At conferences, I’m often asked by writers if they “have what it takes” to be a successful writer. I usually interpret that question as: “Do I have talent?” So in this flowchart, I try to answer that question. Click here to view it at full size.
Jane Friedman has spent nearly 25 years working in the book publishing industry, with a focus on author education and trend reporting. She is the editor of The Hot Sheet, the essential publishing industry newsletter for authors, and was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World in 2023. Her latest book is The Business of Being a Writer (University of Chicago Press), which received a starred review from Library Journal. In addition to serving on grant panels for the National Endowment for the Arts and the Creative Work Fund, she works with organizations such as The Authors Guild to bring transparency to the business of publishing.
[…] At conferences, I’m often asked by writers if they “have what it takes” to be a successful writer. I usually interpret that question as: “Do I have talent?” So in this flowchart, I try to answer that question. […]
I agree that it takes more than just talent or a desire to write. Becoming a good writer with any amount of success is a lifetime of honing the craft and commitment to the art. I see one essential ingredient missing in the flow chart (if you don’t mind me saying) and that is “joy.” There must be enjoyment in the process of writing. Without that, the hard work becomes overwhelming and discouraging. Love of writing is the engine we all need.
Excellent point, Paula. Thank you! Perhaps I can find a way to include in a 2.0 later on. 😉
So right, Jane- I’ve seen a number of writers who had talent, who aren’t working at it to any significant degree. It’s a shame that their lights will not shine for the world. But you need passion coupled with persistence and the ability to work hard for a long time. You can become a better storyteller over time- if you’re willing to work at it.
Right on.
In the 2.0 version, also consider a block that says for every path, “Shut up, sit down, and write.” :0
First, I disagree with the “hard work” part mentioned by Stephen King.
This valuable advice that has served me well over the years.
“It’s better to do a sub-par job on the right project than an excellent job on the wrong project.”
— Robert J. Ringer
Of course, the “right project” here refers to a “damn good book” that people actually want to read. Problem is, every author thinks that he or she has a great book but the reality is that fewer than 1 percent of authors have a really great book. This quotation applies:
“Even the most careful and expensive marketing plans cannot sell people a book they don’t want to read.”
— Michael Korda, former Editor-in-Chief at Simon & Schuster
So you need to write a great book. A good book won’t do.
“Good isn’t good enough! With the glut of high-quality books, good books aren’t good enough anymore. Cheap books aren’t good enough (Smashwords publishes over 40,000 free ebooks). The books that reach the most readers are those that bring the reader to emotionally satisfying extremes. This holds true for all genre fiction and all non-fiction.”
— Mark Coker, Owner of Smashwords
I also like “New York Times” best-selling author Russell Blake’s perspective on hard work:
“Yes, hard work is generally a good recipe, although not a guarantee of success, in any business. I think there are lots of authors out there with tremendous talent, but because of their day job, inadequate time resources to devote what it takes to make this happen. There are also plenty who are marginal, but have the time, but lack the critical thinking skills to figure out what the best way to proceed is.”
As a relatively successful self-published author (over 850,000 copies of my books sold worldwide), I am prepared to do the things that over 99 percent of authors are not prepared to do. This does not involve working hard — it involves working smart. And working smart takes critical thinking skills of the highest order.
The lack of critical thinking skills which Russell Blake emphasizes is a much bigger problem for the vast majority of authors than they themselves realize. Along with “critical thinking skills”, a lot of people lack important “creative thinking skills” required for marketing a book properly. Then there is the lack of plain “common sense”, which is just as big of a problem as the lack of “critical thinking skills” and the lack of “creative thinking skills.”
In short, perfection and hard work are vastly overrated. Putting in a somewhat lazy and less-than-perfect performance on a well thought-out, world-shaking project will pay off ten thousand times more than putting in a flawless and bust-your-butt performance on a pie-in-the-sky project that defies common sense.
Ernie J. Zelinski
The Prosperity Guy
“Helping Adventurous Souls Live Prosperous and Free”
Author of the Bestseller “How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free”
(Over 225,000 copies sold and published in 9 languages)
and the International Bestseller “The Joy of Not Working”
(Over 275,000 copies sold and published in 17 languages)
I find considerable difference in opinion over what constitutes a good vs. great book, as well as a great book vs. a book people want to read. Are we measuring this based on commercial standards or artistic standards? As Robert Pirsig once contemplated: What is Quality?
Where or how can one gain critical thinking skills to be more like you?
Love it! Keep writing, keep writing, keep writing.
However there’s another element to being a SUCCESSFUL author (though I suppose the definition of success can be quite personal) that this doesn’t address: the marketing side. I’m not quite there yet myself, but from the mountains of information I’ve consumed from authors who have “made it to the other side,” success also requires a diligence and persistent attention to promotion and reader connections.
“In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative, original thinker unless you can also sell what you create.” —David Ogilvy
Ah yes, that about covers it 🙂
[…] Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Successful Author? by @JaneFriedman […]
[…] Ever wonder if you can make it as a writer? Jane Friedman answers the question: do you have what it takes to be a successful author? […]
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