{"id":31907,"date":"2018-02-20T09:18:29","date_gmt":"2018-02-20T14:18:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/terribleminds.com\/ramble\/?p=31907"},"modified":"2018-02-20T09:18:29","modified_gmt":"2018-02-20T14:18:29","slug":"dan-koboldt-nine-years-a-penmonkey-and-nine-lessons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/terribleminds.com\/ramble\/2018\/02\/20\/dan-koboldt-nine-years-a-penmonkey-and-nine-lessons\/","title":{"rendered":"Dan Koboldt: Nine Years A Penmonkey, And Nine Lessons"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m pretty sure Dan is a Kobold, and just isn’t telling us — I mean, it’s right there in his name. I keep asking, “Are you a kobold? and he keeps saying, “Stop asking me that, I’m a human being,” and then I wink at him because I know what he means. (Whisper: he’s a kobold.) Anyway! Here Dan is, offering up a bevy of lessons — nine, in fact — to match his nine years of penmonkeying around.\u00a0<\/em>Please to enjoy, fellow kobolds and non-kobolds.<\/em><\/p>\n

* * *<\/p>\n

When Chuck generously agreed to host another guest post from me on his blog, he suggested something other than a FIVE THINGS post. Which is fine with me. I\u2019ve told you ten things about my books already, and I\u2019d be hard-pressed to come up with more. Instead, as I wrap up my series with Harper Voyager, I thought I\u2019d share some of the lessons I\u2019ve learned since I started writing fiction.<\/p>\n

In other words, these are the lessons from my nine years as a penmonkey. Nine years, nine lessons. Let\u2019s do this.<\/p>\n

1. Write the damn book.<\/h2>\n

Most people fancy the idea of writing a book. I have a few friends and relatives \u2013 people I\u2019ve known for years \u2013 who are pretty fired up about it. They come up with great new ideas for stories on a regular basis. They buy special pens and notebooks (or a Macbook Air). They try new outline formulas and write-or-die apps. But they fail to do the single most important thing for someone who wants to become an author, which is to write the damn book.<\/p>\n

If you want to be an author, you have to write (and finish) an entire book. Until you do that, you can\u2019t query agents, pitch editors, or ask celebrities for blurbs. You have nothing to offer these people until you have a completed manuscript. And yet, so many people can\u2019t seem to do that. Sometimes, it\u2019s because they\u2019re trying to get everything perfect. Perfect characters, perfect setting, perfect storyline. But perfect is the enemy of done, my friends. If you want to get anywhere, you need to be done.<\/p>\n

Another reason many people don\u2019t write the book is simply that writing is hard. There are lots of reasons not to do it. You work a lot. You have kids. You need to go to the gym. You can\u2019t find your laptop\u2019s power cord. These are all perfectly legitimate reasons not to write. If one of them works for you and you\u2019re happy not writing, you shouldn\u2019t. God bless. This game isn\u2019t for everyone.<\/p>\n

People generally fall into one of two categories when it comes to writing a book: those who talk about it, and those who do it. Over time, I can usually figure out which category someone\u2019s in, and it rarely changes.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t make you write a book. Only you can do that.<\/p>\n

2. Double your eyeballs.<\/h2>\n

When I first dabbled in fiction in 2008, I considered myself a competent writer. I\u2019d been writing nonfiction for several years for my day job, and I was a voracious reader. I thought I\u2019d be good, or at least decent, when I switched to fiction.<\/p>\n

Nope. I was pretty bad. Even worse, I didn\u2019t know it yet. Luckily, I was in an \u201cIntroduction to Fiction Writing\u201d class that included peer critique. My classmates gently helped me realize how terrible my writing was. Their feedback told me some of the things that I could improve.<\/p>\n

Like most writers, I have blinders on when it comes to my own writing. We need more eyeballs on it to ferret out the weak points. Not our mom\u2019s eyeballs, either, but the eyeballs of someone who reads in your genre. Or better yet, writes in your genre. (Always ask before using someone\u2019s eyeballs). I refer you to my recent guest post on the NaNoWriMo blog, How and Why to Use Critique Partners<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3. The Zombie Gauntlet of Rejection<\/h2>\n

A nice side benefit of peer critique is that it helps prepare you for the pain associated with the publishing journey. As you progress in your career, criticism and rejection will be constant companions.<\/p>\n

