Writers Tricks of the Trade Vol. 6 Issue 1

PRESS “CONTROL” THEN CLICK “BUY” TO PURCHASE ANY BOOK J.A. Konrath A GENTLE REMINDER A Self-Publishing Icon REPRINTED FROM JOE KONRATH’S BLOG We follow Joe Konrath and occasionally reprint articles from his blog. The advice from this self-publishing guru is almost always spot on. In keeping with the thoughts about keeping positive in 2016, this September 15, 2015 post sums it up well. Good advice is never outdated. This post goes out to no one in particular for no particular reason. Maybe it will motivate some. Maybe it will make others think a little bit. Maybe it will irritate you. But it's good, tested advice, and worth repeating. 1. Nobody owes you a living. I'm old school, and I busted my ass to get where I am. But I don't feel any sense of entitlement. Yeah, I worked hard. Maybe I've got talent. But I don't deserve readers, and neither do you. BUY 2. Success is mostly due to luck. You can do everything right, and still not be satisfied with the state of your career. That's life. No one ever said this would be fair, fun, or easy. 3. Stop whining. The internet is forever. No one likes a person who constantly complains. Even if you feel that bemoaning (insert whatever here) is justified, it will always be linked to you if someone Googles your name. 4. Don't Google your name. What people think of you is their business, not yours. Remember, one of life's greatest journeys is overcoming insecurity and learning to truly not give a shit. BUY 5. Never respond to criticism. It will make things worse. And if you apologize, it will get even more worser. Keep out of any discussion about you and your work. You may think you know better, but you don't. 6. Remember your Serenity Prayer. Fix what you can change, accept what you can't fix, and learn to know the difference between the two. If it is beyond your control, drink a beer, do yoga, go for a run, or bitch to a close friend where it can't be seen online. And if you can't stop dwelling on your bad fortune 7. Quit. The world will keep turning without your work. If writing and publishing is so traumatic, go use your time doing something else you can derive some pleasure from. Life is too short. WRITERS’ TRICKS OF THE TRADE PAGE 23 BUY JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2016

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