I'm just about to complete my third crime novel. So far none
of them have been published. The last one I completed was
well-received by agents and publishers I sent it to, but
everyone thought at 42,000 words, it was too short. Several
suggested that if I double the size of the book, they'd be
able to sell it. The idea stuck in my craw. I think the story
is told and that turning a 150 page story into 300 pages is
going to hurt it, not help it. In any event, I didn't take
their advice but went on to start work on my new idea. My
objective is to work at my art, and I treat each book as a
work of art. It's the doing that's important to me. If they
sell well-and-good, if I make lots of money, well, wonderful.
But my objective is to explore the world as I see it through
crime fiction, because crime is the most horrible and
interesting part of life and it's driven by the stress
society places on certain personalities, emotionally,
sexually, financially.
I have no dearth of ideas. I have literally four books
already plotted just waiting for the time to set them down. I
expect that sometime one of my books will be published, but
this is not a driving factor to me. I know that James M.
Cain, one of my idols, said "Anyone who writes for anything
but money is a fool." But he came from a different set of
circumstances, place and time. I write the things I think so
I don't feel compelled to live out these ideas. I've been to
therapists, and I find writing crime fiction much more
rewarding. I've completely lost respect and credence for the
medical professions.
Patrick King
--- mburch5717 <
mburch5717@AOL.com> wrote:
> I've always had an immense amount of respect for
the
> authors who
> produce the work we love to read -- particularly
the
> writers who have
> never broken out but keep going back and
writing
> wonderful stuff year
> after year. You really have to admire the
dedication
> and work involved.
>
> A while back there was a very interesting
thread
> about the publishing
> side of the business but I'm curious to
understand
> what the author's
> side is like. Since we have so many authors
and
> others who are
> knowledgeable about the publishing business, I
would
> be very interested
> in learning about what the economics of
the
> situation are for an author
> of noir/hardboiled.
>
> For instance is there any feel for what the
average
> noir or hardboiled
> author would earn on a book that isn't a
> blockbuster? When you do have
> a blockbuster or at least something that sells
well,
> how is that
> defined in terms of what the author is
compensated
> and how many books
> are sold? By blockbuster or best-seller I
would
> assume we're talking
> about an Elmore Leonard or Michael Connelly novel
vs
> someone who writes
> a good novel but who doesn't have huge
sales?
>
> I'd appreciate any and all info you Avians
can
> provide.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Mike
>
>
>
>
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