To Write Better Stories, Set Your Ego Aside

It takes a certain amount of ego to be an author in the first place. Because anyone can make up stories in their head, but to dedicate dozens to hundreds of hours to put that story down on a page? And then, once you have manifested it in the world to put it out there for people to see? To decide that the story you have to tell is good enough that people (many of whom you have never met in your life) should take time out of their day to read it? And not only that, but that they should pay hard-earned money for the privilege?

Yeah, that's how art should work... but you've got to admit, in this climate, it takes some serious fortitude to stand up and make that claim boldly.

However, the flip side to this coin is that a lot of us become so reliant on our egos to help us plow through those trying to stop us from making art that we deafen ourselves to legitimate criticism. Which is why it's important to maintain your forward momentum, but to also learn how to listen to people who raise issues we need to actually think about.

Is that a hater, or a helper? I can't tell...

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Now then, let's get to it!

Hear What They're Saying, and Evaluate

First of all, let's address the elephant in the room. You are not required to just shift gears and bow to every opinion that comes your way. A safe rule I've found is that if you wouldn't go to a person for advice, then you probably don't need to give serious weight to their criticism.

With that said, though, criticism is going to come your way whether you seek it out or not. What you need to do is figure out how to set your ego to the side, and to evaluate what's being said so that you can decide what to do about the issues being raised... or if you need to do anything at all.

Incoming negativity. Analyzing...

My recommendation is that you ask a couple of questions, and try to put yourself in this other person's shoes so that you can see your work the way they see it. Some good places to begin are:

- Is This a Matter of Taste? A lot of the time criticism comes down to whether someone personally likes or dislikes something. There's no right or wrong there, but it helps to ask if the issue is structural (something in the story is actually weak) or flavorful (the presentation/style isn't to the person's liking). Maybe they wanted a Happily Ever After, or a certain character got killed that they really liked; being personally disappointed is valid, but may not rise to the level of making edits.

- Did This Have an Unintended Consequence? Sometimes the way we tell a story just doesn't land, or brings up things we didn't intend to. Maybe a particular term is actually really offensive among a certain community, so using it to refer to characters in your story makes it racist even if that wasn't your intention (Pro Tip: The proper term is Inuit). Maybe the way a villain is queer-coded plays into problematic stereotypes. It's better to fix an issue than to double-down on it, especially if you genuinely didn't see this reaction coming.

- Is This Situation Necessary? Let's say you were writing a psychological revenge thriller, and you wanted it to have that grimy, nasty feel from films like I Spit on Your Grave. However, we aren't in the 1970s anymore, and sexual-assault-as-plot-device is pretty gross regardless of when the story was told. Is this absolutely necessary? Or could the character seeking revenge have been wronged another way? Did someone spread vicious rumors that got them kicked out of their social circles? Did someone not speaking up and telling the truth lead to them getting thrown out of school? Losing out on a big job? Being sentenced to prison for a crime they didn't commit? If someone asks whether a particular situation, tone, event, etc. is necessary, stop and genuinely ask yourself if it has to be that way, or if there are alternatives that would work better.

- How Much of an Effect Will This Have? Sometimes an issue with a story is relatively minor. You have a historical inconsistency that a lot of folks may not notice at the time (looking at you Titanic), or you have a character use a particular turn-of-phrase that isn't right for the location where this story is set. Sometimes an issue is major, and it leads to the audience rolling their eyes, or being taken out of the story entirely. Evaluate the scale of both the issue, and what changing it would cost in terms of time, energy, and effort.

Most importantly, when looking at criticism leveled at your work, ensure you have an answer as to why you aren't making changes to it. Perhaps it's because a certain event is key to a development that happens down the line, and you would have to re-work an entire plot or subplot by making too many changes. Maybe it's a deliberate homage that you feel is an important part of the story, even if not all your readers are going to like it.

Generally speaking, though, you should always have a reason beyond, "Because I don't want to change it." Of course you don't. No author ever does. But you need something more compelling than that.

You Aren't Obligated To Change Anything

The important thing to remember here is that you are not obligated to change anything in your story. It is yours, and you can tell it how you want to. However, it does behoove you to examine the criticism, and see what validity it has. When you reach this point not changing things should be a deliberate choice you make, rather than simply your standard position.

Figured I'd share a few of the ones I dealt with.

For those who haven't read Crier's Knife, it's a sword and sorcery novel I put out some time ago. It's been generally well received by folks who've actually read it, but there were more than a few criticisms that came my way when I was getting it ready for release. Some of those (and my response to them) were:

- The Introduction Is Unnecessary: The intro of this book starts with a young man escaping captivity, and sending up what amounts to a magical signal flare to let his family know he's in trouble. One person I spoke to told me I should cut it because it was a waste of space, and distracted the audience from the actual story. I was fully in agreement that the introduction wasn't a necessity, but I kept it for two reasons. First, because I wanted to make an homage to classic sword and sorcery novels where we were presented the situation before our hero came along to fix things. Second, I didn't want to make the word count up somewhere else in the book.

