| Everybody knows what the dream looks like. First, | | | | find. |
| you write a book. Next, you send it off to a | | | | Aha, you say. That's why the publishing industry |
| nationally known publisher. Finally, you are rewarded | | | | invented agents. These days, The Agent is the |
| with a contract for an enormous amount of money, | | | | perfect foil, the line of defence between publisher |
| you are interviewed on television, recognised in the | | | | and published. It's perfect - for publishers. They don't |
| street, and feted wherever you go. It's all wonderful. | | | | have to talk to aspiring authors much anymore. They |
| Ah, but I missed a bit out. At Stage Two - sending | | | | can rely on agents filtering out the bad stuff, (as |
| books off to publishers - there's the small matter of | | | | they see it), so that they only get to open the |
| waiting a few years and wasting a fortune on | | | | goodies, the sure-fire winners. For the writer, |
| postage. There's a series of rejections that you have | | | | however, it's no improvement at all. There's still a |
| to receive before you finally, eventually, inevitably, hit | | | | person they have to write a letter to; submit their |
| that 'jackpot'. That's usual. It happened to J K | | | | proposal to; send their manuscript to; and - yes, you |
| Rowling, why shouldn't it happen to you too? Yes, | | | | guessed it - a person they get all the rejection |
| just as Tom Cruise is the only famous actor in the | | | | letters from. Yes, back at the writing desk, from that |
| world who actually passed his first audition, the rocky | | | | limited perspective, things haven't become better at |
| road to getting your book published includes the ritual | | | | all. Getting published is still a bitch. Sometimes, maybe |
| humiliation of being turned down, time after time, | | | | even a lot of times, it doesn't even happen at all. |
| over and over again, crushingly and repeatedly. Most | | | | No wonder that today's authors are turning to the |
| of the 'names' in the world of writing have had to | | | | internet. This is a place where you can find an on-line |
| put up with that stuff, so why not you? In fact, | | | | publisher; sign up with a print-on-demand service; and |
| most 'established' authors probably think it's good for | | | | get your book out and ready to read. What's the |
| you. Why not? Just as experienced doctors think it's | | | | reward? Good feelings. When you get that envelope |
| Okay for Junior Doctors to work unholy hours and | | | | delivered to your door and rip it open to find it's a |
| wear themselves out doing night shifts during their | | | | real, live novel - with your name on it - there's no |
| first tours of responsibility, so authors and publishers | | | | better feeling in the world. It's a sense of |
| seem to agree that the hurdles that pre-publishing | | | | achievement; a feeling of triumph; something about |
| throws up are somehow there to stiffen the sinews | | | | justification; and suddenly all those long dark nights |
| and make for a better person. Yes, well, that's their | | | | wrestling with words on a page seem worthwhile. |
| excuse, trying to explain a nonsensical system that | | | | Better than that, and maybe best of all, is a euphoria |
| actually wastes talent and strangles initiative. | | | | which says, 'I've seen the future. I know what it's like |
| It might work too, but for one thing. Writers have | | | | to be a writer'. When you've got that warmth in your |
| feelings. Hmm, hard to believe, I know, but a | | | | heart, it's a lot easier - a real lot easier - to take the |
| necessary and powerful qualification for being able to | | | | icicles of rejection. Which is what you're still going to |
| write stuff about people is knowing something about | | | | get. Don't fool yourself, the vast majority of people |
| them - and the way they tick. I think it's called | | | | who write books never live to see a single dime fall |
| 'empathy'. It means having a line into the human | | | | into their hands. The publishing industry lives with that |
| heart. Basically, it means authors can sometimes be | | | | ugly thought, but survives on the hopes of a million |
| downright sensitive. Good qualification for knocking | | | | optimists. Fine, let's try and live with that, as authors, |
| out that book, but disaster for trying to get | | | | (and let Traditional Publishers try and live with it too, |
| published. Now there's a dilemma. In order to concoct | | | | and get to sleep at night,) but why not make the |
| a story that might actually be believable, you have to | | | | journey a little easier to bear? Go to the internet |
| be a little bit open, perhaps even fragile, your nerve | | | | first. That's where you can find a publishing deal - |
| endings near the surface. On the other hand, in order | | | | easily. Not with a million dollar price tag attached, of |
| to get your book into print, you need the thick skin | | | | course, but you get the same simple feeling of |
| of an elephant and the blinkered vision of a hobbled | | | | success, and yes, it's still the greatest feeling in the |
| horse. An interesting combination, and darn difficult to | | | | world. |