When I first decided to write my novel, I was so excited. My thought was how hard can it be? I had a great idea, all I had to do was get it down on paper. I’ve read a lot of books and my story was every bit as good or better than some of them.
So I wrote my first novel. It was over 90,000 words. I thought I did a great job conveying the gist of the story. I had family members read it, and they thought it was great. So I sent it out to agents.
Only one of the agents I submitted to responded with why my book wasn’t publishable. My dialogue dragged, I had on-the-nose-writing, and I was head hopping. Well what the heck was all of that suppose to mean. I didn’t realize there were rules other than grammar.
Well there are rules, and if you expect an agent or a publisher to take you seriously, you’d better learn them. If you haven’t heard the terms mentioned, I would suggest googling them. I have blogs that cover the highlights. Visit me as well, and I will give you the Cliff-notes version.
What are the main characteristics of Wannabes that Won’t?
They take their own counsel-That’s a nice way of saying they thought they knew it all. They convinced themselves that they were experts in publishing which led to numerous mistakes.
They went rogue-Instead of doing their homework and getting counsel from editors and others in the business, they plunged ahead, falling all over themselves.
They follow a trend-It takes more than a year to get a book to the market(traditional publishing) and that’s after you find an agent who sells it to a publisher. By the time the book is released the trend could be over.
They believe in overnight success-Overnight success happens about 1 in 1,000,000 times. When the wanna bees synopsis or proposal isn’t received with enthusiasm, they quit.
They start their career by writing a book-This may be surprising but it is highly recommended that you begin with short stories and articles. You have skills to hone and polish, and a quarter million clichés to get out of your system.
They were imitative-One of the most common traits of destined quitters is their attempts to imitate famous writers. They quickly grow discouraged and quit when they realize they can’t keep up.
Writing a novel that is publishable is hard work. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. There are no shortcuts. If you won’t to be successful, you have to learn your craft and don’t ever give up.
-Jan R
Writing your first novel-Things you should know 
I think a lot of it is rooted in which goal a writer has. People can write for themselves, or they can write for others. I think many try to do both, but at a certain point a decision has to be made.
Similarly there’s the way that many treat feedback like a court room conflict between lawyers.
I remember one professional editor and publisher who spoke at a panel about “how to get published”, and they actually said they were burnt out because they would offer honest feedback, and instead of welcoming and heeding it, the aspiring author reacted with hostility, arguing against the feedback, against the professional who read their work as a favor.
It is tricky. On the one hand it’s easy to regard a creative work like a child, to feel hurt when others point out weak points, but that’s why I always like to any writing relationship with the question “What do you hope to achieve?”
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Thanks for taking the time to stop by and read my blog today! I am honored and I appreciate the feedback.
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Thank You!
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Solid post, I would agree with most of you wrote here. I’ve helped a few writers who simply fell of the grid who adhered to some of these examples. It’s heartbreaking. So many stories lost. I applaud you for taking the lumps and continuing to improve your craft. Judging by the great content you are always posting I can see it is paying off for you. Best of luck as you move forward!
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