Something useful

Whether it is researching the business end of things from trends to licenses and legal issues or being on the creative side of the mind, patience is the key. One of the things I find the least exciting is building a business plan. There is very little motivation behind it because with this [USA] economy and the state of the industry, no bank is going to loan me money for a start up publishing company.

Patience to plan and save the funding for each step of the process to build a business, any business, is a slow process. When I think of creating the web content or the more creative aspects of the company, it makes the mundane more manageable.

The same is true when writing fiction. The first draft is the worst draft. It takes nerves of steel not to jump the gun and push an ms through the process before it is ready for the light of day. Almost everyone I know dreads the third or fourth or twentith rewrite, never mind editing. But once into the process, it isn't so bad and usually takes on a momentum of its own as the ms becomes refined.

Same is true for the query process. The pre-query research is mind boggling. Where to start? How to know if the agent is a good one or a dud? Do they shop the type of ms you have? Do they already have one like it under contract?

It gets tempting to ship it to the quickest, easiest online printer that can be found. I have several books in my collection that look amateurish. I have one that is out right horrid and I ache for the author. But on the other hand, they 'knew it all' and it shows in the finished product.

My Godmother once told me patience was only a virtue if it was difficult to wait. Maybe. But in this industry it isn't about waiting, it is about methodically going through the process and not stopping when discouraged, because everyone gets discouraged at some point from first word to first royalty check.

Keep the faith - keep writing.