Now, over a quarter of a century later, I've at least figured out how to reliably craft a good story. However, the older I've gotten, the more my personal goals for my career have changed. It's sort of caught me off-guard, as well, so I figured I'd take a moment and talk about it this week, since I feel like professional goals are something a lot of us don't really consider beyond, "Get my book published."
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| I wouldn't say no, but things like this have become less important to me over the years. |
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When You Realize Your Goals Aren't Realistic
I'll admit, when I was young and had yet to even finish my first novel, I had dreams of becoming one of those Big Name (TM) authors. I wanted to be one of those people who made millions of dollars, whose name topped the bestseller lists, and who would have my work turned into hit movies and TV shows. In my mid-20s I expanded that out into having a shelf of awards in my house, showing off my brilliance.
Over time, most of these have sort of fallen by the wayside. Though I would still love to win a Stoker or an Ennie, those are more in the, "Well, it would be nice," category, rather than something I legitimately expect to happen.
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| Seriously, look at how goddamn NEAT this thing is! |
The reason I've given up on so many of these goals I was once striving for is that the longer I've been an author, the more I recognize both how rare these kinds of successes are, and often how little they have to do with the things you're actually writing. I've said repeatedly on this very blog that making sales is a marketing success, and that in the end it's often divorced from the artistic quality of your book. And with every awards scandal that comes across my feed (I'm looking at you, Sad Puppies) the more it feels like awards winding up in the hands of truly deserving, talented creators is a fluke rather than the process working how it's supposed to.
In short, both the idea of becoming a Rich And Famous author, and a multi-award-winning author felt like I was standing out in a field and waving around a lightning rod. Yes, it's certainly possible that I'll catch lightning in a bottle, but it's also possible for me to win the lottery just by buying a single scratch ticket. In the end it sort of felt like striving to make those things happen was just setting myself up for disappointment, and not focusing on what I should be doing; writing the best books I could.
As a lot of folks out there know, nature abhors a vacuum. So while I didn't consciously choose new goals to replace the ones that I felt were too unrealistic, they showed up anyway. And while some of these still feel like long shots, I'm of the opinion they're more achievable than what I had before.
So What New Goals Made It Onto The List?
While I've more or less given up on the life of fame and fortune (it would be nice, but I'm trying to be realistic here), I do have a couple of goals that I think I could manage. Hopefully in the next 5-10 years, but if they take longer, well, it's not like I was going to stop writing, or something.
Let's not get ridiculous... I've been at this since I was 13. You don't put down a habit like that short of anything but the reaper.
Goal #1: Fan Creations
This is a goal I've technically achieved in a few small ways, but it's something I'd like to be able to do more of. The idea that something I made affected a reader of mine so strongly that they wanted to add their own creativity to what I've made, either through the form of writing their own stories, drawing art, or even painting minis styled after a character I made, is one of the sincerest forms of flattery I've ever received.
Perhaps the most notable thing I've seen folks be that excited about is, ironically, some of my own fan stories titled Waking Dogs and Broken Chains, which are about the trials of a renegade space marine in the Warhammer 40K setting. There are even audio versions of these tales, which still give me a chill to listen to, and I highly recommend checking them out (along with more of my work) on the YouTube channel A Vox in The Void.
Goal #2: Be A Convention Guest Of Honor
I've been to my share of conventions over the years, and while I still enjoy them, they're a lot different when you're there for work than when you're there to play around. And if I'm there I'm usually on panels, running games, holding down a table in the dealer's hall, and sometimes all of these things in a single day. However, it would be a feather in my cap to be invited to a convention as a guest of honor. Additionally, it would just be nice to be recognized for my achievements in that way, whether I'm there as an author, a gaming guest of honor, etc.
Of course, it would also be nice getting the perks that come along with such a position. Realistically, I expect I'll be able to manage this for a smaller, regional convention, but it would still be nice for it to happen at a bigger event if and when the opportunity arises.
Goal #3: Become An Institution
In the past I thought about essentially being a stand-alone writer who sold enough books that I could pay all my bills, buy a house, and just sort of live that celebrity lifestyle. However, like I said, I know exactly how rare that kind of success is for most people in my profession. But what I would like to do is to create projects that help keep me afloat financially, but which allow me to give work to other creative people in my circles.
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| This, for example. |
I've had a few, smaller examples of this already. Sales of Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic, as well as any supplements that use Anonymous Katsodon's art ensure that part of the royalty payment goes right to her. Additionally, Isiah Burt has written two novellas for my fantasy RPG setting Sundara: Dawn of a New Age. Legacy of Flames is a story about a hulking lizardfold warrior, and his unusual mission in the Dragonsbreath Mountains, and Blight Bane's Gambit follows an orc mercenary company as they attempt to solve the riddles of a tricksy dragon in the woods beyond Hoardreach, the City of Wyrms.
Honestly, what I'd love to do is for something to get so large in terms of popularity and earnings potential that it allows me to start hiring people on as staff, or giving them positions are regular contributors, so that we can all share in the bounty. I'm not saying that I essentially want to get successful enough where I can form an LLC and give regular, reliable jobs to all my friends so we can work on our projects together while shielding each other from the roving wolves of capitalism... but yeah, I'd love to be able to do that.
On that note, I feel like the next project with that level of potential might be my Chronicles of Darkness audio drama, Windy City Shadows. If you haven't heard about it yet, check out the elevator pitch at Windy City Shadows, A Chronicles of Darkness Podcast Proposal, and take a look at the Ask Me Anything I put together for it a while back!
Goal #4: Get Sponsorship (And Maybe A Gift Or Two)
This is probably my shallowest, most selfish goal, but we've all got to have one or two of those. However, the idea that things I'm creating are so popular that a company decides that they need to butter me up in order to reach my audience by sending me a free trial of their service, and perhaps a cool present for me to keep in the background of my videos, is something that would be pretty nice, not going to lie.
Whether it's game books, a portable dice tower, an unusual display shelf, filming accessories (I'd love to have a green screen I could break down and store in my closet, as an example), or even something as seemingly random as a cool mini fridge (I like having drinks on hand for when I'm recording), it would just be a mark of pride for me that I was considered well-known, popular, or influential enough to make that happen.
The issue here, of course, is that sponsorship tends to come with a wide reach and a big audience. I don't really command one of those, but every little bit helps. So consider subscribing to the Azukail Games YouTube channel if you haven't yet, and help me keep climbing up that ladder so I can get myself noticed!
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That's all for this week's Business of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, the Hardboiled Cat series about a mystery solving Maine Coon in Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!
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