive feedback, even published but what steals the show is when someone writes me and tells me they enjoyed what I wrote; it makes me feel like a giddy child.
An amazing, wonderful, insightful post! Thank you so much for your thoughts and encouragement!
What a great post! Thanks for sharing these insights.
Thanks, Erin and Robin! What a great post and an eloquent reminder to focus on what really matters. If we can do that, the rest will follow, no? And even if it doesn't, we'll all be a lot happier in the meantime. ;)
This is such a lovely post.
Thank you, Erin, for reminding us that success comes in many forms.
Bravo, Erin!
Thanks for the reminder to appreciate the good things that comes our way.
Two words: Amen, sistahs!
Two more words: FB repost!
Two final words: Thank you!
I'd consider this post a success.
It's so funny that with each milestone come new goals and insecurities. If we don't stop and smell the roses, we can feel like we're never getting anywhere--forgetting how far we've already come.
Thanks!
Thank you so much for this post--the timing couldn't be better, with my first book just out (and me being the type of person who will, despite my best efforts, constantly wish I was accomplishing more!).
The point on your list that I am truly grateful for, though, is the relationship I've had so far with my editor and publisher. It's been amazing. Thank you for reminding me how important that is!
E, this post is so wonderfully you--positive, supportive, and realistic all at once.
Thanks, Erin and Robin. What a useful and affirming post. Some days I feel successful if I manage to wear matching socks, and some days it seems like nothing I do will ever be enough. This is a necessary reminder to enjoy whatever comes my way.
Really enjoyed this. Just what I needed.
Thanks,
Nancy
I love, love, love that I have an agent who feels this way, who doesn't just care about the huge and the super-lucrative, but one who cherishes each snowflake, who numbers the sparrows. Thank you so much, Erin. I'm going to save this post. These are words to live by.
What a fabulous post! There's always something more to strive for, but it's so important to appreciate what we have, and what we have accomplished. Thank you for this awesome reminder.
Wow, Erin, this is EXACTLY what I needed to read. Thank you for such wise words, and thank you Robin for posting it. This goes into my forever keep file.
What I think I loved best is the message that with every success comes a challenge, and in every challenge we can find the signs of success.
I'm printing this and taping it to my monitor. Actually, maybe I'll print two copies--one to tape to my monitor, the other to my mirror.
Thank you, Erin.
I'm so glad you all got so much out of Erin's brilliant words of advice. This wisdom of hers is just one of the reasons she is an awesome person to have on one's team. :-)
Great advice and insight. I'm glad I found your blog.