I’m a pantser. I’ve never outlined anything. I wouldn’t know where to begin. But there’s nothing I enjoy more than sitting in front of the monitor and going to town. Seeing where things take me, not knowing how I’m getting there. I start a book with a vague notion of how I want it to end, and then it’s a matter of filling in the important details. Creating characters as I go. Simply put, it’s fun.
And I think that’s what writing should be. Fun! In the end, we’re entertainers, and if we’re not enjoying it, then we shouldn’t be doing it.
Some authors do it. Some do it regularly. But for the life of me I don’t get how someone can craft a 1,000-page novel.
The longest book I ever read was Stephen King’s It. Now, there was a ton going on in that book so, it makes sense. I find getting to 300 pages, which is roughly 90,000 words to be a chore. So, kudos to those craftsmen and women who can do it, and do it well!
I’m 50. I never watched one episode of Dawson’s Creek because I probably aged out of it, but I knew about the stars, James included.
He died of colon cancer at 48 and leaves behind a wife and six kids.
Get screened, people. It runs in my family and I’ve been screened since I was 35. Is the night before the procedure uncomfortable? Sure, but there are worse things in life besides a little discomfort.
Go to the doctor regularly. Get blood tests. Don’t be one of these people who’s scared of them. They’re there to help you.
And pray. Not so much for yourself unless it’s life and death, but pray for your friends, family and loved ones, and the people who you don’t know but who need it. Like James’s family.
While scrolling X today, I happened upon an author who hit number one in one of Amazon’s many sub-genre categories. Good for the writer! I asked whether “Amazon Bestselling Author” can be used on the book cover and marketing materials.
I say, Yes. Technically, it topped a bestseller list, narrow though it may be, but I don’t think that’s disqualifying. If an author can back it up (screen shot/grab?), use it with pride.
Vicky Weber is a literary agent at Creative Media Agency and a children’s book author. She appears frequently in my X feed, and I find her posts informative. One recent one directed me to a blog post in which she describes the reality of being picked up by an agent. You can find it here.
In addition to fewer agents and editors working (and editors acquiring fewer manuscripts), it’s easier than ever to query an agent thanks to QueryTracker. Agents are flooded with queries, but take on only a few new clients a year. (I’m sure that number fluctuates depending on an agent’s current list, etc.)
Vicky reports receiving 5,000 queries in 2025. Let’s be generous and say she took on 10 new authors. Now, do the math: 10 divided by 5,000 is .002. I’m not sure how many decimal places to move; it’s either 2% or 0.2%. Whatever the case may be, the chances aren’t good.
So, what to do?
Fortunately, writers have options that those in other artistic fields don’t: direct access to the market thanks to Amazon, B&N, IngramSpark, and many other platforms that allow authors to publish their work. I’m considering this option myself. It’s daunting, but an option all the same.
And I might requery Vicky. I made the mistake of doing so well more than a year ago when I shouldn’t have. When you think you’re ready to query any agent, ask yourself this: Has anyone who I don’t know read my work and given me feedback? If the answer is no, then don’t query. Will there be exceptions to the rule? Sure. But I’m a realist. If you can afford it, get your manuscript professionally edited. It’s expensive, but look at it as an investment. And learn from it. It doesn’t mean you’ll get an agent, but if you work with your editor and understand why changes might be needed, you’ll have a much better product.
So, thank you, Vicky. You may or may not see me in your QT inbox, but I might give it another shot. Oh, I follow back!
Like you, and like a vast majority of decent people, I am not listed in the Epstein files. At least nobody’s made me aware of my presence in them. I’m pretty sure I’ve never met the guy, and I know for a fact I was never on some creepy island with him.
The same cannot be said of a surprising number of people who are mentioned in the files. At least two current and former presidents (Trump and Clinton), a former treasury secretary (Lawrence Summers), and a bunch of others, like Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and a bunch of other billionaires. Here’s a photo released by the Justice Department that depicts what I can only describe as a slew of Bond villains huddled around a table, planning world domination.
Here’s what I’d like to know: How many Epstein files are there? There must be a solid number; otherwise, we’d have infinite reams of paper that would tilt the planet off course into the sun. I woke up the other day to the news that 3 million more Epstein files were released. Look, the Justice Department has a library dedicated to him! And not the kind with two stone lions flanking the entrance.
Here’s a thought exercise: How many files are related to you? Like, if someone released the Manochio files, I’m certain they could fit in one manila folder. Nobody would have to pass legislation requiring someone to build an online database to hold them.
I suppose this is what’s known as “rich people problems.” Meaning, if you’re rich, you might somehow cross paths with a millionaire child predator and wind up in some devious archive.