Think of it as trying to get past a gauntlet of rejection-zombies to the safety of your home. When you begin querying, each rejection is like an undead hand slapping you in the face. It stings, but you keep moving. When your manuscript goes on submission to editors, the rejections have more weight to them. Each one is like a punch to the guts. Sometimes, it\u2019ll knock the wind right out of you. It helps to have an agent and writer friends who will pick you up from the dirt so you can keep going.<\/p>\n

If you manage to get past the editor zombies, you\u2019ve reached the door. But the acquisitions board has locked it from the other side. Many author dreams die on this threshold. Maybe you do better, and kick down that door to get published. That\u2019s why they call it breaking in<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Even after you break in, your problems aren\u2019t over. You simply trade them for a set of new ones. If you want to survive, you have to be mentally tough enough to take these knocks and keep going. And you need a support network of good friends to help you stay sane.<\/p>\n

4. Luck versus persistence.<\/h2>\n

Luck matters a lot more than it should in this game. You can write a fantastic book that lands a great agent. The agent knows the perfect<\/em> editor for it. Maybe that editor loves it and makes you a great offer. Or, maybe that editor signed a similar book last month, so the answer is no. Your fate, hanging in the balance, and it all comes down to luck. Nothing you can do about it.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s another factor at play. Persistence. This is something you DO control, and it\u2019s also what separates published authors from failed ones. If an agent rejects your query, send it to five more. If your first book doesn\u2019t get a book deal, write a second one (but not a sequel). If your first novel doesn\u2019t garner the sales or reviews or awards that you\u2019d like, try again.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t control luck, but you can be stubbornly persistent. Most successful authors are.<\/p>\n

5. Publishing is dead! Long live publishing!<\/h2>\n

Bloggers and podcasters love to discuss the state of the publishing industry. Depending on whom you ask, it’s either stronger than ever or plunging toward certain death. Generally it\u2019s the latter, because bad\/shocking news gets more attention. That\u2019s why you hear more about teenagers dying in car crashes than elderly people going in their sleep. When I was a new author trying to break in, I gave these “publishing pundits” too much stock. I was genuinely concerned that by the time my debut was published, physical bookstores would no longer exist.<\/p>\n

The truth lies somewhere between the two extremes. Yes, the publishing industry has undergone some major changes, especially in the past two decades. Major publishers have been consolidated into five big entities. More recently, the introduction of e-readers like the Kindle fueled the rapid growth of e-books. Brick-and-mortar booksellers like Barnes & Noble are struggling to adapt to a world in which more and more consumers shop online. So are most physical retailers, by the way. Google \u201choliday sales 2017\u201d if you need convincing.<\/p>\n

The publishing industry is not dying. It is evolving<\/em>. People still buy books. They just do it online because you don\u2019t need pants to shop online. People still visit libraries, but now they can use their library cards to borrow e-books and audiobooks. People still read, but they do it on their phones.<\/p>\n

Change is the way of the world. Smart authors, agents, and publishers adapt and survive. Those who don’t adapt will eventually fade away. It’s that simple.<\/p>\n

6. Obscurity is the enemy<\/h2>\n

This is not to say that the success of any author (or book) is guaranteed. There has never been more competition for readers or attention, especially because consolidation has happened on the retail side as well. Thanks to e-books, most titles will never go out of print, at least digitally. The challenge is ensuring that they continue to reach new readers.<\/p>\n

There is a form of peculiar, unknowable black magic called Sales Rank. No one truly understands the meaning of this number, but its job is to make you feel the sting of obscurity. It will spike. It will fade. It will do little dances that make authors begin to question their sanity. Ignore this dark sorcery, and you\u2019ll be much happier.<\/p>\n

There are two powerful weapons that aid authors in the fight against obscurity. The first is your own personal hustle: your ability to hand-sell your book to a co-worker or con-goer or the guy next to you on an airplane. This is a subtle art that takes time and practice, but ultimately can keep your book selling. The fact that you\u2019ve written and published a book is no small achievement. Many people will read it just because of that.<\/p>\n

The other powerful weapon is your membership in the guild of penmonkeys. You didn\u2019t know there was a guild? Well, welcome aboard. Please send your membership fees to Chuck. Acceptable forms of payment include beaver skins, undead souls, and bees.<\/p>\n

The guild means that you, as an author, have great power to support the work of other penmonkeys. Hand-sell their books. Review their books. Give them a voice on your platform. Others will do the same for you when it\u2019s your turn.<\/p>\n

7. There’s a lot you can’t change<\/h2>\n

There are many things that affect an author’s career (for better or worse) that we simply can’t change. Some of the things authors don\u2019t control include:<\/p>\n