WTF?!?!

Carolyn:

I read with horror a post by an writer who wrote for Ellora's Cave. Good lord! The pay must be really good for someone to put up with this:


Now, you have to go through a proposal that must be written in a certain way. If the proposal is accepted you submit the manuscript. If your editor isn’t having a bad day, PMS, or the raving loons, you get a contract. Your title must be approved. Then you go through something arbitrarily called pre-edits. Then you go through first round edits. Then second round edits. Then third round unless the editor isn’t a martinet who thinks she knows all there is to know. Far be it for you to question her, though. You’re basically told to piss off. When she deems your work ‘finished’ then you submit the blurb and the cover request…which must be a certain way…and then the excerpt. You get to see if the editor approves all that. If not, you do it again. All the forms get changed about once a year so you have to make sure you keep up with that.


I have a pretty good paying job now. It's all relative, of course. In the big city it's probably peanuts, but for my little town, it's a very well paying job. And for my pay I work hard and consistently.

But outside of my job, I'm a lazy SOB and I can only say that the royalties must be amazing for someone to put up with this.

Here's the thing - and I don't think it's sour grapes. Writing means something to me. It's a comfort when I'm depressed, it's a shot of adrenalin when I hit something right on. And always it's a pure pleasure, no matter how outdone I get sometimes. I enjoy it, it makes me happy.

Why then would I put all this pressure on myself? To have my fifteen minutes of fame? Hell, that's not a given. I can see myself trudging to my keyboard, making myself do what was once done with joy and without thinking twice.

Maybe it is sour grapes. Maybe I'm making excuses. But I'm just too damn old to be struggling with such shit and for sure, I don't want to lose the rush I get when I get in an experimenting mood. Trying different POVs, crafting a story that is mostly dialogue and that seemed to go over well with the readers, utilizing flashbacks inventively - oh, all sorts of things that probably would not be accepted professionally.

I don't think I'm rigid or too proud to take critiques - I don't think so. But I have enough stress in my life; I have no desire to add to it. Nope. Nuh uh.

I shall relish my ignorance. :-)


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Lori:


To add a little perspective let's note the author of above was anonymouse and posting on Karen Knows Best and there was a discussion of how EC is suffering in the sales department.

This is also the reason that when these two old farts are sending work out to publishers the short old fart (that's ME!) is doing all the work. And the tall one who says y'all just moans about the work.

Now I got to ask y'all, is there anyone who doesn't understand why I have this crazy chocolate addiction?

Still ... I think the dreams of publication pale a little with the work of publication. But the work could well be worth it all to see one's name in print. Just depends on what matters to you, I guess.