Overheard a conversation in the bookstore the other evening between 2 twenty-something women as they walked through the store---
"I should really get my notes out again....I need to finish that book I was working on." The first woman commented.
"Yeah," her companion added, "it ain't that hard to write a book."
*****
Not sure how I would have responded if that conversation had been directed at me. As it was, I did everything I could to not laugh outright... didn't really need them upset because I was eavesdropping--- REALLY didn't need them thinking I was unhinged if they mistook my laughter (as there was no one near me) as a failing of my own sanity, however close to the truth that might be.
Yes, I had to admit to myself, her companion was right--- "it ain't that hard to write a book." Truthfully, it doesn't take anything to plop a bunch of words on paper, finish the collection with "The End" and call it a book....
Not to disrespect those who run the self-publishing route, as there are some REALLY WONDERFUL self-published works out there, but, anyone (for the right price) can write something and publish it as a "book."
What's the old anecdote about giving monkeys typewriters and an infinite amount of time (even they could produce Shakespeare?)
What can be so frustrating, for anyone who dreams of becoming a published author, is the inability to know what will become the next big thing, and where their little piece of creativity will fit in that big picture.
Obviously, there's a marked difference between a good book and a bad book. But, those lines are subjective, sometimes maddeningly so. What I find a good read, my friend might find boring. Or, what my friend loves, I might find blasé.
There is no magic formula. There is no precise way to determine what will sell and what won't. There is nothing any one of us can do to really ensure our stories will move someone enough to recommend it to several hundred people.
So, yeah--- "it ain't that hard to write a book."
"I should really get my notes out again....I need to finish that book I was working on." The first woman commented.
"Yeah," her companion added, "it ain't that hard to write a book."
*****
Yes, I had to admit to myself, her companion was right--- "it ain't that hard to write a book." Truthfully, it doesn't take anything to plop a bunch of words on paper, finish the collection with "The End" and call it a book....
Not to disrespect those who run the self-publishing route, as there are some REALLY WONDERFUL self-published works out there, but, anyone (for the right price) can write something and publish it as a "book."
What's the old anecdote about giving monkeys typewriters and an infinite amount of time (even they could produce Shakespeare?)
What can be so frustrating, for anyone who dreams of becoming a published author, is the inability to know what will become the next big thing, and where their little piece of creativity will fit in that big picture.
Obviously, there's a marked difference between a good book and a bad book. But, those lines are subjective, sometimes maddeningly so. What I find a good read, my friend might find boring. Or, what my friend loves, I might find blasé.
There is no magic formula. There is no precise way to determine what will sell and what won't. There is nothing any one of us can do to really ensure our stories will move someone enough to recommend it to several hundred people.
So, yeah--- "it ain't that hard to write a book."
Good one. You're right--it ain't hard to write a book, but it's darn back-breaking to write the book one wants to write. With the language one wants to use. The right words, the right descriptions, the right *moments*. It ain't hard to write a book--just to write an excellent (by our standards) book.
ReplyDeleteYep, you got it in one.... :-)
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