Being A Great Writer IS NOT Just About Sales

Writers are obsessed with money. OK, I am sure everyone is. But when you think about it, the publishing world is really all about sales. Major "Lists" record how many books an author sold. When royalty statements come out, author obsess over how much money each of their books made. Sites like Publisher's Marketplace proclaim new sales highlighting how much the contract was for.

But is this really what makes a great author?

Now, don't get me wrong. Great writers DO make money. The problem, however, is that many new writers are obsessed about the sales more than focusing on what really makes a great writer.

And it is the writing.

We are, unfortunately, living in a world where it is all about the immediate gratification. We want the money, we want the sales, and we want it now. What we have forgotten, as we look back to the authors we admire, is that these authors learned how to write.

I have mentioned this before, but even writing conferences focus more on the marketing and sales than on the craft. In simple terms, writers just are lacking the skills and education on HOW to write in today's market. Writers today sit down, write a story that their friends and family call amazing, and immediately start firing it off to publishers and agents... and they get rejected... a lot.

Their immediate answer is that the publishing industry is just limited. These editors and agents just don't know what a great story looks like. Hey, all of their friends said it was great. Their writing chapter loved that book. Obviously the professionals just don't get it.

So the next move is "Fine, I'll self publish. I'll create my on publishing line and prove to the world I was right."

But the sales are not there. In this case, it is the monster of Jeff Bezos and Amazon, or clearly the major publisher "pushing the small writers" out of the market.

And while this conspiracy theory sounds legitimate, the reality is, the author is just not writing that great novel.

Authors today just string together words and phrases until they get to a full length novel. They insert plot devices, character tropes, and phrases that someone has said "always sell" and think the story is great. What they are missing is understanding how, when, and why these techniques work.

To be a great writer requires "education." It requires study and time to understand the craft. It doesn't matter how you plan on "selling" your book, the actual book has to be quality for anyone, whether it is an agent, editor or reader, to want to buy your book. And yes, this is time consuming.

But what do you really want? Do you want to be a great writer? Or do you want to be someone who maybe does make a sale or two, but in the end, just become one of those many authors who go nowhere with their career? I would hope it is the first option.