Justine Larbalestier

reading, writing, eating, drinking, sport

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Get Publish Need Magic?

Diana has an excellent post today answering questions about the magic of being published. Can you get published without knowing anyone in the industry? If you’re not married to a publisher? If you’re not a celebrity? If you haven’t been hit by the publishing charisma stick?

Here’s the one thing that every single published writer I know has in common:

They write.

Yup, that’s it: they write. They work at their craft. They write almost every day, and when they’re not writing, they’re thinking and talking about it. Even when they’re procrastinating, they’re thinking about it. (Procrastination is work, too, people!)

Yes, getting published is hard. Yes all those rejections are frustrating. Yes, it can take years to get published. (Look at me: first novel begun in 1988; first novel published in 2005.) But if you’re not putting the majority of your energy into writing, odds are you’re not going to get published.

Writing is the thing.

That is all.

Posted by Justine at 8:45, 2 February 2006 under Bloggery, Publishing business | 7 Comments »

Comments

  1. sara z Says:

    Word. I got serious about my first book in 1995. First sale? 2005. Guess what I did during those ten years.

    February 2nd, 2006 at 11:35 AM

  2. parker Says:

    speaking of writing – when are you going to muse again?

    you have given us fascinating topics to muse on…
    on writing?
    on doubt?

    is it your turn yet?

    February 2nd, 2006 at 2:17 PM

  3. 3. Justine Says:

    Sara Z: You learned to crochet? Snow board? No? Okay, I’ve got it, you learned Esperanto! Am I close? Okay, one last guess: you wrote and you wrote and you wrote and you wrote.

    Parker: You know if there were 25 hours in a day then I’d've finished and posted my monumentally epic musing “On Being Australian” already. Sadly, there aren’t and writing what pays comes first. Musings are just that much harder than, say, blogging . . . and, okay, I’m lazy. I admit it. I’m a lazy, bad muser.

    February 2nd, 2006 at 5:04 PM

  4. Roger Says:

    Yes, yes, writing’s the thing and all that. However, you can’t convince me that an old school tie doesn’t help said writer be somewhat more loquacious and somewhat more—how do you say—published?

    February 2nd, 2006 at 10:58 PM

  5. Ben Payne Says:

    (but seriously, what’s the magic?)

    February 4th, 2006 at 1:46 PM

  6. Ben Payne Says:

    “Here’s the one thing that every single published writer I know has in common:

    They write”

    Yeah, there’s always a catch…

    that’s why my robot never walked.

    February 4th, 2006 at 1:44 PM

  7. 7. Justine Says:

    writing is.

    February 5th, 2006 at 10:37 AM

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