In my last post, I said I would talk about strategies I’ve embarked on to reach my audience, but then I realized that was a terrible idea. If you write, you know there is a lot out there on marketing, promotion, and advertising your books (much of it BS), and I have nothing new to offer. Actually, my shots in the dark might be detrimental to your career. My last blog post (posted a week ago) has received 39 views thus far, which is fairly consistent for me. The average bus can fit about 50 passengers, so my weekly blog audience is equivalent to a two-thirds full bus. It’s a great group, and I will drive you anywhere you want to go, but the topic of building audiences is clearly not my forte.
When I faced the blank screen last week, exploring my audience seemed like a good idea. But sometimes, I don’t want to write about my quest. Frankly, all aspects of being a writer outside of actually writing suck, and it seems it continually gets harder. As I face the mountain, staying optimistic is hard, and I don’t want to be a Debby downer. So, let’s switch gears, move away from my quest, and focus on someone else’s.
Recently, as I scrolled through endless YouTube videos, I stumbled upon one of Anthony Bourdain’s last interviews before he took his own life in 2018. It then led down a rabbit hole of rewatching his old “No Reservations” shows. His eventual move out of the culinary world and into telling mainstream stories in “Parts Unknown” made me glad I chose to hop aboard his bus way back in the early 2000s. I’ve written before that his passing impacted me more than any other stranger’s death. I loved his television shows, drawing me to his books, where his raw, honest, and often irreverent voice inspired me. In my mind, Anthony lived the dream- creating art while traveling the world, eating, and drinking from one adventure to another. His decision that life was no longer worth living struck me to my very core, a pain that still moistens my eyes five years later. It proves that success doesn’t always mean happiness. On the surface, Anthony Bourdain seemed like he had everything, but clearly, something was missing. We will never know what that was. Only Anthony knew.
In the interview, Anthony talked about his famed article that exploded his career almost overnight when he was 44. He first tried to get his expose on the dark underbelly of the culinary world published in a newspaper, but it kept getting pushed back in the schedule. His mother suggested that he aim higher, and he did, choosing the New Yorker. They ran the article that caught the eye of someone at Bloomsbury who approached him with a $50k advance to write a book that soon became a best-seller. His famed TV career followed. But before all that, Anthony struggled as a writer, having written two fiction works that did not succeed, but he kept pushing forward, and eventually, someone realized he had something worth saying.
When I realized Anthony did not find success until he was 44, it gave me some hope. I will soon turn 42. I wrote my first book at 23, meaning I have been at it for almost twenty years. I was beginning to think I was falling out of my prime, but with some research, I discovered that the average age of an employed writer just happens to be 42 and that 52% of writers are over the age of 40. Since the pandemic, as I delved into this at full speed, I have grown exponentially as a writer. Maybe there is some hope after all. As I wind up my second read-through of Koen, I can’t help but get excited. It is a good book, likely my best thus far. I know the odds are stacked against me. The chances of an author getting published are 1-2%, with publishers rejecting 95% of submitted manuscripts outright. Even if published, the median income from a book is about $3,000, with most authors failing to “earn out” of their advances.
Chances are Koen will not make me rich or famous, but luckily, Anthony Bourdain taught me success is relative. Right now, success for me is just getting a book traditionally published. It is validation that my writing is not just vanity but something others find of merit. It’s a lofty goal but not completely ridiculous. And for those scant few that ride my bus, I know it’s bumpy sometimes, but I hope the destination will make it all worth it.
Cheers!
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So much of what you wrote resonated with my writer heart. The building of the audience is so hard, and a big part is that I don’t want to have to sell myself; I want my writing to speak for itself… But I guess that isn’t the way in the modern writing world. I go back and forth between feeling incredibly optimistic and depressingly pessimistic about my odds for publication. But the fact of the matter is I enjoy writing, so I keep plodding along even on my worst days.
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I go back and forth too. Most days are hard- clicks and rankings dropping, sales flat-lining, few to no reviews, shouting into the void, etc. But then, a few KEMP page reads flicker to life and you yell, “I got one!” You watch the numbers rise as you bite your nails. Do they like it? Then suddenly they are onto the next book in the series, then the third. Gosh, they must like it if they are continuing. Certainly, they will leave a review praising the glory of my written word! Cloud nine comes into view and you are on top of the world. Then, it all disappears and you start from the beginning again- likely without that damned review. It’s a tough life. But remember the highs. Someone, someplace is reading your soul. They may like it or they may hate it, but they are still wandering around in your world and that’s pretty cool.
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Scott, I enjoy your blog and have been following it for a while though the genre you write in is not my favorite. I began writing years ago and had some small successes, placing a few stories in minor magazines and newspapers and writing book reviews, but it was slow slogging that gave way to my other career, acquiring a couple of advanced degrees, raising two children, and following my husband around the world for a time. When I retired a few years ago, I considered my creative writing a thing far in the past and did not take it back up for a rather long time. I finally did and now have a children’s novel coming out in the spring. It is traditionally published, a process that is in itself quite an ordeal, but exciting. I am decades older than you and have several projects in progress but realize that as much time as writing and the publishing process eat up, I will likely never have an extensive body of work. So what? Please keep writing. You are so talented and cannot gauge your success on the whims of publishers. Keep looking for that special publisher. I ran across the following quote today: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” George Elliot
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Thank you for following my blog and for this comment! The quote resonates. Who knows if I will reach my dreams, but at least I can say I tried, right? Good luck with your new book and future projects.
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Thanks for sharing this idea..it definitely caught my attention. Anita
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Thanks for sharing
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Thank you for this article, Scott. It’s a hard world to face, and the more inside knowledge writers like you share, the better prepared the rest of us will be. I believe that love is the key, because perseverance is the only way, and the only way to sustainably persevere is through love. We have to love it all, and we have to love who we write to, feeling that every piece we publish is a gift that may help or bring joy to someone. As long as we can still put food on the table somehow, this love can sustain our efforts. I think the other side we all strive for will have its own set of challenges, and we may wish for the days when we were unknown, when we had the freedom to write whatever we wanted to, unrestrained by the demands of the industry. But we will still write, because that’s what we do.
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Have you given much thought to the admonition to the advice not to reveal your plans to others? Broadcasting your plans can be the shortcut to discouragement and self-sabotage. It fosters the illusion that the project is already completed.
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Good morning, Scott, and thank you for ‘liking’ my Moon blog. I finally dipped into your writing and find it clear as a bell, something I aspire to emulate. I notice you live in the Boston area as do I, and wonder about a chat..I am curious if you are interested in astrology? or Druidry?, which are covered in my blog. I will be back to read more.
Also, you may know this, and not mind, but WordPress sticks disgusting ads into your blog unless you pay them $35 a year, which is a bargain.
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Love every word on this page – the ones you write and those from our fellow writers. Selling our books is a thrill, but the writing of them keeps us breathing.
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