Okay, so I think our view of life changes as we get more experiences behind us. I know it has for me. Sometimes in our lives, as well as in publishing, we need to gain more perspective.
Sometimes I find myself becoming impatient. I want things to happen right now, or at least as quickly as possible. Sometimes publishing moves fast, and sometimes I need to step back and gain more perspective.
So here are some things I've learned in the recent past.
1. There's not a ticking clock for getting a book published. It could be this year, or next, or the year after, on in ten years.
2. Maybe you have a book you've already written that will sell, or maybe you're writing one now. But maybe, just maybe, you haven't written the thing that's going to sell. So it's probably best to stop moping about what hasn't sold and write something else. Something you love. Something that's worthwhile whether it sells or not.
Okay, that last paragraph was a pep talk to myself. But I'm not going to erase it, because maybe, just maybe, someone else needs to read that too. And maybe they (or you!) can learn from something I've realized--however painful it may have been--in the recent past.
3. Another's success does not take a "spot" for you. Sometimes there's this underlying frustration that it's not happening for you when it is happening for someone else. We start asking ourselves, "Why? What am I doing wrong? Or what are they doing that's so right, or so much better, than me?"
These are dangerous questions, and if/when you find yourself asking them, I highly suggest reading #2 again and getting back to work on a project you feel passionate about.
Even if it's not writing.
Oh yeah. I said it.
4. Sometimes you need a break from writing. I know, I know. That goes against everything in my impatient core. I want to write the next bestseller NOW. I want my agent to read NOW. I want to query NOW. I want everything NOW! (I feel a bit like Veruca in Willy Wonka!)
But sometimes, just sometimes, it's okay NOT to write. Not to think about it. Not to let your whole life be consumed by it. <<I highly advocate this anyway, but especially during a time when you're trying to gain some perspective on your publishing journey.
So yeah. Those are some things I've realized as I've taken a few steps back and tried to find some perspective on publishing.
Anything you've learned recently? Lay it on me!
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