Reclaiming the Narrative of Success!
Greetings and salutations Scribblers! Thank you so much for watching, I’m super glad you're hanging out with us today. Today’s topic is a bit of a pep talk because too often I see writers getting frustrated by the societal expectations of being a writer and defining what success looks like despite not truly understanding how being an author works.
So today, we’re going to be reclaiming our narratives and finding a new measure of success.
Societal standards exist everywhere in almost every facet of our lives. Beauty, fitness, education, family expectations, gender expectations, etc etc. And they also exist in the world of publishing and writing. But I have good news–it’s all made up and we get to challenge those narratives and make our own version of what success looks like, just like we get to create our own beauty of gender expectations.
Writers are constantly focusing in being an overnight success, of hitting the New York Times Bestseller lists, but few of us ever reach those goals. You might compare it to the amount of high school athletes who are convinced they’re going pro and will be drafted right out of high school. Very few of them actually realize that dream. Does it mean they aren’t successful if they never compete professionally? Absolutely not.
So, my fellow authors, we need to redefine what success means. Being on the New York Times bestseller list isn’t necessarily an indicator of success. There are definitely books on there that are phenomenal, but there are other books that hit for a single week and then you never hear from that author again. And there are also books that show up on the list despite not being of substantial quality. If you remember the Handbook for Mortals debacle from [INSERT YEAR] and how YA Twitter basically Scooby-dooed the truth that the book had gamed the system in order to hit the list.
The formula they use to determine what books hit the New York Times list is rather arbitrary and you can go down some great rabbit holes learning more about it. But still, most authors have it as one of their goals because it’s something the world outside of publishing understands and considers a token of having made it.
I know so many authors who have never hit the list and yet their writing is solid, they have devoted fan bases, and in my opinion are of a better quality than some of the books that do hit the list. Of course, that’s my subjective opinion and it doesn’t mean a whole lot to anyone, but me!
Another huge misconception is that when an author sells a book they’re going to be rich. Of course, there are amazing six figure book deals out there, but most authors are getting much more modest deals in the 20k and under range. Does this mean your book and writing isn’t phenomenal? Absolutely not. But it’s another one of those criteria authors tend to look to in order to gauge whether or not they’re successful.
So my first challenge to you is to look past the capitalistic nature of your writing and book sales. And I know, that’s hard to do in this economy–we need income in order to have a roof over our heads and food on the table, but not getting that big book deal or hitting the list are two measures of success we have to let go of.
Instead, look at how you’re contributing to the literary canon as a whole. How is your writing impacting readers? Who’s gushed over your writing? Has a reader sent you a message saying that your book saved them? Is it uncovering some vital cultural aspect that needs brought to the light? Is it challenging the norms and expectations of a genre?
These are all important things for your story to be doing and a much more meaningful way to gauge success. How does your story make you feel? I think about Maya Angelou’s quote “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside yourself” a lot. How has writing my story helped me become better, more myself? How did I turn the agony of an untold story into the joy of one I can share with others?
Yeah, it’s a bit woo-woo, but I think it’s vital that writers remember our why behind our writing.What part of our souls and hearts needs to put words on a page? Every word, every completed manuscript is worth celebrating.
I’ve completed four manuscripts so far. My arbitrary marker of success is getting an agent to represent me to traditional publishers. I haven’t yet achieved that. But I also haven’t failed. I have been successful in telling amazing stories that are well written and I have a very small, but very devoted fanbase cheering me on eagerly awaiting my next project.
My second challenge is to be that person. Be the writer that celebrates the success of other writers. Be the one who recommends their books, who champions the impact they have on readers, I can give you so many midlist authors that will absolutely blow your mind! I’ll leave a list in the description below. Their work has made such a huge impact me as a human and as a writer.
Lifting each other up and celebrating these meaningful success refills everyone’s well. There’s this thing called shine theory, originally coined by Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman. It’s the idea that when one of us wins, all of us win. That by helping someone rise to the top and be amazing, you’re also going to rise to the top and be amazing. So often, the capitalistic aspects of society want us to compete, as though we’re some weird form of Highlander and there can only be one AMAZING AUTHOR! But in reality, there are enough readers out there for all of us and when we lift each other up and help each other to shine, we all become successful.
So, get out there and lift up your voices to share all the successes of the writers you know. Please, drop your favorite authors in the comments below so we can all check out their books and celebrate the impact they have on publishing!
And celebrate your wins. Whether it’s finishing a manuscript, getting ten minutes of writing in between work and family events, or just knowing you wrote a book that as someone is reading, they’re going to take a deep breath and be so incredibly thankful that you wrote it because it’s exactly what their soul needed in that moment.
Take care of yourselves and keep writing, the world needs YOUR BOOK.
See you next time, Happy Writing Scribblers.
As always, your mileage may vary! If you have any tips for recognizing burnout before it takes over completely, please drop those in the comments below.
Consisting of five sections, this course will include strategies for revising characters, plot, pacing, and worlding building. It also includes resources for copyediting and for gaining insight into your manuscripts theme and purpose
