I can’t tell you how many times someone’s
said this to me or posted it as a reply to a comment I made about my writing on
social media. It might have been in response to an announcement about a new
publishing contract I’d landed, or a new book release, or something as innocuous
as a post about how I was sitting in Starbucks writing in the afternoon.
Many writers – myself included – find the
phrase more than a little insulting. It implies that everything we’ve achieved
is merely a result of chance and that all the hard work we’ve put in over the
years, all the sacrifices we’ve made, had nothing to do with our success. And
if we point out that talent and hard work might’ve had just a little to do with
our success, we get responses from folks saying we’ve forgotten what it was
like to be a beginning writer or insisting that luck has to be the main factor in success. Otherwise, they would be
successful, too. After all, they’re brilliant and talented. If no one’s
publishing their writing, it has to be because they’ve had rotten luck. What
else could it be?
Now, I am in no way suggesting luck is
unimportant in writing and publishing success. But there are two kinds of luck:
the kind you have no control over and the kind you have at least some control over. And if you can learn
to maximize the latter, you can increase your chances for success.
I was born a white male to a middle-class
American family, with a father who read a lot of science fiction and fantasy
(and a little horror) and who was happy to let me read his books when he was
finished with them. My family was supportive when I told them I was thinking
about becoming a writer, and I had an inheritance that allowed me pay for
college. I was also born with a vivid imagination and a talent for language. I
had no control over any of those things. (By the way, all of this is what the kids are calling "privilege" these days, just in case you're fuzzy on the concept.)
But I chose to read the books my father
left lying around the house. I chose to start writing and drawing my own comic
book when I was in sixth grade. I chose to use my inheritance for college, and
I chose – after a short period of indecision – to major in English. I also
chose to major in education so I could support myself by teaching while I
wrote. I chose to start writing and submitting stories seriously at eighteen,
and I chose to start my first novel then and I finished it when I was nineteen.
And when the rejections kept coming in, I chose to keep writing. I chose to
start reading Writer’s Digest and The Writer. I chose to take as many
creative writing classes in college as I could. I chose to work in the Writing
Center as a tutor to earn money while sharpening my skills as both a writer and
teacher, and during my senior year I chose to apply to be the editor of the
college’s literary magazine and I got the job. I chose to go to graduate school
and major in English with a creative writing concentration, and while I waited
for school to start, I chose to apply for a job as a reporter for a small-town
newspaper to learn more about writing to deadline, and I got that job, too.
Sometimes luck was involved in these choices.
For example, I had no idea that my college had a Writing Center until one day
when I was standing at the drinking fountain when a student who was in the same
creative writing class as I was stepped into the hallway, saw me, said, “Hey,
you’re a good writer. You want a job?” and beckoned me to step into the Writing
Center with him because they were hiring. His seeing me at that precise moment
and speaking to me was luck. My accompanying him into the Writing Center was a
choice.
So let’s talk about some ways that you can
get some measure of control over luck – and maybe even generate some for
yourself as well.
1) Examine
(or Re-Examine) Your Dedication and Focus
In high school, I explored art,
music, and theatre as well as writing as possible career paths. But once I hit
college and decided that I wanted to be a writer, everything else was left by
the wayside. With the exception of three days working for K-Mart and one summer
working for a company that packaged and distributed Olympic commemorative coins
and pewter products, every job I’ve held has been related to writing in some
way.
Here’s an old piece of writer’s
advice: make a list of everything that’s more important to you than writing.
The shorter the list, the greater your chances for success. There’s only one
item on my last that’s more important than writing: my family.
Ask yourself: How dedicated and
focused am I? How could I arrange my life to make more room for writing? Set up
regular writing times for yourself, go on weekend writing retreats, do whatever
you can to increase your focus on your writing.
