The Business of Writing

Posted on Oct 19th, 2010 | 42 comments home title

One of the biggest challenges for many writers is being able to separate the artist self from the business self, and figuring out ways to nurture both.

I find this to be an issue for unpublished authors more than those who are published. Once a writer is published, they seem highly motivated to stay published, and therefore more open to considering ways to increase the commercial appeal of their work.

But for some new or unpublished authors, there seems to be a resistance to “commercializing” their art. That’s fine, if you want to write for yourself, your family and your friends. But if the goal is to ask strangers to pay money to read your work, then it deserves a different approach.

It recently occurred to me that writers might benefit by taking a break from reading books on writing, and occasionally read some business books.

All the specifics in a business book might not apply to the writing life, but the overall message can be helpful in learning how to approach writing as a business or even a career. It can help you adopt the mindset of running a successful business and teach you to ask the right questions as you consider what kinds of books to write, and how to write them. These books can open your eyes to everything from how consumers make buying decisions, to how to create a successful brand, to how to organize your time for maximum effectiveness.

As I’ve spoken with several of my clients who have multiple books published, it’s been interesting to see how they approach the constant necessity to keep drawing in readers: rather than feeling like they’re “selling out,” they savor the challenge of getting better and better at crafting words into books that people want to read. They are able to see the art in running a successful business. They look for the stories or topics that interest them, and then ask themselves where their own interests meet the demands of the marketplace.

Q4U: Are you comfortable with approaching writing as a business? What helps you nurture this mindset? How do you balance your artistic self with your business self?

Below are some good business books to consider. Feel free to add your own to the list. You can click here to find a terrific list of business books organized by category.

Getting Things Done by David Allen
Good to Great by Jim Collins
A New Brand World by Scott Bedbury with Stephen Fenichell
Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping by Paco Underhill
Purple Cow by Seth Godin
Making Work Work by Julie Morgenstern

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Ted Cross

>I have no trouble with the idea of producing several books in a series. However, once I complete that series I want to be able to run with another great idea and not feel constrained to the same genre. I feel readers and publishers should be able to trust a writer to be able to produce great stories without having to stick them in a corner.

Maybe I am different from most readers, but I much more admire a writer like Ursula LeGuin who does books in several genres than I do a writer who does nothing but a single genre.
pathunstrom

>I definitely have no reason to fear approaching writing as a business as I'm currently working on a business related degree! Remarkably, as I've learned from the many blogs I keep on writing and the business of writing, I've come to enjoy my own work more, even if I labor over it because I don't particularly enjoy one bit or another.

I have learned that 'commercial fiction' doesn't have to be a bad thing and even crazy ideas can be turned into acceptable or even great prose. It's been a good lesson for someone who used to spend all too much time dreaming.
Phoenix

>After 22 years writing ads, marketing collateral, and now sales proposals, I'm all about writing to and for the market. I worked hard to ensure the project I'm pitching now is as commercial as I could make it. In fact, the times I fought against formula while writing it, the story itself kept demanding I stick to it.

I have an MA in English and I've studied the classics, but I'm a genre fiction gal through and through. The only reason I'd be disappointed about "selling out" is if I didn't sell at all.
Erastes

>I've been lucky – I realised before I even sold my first book that this was going to work not just ART,Darling – and I started collating useful links before I even sold, review sites, award sites, stuff like that, so I had a basis of what to do and where to promote when I got lucky.

I see this artistic vs business thing all the time with my writer friends (only a few of them) and it breaks my heart because three of them that absolutely can't and won't do any business-like promo are some of the best writers I know.

I treat the whole business of writing as business now, now I've gone full-time. I write even when I don't feel inspired and I take my artistic head off and put the business one on when I need to be hard-nosed about it. I know there's a delightful fake image of authors being artistes and floating around in chiffon and pearls and writing when the muse takes us, but the reality is far more different than that. Groceries need to be bought.
Jeffrey Beesler

>What's really been helping me nurture both my business side and my artist side of writing has been my blog. I feel that I have a certain level of creativity in expressing myself on the blog. At the same time , it reinforces my need to study up on the industry, as well as pass along critical information to my readers.
Timothy Fish

>Like pretty much everyone, I like the idea of making money from book sales, so in that sense, I see it as a good thing to treat it like a business. However, the fact is that it is highly unlikely my writing will ever produce income close to what I'm making in my day job. The writing itself is unrelated to my day job (and must remain that way). My writing isn't promoting the church. My writing doesn't have a direct impact on my family. This puts it at a lower priority than most of what I do. Given the position it holds, it makes more sense for a person like me to focus on the art of writing rather than the business of writing.
Anders

>I'm coming at the issue the other way around, writing business articles for a living while working on fiction and other side projects in my copious (not) spare time. Obviously, mercenary work is no problem for someone like me, and I'd be happy to bring some business sense to book publishing efforts too.

