Dear young writer,
Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Gina Fiametta, and I am an author.
I’ve self-published one novel and have several others in the works. I’ve spoken at a couple of events and sold my book at many others. I’ve kept a blog and maintained a website for years, and I’ve got a little over a year of making money on Patreon under my belt now. I’ve researched the publishing industry, read books and blogs, queried agents, gone to author talks, attended panels, and rubbed elbows with other indie authors and booksellers.
I’ve got a bachelor’s degree in English, which means I’ve spent four years reading books, writing papers, and having heated discussions with other passionate academics. I’ve worked in various writing roles since I graduated, as well as a few part-time positions at libraries, both public and academic.
All that to say, I’ve done a lot and I’ve learned a lot. And informed by those experiences, here is what I would say to you, and to young me if I could go back in time.
- Start today.
Do what you can with what you have. Start building that online community or blog platform. Keep chipping away at that story between classes, before work, after everyone goes to bed, or whatever snippet of time you’ve got.
In my case, I was often in my pajamas, at my computer, typing away from about eight to ten in the evenings when I was in college. And even at that point in my life, I wish I had done more. I wish I had started taking my dream seriously sooner, because I know now that I want it more than anything else. But I guess I had to learn that lesson in my own time.
- Take your dream seriously.
The needle won’t move until you do. And if you spend all day every day making apologies for having such a high goal, your brain will believe it’s not going to happen in real life and behave accordingly. Don’t do that to yourself.
And don’t wait for this dream to just fall on you. Remember that story of the man who spent every day praying that he’d win the lottery, and one day he heard back, “Then please, please, please buy a ticket!”? You’ll only get published once you finish writing. Once you hire an editor. Once you put yourself out there. It’s scary. But that’s where dreams live.
- Assess your timeline.
Writing fiction isn’t a weekend endeavor. So it’s important to keep two things in mind: first, that this will take years to pursue, between writing, editing, publishing, marketing, and doing it all again. Second, life is short. Thirty, forty, fifty, and sixty have a way of sneaking up on you. So if this is something you want, go get it now.
Life is short, but it’s a long time to spend not pursuing your dreams. Never wait for “someday.”
- Seek out community.
Plenty of people will try to sell stuff to you, and you’ll do plenty of selling yourself. This is not that.
Find people in your industry (and yes, this is an industry) and just shoot the breeze with them. Learn how they got where they are and whether they like it. What are their plans? What are their struggles? Share yours.
Some of your greatest allies will be other authors, booksellers, and book nerds just like you. And you’re going to need them.
- Assess the advice you receive.
Not everyone has your best interests at heart. Some people are selling a product, while others simply don’t understand your goals. So if they’ve got their eyes somewhere else, smile politely and walk on.
This can be even harder when the advice is coming from someone who does care about you but still doesn’t share your vision. My rule of thumb is that if they’ve never worked in the publishing industry or pursued a long-term creative project, understand that their advice, though well-meant, doesn’t apply to your situation.
- Get nosy.
Hang out where books and other book people live. Go to author Q&As with a list of questions ready and a pen to take notes. Ask your local librarians about the statistics of what gets checked out and how they select what books to buy.
Do research. I implore you, go down whatever rabbit hole tugs at your soul! Whether it’s the subject of your next book, a niche of our industry, or something totally off-the-wall that strikes your fancy, feed your mind. It’s free if you use your resources well. (Read: LIBRARIES.)
- Be resilient.
Some authors never make a dime. Some make billions. The key is to not let either of those realities rock you.
As you pursue what speaks to you and get to know other people who share your interests, you’ll find your niche. Then find out what you need to do next and do it.
It’s like crossing a high bridge: if you’re afraid of heights, don’t look down. Just focus on the next step in front of you.
- Adapt.
Publishing is a changing industry. It’s completely different from when I was a kid, and the changes keep rolling in. Keep your ear to the ground and keep doing what you do.
The place you occupy in the grand scheme of things may change, but one thing that hasn’t across human history is that we crave stories. Keep writing them.
- Bonus: If you take another job, let it be adjacent to your dream.
Some people find that writing for work scratches that creative itch. For me, it didn’t. It merely exhausted my creative resources and left me with nothing to give to my true passion (or anything else in my life). But if you take a job in the publishing industry, or bookselling, or libraries, you will find that some of the knowledge transfers well to your writing career.
Plugging away at something just to make money when your heart is somewhere else is no easy task, but I find that it chafes far less when you can apply the knowledge you gain in your day job to your fiction career.
- Keep your chin up.
You’ve probably heard grim statistics about making a living in this industry and how many rejections even J. K. Rowling got before she made it big, so I’ll spare you another such disheartening speech.
It’s true in this industry, as it is in every other are of life, that we have no guarantees. But we don’t spend the better portion of our lives on the mountaintops we prayed for. We spend most of them climbing. So what do you want to spend your life working for?
I’ve come to find that whether you build yourself up or cut yourself down, the sun will rise again tomorrow just the same. You may as well choose what speaks to your soul and be at peace.
More than anything else, young writer, I would give you a hug and silently pray over you that God shows you how to feed that fire in your soul and keep it burning brightly.
Be well, young writer. The world still needs your stories.
But more than anything, it needs you.
