I’m not a big one for controversary, but in my other,
non-writing life, I spend a lot of time discussing business models,
sustainability and how to bring on new, innovative talent. I argue, backed up
by theorists by the handful, that ensuring such things are done is key to
maintaining industries.
Which made me want to talk about the reality of being a
writer at my stage of development.
Firstly, what is my stage? I have an agent. I have a
publisher for an upcoming trilogy. I have quite a bit of short stuff written
and published. I have finished six books and trunked one, which isn’t a bad
statistic. I have another underway when I get the odd week or two free to
think about it. I have a nice following on my blog, some people waiting to buy
my book when it comes out (thank you), some people prepared to review it for me
(and another thank you), some retailer support (and what I say three times is
true – thank you!) and my ever-supportive, cheer-leading family. I’m one of the
lucky ones, and the nearest most writers come to a success story after writing
for only five years.
I put in a lot of hours – usually somewhere between 20-40 a
week, depending what other work (read for that, paid) work I have on. I blog, I
critique others’ work, I beta-read for people as they’ve done for me, I
research the market, I socially network etc etc. In short, this is no part-time
gig. Not anymore. And it’s a multi-skilled gig – I have to be able to write, to
manage my time, to manage social media platforms, to manage my accounts, and to
promote myself - a thing I find as hideous as most other writers I know.
So, here’s some figures. Year one, I earned nothing. Year
two, I earned nothing. Year three I earned the heady heights of £30 – my first
short story publication and one competition win (which was spent on books, and
then I got sucked into Miles Vorkosigan’s world and paid £50 quid to read the
rest, so I actually earned –£20). That year I paid to attend a convention in
Brighton, so was actually well in deficit. Last year, I earned £190 – two competition
wins, three short stories and a bonus for one being very much liked.
I’m lucky enough to have a flexible job I fit writing
around. I’m also, supposedly,part-time, so have some time to throw at this gig.
But now it’s biting, and probably at just about the time when I might break the
market a little and get some books out there. Because up until now this has
been a fit-around life hobby. Now, I have deadlines. I have more than one
project on the go, and they’re all pretty big. I have people asking me to write
short material for them, which is amazing and fabulous. And I still haven’t
earned enough income to cover my grocery bill for a week.
This isn’t a blog setting out to moan. It has a serious point
behind it and this is it: we want new writers. We readers, I mean. I can get
through a book a week when I’m in a reading spree. I need the industry to keep
up. And, you know, my taste isn’t the same as yours. Sure we might agree we both
love Miles, but you mightn’t fancy a bit of magical realism beside your space
boy, and I like that. You mightn’t be a big fan of a dose of Young adult
reading but I find it spices up the reading lists for me. In short, we want
diverse books – not just in what they contain, but in the genres they cover, the
focus of the story. I like a good character – others like their tech, or their
mystery, or their horror (I’m looking at you @ChristopherBean).
So where does an industry go that doesn’t pay new talent? How
many writers have got the stage I have, where it’s happening, but time
draining, and realised they’re juggling too much? How many have seen the road
ahead and backed away, not ready to give that much effort to something that is
a lottery in terms of success, that doesn’t give payment opportunities to those
learning the ropes, that doesn’t provide a straight-forward way of gaining the
skills and making it sustainable.
Advances are few and far between. Writers’ incomes have
fallen. To see the detail, have a look at the link below. The average wage is
£11,000, down 29% since 2005, £5,500 below what a person needs to live on. With
my business hat on, I look at this industry, which relies on new blood, and I
wonder where is the sustainability is? Where we look for those new writers?
I don’t have the answers. They lie buried under business
models, stresses on publishers, market dominance and factors, spend-value and
consumer expectation. I just know that I wonder how many good writers we’ve
lost along the way and how many of their books I would have loved to read…
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jul/08/authors-incomes-collapse-alcs-survey
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