[I value honesty and won't look down on anyone who does want to be told it's easy and doesn't want to hear criticism. Just be honest with your answers and true feelings.]
I've noticed for several months now that many people (mostly teens) don't want to be told how hard it is to get published. They want to believe that it's as easy as sending off their work and having a publisher call and offer them money. Well, it ain't so easy. Over 90% of manuscripts will be rejected for very good reasons. But, some people don't want to be told about how hard it is to be published, and seem to want everyone to tell them that their work is great and if they send it off tomorrow then they'll get a paycheck in the mail right away. So, I'm wondering, if people get upset because they don't want to be told how hard it is to be published, then how are they going to take rejection once it comes from a publisher or agent?
So, I'm wondering, are YOU grounding in reality with what publishing entails? Have you done your research outside of asking strangers on Y!A? Do you know what your chances are of being published? Have you read publisher and literary agent blogs and communicated with authors and other writers to learn about the business? Do you know about the many scams that plague the publishing industry, including those that have gotten "literary agencies" and "publishers" shut down by the government for fraud? Do you know the differences between commercial publishing, self-publishing, and vanity publishing?
So, what are your thoughts on this and what research have you done to prepare yourself for a future in publishing? Are you prime meat for the many scammers or are you a savvy aspiring author?
I'll answer this myself since I'm an aspiring author, I've done all the above. Since I do know how hard it is to get published, I've been able to take the information I've learned and researched thoroughly the things that make a manuscript publishable. I've taken great diligence to make sure I don't make amateur writer mistakes with my manuscript. Knowing that publishing is a hard biz to break into has truly made me work HARDER to make my manuscript better than 99% of those sent to agents and publishers. Back when I didn't know this information, I mistakenly thought that anything I wrote was gold and would sell. Boy, was I wrong! - and I would have been SO disappointed when the rejections started coming in that I probably would have given up writing. So, instead of not wanting to know how hard it is, I want to know because it's making me a better writer and helping me to prepare for the worst and keep on trying. I've also done months of research to help me prepare and understand the business, so I think I'm a savvy aspiring author who can spot a scam.
I've noticed for several months now that many people (mostly teens) don't want to be told how hard it is to get published. They want to believe that it's as easy as sending off their work and having a publisher call and offer them money. Well, it ain't so easy. Over 90% of manuscripts will be rejected for very good reasons. But, some people don't want to be told about how hard it is to be published, and seem to want everyone to tell them that their work is great and if they send it off tomorrow then they'll get a paycheck in the mail right away. So, I'm wondering, if people get upset because they don't want to be told how hard it is to be published, then how are they going to take rejection once it comes from a publisher or agent?
So, I'm wondering, are YOU grounding in reality with what publishing entails? Have you done your research outside of asking strangers on Y!A? Do you know what your chances are of being published? Have you read publisher and literary agent blogs and communicated with authors and other writers to learn about the business? Do you know about the many scams that plague the publishing industry, including those that have gotten "literary agencies" and "publishers" shut down by the government for fraud? Do you know the differences between commercial publishing, self-publishing, and vanity publishing?
So, what are your thoughts on this and what research have you done to prepare yourself for a future in publishing? Are you prime meat for the many scammers or are you a savvy aspiring author?
I'll answer this myself since I'm an aspiring author, I've done all the above. Since I do know how hard it is to get published, I've been able to take the information I've learned and researched thoroughly the things that make a manuscript publishable. I've taken great diligence to make sure I don't make amateur writer mistakes with my manuscript. Knowing that publishing is a hard biz to break into has truly made me work HARDER to make my manuscript better than 99% of those sent to agents and publishers. Back when I didn't know this information, I mistakenly thought that anything I wrote was gold and would sell. Boy, was I wrong! - and I would have been SO disappointed when the rejections started coming in that I probably would have given up writing. So, instead of not wanting to know how hard it is, I want to know because it's making me a better writer and helping me to prepare for the worst and keep on trying. I've also done months of research to help me prepare and understand the business, so I think I'm a savvy aspiring author who can spot a scam.