I've Won Lots of Medals

It's important when producing a blog that you constantly refresh it with frequent posts, at least once a week and the oftener the better. The problem with that imperative is the necessity of having  something compelling to say. It makes it much more interesting to the reader (to paraphrase Steve Martin in PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES).

Unfortunately, I sometimes find myself blanking out when it comes to conjuring intriguing topics for my horde of readers. After exhausting the most obvious topics about 15 posts ago, I've found myself staring at an empty screen more often than not. But I've found an answer:

I ask my wife!

She may not be a professional writer, but she has lots of good ideas for stories...and blog topics. In fact, one of my most successful posts was one of her ideas: starting a garden. Pretty damn good! And so I went to her again and she inspired this post, which cuts to the heart of my modest success as a writer.

As a competitive runner for the past three decades, I've amassed an enormous collection of medals. I display these tokens by looping them around a gas pipe in the basement and in front of the table where I do my writing so that they're never out of my line of sight.

These medals point up similarities with my writing. They show that, like writing, I've been running a long time. They show the wide variety of races in which I've competed, like the various media in which I've written over the past 40 years. What the medals don't show, however, are specific victories.

The medals handed out at races are called "finisher medals." It means you finished the race--that's all. And I do finish races. Of the hundreds of races in which I've competed, there was only one that I didn't finish, which was more than 20 years ago.

The same holds true with my writing. I have started and finished six books, and am working on a seventh that I will certainly finish. I don't get a medal for finishing a book, but a do get a hefty Word file and plenty of rejection notes to mark the existence of my work.

Finishing is good. I know plenty of people who have started writing books and never finish them. And many fine writers who are afraid of even starting a book. There's satisfaction in finishing a long complex project like a novel, just like there's a certain elation to training, competing and finishing a marathon.

Sure, it's not the same thing as winning a race or signing a publishing contract, but it is something special. You've accomplished something difficult that few people would even consider undertaking. There's a certain consolation in that.

And it's something I think about when I look up at my gas pipe and its jam-packed row of finisher medals.

The Annoying Sound of Crickets

In the stillness of the night, not a sound to be heard but the stridulation of crickets. So relaxing, such a peaceful song with which to end your day. Nature's lullaby.

I'm so not talking about that!

This is about the slangy usage of the term "crickets." As in a non-reaction to a given stimulus. Such as a riotously funny joke that evokes not even a titter from the audience. Such as the dead silence that overtakes a staff meeting when the boss insists on a brainstorming session. Such as why did you think I wanted a vacuum cleaner for my birthday?

I've sent out dozens of query letters and samples for my novel, COME THE HARPIES. What do you think has been the predominant response from my target agents? That's right. Crickets!

Years of honing the manuscript and draft after draft of query letters and plot summaries only to be met with a wall of indifference. What to do? This video helps explain why writers do not often hear back from agents.

According to the video hosts, the number one reason agents do not respond to queries is because they haven't read them! Other reasons include the possibility that your query is not compelling, the recipient isn't interested in your book, or he or she may be on the fence about whether to request more material from you.

For my own sanity, I will assume that my book is worthy and my query letter stellar, thus making myself believe that my queries are simply not being read. That being the case, I'll take the video host's advice and send out follow-ups to all my non-responders. Many follow-ups. I mean MANY MANY FOLLOW-UPS! I will be heard! Email is free! I dare them to spam me!

Crickets is the ugliest non-sound in the world for us writers. 

Stop Writing!

Write something every day. That's what the wise people of words constantly advise writers if they ever want to become really good. On its face, it seems like a reasonable suggestion.

As the old joke goes: How do I get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice! And it was Malcolm Gladwell who said that it takes at least 10,000 hours to master anything: from a foreign language, to a musical instrument, to brain surgery. Maybe even writing. Heck, I've been writing professionally for about 40 years, so that's way more than 10,000 hours. But I'd be the last person to claim that I've mastered the written word!

So write every day. That's what other writers say, what writing instructors say, and what publishers say. In fact, you can download apps that provide daily ticklers that prompt you to write in case you forget.

I don't, however, think people should write every day. There are way too many writers in the world, and not enough readers. So why bother? Writing is hard and there are many other productive ways to spend your time than toiling over an unruly manuscript. I'm a gardener now!

But if you must write, make sure you have a purpose. What do you hope to accomplish? BE REALISTIC!

For example, if you're like me, with hopes of being published, be ready for lots of disappointment. The competition is brutal, those doing the judging (agents and editors) make decisions that are often arbitrary and capricious, and the pay is terrible even if you manage to land a book contract.

A more realistic goal is to self-publish. You will get to see your handiwork in print, but most likely you won't sell anything. With few exceptions, most self-published books suck and don't generate much of an audience. Your best bet is to "sell" your book for free on Smashwords.

Maybe you feel a need to write every day because you have a consuming passion to express yourself. You may even have a flair for words. By all means, write away, join a writing group that reads their stuff to each other, take an adult creative writing class. Then file your essays/stories away and start working on the next one. Make writing an intellectual and emotional outlet and don't make others read your stuff!

This is hardly inspirational and I apologize for that. The thing is, writing well is grueling and humbling and not much different than learning needlepoint or mudding a perfect Sheetrock seam. It's true that becoming a good anything takes practice--my writing's improved a lot over the years.

But being a good writer, or even a great writer, does not mean you'll be a published writer. So write every day if you feel you must. Just don't let your hopes and dreams get the best of you.