- The Magic is Confusing: Our protagonist comes from a family whose matriarch is a witch who lives on a mountaintop. We see her magic, as well as the magic of a strange cult, in action several times throughout the book. This criticism came from a reader whose background was more in high fantasy and RPGs, and was used to Vancian magic systems. As a piece of pulp, magic is significantly softer in this novel, and shouldn't be easily understood (especially since our perspective character is a warrior, not a witch). So while I understood the criticism, I felt it was more the reader being unfamiliar with this genre and expecting it to act like a different kind of fantasy.

- I Don't Get The Setting: The world where this novel takes place isn't like a lot of high fantasy settings where there are ancient, long-established kingdoms and nations. There are, in fact, no countries on this map. Most people exist in smaller communities like villages and hamlets, with a few large city-states existing as centers of power. The way I brought this across was how language changed from one place to another, making it clear there weren't huge highways like we often see empires build, or how most trade was done with barter instead of with coins. Input from other readers said this made the setting feel unique, so I'm glad I didn't change it to make it more conventional.

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Craft 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 cat noir novel Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

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Authors, Be Realistic About Your Book's Return on Investment

When you're writing a book it's all too easy to fantasize about being the next Stephen King or George R. R. Martin. To imagine your book is so great that it's going to develop a cult following, and that people are going to line up down the hall at conventions and book stores just to get your signature on their copy. Just like every other writer out there I've had my share of daydreams about what it would be like to get big, fat royalty checks in the mail that allow me to just relax, enjoy my coffee, and focus on the next novel without worrying about bills, or car repairs, or any of that boring, real life stuff.

There's a hard truth that a lot of writers out there (particularly the indie and self-publishing folks) need to hear, though. Because unless you already have a huge, receptive, eager audience in place, you're probably not going to make any real money from your books for a while.

Hell, you might not even make pretend money.

Before I get into more details, wanted to remind folks to subscribe to my weekly newsletter if you want to stay on top of all my latest releases! And if you like the work I'm doing and want to help me keep my blogs going, consider becoming a Patreon patron. It really does help!

Can You Make Money? Yes...

First, let's talk numbers. Because as I mentioned in Unfortunate Facts: Without Sponsorship, Most Writers Can't Eat, the average number of sales for a self-published book will amount to less than $500 a year. While it's certainly possible you could make above average sales with your book, it's equally possible you will earn below $500 a year, especially as your initial audience peters off as your friends, family, etc. get and read their copies and you need to reach out to a fresh audience.

From what I've seen, these numbers aren't that inaccurate. I know plenty of successful indie authors, like K.M. Herkes and Lauren Jankowski, who earn well above this number. My own novel, Crier's Knife, did slightly better than estimated... but not all that much better. I've also met a lot of writers who put out their first novel, and then just stopped writing when the audience didn't spontaneously manifest.

Trust me, you have to go find your readers, not the other way around.

If you take nothing else away from this post, understand this. The quality of your book, and how many copies it sells, are only in a vague, tangential relationship a lot of the time. If a tree falls in a forest, and no one's around to see it or hear it, then no one knows about it. By the same token, you could have written the most amazing novel ever... but if you don't go out and build your audience (attending cons, being active on social media, getting a large mailing list, etc.) you're never going to sell any copies because nobody knows about it.

And if you don't have a legion of fans ready and eager to hand over greenbacks for your next release, then don't dig yourself into debt putting the book together. Because I promise you that, barring a miracle, you're never going to break even much less make a profit.

Don't Shell Out For Things You Don't Need

Self-publishing a book can, theoretically, be done for free. You can write your novel on a free word processor, design your own cover free of charge using royalty free public domain images, and even publish it through a free service like Amazon. However, most writers out there are going to have to put in at least a little money in order to cover the skills they don't have when it comes to making their book the best it can be.

And you should do that. But you need to keep a realistic eye on what your earnings are going to be, and how much of this starting investment you're going to recoup.

Like this fine piece, for example.

One of the biggest things I've seen authors waste money on is super-expensive cover design. Now, to be clear, artists should be paid for their work... but if your book is going to make maybe $300, and you pay an artist $800 to $1,000 for a unique, one-of-a-kind cover, you're coming out on the short end of this deal however you look at it.

That's why a lot of indie authors and small publishers will actually use stock art for their books, rather than commissioning fresh art every time they have a new release. I talked about this in detail in Looking For Cover Art For Your Book? Try Drive Thru RPG!, but it bears repeating. The art for Crier's Knife up there? I paid $5 for the right to use it. Because that is an investment I knew I'd be able to recoup.

