The Writing Afterlife

On June 3rd, 2006, I wrote the first post on a website that would later evolve into Militant Ginger.

Back then, I was mostly blogging about writing - and boasting about how I was putting together what was sure to be a series of best-selling adventure stories about Eddy Newbolt!

(Still working on that - or not, as the case may be.)

My first ever post read:

After finding his fascinating blog about writing on the net, Exeter based writer Ian Hocking was kind enough to check out Adventure Eddy, and even had a few kind words to say about it. Read here.

Four years, three thousand miles and an extended sabbatical for Adventure Eddy later, I discovered this post on Ian's blog. In it, he basically announces his 'retirement' from writing.

"Fifteen years is a fair crack of the whip. As of now, I am no longer a writer of fiction."

Why? Because he feels he's not going to get anywhere with it.

Ian's written some cracking books - most notably Déjà Vu, a "clever and satisfying" sci-fi thriller which The Guardian said was written with "quiet skill" - but hasn't hit the big time like he'd once hoped he might.

As a result, he's become aware that the time and effort he's invested in writing has meant he's missed out on opportunities and experiences elsewhere:

"Many sacrifices have been made by me and the people who love me in order that I have the time and space to write. There is a cost to this; they deserve the benefit of seeing that the cost was not wasted and, as far as I can see, this is not going to happen."

I feel ashamed that I didn't read this post when he first wrote it. It's deeply touching and speaks to the very core of a writer's identity.

It makes me especially sad because Ian was one of the people who first inspired me to start blogging - something that's helped give a focus and identity to my life and career over the past four years.

I'm hardly Stephen King - but I am a writer these days. In fact, I can use that term to describe myself with a blithe confidence that I couldn't when Ian first took a few moments to write about my literary ambitions.

Okay, I tend to write articles now. And blog posts. And corporate tweets and Facebook messages, and radio ads, and website copy. I get paid to write a gazillion different things (none of which, admittedly, have anything to do with a redheaded rogue solving crimes.)

But I write. Every day. I get paid to do it and I do it (I like to think) very well.

I am a writer - and Ian Hocking's brief, encouraging words were stones in the path that helped me reach that stage (a path hewn from the encouragement and support of all sorts of other people, most significantly my parents, family and wife.)

That in itself proves that Ian is a undeniably a great writer - because words are normally just ink on a page (or pixels on a screen.) It takes real talent to make them inspirational.

So I'm sorry you're not writing any more, Ian. Something tells me it's our loss.

This Writing Life

Check out Ian Hocking's site, This Writing Life, for a very thoughtful and poignant post on the daunting prospect of starting a new writing project.

Ian has had more than his fair share of ups and downs on the road to publication. His critically acclaimed first novel, Deja Vu, has been dropped and picked up a couple of times now. It seems he's stuck in the maddening limbo of Publication Purgatory. Agents and publishers acknowledge that his book is excellent - it's just they're not willing to take a financial gamble on it.

And that's the big hurdle all us aspiring writers face. Even if we Nanowrimo ourselves into producing a publishable manuscript, getting it in front of an open minded publisher is a far more daunting prospect than writing the damn thing in the first place!

The publishing industry is changing - and not for the better. With increasing competition and tighter margins, publishers and editors want to gamble on investments that will guarantee a return. Having a good idea and a talent with words is no longer enough. You have to be marketable.

That's why Harper Collins, for example, passed on Missy Chase Lapine's cookbook The Sneaky Chef and then, three weeks later, signed a contract with Jessica Seinfeld for her practically-identical cooking concept Deceptively Delicious.

Both were (the same) brilliant book ideas - it's just Jessica Seinfeld had that name (she's the wife of Jerry Seinfeld) and all those showbiz contacts to bring to Harper Collins' marketing offensive. She promised sales. That's why Harper went with her.

Bearing that cutthroat decision in mind, I think aspiring writers like Ian and myself have to look very seriously at the whole package we're trying to get published.

Just like pitching a movie idea or sitcom, aspiring authors need to have a 'sales rap' ready which can convince a publisher that their novel is going to fly off the shelves. You can't just rely on a decent story and good writing skills any more. You have to identify your audience, see what it is that will appeal to them and then tailor your novel towards them.

Those of us who want to 'make it' as writers need to disavow ourselves of the outdated notions of 'the struggling writer,' 'artistic integrity' and the long wait to 'be discovered.' I think the next generation of first time authors aren't going to be the talented wordsmiths of old. They're going to be hungry self publicists who are as much salesman as writer.

And for aspiring writers like Ian and myself? Well, we can either swim with the sharks or fade into obscurity. On the bright side, those brilliant reviews at least mean Ian has a pretty daunting pair of gnashers!