Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Musing

I hope my regular readers don’t abandon me while I’m in this state.  I hope one day you’ll drop in and read that I’ve begun something.

Meanwhile, perhaps this tells you what can happen to a writer at my stage in a career.  The fact is I don’t have a career at this time.  I have lots of work behind me, but now … nothing.  And no publisher is waiting for me to turn in anything.

As this stage has gone on and on I realized I’ve been derailed by many things.  Not all of them my doing.  We all know that the state of publishing is a mess.  So this doesn’t make me want to knock myself out trying to get back on track.

I’m a writer and my natural state is to be writing.  Still, knowing that probably nothing will happen to anything I write is depressing.  This isn’t my imagination.  I have a track record and you’re only as good as your last book.  In other words, how much money you made for the publisher.

This is understandable.  Publishing is a business.  My career has not been a splashy one.  Pretty steady though.  Once I started publishing only one book of mine was rejected…never published.  So it’s hard to think of writing knowing it might end up in a drawer.  I’m not used to it.

Yes, I put 200 pages in a drawer a year ago, but that was by choice.  I’m talking about a finished manuscript.  Anyone who tells you they write for the sake of writing is either a liar or a fool.

If and when I start again, the knowledge that what I’m writing may never be published will always be with me.  During most of my career I wondered, never sure I’d sell a book, but this is different. 

I’m nearer to the end instead of the beginning. Or even the middle.  It’s harder here.

4 comments:

A said...

Fortunately you have named it "Musing" and humour prevail if all fill our pockets stones to go swimming with Virginia. You are very strong because in effect it just "shift" the title of a text desperate to does not completely and allow an opening.
Good luck Sandra,, the world of publishing is hard but your way is not finish!
I am with you.

Picks by Pat said...

I look forward to the day when I can read another one of your books. We'll still be here. I appreciate the difficulty...I'm working on my next book, and some days it is a struggle to write one sentence, or one paragraph!

Good luck!

Jessica Ferguson said...

I'm sure your regulars will hang with you. We're still learning from you. I try to put myself in your place and wonder how I might handle such a thing.

Thanks for sharing.

anne said...

You say that publishers don't wait for you but readers do ! In France for example, we are still waiting for the next Lauren Laurano, which would be followed by another and another...What about a Lauren Laurano in publishing business ? You start tomorrow ? Waiting for you !
And wishing you all the best !
anne and claudia