Transitioning from Writer to Author
Thursday, August 18, 2011 (Today's guest post is from widely-lauded and widely-known freelance writer, Jenna McCarthy, who has made the transition to book author...her next book, If It Was Easy, They'd Call The Whole Damn Thing A Honeymoon is out this fall. Do NOT miss the trailer for the book after her post...Here, she gives an honest account of the ins and outs of both careers.) Don't forget to click over and follow Jenna on Twitter too.
I was Carrie Bradshaw before Carrie Bradshaw existed: a young, trying-to-be-hip magazine writer living the Big Apple dream. (Of course, Carrie dreamed of men and Manolos; I was happy not being run over by a taxi or groped on the subway.) I made my way through the ranks at Seventeen, Mademoiselle and then Shape, eventually trading in the cachet of a commanding job title for the luxury of working at home in my pajamas. There was no internet back then, so a single freelance assignment often involved numerous library visits requiring an intimate understanding of microfilm and microfiche. (If you’re under 30 you might have to look those words up.) But I had freedom and flexibility, and when people asked, “What do you do?” I loved responding, “I’m a writer.”
I built a hell of a portfolio over the next decade, penning hundreds of articles for more than 60 national magazines. I covered cars and kids, running and relationships; name the get-a-better-body story, I probably wrote it. I reached millions of readers, raked in a decent sum of money and enjoyed some ridiculous perks, including but not limited to free LASIK surgery, complimentary first class airfare to Europe—Rod Stewart was in the same cabin—and more than a dozen all-expenses-paid five-star vacations. But until a few years ago, I hadn’t done the one thing that all writers—because we are fundamentally and unequivocally nuts, every last one of us—aspire to do: Write a book.
So I wrote a book. I whipped out 65,000 words in less than two months. The writing part was easy, because it’s what I do. I write in my sleep, literally, often waking at the crack of another continent’s dawn and scrambling to my keyboard to transcribe the perfect opening sentence to the piece I’m working on, a spot-on string of words that my brain conveniently penned during one or another REM cycle. I play air-keyboard constantly, mindlessly recording conversations as they happen, a “quirk” my family and friends mock lovingly. I’ve now written five books, so trust me when I say this: In the scheme of the process known as “writing a book,” the writing part is a relative cinch. In fact, if you find the putting-down-of-words to be daunting, do yourself a favor and abort the mission. Unless you’re already famous, are related to Arianna Huffington or you only care if your work is read by your closest circle of acquaintances, the “promoting a book” bit is the one you should be worried about.
The seventeen years of magazine writing I had under my belt when I published that first book left me staggeringly unprepared for this reality. When you write a magazine feature here’s what happens: An editor assigns you a story (or you pitch it, although I’ve never been much of a pitcher), you write it, she makes a few edit requests, you oblige, it gets printed, you get paid. It’s not your job to make sure everyone knows about that particular issue or your flawless article inside of it. Newsstand sales that month could triple or they could tank and neither scenario will affect your paycheck, your ego or your ability to land the next assignment. If someone doesn’t like your article, even if they rant about how stupid and worthless it is to anyone who will listen, you’ll likely never know. You won’t get a cramp in your finger from hitting the refresh button on your Amazon page because your ranking there has eclipsed the number you see when you step on the scale in its power to make or break your self-esteem.
Promoting a book isn’t just grueling, it’s never-ending. It takes networking, which is really just a fancy way of saying schmoozing. It’s sales. And while you’re out there doing two-bit radio shows and emailing everyone you know to tell them that you wrote a new book! and waiting for someone from OWN to call you, you’d better be working diligently on your next book. You know, in case this one “hits” and your readers start clamoring for more. They won’t wait forever.
I still make a better, easier living writing for magazines, but I love writing books. I love books, period. I love the smell, the feel, the weight, the permanence. (Yes, I’m still resisting the whole e-reader fad. Please make it go away.) When people ask, “What do you do?” I love responding, “I’m an author.” I buy books in bulk and give them as gifts because I believe the good ones can change you forever. And because I’m a masochist I’ll continue to write them as long as my brain and my fingers will cooperate. I hope people will read one of my books (or all of them) and laugh and tell two or three hundred friends about them, so I can spend less time promoting and more time writing. I’d really like to think that’s not too much to ask.
Jenna McCarthy is the author of the upcoming If It Was Easy They’d Call the Whole Damn Thing a Honeymoon: Living with and Loving the TV-Addicted, Sex-Obsessed, Not-So-Handy Man You Married (Berkley Books, October 4, 2011)
Reader Comments (11)
Thanks, Allison, for allowing us to get to know Jenna better. Jenna, your trailer is hilarious and I'm dying to read your book. Congrats and much success!
Hi Jenna! I can't wait to read this book--I have it preordered from Amazon, and I bought it after watching the book trailer. Who knew those things work as well as they do? *LOL* I'm a writer too (but sometimes find putting words on the page for my book a bit daunting when I know they're not the right words), but I don't plan to abort the mission, even if I'm not related to that Huffington person. What can I say? I may be a pessimist, but I have a yellow optimist streak down the middle of my back that keeps me going. :)
THOUGH I do have to say--I looked at your trailer because a fellow reader friend said, "Watch this!" and I did. Word of mouth is the best networking and promotion there is. Aside from having a free Keith Urban concert promoting your book.
A great article to read and super funny video! Also, your comment on loving books - I completely agree. I will quote that when someone starts waving a Kindle in my face! And the good books can change you forever *nods* I look forward to more guffaws when reading your work :)
I have been following Jenna for a while on Twitter and just love her. I haven't read any of your books yet, Jenna, but based on this trailer and from all of your tweetage, this one goes on my To-Read list.
Love this post!
First thanks to Allison for letting me have this coveted space today, and thanks to her loyal fans for the lovely comments! To clarify--I didn't mean that putting words on paper is never daunting. In fact, often it's gut-wrenching--especially as Hellion said when you know they're not the right words. My advice to that: Embrace every single miserably, horribly wrong word. They're the writerly equivalent of the bad-boys in your relationship-past, the ones who are there to serve the very important purpose of making you a BETTER WRITER. The very fact that you *know* they are wrong--and that they haunt or taunt you because of it--means you are most definitely on the right track. Carry on! :)
~Jenna
Next to Oprah choosing one of your books for her next book club, hooking it up with women's lube was pure genius.
Oh my goodess! I loved that trailer so much. I always joke that I'm going to buy my husband a shirt that says, "Where's the ____" so he can just point to it and save himself a few words every time he utters that hateful statement: Where's the.
I like your blog post. Keep on writing this type of great stuff. I'll make sure to follow up on your blog in the future.
That trailer is hysterical! I can't wait to get the book.
This trailer is enough to make me buy the book. In my house it's "Why don't we have any... vinegar, pitted cherries, angostura bitters. Where are the staples?" As if angostura bitters are staples. Of course, it's a key ingredient to a good rum and coke, but I digress. Thanks for the whiff of fresh air. I'm in the midst of promoting my book (see! I even brought it into this comment. Either I'm getting better at it, or I'm a very sick woman). And you're right. Writing the book is the easy part.
I just read your book and will be reviewing it for www.bookroomreviews.com in the future. Like you, I love books (I'm a poet, journalist, fiction writer and artist, and have done some TV work) and hate it that everyone's reading on anonymous-looking ereaders now. You've covered all the basics of male-female relationships in marriage with great wit (and while proclaiming, with others, that you still love your husband!) and reading it is psychologically helpful (and, of course, FUNNY!). Cheers to you and your enthusiasm for life!