Angela Scott
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Why in the world would you EVER want to be an author? You gotta be CRAZY!

4/2/2012

35 Comments

 
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Think about it...it's probably the only profession in which if you make an income of $5000 over a three year period you're considered a success. Writers will high-five their writer friends, "Heck ya! Look at me now!" and TRULY believe that all their sweat, tears, endless hours of writing (years and years worth), self doubts (there will be plenty of those), and lots of rejection (lets not even go there) was all worth it.

Now, lets contrast that with any other profession, shall we?

A lawyer who makes five G's over a three year period would be considered a REALLY bad lawyer. A doctor making five thousand bucks in that same time...ummm...how many patients did he kill?

Even part-time pizza delivery guys will make three times that amount, working only a few hours a week, AND they get to smell like pepperoni and cheese, which is a bonus.

So why in the world would ANYONE want to become an author, because it's obviously not for the money (author's making lots of money--ha, that's hilarious)?

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So if it's not for the money, then it must be for the recognition, right? Ha,ha, ha...Oh wait, I'm not supposed to be laughing.

Yeah, recognition...in a world where EVERYONE is a writer (don't believe me...just take a peek at twitter. It's mind boggling), exactly how is an author supposed to stand out in the crowd and get their face, let alone their name, recognized? If anyone has the answer to this one, please paste it in the comment section below *wink wink*.

So if we've ruled out writing for the money and for the recognition, it must be for the pure relaxation and joy that comes from the act of writing--that's gotta be it!

*wags finger and demands self to stop laughing and be serious*

I don't think I've felt relaxed in years! And in fact, now that I have a book out there fighting for attention among kabillions of other books, I think I've never been more on edge in all my life *takes a break to hit refresh on my Amazon listing*. Lets not mention how the actual process of writing and editing can take it's toll on a person's psyche and self-perception, because boy, does it!

INTERNAL DIALOGUE:
"I suck!"
"I'm on the cusp of writing something profound!"
"I suck!"
"This is the best idea EVER!"
"This blows!"
"I suck! I suck! I suck!"
"I'm not getting out of this bed, and you can't make me!"
"Okay, let's write some more!"

THIS ISN'T HEALTHY, FOLKS! There should a public awareness campaign or something that should warn people, specifically young children, that becoming a writer/author is bad for your health--both physical (I have writers butt) and mental (I'm not normal).

So, more than likely I will put more money into my writing career than I will get out of it (editing costs, graphic artist costs, marketing costs, etc...).

My name will only be chanted by my mother, "Did you hear about my daughter? She wrote this book called...wait a minute...shoot, I forgot, but it's a good book...or so she tells me."

And I will never feel relaxed again--EVER--because despite knowing all of the above, I will keep on writing.

Yep, you heard me right, I will keep on writing.

Because I may always be poor, and I may only be considered famous in my parents eyes, and I may never know what it is like to live life without a big knot of stress and tension in my neck and shoulders, but DANG IT...I am an author and have no idea how not to be!

So why would anyone want to be an author? I don't know. I guess, for me, it's because the alternative seems so much worse.

Why do you put yourself through this craziness? Why do you write despite the odds? How do you define success in your writing career? Let's chit-chat in the comment section below. We'll call it therapy :)

35 Comments
Kayelle Allen link
4/2/2012 03:49:31 am

Okay, I wasn't going to respond to this because I'm supposed to be writing right now... ;o but I can't help myself. I have to. The image of the straight jacket and its message spoke to me. I have a character like that. Or is that my muse? Hmm... Anyway, very funny post and I resemble your remarks way too closely for that to be a good thing.

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 05:16:08 am

Hee, hee, hee...I'm supposed to be editing. Shhhh...

So sad that the image of a straightjacket spoke to you. Even sadder that it REALLY speaks to me :) We can be crazy together.

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Susan Helene Gottfried link
4/2/2012 04:05:08 am

Put myself through this? Why? Because I was born this way and I'd be miserable if I did anything else!

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 05:19:11 am

Susan, you and I are just like Lady Ga Ga--We were born this way :)

No use fighting it.

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Pippa Jay link
4/2/2012 05:02:59 am

Um, because not writing makes me crazier? Success to me is being happy with what I'm doing. Finishing a book was euphoric. Getting it contracted made me scream, cry, laugh, and then cry a bit more. Not writing made me the unhappiest I'd ever been. So I'd rather be crazy than unhappy. :)

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 05:20:22 am

I'm right there with you, my friend.

I'd rather be crazy than unhappy too! :)

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Kathryn R. Blake link
4/2/2012 05:20:51 am

I echo Pippa Jay's thoughts. It's much better to be crazy pursuing a career that fills a hole in your heart, than be rich but miserable. And then there's always hope. I keep watching E.L. James's career blossom with a mixture of happiness and envy. Yup, hope really is evil.

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 07:52:55 am

Agreed! Rich and miserable would be awful--though I wonder if the concept "rich and miserable" can even coexist :)

I haven't heard of E.L. James, so I'll have to look into that and be envious, too.

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Rebecca Bloomer link
4/2/2012 05:46:19 am

Where else would the people in my head go???

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 07:54:11 am

So true. They've been with me forever so the idea of hearing silence would be terrifying.

