2/8/13
I cannot count the number of people who have commented that they would one day like to write a book or a memoir. The truth is that there is a story in every single person, but getting it out and making it interesting is a huge challenge. Then an ever harder task presents itself: making your story marketable (i.e. if not making a profit or providing a living, at least paying for itself).
The smartest man I ever worked for was at The Tribune in Ames, when Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Gartner owned the paper but was running NBC News in NY. Gartner suggested I write a column and how to go about it. Later he asked me to move to the news side as editor, because "that's what gets your juices flowing, Waller."
He's also the guy who told me that every individual has a story, but not every reporter or writer can pull it out of that person - let alone make it interesting.
Writing your own story can be wonderful therapy, but there is pain and dedication involved and the book world is upside down. Publishing is so much harder than the initial idea or the writing process. About the only way you can get a big publisher to take on your story is if you are famous or infamous, but that doesn't mean your tale is unworthy.
But be aware if you decide to self-publish, as I have done with "Walkin' Joe and The Midnight Marauders," of pitfalls.
There is a whole, expanding cottage industry of those who will sell you books, workshops, tutorials, seminars and all aspects of publishing - all at a cost. It seems people like us who wish to tell our story are vulnerable because our egos are on the line. Thankfully my exposure to people like Gartner, along with experience in writing and publishing, have provided a foundation of caution and common sense.
The closest I came to biting was last year when a NYC publisher said he wanted me to sign an exclusive contract for one year. Buried in the contract was the point that "first-time authors" had to come up with $8,500 to cover "publicity costs" to get the show on the road.
My little show is on the road for a lot less than that and my ego seems quite intact.
I hope I am not boring you with all this, but if I am at least there is no charge...
You're comments remind me a great deal of song writing. While I'm not the most prolific songwriter around, I have written a few. I've heard it said that authors are much better off writing about what they know. I think the same hold true for songwriters. Write what you know and what you feel.
ReplyDeleteTechnology has been a gift to creative writers as you know. Record companies are struggling to stay relevant due to the ability for musicians to record, publish and distribute their own material. That being said the pitfalls are the same as for authors. I'm bombarded by offers from companies that will get my recorded material "placed" with I Tunes, CD Baby, Rhapsody and countless others. All for a fee. The truth is it's easy to put your material on I Tunes, but being just one selection in a catalog of around a billion others doesn't really help you. You still have to find a way for people to find your material. And the "pay" companies can't do that.
So, Denny I understand the trails and tribulations of trying to get published, and all of the potholes encountered on the way.
Good luck with your future work. I'll be watching for it.
Sadly, talented Dale Fraser died in 2013 of cancer. May he rest in peace.
DeleteUntil you mentioned it, Dale, I did not realize the song-writing/performing world is also upside down and the cottage industry feeding off of talented, but perhaps naive people like us is alive and well in the music world.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything you say here. Next time in Algona we should have a cup of coffee. Thanks for your reading and comments, Dale.