Don't Quit Your Day Job

I need routine. Crave it. Thrive under it. I’m a teacher, so one would think that I would get so much writing done in the summers. One would be wrong.

I do get plenty of writing done in the summers—some summers more than others. But I find that my writing is often so much better once I go back to work. I believe it’s a combination of having only a certain about of time to write (versus having all day and frittering half of it away) and being forced to think about something other than writing eight+ hours of the day.

So often, writers dream of the day when they can quit their jobs and sit at home writing their next novel while surrounded by leather-bound books, fire crackling, sleeping dog at their feet. (That’s not just me, right?) And often they feel that they won’t be a “real” writer until they do it full time.

To that, I say bullshit. Yes, lots of writers are able to write full time. That works for them. Even more have day jobs—some out of necessity, others out of creative need.

I can only speak for myself, but judging from my writing life the past few years, my writing is better during the school year, when I’m listening to the cadence of language and having interesting conversations and keeping my mind busy until it’s time to pour myself onto the page.

You are living your life right now. There is no when, no waiting room. Your life is what you make it in this moment. In this moment, I am a teacher and a writer, and because I am both, I am better at both.

I started school yesterday. I’m exhausted. My feet hurt. It’s only 6 PM here and I’ve been craving bed for over an hour. But I’m also fulfilled, and in the last couple of days, I’ve managed to find the spark my revisions were missing.  In that respect, I went back to work at both of my jobs.

And in this moment, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Surviving the Debut

I'm so grateful for the support of the writing community. I would not have been able to survive this process without help from the wonderful people I've met along the way. Today I'm thrilled to have authors Tiffany Schmidt, Mindi Scott, and Charlotte Bennardo, who all survived their debuts and were gracious enough to tell us just how they did that, as well as offer up advice to those of us who have yet to walk through that fire.

When did it feel real?

Tiffany: I’m still waiting for this one! I sometimes have lingering nightmares about query-letter rejections.

It felt real when I received my ARCs, and when strangers started Tweeting about reading SEND ME A SIGN. It felt more real when I held my finished copies, then saw them in bookstores. It felt even more real when I had interactions with readers at various signings.  Then surreal when I received my first fan mail and email, or when I had a blogger walk up to me at a bookstore event for a different author and tell me she was having a ‘fangirl moment,’ just seeing me.

I’m still living in a constant state of ‘pinch me’ because oftentimes it just doesn’t seem like this can possibly be true!

Mindi: I can’t think of a single moment that helped define it as “real.” More, I think it was a series of moments (seeing my ARCs for the first time, reading pro reviews of my work, having readers ask me to sign their books, bloggers using my book in their posts, receiving emails from fans) that all built upon one another in such a way that it became impossible to NOT believe.

Charlotte: When we got the call from Brian Farrey, our editor at Flux, it was a scream fest (really, the neighbors heard us screaming) so it felt real to me; I’d never had that “We want to offer you a contract” call before. Of course I worried until the contract was signed, sent, received, and copy returned that they’d change their mind. Once I had that binding contract, it was super REAL.

 

What would you tell your former self?

Tiffany: I’d tell my former self (and current self, since I still really struggle with this) to remember to enjoy the journey. Publishing is a slow, slow process, and release day will eventually arrive, but it’s so important to take time to enjoy and celebrate each step along the way.

Mindi: Watching time-travel movies has made it so that I can’t allow myself to even consider talking to my former self. Ha! Not to mention that my former self is such a skeptic that any needed words of encouragement would be wasted on her. ;-) 

Charlotte: I would say “Savor and remember this moment because there are going to be a lot of ups and downs, but this is a dream come true.”

 

How is the experience different? The same?

Tiffany: I’m still as impatient as can be, but there’s a little less of the breathless panic/anticipation of what’s next? As a debut, everything is new and scary and exciting. Things are still exciting (and sometimes scary) —I hope I never stop being thrilled and terrified of this industry— but the second time around, there’s a little less panic, a little less fear about “am I doing everything right?” Because there is no single ‘right’ way to be an author or handle promotions.  It’s all about finding a balance between life and writing and all the other non-writing writer stuff.

Mindi: Compared with my expectations? I thought getting published would change me in some huge way. It hasn’t. Small ways, sure, but not in big ways. I think the ways that is the same as what I expected is that having readers say that my book changed them in some way really is the most gratifying thing in all the world.

Charlotte: I get excited about all the contracts, although the one for Sirenz Back In Fashion was bittersweet; it originally was to be for books 2 and 3, not just 2. Things happen. The contract for my 3^rd book, Blonde Ops, with a new publisher, made me just as giddy because there was competition and guess who got selected?

What is the best part about debut?

Tiffany: Besides the part where I got to see my dream come true and my story turned into a book? I loved being part of debut group (Yay, Apocalypsies!) and was so grateful to have a cohort of people going through the same challenges and fears and celebrations. And nothing is better than meeting bloggers, readers, librarians, teachers, or other writers. It’s so great to be a part of a community that loves books!

Mindi: Everything is exciting! There are so many firsts happening and so much that you don’t know what to expect.

Charlotte: That feeling of exhilaration- ‘I’m published! Someone likes my writing enough to pay me! I’ll see my book in bookstores and libraries!’ You only get that breathless, one-of-a-kind joy once.

 

What were you most afraid of? What are you most afraid of now?

Tiffany: Hmm. I think it was a toss-up between terrified of everyone hating my book or everyone ignoring it. I’m still not sure which would be worse, loathing or obscurity. On one hand, it’s so hard to handle criticism, but on the other, inspiring hatred means you’re at least provoking a reaction, whereas being unnoticed means you’ve put your heart on a page and no one cares?

