As you may already know, the title of this week’s blpgpost, “Noms de Plume,” is the French for “pen names,” not so often used now as the English term, but once very common, as was the practice of using pen names. They are also called “pseudonyms”: false names. You may wonder, quite understandably, why any author would want to hide her/his light under a bushel—or under a faux byline. Actually there are many reasons, some of them quite good.

I don’t often get asked the question that is the title of this week’s blogpost, but I do hear it from time to time. Of the millions of books that are published, damned few are best sellers. And I don’t personally know anyone who has written one.

A publisher who is also a writer herself posted a query on Facebook yesterday, asking other writers what their routine is: Do they give themselves quotas (she didn’t use that word) of turning out so many words per day or putting in so many minutes or hours per day of writing?

As you may know, I not only write but edit as well. And, as I believe I have stated in this space previously, my personal reading preferences run strongly to nonfiction. My leisure reading rarely includes novels, and only on select occasions does the nonfiction I read include anything political or scientific. But my work often brings me manuscripts to edit that range far afield from my usual reading tastes. And, to my mind, that’s a good thing.

I have a friend who loves to go to book sales. Even better, last weekend there was a FREE book grab, and she absolutely POUNCED. What does she do with all the books she acquires? Some she reads and keeps. Others she reads and then resells on eBay. Some she buys for resale purposes from the get-go, not intending to read them herself but sure that there is a market for them. And some—mostly the ones that fail to sell—she simply lets go of.

For all that we writers sometimes cuss, moan, groan, and fret over writing, writing is one of the most enjoyable activities I know. Yes, we face deadlines, and yes, there are times when we are hit with writer’s block, and there are times when we have to call a friend, desperate for help: “I can’t think of a word!” You know the word you want is out there, but you just can’t call it to mind—and it’s frustration city! So yes, there are downtimes and frustrations.

How do you divest yourself of books when you just have too many? Of course, you could argue that there is no such thing as “too many books,” and in one sense you’d be right, but in another sense—when your bookshelves are overflowing, and you have stacks of additional books here, there, and everywhere—it really is time to re-home some books.

Amazon.com had good news for readers and bad news for authors last week, concerning the book reviews posted on their site. Since so many people buy their books on Amazon, getting a good review there is highly desirable. It’s hit-or-miss, however, as to whether any readers will actually post reviews. What’s an author to do?

Today there is a proliferation of more books being published than ever—which is both good and bad. ~ It’s good for readers because they have more books than ever to choose among. ~ It’s good for authors because they have more opportunity than ever to get their books published. ~ But it’s bad for readers because some of what’s out there are bad books—either badly written or poorly edited, or both—and how is a reader to know which books are worth buying? ~ And it’s bad for writers because with so many books out there, competition is fierce and sales...

I gave a speech at one of the local libraries this past Saturday afternoon. Only a small group of people showed up. “We get so little participation in our adult programs,” the library director bemoaned as we conversed before the program started. “They come to borrow books and other materials, but they don’t take advantage of our programs.”