New classics in the business book genre:
"Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
"Freakonomics" by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner
"Ogilvy on Advertising" by David Ogilvy
Bonita

>I'm loving all of the book recommendations! Thanks so much!
Sharon A. Lavy

>A good support system is a blessing that I can claim. So really, all I have to do is keep focused on all the aspects of the writing business.

Not as easy as it sounds, but doable.
Sharon A. Lavy

>Reading Agent blogs to learn is part of my training in this business.

Thank you Rachelle for the part you have and are having in my education.
Tina Roberts

>Rachelle,
First…thanks for all of the information you offer daily. Your blog is the first thing I read every day. Now, as far as the business end of writing…being a type A personality causes me to constantly organize, search out new ideas and to set goals. While I feel that God has called me to write, I understand that it comes down to the all mighty $$$. IF we want to be successful we must treat our writing like a "real job". I am able to write on a full time basis and I feel very blessed. My status of a part-time writer changed when I became ill and could no longer work on a public job. I enjoy writing so much that at times I forget that it is my "job"…God has allowed me to write full time and I feel that I must give him my best. That means I run my "business" so that it will be as profitable as possible. I want to be successful and that means that I write books that will sell. It also means that I am constantly looking for ways to become a better writer. Being a better writer balances out the artistic self and the business self.
BK

>As an unpubbed writer, my first priority in the business of writing is to write. And keep writing. This post states that pubbed authors have less of a problem mixing the two. To me, that's a natural stage of a writer's career progression. It makes sense for a writer who is close to being offered a contract to start digging in with both feet on the tedious side of the business. LOL!

I glean quite a bit from industry blogs, such as this one. But right now, when I am unpubbed and get only a microscopically small fraction of time just to write, it doesn't make sense for me to get ahead of myself with the rest of it. It'll come when it's time.
Florence

>Perhaps that is my advantage, having been in business for years before turning to fiction.

On top of my position in a not-for-profit children's agency in NYC … I sold NYC real estate. The combo of those two, the daily need for politics and the constant need to smile … remember the client can "hear" you smile on the phone … all of this and learning to be comfortable with public speaking … even in front of a Senator … also taught me to feel comfortable "selling."

At the agency, I sold commissioners and funding sources on helping our kids, at the real estate office I sold Yuppies their piece of heaven in The Big Apple.

Fiction, commercial non-fiction … in whatever field we rest our weary bones, selling is a daily way of life. We do it all the time. The elevator pitch, practicing to pitch at a conference … this is selling and selling yourself first is the backbone of our "business."

Read Ziggy Ziegler and as he teaches … the happiest sound a client hears is the sound of their own name.

Hello, Ms Gardner … would you mind if I called you Rachelle?

and introduce yourself after you use the client's name.

It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Florence (blank), but please call me Florence.

Have a great day
Sherri

>Great advice, as usual. I may be romanticizing, but I imagine in the old days the reason writers started hiring agents was to take care of all the business stuff so they could focus on the art. Now it appears to be more of a partnership.

Actually, signing with my agent totally threw me out of balance. I started worrying about the business end way more than I should, so much that it squashed my creativity. I think I'm on the way to getting it back, finally. All I had to do was let go of my expectations. Sounds easy, huh?
Liberty Speidel

>I completely expect that after I sign a contract that I'll have to start treating my writing as a business, and I actually appreciate the fact. I want to be a successful author, and I know for that, I'll need to figure out how to brand myself and my books. I've spent a lot of time recently trying to figure out how to market myself.

I tend to watch what other writers/authors are doing and have mental notes about such things. One author has a phenomenal blog and Twitter following (not huge by any means, but she gets a lot of hits.) Another sends out e-mail and print newsletters. I occasionally hear radio ads on the talk station I listen to for authors like Vince Flynn and Brad Thor. All are various ideas I've toyed with for when I get that first contract.
Jill

>Most great artists of the past wanted to make money off their art. I know–there are exceptions, but most of them did what they did to make money. And they wrote for the market. We would be naive to claim that Jane Austen, for example, didn't write for her market. What she did do was bring a fresh exciting voice and style to the market. And she jump-started her career by self-publishing. But that's another story.
Beth

>Thanks so much for book suggestions! Here are a couple I've enjoyed that also help to produce a business mindset for writers:

'Quit Your Day Job' by Jim Denney
'The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books' by Harold Underdown

Writing is, as you say, ultimately about business unless you're just doing it for your family and friends. If it goes beyond, it can be fun and funny, but it is also work.
Valerie Comer

>Recently I downloaded 'How to Make Money with Social Media' by Jamie Turner. (It was free on Kindle, but I don't know if it still is.) Although much of it doesn't relate to selling books, there are plenty of ideas that carry over. At the very least, my understanding of various tools and sites (I'm only fluent in Facebook and Twitter,lol) has increased, with what each might be useful for someday.
Rosslyn Elliott

>I think it's great to be business-savvy, as long as you understand the mission that drives you to write. If you abandon your own mission in the struggle to published at any cost, that can be disastrous for you spiritually. But there are lots of ways to be commercial and still fulfill your higher goal.

