Myth #1. Wait until that extra-special story idea comes into your
head before you start to write.
If
you wait for that special story idea, you may never write a thing. Ideas for stories are all around you, it’s
what you do with them that counts.
Myth #2. You’ll become rich and famous being a writer.
I
guess there are writers who have become rich through their writing but they are in the
minority. Most of us have to keep our
day job in order to pay the bills. That
doesn’t mean, however, that we can’t dream!
PS. You probably won’t become famous either.
Myth #3. Once your book is published it will sell hundreds, perhaps
thousands of copies.
This
can happen but not without constant attention to marketing. Without that, your book is invisible to potential
readers.
Myth #4. Writing gets easier.
It
doesn’t matter how many books you write, it doesn’t get easier, although you
may do it a little faster. Each book you
write is a new challenge and you go through the same doubts. Am I wasting my time? Is my plot any good? Will readers like this story? Will it be as good as my last book? The list goes on.
Myth #5. Self publishing is easy.
Granted,
it is fairly easy to upload a book for publication, but you can only do that
after you have written the book, edited the book, polished the book, formatted
the book, written the book’s blurb, found and employed a cover designer and developed
a marketing strategy. When you’ve done
all that, you can start to publicize and, hopefully, procure reviews. In closing, I don’t think that self publishing is
easy, but it is satisfying.
Myth #6. It’s easy to find an agent/traditional publisher.
You
can spend months if not years trying to find an agent let alone a publisher who
will consent to read your manuscript. In
my experience, few publishers will read unsolicited manuscripts. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you
shouldn’t try if your wish is to be traditionally published. I always think that being traditionally
published first gives an author a window into the world of publishing.
Myth #7. Writing is
a solitary activity.
It
might have been once upon a time but nowadays with social media, emails, Skype,
telephones etc., it seems like there are an awful lot of people in my study
while I’m writing!
Do you still want to be a writer?