I’m not sure I have a good, clear answer for this one. I’m also not sure that my answer has changed.

 

Mindi: I think my biggest fear is the same now as it was then: That I’ll have put so much into my writing and no one out there will care.

Charlotte: Initially, the thing I was most afraid of was that they’d change their minds, say they ‘made a mistake.’ Now I worry about sales, the next contract, the next manuscript, the next query.

 

What advice would you give debut authors?

Tiffany: First, celebrate yourself. You’ve achieved something spectacular and no one can ever take that away from you. Your book, your story, has earned a spot between covers and on bookshelves. While it can be so easy to get caught up in stresses about print runs, reviews, sales, and such, whenever you find yourself spiraling down the not-good-enough rabbit hole, stop and pat yourself on the back for what you’ve accomplished.

Second, don’t be afraid of the word ‘no.’ Use it when you need to. It’s remarkably easy to burn yourself out by saying yes to every request that comes your way. Make sure you know your limits. Make sure you protect your sanity and writing time. Remember: if you don’t leave yourself time to sit down to write your next novel, then we won’t get to read it.

…and that would be criminal!

Mindi: Some authors don’t read reviews of their work. Others read every single review. That’s a choice that everyone has to make. My advice is that you occasionally reevaluate your choice—especially if it starts getting in the way of your new writing. 

Charlotte: Enjoy the moment. Take pictures. Save posters announcing your debut. Save reviews (yes, even the bad ones!). Let people approach you to talk about the book- savor the spotlight because it’s all too brief and people quickly move on to the next debut.

 

 

Tiffany Schmidt is the author of Send me a Sign and Bright Before Sunrise, which comes out February 18, 2014 from Walker-Bloomsbury.

 

Mindi Scott is the author of Freefall and Live Through This.

 

Charlotte Bennardo is the co-author of the Sirenz series, as well as Blond Ops, which will be released by Thomas Dunn/St. Martins in April 2014.

 

Books are Bared Souls

Sharing your art with the world is an act of bravery. It’s not the same as standing on the front lines or saving people from burning buildings. But I do believe that great art saves lives in that it has the power to change us, to make us better, to give us hope. As a writer, I know just how terrifying it is to pour yourself into a creation and then let it go out into the world on its own. With no protection. With no way of calling it back once it’s gone. For Whovians, it’s very much like the Ood, who hold their brains in their hands, vulnerable and unprotected. But heavens the beauty of that song to those who are willing to listen.

As a reader, I want to thank those authors who offer themselves and their art to the rest of us. They are willing to face ridicule and heartbreak in order to share their wonderful worlds. I have been changed by books. I have laughed, cried, and trembled in both joy and fear as I read words written and shaped by authors who were brave enough to get hurt.

I don’t love all of the books I read. But I’m grateful to those authors anyway, because even if that book didn’t speak to me, it probably spoke to someone else. Sometimes a book doesn’t sing to me until years later. Because while we are changed by books, books are changed by us as well. We read them differently as we grow different, as we change and learn. That’s the great thing about stories. They are ever changing.

Thank you to the story-makers, to the yarn-spinners and the tale-weavers. Thank you for facing the world with your soul bared. You spoke to mine when you did.

Are You a Writer?

I always find it interesting when two of my worlds collide, which often happens with my running and writing life. I have seen the need for names or labels divide both runners and writers, and I wanted to address this. In the running world, there is a debate about the right to be called a runner verses a jogger. Some runners feel that you only earn the right to call yourself a runner if you run a certain mile split. Others feel it has to do with the amount of races you do. Me? I believe you earn the title of runner, and likewise writer, through consistency and commitment.

 

I am a runner.  Six days a week, I lace up my running shoes and hit the road.  Sometimes I run twenty-two miles; sometimes I run only four.  I run in the humidity, in the dark, in the rain.  Sometimes I can’t wait to get out there and fly over the ground, and sometimes I slog through the run, looking forward to the shower at the end.  There are even some days when I sleep in and miss the run completely, though that doesn’t happen that often.  I’ve never won a race.  I've placed in my age-group.  I’ve seen my marathon times get better and better, I’ve seen my mile splits get smaller, and I’ve set goals and crashed through them.  But I’ve never won a race, and I probably never will.  I’m okay with that.  I’m a solid mid-packer.  I am close to Boston qualifying, which I am quite proud of, but I've never broken through that tape.  But I am still a runner.

I don’t know why that lesson was so hard for me to learn when it came to writing.  At first, I never told anyone that I wrote.  It was a hobby that was just mine, an indulgence that was too sacred to share.  Then, when I finally got the courage, I told people that I liked to write.  I wrote almost every day, most often meeting and exceeding my goal of 1,000 words, but I could not call myself a writer.  I liked to write.  Because in my mind, until I was published, and published more than once, I was not a writer.

How silly.  I run every day, therefore I am a runner.  I write every day, therefore I’m a writer.  It should be that simple, but it’s not.  It took me a while to see it that way, mainly because I let other people’s perceptions color my own.  But then where is that line?  Are you only a writer if you are published?  Or are you only a writer if you can make your living that way?  Or are you only a writer if you have been validated by someone you deem worthy?

I am not a person who believes everyone deserves a trophy for participating. But I do think there are many ways to be a writer, and only some of them involve being published.  If you love words enough to craft them into sentence and story, then you are a writer. If you write consistently and hone your craft, you are a writer. To me the line between someone who writes and a writer is passion and drive. A writer works at her art and pushes herself to be better. But you don’t have to cross that finish line first to cross that finish line – you just have to meet whatever goal you set for yourself and find joy in the act of doing.  That is running. And that is writing.