| |
10 Unrequested Suggestions Made to an Unpublished Novelist
One of the most painful experiences of a hopeful writer is to have to confess their desires to
non-writers. Invariably, these confessions produce some outlandish (and after awhile, predictable) responses. Shannon was offered most of these suggestions multiple times. These non-writers were only trying to be kind and helpful. Hopefully unpublished writers may look over this list, see things they themselves often hear, and have a cheery laugh.
- "Why don’t you just write to Oprah for help?"
- "You know what you should do? Write a book like Harry Potter."
- "Why don’t you write something that people want to read—like Self-Help?"
- "You’re writing fiction? When my husband’s through being a lawyer, he’ll write non-fiction.
He wants to do something important. I’m not saying the world doesn’t need fiction writers, it’s
just he just wants to write something that really matters."
- "Why don’t you just write newspaper articles?"
- "You need to do something to grab the editor’s attention to get noticed. Write your cover
letter in colorful, wacky font and send the manuscript with chocolate."
- "Just self-publish and make millions like the guy that wrote The Christmas Box."
- "You should be a John Grisham or Tom Clancy kind of writer."
- "You live in Utah. Ask the Osmonds for help."
- "I don’t understand why you can’t get published. Bad books get published all the time." (OUCH!)
Return to On Writing
|
