by D. L. Wilson
The life of an author is a complex
world. Getting through the publishing door required a lot more time,
commitment, and dedication than I could ever have anticipated. I was fortunate
to have spent a number of years learning the basics before giving up my day
job. Well, actually I didn’t give up my day job to dedicate myself to the
writing life. I waited until I retired from my regular career as a fashion
executive and university professor to become a full-time dedicated writer.
During
the years of learning about the writing life, I attended many conferences and
workshops and joined writing associations, which gave me access to successful authors. When I got to know a few of them to the point where they were
comfortable sharing the inside scoop as to how they got to be full-time
authors, they provide similar advice. Don’t give up your day job until you have
a very successful, established brand in the publishing world. One of the best
thriller authors, Steve Berry, shares on his web site that his “road to
publishing was long and arduous, spanning 12 years and 85 rejections over 5
separate manuscripts.” He waited until he had published 10 bestselling novels
before he gave up his day job as an attorney.
If
you want to write, do it because you enjoy writing. A writer must gain
satisfaction by engaging hours upon hours in a thought provoking process,
living in your own dream world, and having the finished product of the words on
the page provide a sense of accomplishment. If you are fortunate to become published, the rewards are having others enjoy reading your book, compliments
from readers, and if you are lucky, you might receive some financial gain. But
don’t forget that books are works of art and art is in the eye of the beholder.
Write because writing is your passion.
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Image courtesy of RAWKU5.
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