Persistence is Power
Persistence is the sleeper hit of writing advice. It's always been important, but lately I've been seeing the advice to "stay persistent" pop up all over writing blogs and communities. Finally, this little nugget is getting some much-deserved time in a brighter spotlight.
It can be hard to start a career in which all the hard work is pre-loaded and the money comes much later, or never. When money seems to be the only measure of how we value a person and what they do, it can be hard not to feel guilty when we focus on what we enjoy doing, even when it doesn't make us one red cent - and especially when other people are forced, for a little while, to pay our bills.
We all hope it will pay off but let's be honest, for many of us it won't. For every successful author there are armies of failed ones. Can you name ten authors from the twenties? From that era of the romanticized writer, few of their names ever made it to the 21st century. But what separates the successes from the failures? Sure, talent is important and you can't make a big break without luck, but persistence is what gets you the skill and increases your chances. The longer you have at it, the better your writing becomes and the more likely you are to catch the eye of that agent, or that publisher, or that editor you've been wooing.
This is a marathon, not a race, but people are sprinting. They're sprinting to self-publish or query sub-par work because the riches are there and they can't be that hard to grab, right? They think if Howey, Rowling, or King can do it than surely they can too, and faster! These are the people who will likely drop out first.
Next will be the people who thought they wanted to do the work. They'll sit and write and write and write and write and when the stroke of luck doesn't hit them with the first novel - or the first three - they'll quit because the grind was a lot more than they bargained for. They underestimated the work, but weren't willing to sacrifice anymore.
Have you ever run a marathon? I've only ever heard of people who run marathons, but I have friends who've run half marathons (13.1 miles) or 5ks(3.1 miles). These distances still seem like a lot, but they pale in comparison to a marathon. A full marathon is 26.2 miles. For an amateur runner you're looking at around a 6-8 hour run. Even the best of the best take around 2 hours to finish a marathon. Let this sink in, because 2 hours is a really long time to run and chances are you are not the elite.
I think there are a lot of people who get into writing thinking they know how far the marathon is when they've never even run a mile. Even after that first mile, they might think they know. However, this is where the marathon analogy falls apart a bit, because a writer could be in it for longer - for an ultramarathon or a coast-to-coast cross-country run. There's just no prescribed length of time or effort or work a writer must go through before they can "make it". Most drop out without ever knowing.
In the end, it's not about the finish line. If you think about how far off it really is, or underestimate the distance you have to go, you'll never get there. You'll burn out either physically or emotionally. I think it's the same with writing. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. It's a long haul and you might not get to the end. However, if you quit, it's certain that you will lose.
Don't quit yet. Keep running.
Keep writing.
It can be hard to start a career in which all the hard work is pre-loaded and the money comes much later, or never. When money seems to be the only measure of how we value a person and what they do, it can be hard not to feel guilty when we focus on what we enjoy doing, even when it doesn't make us one red cent - and especially when other people are forced, for a little while, to pay our bills.
We all hope it will pay off but let's be honest, for many of us it won't. For every successful author there are armies of failed ones. Can you name ten authors from the twenties? From that era of the romanticized writer, few of their names ever made it to the 21st century. But what separates the successes from the failures? Sure, talent is important and you can't make a big break without luck, but persistence is what gets you the skill and increases your chances. The longer you have at it, the better your writing becomes and the more likely you are to catch the eye of that agent, or that publisher, or that editor you've been wooing.
This is a marathon, not a race, but people are sprinting. They're sprinting to self-publish or query sub-par work because the riches are there and they can't be that hard to grab, right? They think if Howey, Rowling, or King can do it than surely they can too, and faster! These are the people who will likely drop out first.
Next will be the people who thought they wanted to do the work. They'll sit and write and write and write and write and when the stroke of luck doesn't hit them with the first novel - or the first three - they'll quit because the grind was a lot more than they bargained for. They underestimated the work, but weren't willing to sacrifice anymore.
Have you ever run a marathon? I've only ever heard of people who run marathons, but I have friends who've run half marathons (13.1 miles) or 5ks(3.1 miles). These distances still seem like a lot, but they pale in comparison to a marathon. A full marathon is 26.2 miles. For an amateur runner you're looking at around a 6-8 hour run. Even the best of the best take around 2 hours to finish a marathon. Let this sink in, because 2 hours is a really long time to run and chances are you are not the elite.
I think there are a lot of people who get into writing thinking they know how far the marathon is when they've never even run a mile. Even after that first mile, they might think they know. However, this is where the marathon analogy falls apart a bit, because a writer could be in it for longer - for an ultramarathon or a coast-to-coast cross-country run. There's just no prescribed length of time or effort or work a writer must go through before they can "make it". Most drop out without ever knowing.
In the end, it's not about the finish line. If you think about how far off it really is, or underestimate the distance you have to go, you'll never get there. You'll burn out either physically or emotionally. I think it's the same with writing. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. It's a long haul and you might not get to the end. However, if you quit, it's certain that you will lose.
Don't quit yet. Keep running.
Keep writing.
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