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Lisa Rosenman link
4/2/2012 07:28:37 am

I write because there is NO CHOICE. None. (And the internal dialogue is spot on. :))

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Angela Scott link
4/2/2012 07:55:10 am

That internal dialogue is scary, isn't it?

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Nancy Lauzon link
4/2/2012 10:11:36 am

Heck, writing is fun. I think ... am I having fun yet? I don't know, I haven't had time to reflect on that, I'm too busy writing, revising, editing and promoting!

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Angela Scott link
4/4/2012 01:49:27 am

Exactly!

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J.L.Campbell link
4/2/2012 11:14:58 am

Apart from all the ways this writing business is bad for my health, if I'm not careful I'll get a secretary's hump too. And I do agree, we're all crazy.

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Angela Scott link
4/4/2012 01:51:35 am

I must admit...being crazy with all you folks is kinda fun :)

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Deborah Walker link
4/2/2012 03:15:40 pm

Yes . . . fun. It's fun, isn't it. Sometimes. Well, not always. Intellectually satisfying, then?

I'm not a writer who feels in her bones the need to writer. Errr .... I don't know why I do it.

I must be crazy.

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Angela Scott link
4/4/2012 01:54:05 am

I really do think there is a sense of satisfaction that come with being a writer. The act of creating something, seeing it come to life, and then hold the finished product in your hands is an amazing feeling.

Like an artist with a painting. Or a sculpture and a block of clay. It is a creative release if nothing else.

And all artists are crazy :)

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Kathleen link
4/2/2012 10:08:20 pm

I write because the voices in my head tell me to. =)

Seriously though, I write because it's fun. Sure, there are times when I'm convinced every word I put down is terrible and there's no chance I'll ever write a book worth reading, but I still think it's fun to try=)

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Diana Tracy link
4/3/2012 10:31:03 am

Just watching you go through all this makes me want to be a
backhoe-er or something. Not sure if backhoe-er is a word, but I like it and think digging and wearing a cool hard hat may be better. Orange vest. Union. hmmm...

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Angela Scott link
4/4/2012 01:55:50 am

You're a crazy writer and you always will be :)

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Michael Offutt link
4/4/2012 12:44:33 am

Don't listen to Diana. I've met her. She's as crazy as you are. And you are ccrraaazzzyyy.

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Angela Scott link
4/4/2012 01:56:27 am

You're not so sane yourself, buddy!

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Philip Mayes link
4/5/2012 07:23:07 pm

I've been saying for years that if you want to be a success as a writer you need to be either: a genius, related to a publisher or just damn lucky. If you're not any of those then you've got to be crazy to become a writer. I am certainly crazy because I've been writing for years and have made *no money at all* until very recently, and even then nowhere near $5000.

So why do I write? Because I have these silly stories in my head that demand that I put them down on paper. Damn it, I knew I should have become a banker.

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George Davies link
4/6/2012 06:34:26 am

I write because... well, some people get to the age of seven and lose their imagination, others at eighteen, but, since authors still HAVE an imagination we feel we need to share it with the world.

If we didn't try, then the whole word would be as boring as working in a bank.

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Patti Mallett
4/9/2012 02:16:13 am

Hahahaha.... LOVE THIS POST!!! Thanks for the ultra encouraging Subtext!!! So funny! You rock!!

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S. T. Lakata link
4/9/2012 03:50:27 am

Great blog! It's so fun to write and I love the fact that I published something. I'm always thinking of ways to be better at writing, marketing myself, and just figuring this whole "being an author" life out.

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Nanette link
4/11/2012 02:23:53 am

So I stopped writing to surf the Ville of Tweets, and came across your post. Compelled to reply (because in a sense I'm still writing). Right? Finishing a book, writing a story or brainstorming ideas leads me to still keeping my head. I believe my brain would self erupt if the ideas, good or bad, were kept caged inside. So I write due to the fact the little people in my head have come up with plots in which they'd like me to share. That's all.

Thanks for this post!! Glad to see the world of writers can unite and share sob stories of how brilliantly insane we are. Or can be. Or will be.

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Joelle link
4/11/2012 05:05:04 am

I am working on my first book and I can totally relate to this! The legal aspect alone- copyright, trademark, etc makes me pull my hair out. Writing a book and working full-time is not fun. I've since taken up yoga! haha

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Donna link
4/24/2012 02:57:03 am

I have this crazy hope that after the first novel, it gets easier. And maybe more lucrative?... we are all crazy, aren't we... and darn it, as a result of the 'research' I did for my first novel, I don't drink anymore! But drinking made writing so much easier...

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Tonya Burrows link
5/2/2012 02:16:18 am

I write because.... well, I don't know how NOT to write. Seriously, what do normal, non-crazy folks do with their time?

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Patricia Lynne link
5/2/2012 02:26:59 am

No idea why I put myself through writing. I just know I can't stop now that I've started. ^^;;

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M. R. Tighe link
5/2/2012 02:57:14 am

Writing is fun, in between the labor pains. But the end result is worth it. There's more to satisfaction than money or fame! Keep on writing!

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Charlotte Rains Dixon link
5/6/2012 02:31:25 am

And I'll keep writing, too, despite the sheer insanity of it.

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Laurie Evans link
5/31/2012 03:08:48 pm

Very funny!

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