Whatever the case may be, nobody will be satisfied. Even if Jesus Christ showed up and said, “There are no more Epstein files. They have all been released,” a cadre of people would still believe there are more out there, and they’re really awful, trust us.
When you’re contemplating going indie, you need to save money. It’s that simple. Because you may not want to, and many people likely don’t, but you will need to spend money if you realistically want to sell books.
You need to get your manuscript edited, and not by family and friends. You need an objective pair of eyes to scour your manuscript. And if the editor’s good, he or she will not hold back and will let you know what needs fixing.
Then there’s the cover art. That’s the second most important aspect of putting out your own work. At least I think it is, and I’ve never done it before. But after the story, you need something professional to go up against the Big 5 and the reputable (somewhat big) independent publishers, and there are a few that rival the Big 5.
A good cover, in my humble opinion (and I could be wrong and will gladly admit that I am), will cost a few thousand dollars, and that’s simply a guess on my part based on what I’ve seen out there.
Take Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes:
Version 1.0.0
Did you know Travis self-published his book first, not expecting his cozy fantasy to explode the way it did? Well, he did, and I recommend everyone who’s thinking of going full indie to read the wonderful chronicle of his journey. He is a strong advocate of ensuring a self-published book looks as close to a traditionally published one as possible. He doesn’t say how much he spent on his cover (and it’s a great one), but he implies it was not cheap.
Now, if you can’t afford a super-expensive cover, that’s fine. I get it. This is reality. We have more pressing purchases than a flashy cover, which doesn’t guarantee you’ll sell anything. At the same time, anyone can spot a bad self-pubbed book cover. That isn’t to be mean, it’s simply the truth.
If I go independent, I want to give myself the best possible chance to succeed, knowing what I am up against (professional book publishers) and that millions of books from trad/indie authors are released a year.
That brings me to my website. I’m not sure what I paid in 2013 to get a professional website made, but I’m guessing it was at least $500, and I didn’t mind paying it. I knew nothing about code and didn’t want the hassle. And I was pleased with the outcome. I wasn’t looking for anything flashy, just a logical landing spot. I’ll keep that landing page for a little while longer until I transfer to the WordPress site I’m building. It won’t look much different than my current one. The difference is that I spent roughly $150 to go it alone (paying for the WordPress subscription that provides access to all the features). I was given quotes of $750 to $800 for SquareSpace packages from professionals. I found those quotes fair, honestly. I’d received ones in the $2,000 range.
And I’m enjoying the process of learning it as I go. Does it look like some super-snazzy author website? Not right now. But it gets better-looking every day as I figure things out. The money I’m saving will absolutely go toward a cover if I go that route. And to me, that’s a worthwhile tradeoff. (I can always hire a professional if need be to help with the bells and whistles.)
Every dollar counts.
And I haven’t even gotten to marketing yet. Sheesh.
Website overhaul!
Please forgive the appearance of my website as it gets a much-needed overhaul.
As a former newspaper reporter from 1999-2011, I know layoffs happen. I managed to leave on my own terms; however, some friends didn’t, and I watched them clean out their desks and leave the office.
So, when word broke that the Washington Post laid off 300 workers, many of them journalists, I, like many other decent people, felt compassion for them, whoever they are. They have families and bills like the rest of us.
What is a bit overwrought is this notion floating around journalistic circles that reporters should never be victims of the economic laws of reality. The newspaper, like many, bleeds money: $100 million last year alone.
But because WaPo owner Jeff Bezos is a billionaire, he should essentially keep subsidizing the newspaper because reporters are precious to democracy, or something.
“If Jeff Bezos is no longer willing to invest in the mission that has defined this paper for generations and serve the millions who depend on Post journalism, then The Post deserves a steward that will,” the Washington Post Guild, a union that represents Post employees, said on X.
I didn’t hear these same journalists lamenting Amazon (owned by Bezos) laying off 16,000 people last month. Bezos is a multi-billionaire and could probably subsidize the salaries and benefits for the 16,000 unfortunate folks. Did the Post run an editorial demanding that?
Also, did you know that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is closing entirely in a few months? I didn’t until I heard someone on television say it in passing. I’m sure whoever owns the PPG is a millionaire. Maybe he/she should’ve just sucked up the losses and kept throwing money into a losing venture.
But that’s not realistic. Newspapers aren’t the US Post Office, which loses millions of dollars a year, into the billions, and is subsidized by the government. If the government had to operate by reality’s rules and not get to print money, the USPS would’ve been nixed long ago.
So, what makes newspapers so special? Public polling routinely shows that our trust in the media is at record lows. Trust me, 99.9% of the country will quickly recover from the WaPo no longer having a sports section. And unlike the PPG, the WaPo will continue to exist, at least for the foreseeable future. Hopefully, the paper will figure out how to turn a profit; otherwise, the future’s looking pretty bleak.
