Movie fans will recognize the above as a quote from “Galaxy Quest.” I like to think of it as a writer’s credo.
In an industry filled with crushing competition, it’s a difficult road to publication. Publishing is going through a tumultuous period. The advent of epublishing has turned everything upside down. Houses are closing, staff is being cut and authors are suddenly without a place to publish their works.
A tough time, eh? Might as well give up and forget ever getting your story to a reader, right?
Not so fast.
I’ve always been a big believer of talent winning out. Send your manuscript out and someone will recognize a good story and the skill it took you to write it. I’ve seen it over and over. Talented writers who submit and submit and gnash their teeth and cry with each rejection letter and want to give up. But they don’t. They keep sending out query letters, keep writing, and never give up. And talent wins out. They get published.
My debut novel, “What Do You Say to a Naked Elf?” was published over five years ago. Its sequel didn’t sell. The next book didn’t either. I took a page out of “Galaxy Quest” and didn’t give up, didn’t surrender.
You know what? Perseverance pays off. “Tall, Dark and Slayer” will be released by Champagne Books in January, 2012.
Read an excerpt here.
And never give up. Your turn is next.
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