Three things have happened recently to make me adjust my attitude to my writing. When my first children’s book was published in 2010 I thought, ‘This is it. I’m off. I’ve got a foothold in the publishing world.’ I was optimistic.
That changed when an editor rejected a book I'd written because my social media presence wasn’t big enough. Then I heard that Sue Perkins had been taken to lunch by publishers who asked whether she had any ideas for children’s stories – not something she’d built her reputation on. Third, I read The Girl Who Drank the Moon and was amazed to discover that a book so very much in need of a rigorous edit had won the Newbery Medal.*
It wasn't just depressing, it was also (extremely) de-motivating. If this was today’s publishing world, where did I fit in? And what did any of it have to do with just writing a good book? At which point some people reading this may well respond with a resounding,
'Duh!'
I wouldn’t argue with them. This is the way the world is today. Profit rules, and if it takes a Sue Perkins** with a huge social media presence to make that profit, then I’m not surprised publishers are taking her to lunch. I’d do the same if it meant keeping my job as an editor in a publishing house now a cog in a global media empire.
I didn’t write much for a while. I didn’t want to. I didn’t see the point. But then I began to think about it all and I came to a couple of conclusions. One: I like writing. If I don’t write I become gloomy and irritable, especially now I’m ‘retired’ and don’t have a job to occupy me. Two: if today’s publishing world is looking for a celebrity’s new children’s book, I can't compete: I’m not a celebrity, and as far as social media goes, I’m a goldfish in an ocean.
So I decided I might just as well enjoy myself. Write what I want to write. Let my imagination go and see where it takes me and stop worrying – too much – about what the market wants. I might as well have some fun. So I do. And I am.
* This one is open to debate. The book comes drenched in glowing reviews from respectable writers and publications and boasts avid fans online. Maybe I just don't get it.
** For the record, I think Sue Perkins is wonderful! And if she did write a children's story, it would probably be a good one.
4 comments:
Yup. Thanks for the post, Nick!
Sounds like a good resolution. Publishing always seems so fickle.
Think a lot of us will recognise this, Nick. And all that tail-wagging enthusiasm that's expected of us, too. No idea st all what the point is. But like you, writing is somehow necessary. Good luck.
Think a lot of us will recognise this, Nick. And all that tail-wagging enthusiasm that's expected of us, too. No idea st all what the point is. But like you, writing is somehow necessary. Good luck.
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