I'll Split The Proceeds 50-50...

If you haven't seen this video yet, watch, then read my comments on the subject below.



For all of you writers reading this post, please tell me how many times someone has told you they have a great idea for a book and if you write the book, they'll split the proceeds 50-50?

I wish I could say no one has ever said that to me. Unfortunately, at least three people have told me that. A variation are the people who asked me to write their biography and promised to split the royalties.

In the course of my day job, I've received several letters from donors who promise to make large donations once their first book sells. What literally scares me is when they talk about quitting their day job so they can write their bestseller and earn a million within the next year.

Honestly, it hardly ever works that way. Maybe never. I wouldn't count on that and would never bank on it unless I had enough money in the bank to cover all my bills for a very long time.

Honestly, I have more ideas for books than I have time to write. And honestly, it takes a lot of knowledge, talent, and very hard work to write a book. No one in their right mind would split royalties with someone in exchange for an idea and no other input.

Unfortunately, I've run into the would-be writer's arrogance, too. If the wanna be writer tells an agent, editor, publisher, or reader his poor oppinions about reading and other books, no one will want to work with him.

Even though this was annoying because I've met people who act so similarly, it was also hilarious. Enjoy!

Ashley

Editing

Like yesterday, my blog posts for the next few days are inspired by the movie “Julie and Julia”. If you’ve seen the movie, you’ll know that Julia Child and her co-authors were not happy when their editors asked them to make big changes in their cook book. They said goodbye to the publisher and took their book elsewhere. How realistic is that? Oh, I’m sure other authors have done that and still do it. But is it RIGHT? I don’t know that it’s exactly WRONG, but every editor, every publisher I’ve ever worked with requires edits. Some more than others. It seems childish of me to take your toy and run to another playground just because the publisher wants changes. Julia Child got lucky that they found another publisher that wanted their book as is. However, I give Julia and company credit for having tested each recipe and rewritten the book at least once in the beginning. For those who are just beginning the writing journey or who haven’t tried yet, that’s par for the course. Sometimes we have to rewrite our books at least once and edit several times. Even though three of my books were edited by their first publisher and had been previously released, the second publisher who re-released them still required more edits. For better or worse, edits are part of the package. I used to hate edits. Ask my critique partners. I’m still not in love with them but see the merit and opportunity to really polish and perfect my stories. I try to make the process fun now.