The Conditions of the Writer

Book idea – check

Propose – check

Contract, write, publish – check, check, check.

What then? The bit that is kept quiet. This is the time you sell your soul to anyone that makes eye contact: in the virtual or the real world.

It involves pestering contacting: often after stalking searching for, various editors, journalists, reviewers, bloggers, radio hosts, TV peeps and people in general who you think might say nice things or even write about you and/or your book.

Many authors suffer with the heebie jeebies before they’ve even made a scratch on the slate. They want to write to be published but manage to fill themselves with fear. There are those who take 23 years to complete a novel. Unlikely it took that long, that was the time spent getting up some bravery to do something with it.

The process of selling yourself is the same whether you have a publisher or do it yourself – it just happens at different stages.

The neurotic writer is also a bit schizophrenic and the other personality is paranoid. Interestingly this can happen all at once while they worry about pitching to journalists. Why is that?

Because they might laugh?

Because they will ignore your emails or they are always in a meeting if you call?

Because all you really want to say is, ‘Please write about me. Go on. Please. Pick me. Pick me. Just do it, damn you!'

If no reply you decide they don’t like you. You make this assumption about someone when you don’t even know what they look like. It’s easy.

What can be done?

Do not take things personally

Do not get flouncy and defensive

Remember everything is about timing. If one ignores you or doesn’t respond the next one might not. They probably will but the one after…

As the RAF officer shouted to the cadets in the rain, ‘Man up! Skin is waterproof!”

Are all writers neurotic? No, but it might help.

The answer really is to ‘let it go’. Try not to stress about the outcome. Keep smiling and carry on.

Thanks for reading. Now buy my book. Go on. No, really go on :)

It's called The Psychic Way and people have said nice things!