Writing to be published vs writing for pleasure - Sometimes you just feel like giving up - A ReadItTorial

After kicking back on holiday, and poring over the copious notes of inspiration I made while on holiday I got back into the serious business of writing children's stories again.

I've been taking the approach of 'bottom drawering' certain stories, stuffing them away for weeks - sometimes months on end before reassessing them with (hopefully) a more critical eye. Pulling them out to share with a fantastic bunch of writers I've somehow managed to fall in with really does help too.

But...the more I do this, the more I am coming to the conclusion that writing to be published is eroding the real main reason I love creating stories. Because it's fun, because it's enjoyable, because it's creative and ultimately because a grin or smile of approval from my daughter is actually worth more than a book deal.

It sounds like I'm probably treading on the sour grapes a bit here, and swilling the wine from those grapes around in a glass before gulping the whole lot down to drunkenly have a good rant (but I'm teetotal so I guess I'd have to draw a line under that analogy and think of something else).

You see, the more I get involved with the process of pushing a story out there, getting feedback from editors or other writers, getting endlessly rejected, getting absolutely no response at all, the more I realise that when it comes down to it, the numbers involved are stacked against you even before you start to think about that one in a million chance of writing something that 'sticks'.

Basically if you're the sort of person who has a half-full glass when it comes to writing, you might want to look away now...

• Most agents take on a tiny, tiny handful of new folk a year, and prioritise writers who have provided 'the goods' previously.

• Most publishers take on even less, even in open submission sessions (again priority is given to authors and illustrators who can provide marketable books, obviously).

• Most editors know exactly what they are looking for, so unless you're a mind reader, you are going to have to be EXTREMELY lucky in order to predict what that 'something' is

• The majority of new authors (and this is mostly borne out by talking to folk who eventually get a book deal after years of trying) might get one shot, and then never get anything published again. 

• As hopelessly addictive the idea of joining the amazing throng of new children's writers that seem to live an amazing life of trailing around literary festivals, attending school visits, talking to the media (on very rare occasions when the mainstream media bothers with children's fiction and non fiction) or attending workshops sound, it's going to happen to such a small number of folk that again you'd have to be extremely talented and very lucky to get in on that. 

• There seems to be a growing trend for new writers to end up opting to pay for editorial work, mentorship, help and steerage (which is fair enough and worth considering if you really do believe you've got talent that needs shaping). Quite often the prices involved are pretty hefty, so again it's worth asking yourself if throwing a huge amount of money at this is worth it for what you're hoping to achieve. Certainly if you're some sort of crazy lunatic who imagines J.K Rowling sized pay packets and global sales and think that this will somehow offset your initial spend, think again as that's an even rarer occurrence. Really do not enter into children's publishing for the money!