Struggling as an author? Stop writing only what you want to write

Earning a living as a writer is as likely as winning the lottery. Instead of writing books and persuading others to buy them, find out what people want to write, then do it for themPhilip Pullman: professional writers set to become ‘an endangered species’ due to low wagesI left school with a burning urge to lead the life of a writer: travelling like Byron, feted like Wilde before his fall, creating laughter like Wodehouse and crafting sentences like Nabokov. I had no professional contacts, so I wrote my masterpieces speculatively, and every path I went down ended with a rejection slip or total silence. The perceived wisdom then, as now, was that earning a living as a writer was about as likely as winning a lottery.Then I discovered the secret of marketing: instead of writing things and trying to persuade people to buy them, I would find out what writing services people needed and offer to provide them. So, at the same time as begging publishers and editors for commissions, I made myself available to anyone who might want to write an article or a book but did not feel able to do it for themselves. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 19/08/2011 - 13:52 Authors of Macmillan titles put on hold during the recent Serious Fraud Office investigation say they have been given a "glimmer of hope" for the future, with "sensible" discussions now beginning with the publisher after... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Greig to write Freud memoir

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Set to Publish Pop Author

Amazon moved aggressively to fulfill its new ambition to publish books as well as sell them, announcing that it had signed Timothy Ferriss, the popular self-help guru. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AUDIO: 'Ebooks could threaten writing'

Booker Prize winning author Graham Swift believes digital publishing could threaten the livelihood of authors in the future because they are being paid too little. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2011-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Headline settles legal battle with author

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How to write faster.

Hunched over my keyboard, I'm haunted by anecdotes of faster writers. Christopher Hitchens composing a Slate column in 20 minutesafter a chemo session, after a "full" dinner party, late on a Sunday night. The infamously productive Trollope, who used customized paper! "He had a note pad that had... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Xcite appoints author Coldwell as editor

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Macmillan New Writing to continue after Atkins departure

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Irish authorities clear Amazon Book Depository acquistion

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Reynolds to write new Doctor Who novel

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Gift author returns with Union

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Sheila Bair to Write Book on Financial Crisis

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[ The New York Times | 2011-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Slate | 2011-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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