Another place I see writers throwing money into a hole is when it comes to editing. Again, you should have an editor look over your manuscript before it goes up for sale. However, it is important to make sure that is the last step of the process, and that you can actually afford the services in question. Because there are some writers who give the manuscript to an editor as soon as they finish it, rather than after they do all their own editing, give it to beta readers, etc. And if you pay to have the book edited, then your beta readers point out an alternative direction that would be better, and you re-write a big chunk of the book, now you have to pay to have it edited again... and that's just poor use of resources. Lastly, be real with yourself. If you're an independent writer who is making a first foray into the market, you don't require an editor who used to work for Tor, or with 30 years industry experience... nobody cares who your editor was. You just need somebody who can do the job, and make sure your book is presentable. That's it.

This same kind of logic can be extended out to your advertising and promotion. Because while you can probably get a dealer's booth at a big convention like Gen Con, it's less expensive to get a spot in author's alley (something you should always ask about for convention prices). You could pay for a full page spread in a local newspaper, or for a slot on the radio, but those kinds of ads might not be the best way to reach people who are looking for a book... especially if you can get those outlets to review your book, or interview you as the creator, free of charge as a local interest story.

Don't Just Throw Money at Your Challenges

If you're self-publishing your book, you do need to polish up as many aspects of it as you can. You need to go over your document, ensure your headers are smooth, and that your pages aren't crowded. You need to find good cover art, choose the right finish, get a compelling back cover blurb, and do everything you can to get that book in front of as many readers as possible.

But as they say, the best way to make a small fortune as an author is to start with a large fortune, and wait.

There are very few of us who get rich doing this job. So hedge your bets, and any time you have an expense, shop around to see what your options are. Evaluate your budget, and look at what you can realistically expect to make. Ask other authors how they did it, and if they have recommendations. Lastly, and this one might sting a bit, take your ego out of the equation. This book you're writing isn't a baby. It's not a beautiful extension of your mind and heart. Or, at least, it's not only that. Because it's also a product you are trying to sell.

A product that can't make a profit is how businesses go bankrupt, and whatever else you are as an author you need to remember that you're a cottage industry unto yourself.

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned!

That's all for this week's Business of Writing!

If you'd like to see more of my work, take a look at my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife as well as my recent collection The Rejects!

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

Stop Talking About How Your Writing Sucks!

As writers, we all have moments of doubt. Those times where we look at our work, and just shake our heads at what we've done. Those times when we think about wiping the screen, and starting over from scratch. For a lot of us, though, these are private struggles. Moments we have when we're home alone, or that we'll sometimes share with a friend who understands our creative process, and who can sympathize with our frustration. Generally speaking, though, we keep these moments of doubt to ourselves.

There are some of us, though, who don't. There are some writers who proclaim loudly, and almost proudly, that their work flat-out sucks.

Yes, we're just as sick of them as you are.

If you are one of those writers, I am here to tell you on behalf of the rest of the community that it's time to shut up. Because if you really felt your work was that bad, you would have quit by now.

Honey, Tell Me I'm Not Fat

Proclaiming your work to be awful, and yourself to be a no-talent fake, is the literary equivalent of the sort of compliment fishing we often see in romantic relationships. If you've never been in a relationship, here's how it works. It starts with one partner will say something loud and derogatory about themselves. Maybe a wife says she's fat, or a husband says he's stupid. Most of the time they don't really believe these things. What they want is for their significant other to pat their hand, kiss their forehead, and say no, that's not true. Your waistline is just fine. You're smarter than people give you credit for.

Really, your story is very good.

Seriously, no one has time for your bullshit, guys.

If you really believed your work was bad, would you go on social media to tell all your friends and family about it? Would you spend hours on writing forums telling people that you just didn't have it? And if you really believed these things, would you provide samples of your work to prove to people how bad your writing was?

Or doth the writer protest too much?

Get Back To Work

The only time it's acceptable for you to go out in a public forum and say, "hey, my work is terrible!" is when you're actually trying to find help to get better. Typically cries for help are phrased with what's wrong, followed by a request for other writers to help you improve your habits, or your work.

If you're not asking for help getting better, the only other option is that you're fishing for praise you don't deserve. If your ego is too fragile to get to work without constant reassurances that no, really, your book will be very good and lots of people will love it, then stop writing and step aside. There are folks ready to knuckle-down to do the job, and you're blocking the aisle.

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing post. Hopefully you found it useful, or at least you know someone you can throw it at because you're tired of their long-winded sessions on Facebook. Speaking of which, if you want to stay up-to-date on my latest content and releases, then follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. Lastly, if you'd like to help fund my work, and this blog in particular, then head over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a patron. All it takes is $1 a month to buy my everlasting gratitude, and to get some sweet swag of your own.