Writing From The Heart

We all have our passion projects. We get writing on a story or a personal essay or a collection of poetry and the words just flow on to the page. We just cannot stop writing. We tell ourselves that this IS the project that we have dreamed of our entire life. 

And now it is time to burst your bubble.

Remember that you are now writing as a business. Publishing is a career choice and your writing is a product for the consumer. This means that even though YOU love the story, is this something that the READERS will want to read? Is this something that the mass market will want to read.

Now, when I say mass market, I am not talking about the type of book, I am using the term mass as in A LOT of people. 

As editors and agents, we are not just looking at the quality of the writing or the passion we see in the writing (yes we can see that). We are looking to see if there is anywhere the book can sell and if there is a viable market for the book. There have been a lot of times when I have had a client with a book I have totally loved but there has just not been a place for it. Even the editors I have sent it to have loved the writing but have been frustrated not knowing how they could place it in the market. 

Yes, we want you to write what you love. I certainly am never going to ask an author to write in a genre that they do not like and I am certainly not going to force someone into a career path that is not right for them. You should not do that either. You need to stick to your own voice and find your own style. With that said, you have to shape that style into something that is right for the market. There are places - I promise. It might take a bit of work, but there are places!

Trust me.