I research what books sell, but this hasn’t helped me to become more commercially successful. The idea of needing to reach a market can shut me down creatively. Thinking of an engaged audience, however, keeps me motivated. I love writing with a ideal reader in mind.
Haha, come to think of it, it hasn't helped me either. LOL. But I guess it makes me feel better! The illusion of control and all that. And I definitely like thinking I will be connecting with people. It's not just for me, hopefully.
I really resonate with the balance you're striking here, Brent, between creativity and mindfulness of my readers. I think your premise is right on - to slavishly adhere to either side of that equation is not ideal. How to strike that balance is for each author to decide for themselves based on what their goals are. "Creativity vs market" is an example of one of the many things in life that, as leadership author Andy Stanley would say, is not a problem to be solved but a tension to be managed.
Hmm, well-put, yes. I suppose it all goes back to the William Goldman quote about Hollywood: "No one knows anything." Which...yeah. But I still think all these questions are worth asking.
I really enjoyed this post. After my first novel was a critical success but sold very little (following on the heels of an award-winning story collection that sold even less), I decided that my next novel needed a premise that would compel readers to stick around. I'd come through the MFA world, where "bestseller" was a dirty word, but with two books under my belt I couldn't even get an interview for a tenure-track teaching job and I needed to pay the mortgage. I didn't have the luxury of writing more books no one read.
The result was a meditative, slow-burn novel about a missing child, THE YEAR OF FOG, which, was purchased by Random House for a song and went on to become a NYT bestseller. I didn't change the way I wrote; the voice, the contemplativeness, the philosophical asides were all there. The one thing I changed was beginning with a situation that required readers to keep reading to find out how it ended. I kept the whole literary, "character-driven" thing going; I just added a mystery to make it a page-turner.
I believe art and commerce can live happily side by side. When a writer is able to earn a living from writing, she can spend less time selling credit processing machines (that was one of my make-ends-meet jobs, and it did not make me a better writer!) Good for the writer, good for the art.
Thanks! Love this too. What a great example! (I used to teach in an MFA program, and I didn't understand the hostility to discussions of "commerce," at least among the faculty. The students were desperate for the info!).
Also, glad to meet one of Claire's friends! Met her and Danial in Mexico, and I'm big fan of them both, artistically and personally!
Claire and I haven't met but I love her work and had the good fortune to publish her at my literary magazine, Fiction Attic.
I also taught in MFA programs. What is especially concerning about the MFA reluctance to teach the business is that MFA programs have gotten increasingly expensive. When I applied to MFAs back in the day, I applied exclusively to fully funded programs that provided tuition waiver plus living stipend. Both of the MFA programs I attended (I dropped out of one to transfer to another) were free to attend through fellowships and included a living stipend. These days, most MFA programs are not fully funded. If a student is going to go into debt to attend, programs owe it to them to be transparent about how they can make a living after graduation!
Honestly, the entire publishing industry is shifting incredibly fast (some might say "imploding"!), and obviously higher education in the U.S. is going through extremely rough times right now (understatement of the century!). I seriously wonder what the future holds, and I would not want to be 22 year-old aspiring writer right now.
My son is a 20-year old aspiring screenwriter/director so this is a conversation we've had at our house! He had the choice between a couple of great programs in filmmaking and ultimately chose the conservatory where he was accepted into the hands-on directing BFA, rather than choosing the fancy, well-funded private university where he was accepted into the writing BFA. And he's seriously considering law school after he finishes undergrad. I'm just happy he learned to write the old-fashioned way--perhaps the last generation who will learn to do so without AI.
I research what books sell, but this hasn’t helped me to become more commercially successful. The idea of needing to reach a market can shut me down creatively. Thinking of an engaged audience, however, keeps me motivated. I love writing with a ideal reader in mind.
Haha, come to think of it, it hasn't helped me either. LOL. But I guess it makes me feel better! The illusion of control and all that. And I definitely like thinking I will be connecting with people. It's not just for me, hopefully.
I really resonate with the balance you're striking here, Brent, between creativity and mindfulness of my readers. I think your premise is right on - to slavishly adhere to either side of that equation is not ideal. How to strike that balance is for each author to decide for themselves based on what their goals are. "Creativity vs market" is an example of one of the many things in life that, as leadership author Andy Stanley would say, is not a problem to be solved but a tension to be managed.
Hmm, well-put, yes. I suppose it all goes back to the William Goldman quote about Hollywood: "No one knows anything." Which...yeah. But I still think all these questions are worth asking.
Agreed!
I really enjoyed this post. After my first novel was a critical success but sold very little (following on the heels of an award-winning story collection that sold even less), I decided that my next novel needed a premise that would compel readers to stick around. I'd come through the MFA world, where "bestseller" was a dirty word, but with two books under my belt I couldn't even get an interview for a tenure-track teaching job and I needed to pay the mortgage. I didn't have the luxury of writing more books no one read.
The result was a meditative, slow-burn novel about a missing child, THE YEAR OF FOG, which, was purchased by Random House for a song and went on to become a NYT bestseller. I didn't change the way I wrote; the voice, the contemplativeness, the philosophical asides were all there. The one thing I changed was beginning with a situation that required readers to keep reading to find out how it ended. I kept the whole literary, "character-driven" thing going; I just added a mystery to make it a page-turner.
I believe art and commerce can live happily side by side. When a writer is able to earn a living from writing, she can spend less time selling credit processing machines (that was one of my make-ends-meet jobs, and it did not make me a better writer!) Good for the writer, good for the art.
Thanks! Love this too. What a great example! (I used to teach in an MFA program, and I didn't understand the hostility to discussions of "commerce," at least among the faculty. The students were desperate for the info!).
Also, glad to meet one of Claire's friends! Met her and Danial in Mexico, and I'm big fan of them both, artistically and personally!
Claire and I haven't met but I love her work and had the good fortune to publish her at my literary magazine, Fiction Attic.
I also taught in MFA programs. What is especially concerning about the MFA reluctance to teach the business is that MFA programs have gotten increasingly expensive. When I applied to MFAs back in the day, I applied exclusively to fully funded programs that provided tuition waiver plus living stipend. Both of the MFA programs I attended (I dropped out of one to transfer to another) were free to attend through fellowships and included a living stipend. These days, most MFA programs are not fully funded. If a student is going to go into debt to attend, programs owe it to them to be transparent about how they can make a living after graduation!
I could not agree more!
Honestly, the entire publishing industry is shifting incredibly fast (some might say "imploding"!), and obviously higher education in the U.S. is going through extremely rough times right now (understatement of the century!). I seriously wonder what the future holds, and I would not want to be 22 year-old aspiring writer right now.
My son is a 20-year old aspiring screenwriter/director so this is a conversation we've had at our house! He had the choice between a couple of great programs in filmmaking and ultimately chose the conservatory where he was accepted into the hands-on directing BFA, rather than choosing the fancy, well-funded private university where he was accepted into the writing BFA. And he's seriously considering law school after he finishes undergrad. I'm just happy he learned to write the old-fashioned way--perhaps the last generation who will learn to do so without AI.
DON'T get me started! 😂
The optimist in me says: it's an exciting time to create content, no one knows what will happen. (But he doesn't show up too often!)