2)
Maximize Your Talent
We have no control over the amount
of talent we’re born with. But we can control what we do to hone it. Take as
many classes and workshops as you can, read as many how-to-write books and
articles as you can, read interviews with successful writers, go hear them talk
at events, go to conferences and attend every panel that you can. If time and
money are limiting factors, instead of asking for presents for Christmas or
birthdays, ask for money to attend a workshop or take a class. Consider
starting/joining a writers’ group – face-to-face or online – with serious,
dedicated, talented writers who provide useful feedback. Keep reading and read
widely, not just in your genre. Keep striving to do better with each story you
write and never stop pushing yourself to hone whatever talent you possess to
its finest, sharpest edge possible.
3)
Make Choices
That Further Your Writing
The above is so much easier said
than done, but we only get so much time to live. It’s up to you what you do
with that time. I don’t go out with friends as often as I’d like, I don’t
travel as much as I want, and I don’t watch much TV. Most of my trips are
writing-related somehow. I won’t miss kids’ soccer games or band concerts (remember,
Family is Number One on my list), but otherwise, most of my non-teaching and
non-family time is used for writing. Choosing writing may mean giving up some
things you enjoy. It may mean being a bit more selfish that you’re used to. But
the choices you make on a daily, hourly, and even moment-by-moment basis can
make all the difference when it comes to maximizing your luck.
4) Learn
to Say Yes to Writing Opportunities
Someone asks you to edit the company
newsletter? Say yes. Your church needs someone to write a holiday play for the
youth group? Volunteer. Whatever writing and publishing opportunities come up,
say yes to them – especially when you’re starting out. You never know what you’ll
learn or where these opportunities will lead unless you explore them.
A few words of warning here. Be
careful not to say yes to anything that will end up harming you – an exploitative
contract, unethical reading fees for faux agents, etc. Also, don’t say yes to
so many things that you become overburdened and unable to deliver on your
promises. (Something I’m still working on learning.)
Check out Writer Beware for advice
on how not to get scammed:
5)
Explore Different Avenues
I’ve written short stories, novels,
novellas, plays, articles, essays, news stories, a regular column, and humor
pieces. In fiction genres, I’ve written horror, science fiction, fantasy, urban
fantasy, action-adventure, mystery, erotic romance, literary, and media tie-ins
based on movies, TV series, cartoon characters, video games, and role-playing
games. I’ve explored all these various types of writing not only to hone my
talent and add new tools to my writer’s toolbox. I did it to expand my
opportunities for success. In other words, to increase my luck. I figured the
more I learned and the more versatile I became as a writer, the more
opportunities would come my way and the more prepared I would be to take
advantage of them.
So try everything. Submit your work
to publishers, magazines, and contests. Respond to every open call for stories
that you can find, even if it seems like a long-shot. Especially then. The more chances you take, the greater your odds
of succeeding.
6)
Make Connections
The more people you come to know
and interact with, the more writing and publishing opportunities will present
themselves to you – and more importantly, the more people you’ll have to learn
from and the more emotional support you’ll have. (The more psychologically
healthy you are, the more you’ll be ready to take advantages of opportunities
when they occur and the more confident you’ll be about taking risks.) Not only
will these connections benefit your career, they’re the best part of having a
writing life, at least for me.
Get to know people in creative
writing classes, at writing events, at your local library, at bookstores . . .
Join a writers’ group, meet other writers at conferences, attend conferences as
a panelist and get to know the writers, agents, and editors sitting beside you.
Introduce the new people you meet to people you already know. Follow writers,
agents, and editors on social media. Memorize their faces so you can say hi to
them at conferences (but don’t be a Creepy McCreeperson and stalk them the
entire weekend!).
