The Ups and Downs of a Writing Life

Being creative isn't the problem. Most of us who write, have no problem coming up with stories in our heads, developing characters, making a plot work -- okay, I spoke too soon. We have those problems, but through careful thought and consideration we can overcome them to create a story we are proud of, to move a reader to tears, or tease a laugh out of them and even write a book for their "keeper" shelves. But what's so hard sometimes, is the publishing world in general. Nothing is constant. It keeps changing. And with those changes, come publishing woes, missteps and a reversal of policy.

It's a sink-or-swim life in the writing world. I know. I've almost drowned, only to have been thrown a rope every so often to keep me afloat. I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I've weathered bad storms and managed to keep my head above water. For example, I started out writing for Kensington's new author program, Precious Gems. With the PG line, I got my feet wet as an author and I'm very proud of those three books, but when the line folded, I moved on to write historicals for Harlequin. I thought to myself -- now, I'm secure. Harlequin is successful. I won't have any worries. But after writing four books for them, the news wasn't good. The HH line (Harlequin Historicals) was almost executed, only to have been given a reprieve. Lucky me, I had just sold to Desire - a line I love, BTW, so I knew I'd be okay. Well, luckily, the HH line is holding its own and I just turned in my seventh book which will be out in the next year or so. But, lo and behold, the Desire line is now revamping, and the changes are challenging for the writer.

And most recently, many other lines in other publishing houses have folded, to never be heard from again. The newest line to fold with Harlequin is the Signature Select line which has been cut entirely. This doesn't have too much to do with me, since I don't write for that specialty line, but are you seeing a pattern here? It's a smart move to write for more than one line and for more than one publishing house. One never knows which ship will appear to toss you a rope once you splash down and you need to keep all of your options open.

In this crazy business, I've learned one important thing: The only consistency is the inconsistency. I'll keep reaching for those ropes, as long as someone out there is willing to toss one to me!