Wednesday, May 16, 2012

How Fast Can You Write?

The title question was prompted by an article in the Business section of the New York Times. The title of that article by Julie Bosman is: Writer’s Cramp: In the E-Reader Era, a Book a Year Is Slacking. The article says that print authors, because of the e-book age, have to put out two books a year, instead of the expected one. The article says the cause is readers who can go online and click and, voila, a new book arrives in their eReader.

So, now, the best-selling print authors are scrambling to come up with more books or short stories or novellas for their publishers as a way to hold onto readers. Names like Lisa Scottoline, Lee Child, and John Grisham are pushing to get more material out to the reading public.

Jennifer Enderlin, associate publisher of St. Martin's Paperbacks, says "I almost feel sorry for authors these days with how much publishers are asking of them…"

This is probably just me, but…I don't feel all that sorry for them. If unknown authors are putting two or three books out a year -- and they're good -- then why is it such a burden on the highly paid, agent and publisher supported authors?  The problem isn't that it takes a full year because the authors want to put out the best book possible. Independent authors want and do that, as well. Some of them take a year, too.

I think the problem is that now well-known authors have some legitimate and dedicated competition. Writers don't have to jump through agent and publisher hoops, if they don't want to. There are plenty of authors still querying. More power to them! But there are even more who are doing their own publishing. And that's creating a humongous choice for readers. They can still choose to buy an established author's books. But now they have a wider choice of alternatives and prices and formats. So they're reading more and sampling from a bigger smorgasbord of books.

17 comments:

  1. I've averaged 4 books a year for the last couple of years. So far this year I'm at 1 1/2 books (one completed, half-way through another, currently.) But that's because I've got several series--which I think traditionally published authors need to be considering taking on, if they're not self-publishing. Otherwise, they won't have much shelf-presence (online or in a physical store.)

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  2. It all used to take so much time to get a book out that writers had no need to speed up their part of it. That's all changed and those who can write fast and write well have the advantage.

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  3. I'm writing. I'm writing. I'm writing.
    The competition is stiff for everyone now with ebooks. You have to write fast to keep up.

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  4. I'm focusing on writing two books a year. I hope to get the next one out this fall. I can do it!

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  5. I've finished three books in ten years. I have a fourth in the works. I also wrote a couple of plays in there and several murder mystery weekend plots. I'm still trying to get published (not for the plays which were produced or for the mystery weekends) and it is so slow. The mystery I've written (I wrote #2 and #3 concurrently and it is one of those) will be a series and I think I can write others in the series much more quickly. But not two a year quickly. Maybe one a year quickly. I just read a book by someone who is described as the new writer of books like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Not bad but so formulaic. Is that what people want? I guess publishers do but I'm not going to write like that. It has no interest for me. I guess it is sort of like when I did the Dublin Marathon. I walked but you know it is just as far. I saw a lot and it was quite an experience.
    When are you going to write up your mermaid tales? I hope you take every moment you need!

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  6. Thank goodness they are, Helen, or my books would not have seen the light of day! :0)

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  7. I need to read posts like this every now and then, Helen ... reminds me that not everyone approaches writing a book like they're painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

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  8. We live in such exciting times. I can't wait to see what the industry does next, although I can't see how forcing writers to write more books in a year will help the publishers' cause.

    :-/

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  9. I write fast and I like how the publishing industry is changing to suit the way I do things instead of the other way around. I've been writing for 8 years and have 17 published books. But it doesn't really mean two books a year, I have a few unpublished books too.

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  10. Elizabeth, you are the most amazing writer I know!

    Laura, you write a lot of books, too!

    Jan, I don't know if I have enough mermaid stories for a full book! Although, the book I hope to have out soon is fiction, but involves a girl swimming as a mermaid.

    Misha, these are exciting (and scary) times! I couldn't agree more.

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  11. Can't you write any faster Lauri? ;-)

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  12. I saw a post on Facebook from Laura Lippman who called herself a slacker for only doing a book a year.

    I may be in a minority here, but I don't think just writing faster to get books out there is a good approach. I write fast with my first drafts, but the editing and rewriting take a lot of time. It is in that process that a good book becomes even better.

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  13. I write slowly because I work full time (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!) so I write a book every year (give or take a few months).

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  14. But I'm a slow writer! I can't even produce a book a year.
    Crap I'm in trouble.

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  15. I'd need 12 -18 months because of my work schedule. That's going to get busier and I need to sleep :). My family misses me now, so writing more isn't an option. I'd love to write faster though.

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  16. I am so dang busy, I write when I have a few minutes. Not always easy to get back into the story when you're working in snippets.

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  17. Hi Helen .. it's opportunities isn't it - and success spurs us on .. once one is done, others will follow. Good luck to everyone - I don't think writing faster helps!!!! Disastrous muddle will come along ... working a plan and being organised per Elizabeth seems to help enormously ..

    Cheers Hilary

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