Here’s an example of how I helped
make a butt-load of luck for myself. Years ago, I was preparing to attend a
local science fiction/fantasy convention, the very first where I would serve as
a panelist. The newspaper carried a story about the con, featuring the local
authors who would be in attendance. (I wasn’t included in the article; I’d only
published a handful of short-stories at this point.) Fantasy authors Dennis
McKiernan and J. Calvin Pierce were going to attend. I’d already read several
of Dennis’ books, but I’d never read any of J. Calvin’s. I ran out, bought his
first novel, and read it before the con, so I’d have something to talk to him
about. (It was a well-written, humorous fantasy adventure called The Door to Ambermere.) I ended up on a
panel with Jim (as he preferred to be called), and we chatted a bit. Afterward,
he was headed to a nearby pub to have a beer with Dennis and he asked if I’d
like to join them. I said yes (of course). Jim invited me to come to his place
a couple weeks later, and it happened to be the night of his writers’ group –
which included both Dennis and Lois McMaster Bujold. He asked if I’d like to
come along with him. I said yes. Eventually, I became a member of that group
and I learned a ton. I chose to go to the con, chose to ask if I could be on
programming, and chose to prepare by reading Jim’s book . . . And
when he asked if I wanted to have a drink with Dennis and him, asked if I’d
like to come to his place and talk about writing, and asked if I’d like to go
to his writers’ group, I said yes.
7)
Ask
My mother used to tell me, “Go
ahead and ask. The worst thing they can do is say no.” (Of course, it helps if
you’re not a jerk when you ask. This is why everybody hates the writer on
Facebook who immediately sends a request to Like his or her author page the
instant you accept them as a friend.)
Querying agents and editors is of
course asking. But if you learn of an invite-only anthology that’s in the
works, ask the editor if you can submit on spec. (And once you make connections
with editors, ask them now and again if they’re working on any projects you can
submit to.) That’s how I managed to sell quite a few stories to anthologies
Marty Greenberg edited. I just asked what anthos his company Tekno Books had
coming up and if it was okay that I submit. Only one time did I get a story
rejected from a Tekno antho, and I wrote another one over a weekend and that
one was accepted. (It was for the anthology Alien
Pets, if you’re curious.) Want someone to offer you a blurb? Ask. I get
quite a few people asking me for blurbs these days. I just wish I had time to
read all their books! Want advice on writing and publishing? Reach out to
writers, editors, and agents on social media or via their websites. Attend
panels at conferences and ask questions. And ask questions one-on-one when you
run into folks outside of panels. Over the years, I’ve learned that editors and
agents are happy to talk to you if they realize you don’t want anything from
them other than to have a conversation. Treating editors and agents like human
beings? Who knew that would work!
Want to pitch a book project to an editor or agent? Ask if they’re willing to
take pitches during the conference. Ask for their cards so you can follow-up.
But whatever you do, remember the
Golden Rule about asking: Don’t be an obnoxious pain in the ass. And if you’re
not sure you’re being one, ask!
8)
Don’t Stop
This is a big part of the luck
equation, in some ways maybe the biggest. You can’t prepare to take advantage
of the opportunities that show up on their own and can’t create opportunities
for yourself if you stop trying. Don’t
stop writing, reading, learning, choosing, connecting, asking, and all the
rest. You want to get lucky? Then never forget that get is a verb. (Yeah, I know it’s a noun, too. Don’t get picky with
me.)
Department
of Shameless Self-Promotion
My new young adult horror novel Dark Art is now available from
Past-Curfew Press. Here’s a synopsis:
It began with a drawing.
High-school student Sarah
Pennington is in art class one day when her desk mate, Ben Phelps, shows her a
drawing he’s done of a sinister knife-wielding figure he calls Shrike.
Then came the dreams.
Sarah begins having strange dreams
of Shrike in which he commits disturbing acts of vandalism. When she awakens,
she discovers her dreams have come true. The destruction is real – and so is
Shrike.
Now Shrike’s alive.
As Shrike grows stronger, his
actions become increasingly violent, escalating to stalking, terrorizing, and
ultimately, murder.
And he must be stopped.
Sarah must help Ben stop the
monster he created. But how can they fight a being that was born from anger and
shaped by imagination? A creature that lives halfway between dream and reality?
They have to find a way – before it’s too late for them both.
They say art imitates life.
Sometimes, it imitates death.
Print and ebook editions are available
direct from the publisher or via Amazon:
In October, I had two new novellas
released:
The
Last Mile:
A
Strange and Savage Garden:
And two of my older novels have been
released as ebooks:
Pandora
Drive:
Darkness
Wakes:
