Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Insecure Writer's Support Group

First Wednesday of the month, so you know what that means:


 
 

I totally knew what I was going to blog about this week. And then, of course, when the time came to write this post, I couldn't remember my plan at all.

Story of my life.

Things have been good for me lately. My first MFA residency was awesome (so awesome. Can't wait for the next one in July) and then, of course, signing with an awesome agent.

The agent signing was exciting and amazing. But it was also tough. I think a lot of people from the outside think having so many offers is fantastic and the place that everyone wants to be. And I'm sure there are people who do want a ton of offers, so they can pick who they want to go with.

But also, getting a lot of offers is really hard. ESPECIALLY when all the agents who offer are ahmazing agents in their own right. And what if you click with more than one of them?

And you don't really want to say anything about it because so many of your writer friends WANT to be in that position of having an offer of rep, and here you are with more thant enough. And also because you don't want to feel ungrateful about that amazing position you're in. And also, you worked really hard to get there, so why are you moaning? You know, feels and all that junk.

But all that aside, it's hard. It's hard to make such a huge, life-changing decision. Change is hard. Querying is easy, because you put your work out there, cross your fingers, and repeat until you reach your goals.

But once you reach your goals, then, suddenly, everything's different. The status-quo has changed.
I think sometimes it's much easier to strive towards your dreams than actually reach them, you know?

Hard stuff, guys. Hard stuff.

But also awesome.

How about you? Are big choices like that sometimes scary for you?


Also, just a blog update: No post on Friday this week, since it's my birthday and I'll be doing birthday stuff (woo!)

16 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I imagine it is difficult. You're at a fork in the road - which way do you go? And what if you pick the wrong way?
Here's hoping you picked the best!

Matthew MacNish said...

Giving up is easy. Success is hard.

Maria Zannini said...

Happy early birthday! See you on FB. :)

Josh said...

I believe that this is why there are so many unfinished novels in the universe. I think that it's natural to be afraid of success, in a way. Like you said, it's a huge change to the status quo. It was interesting that you were fine with sending out query after query - even getting rejected doesn't change the status quo. It's the success that poses the problem! However, you're going to adjust and dominate this new phase of your life. And I'm going to tell people, I KNOW HER when they sing the praises of your book.

Rena said...

Oh yes, you've got it nailed. Change is the great mind killer. Maybe we should have a litany against change... well, maybe not.

It's so awesome that you have an agent, but I've always wondered about the pressure of getting multiple agents. People talk about it, about how thrilled they are, and I've often wondered if they're just attempting to be gracious with their good fortune. They all seemed very stressed out. And just when you really need the support of all of your writer friends and the blogging community, you have to clam up and be professional. Rough business.

Big choices are hard, but I find that once I make them, I either feel relieved, or I feel nervous. (hint, the nervous feeling isn't the right one)

Chrys Fey said...

Congratulations on signing with an agent!!!! I am not in your situation, but when I first signed the contract to publish my eBook, I realized, just like you, that it's easier to strive toward a dream than to actually live one.

Johanna Garth said...

I saw that on Facebook! Big congrats to you and wishing you the best as your manuscript goes out on submission!

Johanna Garth said...

I saw that on Facebook! Big congrats to you and wishing you the best as your manuscript goes out on submission!

Hart Johnson said...

Story of my life too... being brilliant then forgetting before I can write it down and prove it...

I can see how that would be a rough spot--making hard decisions and having it be hard to talk about because everyone is jealous... You really did ALL the homework though, so I don't think you should worry about US--we can see that you did.

Catherine Stine said...

Yes, all of those choices are hard--good, bad or amazing. You want to make the right decision but there's no way of truly knowing until afterward! I go by gut intuition--seems like the best radar to me.

Misha Gerrick said...

I kind of know what you're going through. It can be hard to make such decisions, because they can determine success or failure for your career.

I wish you the best.

Leandra Wallace said...

Ugh, I can feel for you! If I were to ever be in this position, I'd definitely be a basket case. I hate letting people down- I'd be sending flowers w/notes that say 'Please don't be mad at me!' to all the agents I had to tell no, lol!

Ninja Girl said...

I can understand that. Like you said querying was SOOOOO hard...but then you kind of get used to it--after like the third queried novel. It never gets easier to get the rejections, but you know the deal. I think it would be very hard to choose between so many great agents. And having to figure out what's expected of you now that you're under contract is understandably daunting. But you're awesome, and your book officially being represented is AWESOME, so I know you'll pull through just fine ;).
Happy early birthday,
Ninja Girl

Austin Gorton said...

I think sometimes it's much easier to strive towards your dreams than actually reach them, you know?

Totes. Dreaming is easy. Living is hard.

Trisha said...

Yeah, I would guess it'd be hard because how do you know you're making the right choice, if you click with more than one agent, and so on. Plus you'd probably feel a bit mean rejecting the other agents. :P Or I would, anyway.

Michael Offutt, Phantom Reader said...

I've heard it's similarly hard when a woman has more than one suitor. I mean...how does a girl choose her true love? Sigh.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...