Comments on: What the Editors Want, Part 2

By: Anne Calhoun

Anne Calhoun — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 01:12:26 +0000

Oh, I couldn’t agree more, Jamie! Harlequin’s been around a looooong time because they’ve figured out what readers want, and they work to supply it. Learning to meet those demands, IMHO, is another tool in your kit, one you can apply to your stories. I mean…we’re not writing literary fiction here. It’s market-driven…and up to us to decide how tightly we want to fit that marketing. Getting paid to write feels pretty good, too!

Thanks for the great posts! I enjoy shoot from the hip as much as carefully planned!

By: jamiesobrato

jamiesobrato — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:43:14 +0000

Ermm, that was supposed to read, “…it really IS easy…”

By: jamiesobrato

jamiesobrato — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:42:10 +0000

Very wise thoughts, Anne. It really easy to lose sight of that beautifully written book goal. On the other hand, do keep in mind that my blog posts tend to be rather unplanned, shoot-from-the-hip thoughts, and it occurs to me now how valuable it is to write anything–everything–just write, and not get *too* caught up in writing the best thing ever. At times I’ve discovered really important things about myself as a writer, by writing to market needs. These are things I may or may not have discovered otherwise, so I can’t discount the value of just being a productive writer.

Which, it sounds like, you very much are!

By: Anne Calhoun

Anne Calhoun — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 00:24:57 +0000

I’ve spent a couple of days thinking about this. It’s an interesting dilemma b/c writing what you love may lead you away from the line you like, but in the end, you own your career, and you own your writing. Writing a beautifully-written, can’t-put-downable book is a huge accomplishment – my ultimate dream, anyway – and it’s SO easy to lose in the fervor to publish. This is especially true for lines, where there’s a specific feel to the books (some more specific than others).

I feel pretty lucky that so far I’ve written what I wanted to write, and submitted it to an editor I really, really want to work with. I hope it works out, but as I’ve KEPT writing in the waiting time I know the next time I submit something, it will be stronger. That’s a good feeling, too!