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September 08, 2004

Comments

Oh god, I know how you feel. I just want to make a little money on the side to pay for my haircuts, the occasional book, and the kids college fund. If I'm lucky, maybe a cleaning service, too. Is that so much to ask?

I feel I'm progressing as a writer but has sooooo far to go sometimes that I say, "What's the friggin' point?"

My suggestion, (re)read "Bird by Bird" by Ann Lamott. If you think you sound negative, she's the queen of "I suck, I'm a lousy writer." And she's famous and gets paid generously for her work. Go figure.

(And I promise to remind you of this negativity when you become rich and famous.)

My wife deserves a lot of credit for pursuing her dream, despite how difficult it is to get published. I believe that one day she will reach her goals, despite all that self-doubt.

Anne-Marie: Yup, got "Bird by Bird." Loved it. I think all writers go through this, though that's small consolation at the time.

Plosh: XOXO :-)

Here's a comment, to help with the thrill coefficient for the day. Woot!

And a self-promotional link, which I don't usually do, but it seems relevant.

And... while I'm here. I was in the LA area a few weeks ago. Two words: Pizza Nosh. (two more: Agoura Hills). Best calzone I've had in a loooong time. And it was exciting for me, because as my wife (the West Coast native) was driving us (to Santa Barbara) and I saw a sign about the "Inland" something-or-other, I thought to myself, "Hey, I know the Empress. She must live around here somewhere.

Wow, FrumDad! You were thisclose and you didn't stop by? Not even for ice tea? Actually, Agoura is lapdwife's neighborhood. You were about 90 minutes from us.

I had already read the post on your link some time ago, but thanks for the reminder. We writers are a thin-skinned lot, I guess.

And I'm adding you to my sidebar links. L'Shana Tova, dude.

Pizza Nosh, huh? I'm gonna have to check this out!

And Anne, I really admire you. I think that it takes a lot of courage and persistance to do what you do - while taking care of a family - and do it so well. I love your writing so much here, I'm sure you're gonna find your dreams someday.

Do you dare?

And yeah, what lapdwife said. You might be down on yourself at times but, unlike some of us *cough*, you actually have the discipline to keep at it. Ultimately, you can't help but succeed.

Having sold out my dream for a career in the technology industry, you have my utmost respect for pursuing yours.

Wow. I don't know what to say. I'm overwhelmed. Many, many thanks for support and inspiration and kind words.

I will say this to all of you: you're all writers. All of you. Stop smirking. Enough self-pity. If you write, you're a writer. Simple enough.

Blogging has opened up a venue for us that can be hard to appreciate among the noise of mass media. Plus we're a cynical lot by nature and not prone to count our blessings.

I can assure you that early essayists and diarists -- and there were many -- would've been thrilled to reach a few hundred people at a time. Most people with access to a newfangled printing press died in obscurity. We remember Thomas Paine and Benjamin Franklin because they beat the publishing game even then -- which was mainly to avoid being jailed.

Writers have seldom made a living from their craft, so it's easy to get discouraged or think the dream is for someone else. But success has different benchmarks today. Getting a newspaper column isn't a benchmark any longer, considering how old and calcified and irrelevant most of them are. Newspapers and magazines, particularly smaller ones, are no longer staffed by the best and brightest coming out of j-schools, but by fossils who resist retraining for something more financially remunerative.

The book publishing business, as I'm learning, is dominated by chain stores who treat books like commodities, not culture, to be bought in bulk at steep discounts then returned, then shipped around, then "remaindered" into landfills. Good luck getting a publishing house to risk its money on you if you can't guarantee your life's work will fly off the shelf at Border's.

But as you may've learned in Econ 101, the more industries monopolize, the less incentive to innovate, leaving newer, fragmented niches at the bottom of the market for the small-time operator. For us, that means small literary magazines and the Web.

We should be glad blogging isn't profitable yet except perhaps for the folks at TypePad and Blogspot. Blogging creates a space for ourselves that's uniquely ours on a planet of 6 billion souls, all of them clamoring to be noticed.

This is why I ignore people, including my writing coach, who think blogging is a waste of time.

This probably should've been a post, but there you have it.

Anne, you do inspire me. You've brought a smile to my face tonight, after a long, hot day. And I'll tell you that again tomorrow : )

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about me

  • It is good to be the Empress
    ... but, y'know, it's kinda hectic. I blog when I can. Right now, my day's divided this way: keep kids from screaming (8 hrs); keep son from killing daughter (6 hrs); avoid diet (4 hrs); sleep (2 hrs); lay awake fretting (2 hrs); give up and Web surf for a while (1 hr); think about waking hubby for sex (1/2 hr); ponder my career options (15 mins); shudder, begin blog post (15 mins); resume efforts to keep kids from screaming ...
  • My Domain
    Where the heck am I?
  • My Life
    How did I get here?
  • Write Me
    email(at)inlandempress.com

Courtiers & courtesans

  • Milkula, the Lacto-Vampire
    My daughter. Alternately known as Mugwort, for a beneficial herb.
  • Minitaur
    My son, a diminutive version of the monster in Greek mythology, aka the Monsterling.
  • Plosh

hire me

  • I'm cheap ...
    ... and desperate. Available for freelance writing, copy editing and creating cool blog toppers. Order now and I'll throw in some sarcasm at no extra charge. Contact anne (at) inlandempress (dot) com.

Fit for a king

  • DadTalk
    An estrogen-free zone for Dads so they can sound off about their roles as parents and protectors. It's run by that handsome genius I married.

Kiddie Litter

  • Book Buds Kidlit Reviews
    A good story grows on a kid; a bad one stinks like a weed. Come see which new children's titles might be worth repeated readings or which ones you can safely shelve.

Nice Jewish blogs

Moms & Dads

Writing Blogs

Writing Sites

This n' that

  • This Mama Cooks
    Anne-Marie of "A mama's rant" tickles our taste buds with recipes and food talk. Yum.
  • Veritas et Venustas
    "Hello, my name is John. I'm a recovering architect."
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