story idea

[miriam_e]

Yay! I already have my story idea for NaNoWriMo this year. I'll put a lot more work into preparation than I have in previous years so that I get a better result. I've always put quite a lot of time into working up aspects of the story beforehand, but this time I want to have the entire thing ready to just regurgitate. Each year I find my storytelling ability improves, (though I'm still not terribly good). Janet Evanovich wrote 11 books before she sold one, so I'm not letting my current inability worry me too much. I figure I'm still in the learning phase.

Only 4.5 months to go. Bring it on.

Comments

[rpeate.livejournal.com]

Do you know how to get a book published? I'd like to know.

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Let's see... ummm... first you get a can of petroleum, empty it over yourself, then get a match and... oh, oops... wrong thing. Sorry. I think getting published on paper is probably as painful, but not as easy. :)

No. I jest. From my experience getting published on paper is a matter of contacts. You know the right people or meet the right people. Oh, and you need something really, really good.

It is my understanding that most publishers today are meeting the unprecedented numbers of new authors by cutting back on new authors being published. Yes, the publishing industry sees a whole new motherlode of resources as a threat instead of an opportunity. It is like the mining industry bewailing the discovery of a gigantic new deposit of very pure iron ore, fencing it off and preventing it being mined. Insane.

Getting through the defences of the shrinking, overworked staff of publishers to find someone who will take a chance on your work is harder than ever. Authors get paid less now than ever before too, while publishing executives are being paid more than ever before. The cost of books has increased much more than petroleum, yet the cost of the materials has dropped and the fraction paid to authors has shrunk. The math indicates the executives are killing the industry.

They are concentrating on "sure bets" -- established authors and prize-winners.

I think the era of paper publishing is coming to an end. Locked, encrypted ebooks will never fly in a big way. What will step into the gap? I think it will be self-publishing on the web. How can an author earn a living from that? There are a few, but not many yet.

Cory Doctorow
http://craphound.com/

Scott Sigler
http://www.scottsigler.com/