The Business of Writing - Volume 2
It can be daunting, sometimes, sitting down to write an article. So when the editor of Writing Magazine asked me to write six pieces for a series called the Business of Writing I was both excited and a little intimidated. Could I come up with six ideas?
Actually, the answer was yes. But coming up with six ideas is not the same as coming up with six complete articles.
I managed it. Not only that, but I kept managing it. After two years, I collected the first 25 articles together and put them in an anthology, titled the Ronseal way (as it says on the tin): [amazon_textlink asin='B01NH5MAG2' text='The Business of Writing - Volume 1' template='ProductLink' store='simonwhaley-21' marketplace='UK' link_id='a60d8172-d56b-11e8-9fa3-adbcbea6f696']
Well, time flies when you’re having fun - another two years to be precise. Which means I have enough articles to put into a second collection, snappily titled [amazon_textlink asin='B07JCRT3KT' text='The Business of Writing - Volume 2' template='ProductLink' store='simonwhaley-21' marketplace='UK' link_id='ae74fee2-d56b-11e8-bf2a-11471eac25ac'].
Just like the first collection, this second volume covers a broad range of topics. There’s a piece on attracting literary agents, another on understanding your royalty statement, one on how to deal with payment procrastinators and even one on how to give an author talk.
That’s what I enjoy about writing. It’s a varied and interesting world. One day I may be asking other writers about what being a hybrid author means, and the following day I’m learning about media kits and why every writer should have one.
Most of these articles contain the wise words and experiences of many other writers. These articles would be so much weaker and less informative without those contributions. So I give a massive thank you to every writer who has helped me out with their thoughts, opinions and advice as I’ve put these articles together.
It’s rather satisfying to know that this second collection now means I’ve written over fifty articles for the Business of Writing column in Writing Magazine (that’s over 85,000 words if you’re counting). Which just goes to show that it is possible to create a large body of work simply by taking one step at a time.
And yes … Volume 3 is already in the planning!