Apparently every day writers send me notes asking how they can approach the task of getting their books published.
Responding to each one individually is taking more time, and I have finally decided to augment and organize my advice in a more detailed format. I am presenting a fraction of this material in this article.
I can usually guide writers one way or another and make at least a small contribution to speeding up their journey. But lately, I’ve found myself asking more questions than answering them. And the most shocking and provocative is this:
“Why are you trying to get your book published?”
This makes people gasp. For some, it’s like asking, “Why breathe?” They are so convinced of the desirability or even the perceived need to be published that asking WHY seems absurd.
But I assure you it is not.
When I was selling advertising for our college newspaper, I stopped at a burger joint that looked like a McDonald’s wannabe. Typical franchise look, with bright neon and fluorescent lights, it was run by a gentleman who oversees all of its operations.
It seemed strangely out of place. I learned that by training he was a lawyer. He had practiced criminal law in New York.
I told him that practicing law was one of my dreams and that working in trials seemed like a wonderful challenge.
“There is only one downside to practicing criminal law,” he joked. “They are your customers.”
“What’s wrong with them?” I asked.
“They are CRIMINAL!” she joked.
Why, he asked with obvious concern, did he want to be a lawyer?
Prestige, power, and money carriers earned. He also wanted to help people, especially if there were heroic acts attached.
By the time I was able to foot the law school bill, I was already in thrall to another profession, teaching and training, which I found quite attractive and rewarding. While attending my consultancy, I graduated from law school, passed the bar exam, and became a licensed attorney, only to discover that my WHY was no longer as strong or relevant as it once was.
I’ve already made money as a lawyer. He was autonomous as an independent consultant, and as a doctor and professor he had great professional prestige. For me, the practicalities of everyday law practice had become unnecessary.
In essence, wanting to be a lawyer had absolutely nothing to do with LOVE OF THE LAW. It had a lot to do with the pursuit of SECONDARY EARNINGS, some of which I mentioned earlier. Also, there was some kind of family tradition that I wanted to channel.
Today, I practice a little, evaluate and refer certain cases beyond my areas of specialization and interest. But law is not my main career, which hasn’t really changed much in the last few decades.
I hope you can see where I am going with this.
WHY do you want to publish a book? Is it for the thing itself, for the love of writing? Is it to enjoy the process of compiling words in such a copious and organized way that they seem free?
Or is it for financial gain or selfish satisfaction? Have you always wanted to write a book? Is there someone you know and admire or secretly compete with who you want to prove your worth?
You need to answer clearly and honestly because the world doesn’t need one more dissatisfied author yet.
YOU have to need it, and need it, deeply, passionately and relentlessly, because publishing is not easy.
Or, alternatively, he must possess a remarkable detachment from the whole process, something like what we would hear from a Zen monk.
“Gary-san, your book has sold millions upon thousands of copies and is a huge bestseller!”
“And so?”
“Gary-san, your book has sold a few thousand copies, it’s a complete flop, a huge disappointment. You’ll never get back the advance the publisher paid you or pay you back for the time and effort you put in!”
“And so?”
If you can accept any scenario with complete equanimity, then your WHY is either so strong or so irrelevant as to be entirely acceptable and feasible.
