“I’d love to be a writer,” someone said to me the other day, “but I have no ideas on what to write about.”
She seemed to think it was that simple: Just think of an idea…and write it.
Nope. Guess again. Yes, a good idea is crucial to writing a book (or writing anything, for that matter—stories, essays, poems, plays, song lyrics…you name it), but it takes much more than just an idea to result in a good story. Surely you’ve noticed that some writing plods while other writing sings and soars. Some writers have the gift, while other writers (or would-be writers) lack it.
And then there are the matters of such basics as grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Some would-be writers mistakenly think that’s what an editor’s job is, so they, the writers, don’t have to worry if they are lacking in basic skills. Wrong again. If a writer commits a grammar gaffe, a spelling goof, or some other basic oops, of course the editor has to fix it. But loading your manuscript up with such mistakes is a sure recipe for collecting rejection slips. Almost all editors are overworked (and underpaid) and, given a choice of two books to accept, edit, and publish, all other factors being equal (both are good stories, well written), will choose the one that needs the least editorial work.
Are you thinking of writing a book? Maybe it’s even on your to-do list or your resolutions list for 2016: “I will write a romance novel,” “I will write the story of my pioneer great-uncle,” “I will write a book for kids,” “I will write my memoirs.” All of these are admirable ideas, and these days, with self-publishing (now called “indie publishing”) having become respectable, you don’t even have to worry about whether you can find a publisher interesred in your book. If you have the requisite money, you can publish it yourself.
But wait! Who’s going to buy your book? Who’s going to read it?
Even we seasoned professional writers worry about sales of our books. Even those of us who go the conventional route and get traditional publishers to publish our books know that simply putting it out there isn’t enough.
You have to get people interested in buying it. And for that you need good publicity and good word of mouth.
If you’re a newbie, a novice writer, the fact that this is your first book…your only book, at least so far…may be inducement enough for your family members and friends to buy copies of it. And indeed, that’s a fine beginning. But if you want to be taken seriously as a writer…if you want to take yourself seriously as a writer…you need to sell copies of your book to people beyond your immediate circle. You need to sell to people who hear about your book and think, Hmmm…that sounds like an interesting book. Let me buy a copy. You need to sell to people who hear about your book from people who tell them, “I read this really good book the other day. It’s well-written, interesting…. You ought to pick up a copy.” You need good word of mouth.
And you don’t get that with a half-baked book—a book that’s not well written, or is sloppy in matters of grammar, spelling, and punctuation, or a book on a topic nobody cares about.
You don’t have to take college writing courses or be a journalism school grad to be a good writer. I have over 100 published books to my credit—books that were published by conventional publishers. I never paid a dime to get my books in print. And I’m not a J-school grad. I’ve had exactly two college courses in writing. I’m basically self-taught. But I have an innate writing ability…and a good grasp of grammar, spelliing, and punctuation.
If you’re lacking in the basics—the grammar, spelling, and punctuation—you can always hire an editor to “clean up your act” before you submit your book to a publisher or go the indie route. And if you have a great idea for a book but lack the ability to make your words sing, you can always hire a ghostwriter…but then, you won’t feel quite as much of a sense of pride in “your” book when it finally comes out.
But what if you do have the ability to write well? And a good idea for a book—or maybe several? And a good knowledge of the basics (or the contact info for a good editor)?
Then go for it! Maybe 2016 is the year you’ll write your first book—for real. And maybe it’ll be the first of many.
I can’t begin to express to you the joy, the satisfaction, the pleasure there is in writing.
If 2016 is the year you write your first book, it may be your best year yet!
Meanwhile, I hope you’ll keep reading books written by us other writers. Reading a good book, dissecting the reasons you liked it, and learning from the way the author crafted her or his book may be your best education yet in how to write well.
Happy reading! And happy writing!