I just blogged about this, as a matter of fact! "Don't abandon your calling" is my best single piece of advice for new writers, after the two years I've spent pursuing and achieving my goals. With your invaluable help, of course, Rachelle!
Kerri M.

>I know strictly speaking for myself, I'm comfortable with approaching writing as a business. Even though writing is a creative venture, it still needs to put food on the table. (If you have hopes of writing full time.) So I look at it like any other job I'm applying for, by asking myself the same questions I would before I turn in my resume.

To help me nurture this mindset, I like to think about what makes me feel satisfied as an artist and what will make my readers feel satisfied as a consumer. If I can think like a business woman during the outline of my book (and career path), I've created a win-win situation for both myself and my readers. (And I'm a big fan of the win-win.)

I find that if I can divorce myself from being too wrapped up in my art, I can produce a better product. It's definitely hard finding that balance though, but it's a necessary evil. My advertising classes really helped me figure out how to balance it all, so I think 'Why We Buy' is an excellent recommendation. The psychology behind purchases is a real eye opener.

Thanks for another wonderful post!
Carol J. Garvin

>Before I started my own business twenty years ago I did a lot of preparation that included reading appropriate books and taking an accounting course. The business model has evolved since then, and it's just as important now to be well prepared for my publishing endeavour. Thank you for this reminder.
Joanna K.

>Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on this blog. I've found it very informative and encouraging.
As far as the business versus artistic sides of writing, I think you've left out an important 3rd component – the Ministry side of writing.
I understand that many people write as a career and not necessarily as a ministry. But I also know people who write Bible studies and Christian materials that never get a wider circulation than their local church. Their goal is to minister, not necessarily get published.
As a Christian, I want to write only the things God directs me to write – not necessarily what will sell or what I consider artistic. My goal is not to make a living or to become well-known, but simply to be obedient and faithful to what the Lord wants me to do with my writing. Yet I often struggle with finding the balance of trusting Him to take my writing where He wants it to go or taking steps to promote it myself.
I think it's imortant for all writers to have a cearly defined goal. Is the goal of writing to make a living from your work? Is it to feel good about yourself? Is it to be available and obedient to write as God leads, regardless of what the results are?
Knowing our goal, and more importantly, God's goal, for our writing is where we all need to start. And hopefully we'll find the right balance or the right approach to what we, as individuals, are being called to do.
K.L. Brady

>I have an MBA and I do agree with you, Rachell. One thing my degree has helped me with is really learning to plan and target my marketing endeavors so I'm not out their flailing around aimlessly. Two of the best things an author can do is learn to create a marketing plan (with SWOT analysis) and a business plan. You can find template on the web and don't need a degree for it, but it will help you focus your efforts.

Starting out as an indie author, I think I really got a big dose (perhaps an overdose) of the realities of the book business. I quickly learned my limitations as an indie publisher and how I can leverage the association with a big house to do certain things I couldn't do before. I personally don't think there's a better way to learn the business as a layman than to publish your own book. It's a baptism by fire but it definitely helped ground me. I won't become an diva author because I appreciate everything that goes into creating a book and making it successful.
Sierra Gardner

>As an unpublished author, I'm actually all for having a more business like approach to writing. My only personal problem is this issue of branding. I write all sorts of different stuff. Women's fiction, paranormal fantasy, murder mystery, children's, etc. What I can't figure out is how, if I ever do get published, to maintain the diversity in my work that is actually my favorite thing about writing. Any ideas?
LBDDiaries

>Thank you so much, not only for the post (and reality check) but recommending books, too! You make the advice (and free, too!) really easy to swallow!
Scooter Carlyle

>I found, "Rich Dad, Poor Dad," to be extremely helpful. It changes the way one approaches business by changing the way one thinks about business. Most of it can be applied to writing.
Amy Sorrells

>Writing for the customer/reader IS why I write, so I'm near-giddy to make the changes necessary to create something that appeals to the masses. I believe in my message, and because of that, I want to sculpt it in a way that reaches readers where THEY are–not just where I am, personally. If I don't, what's the point, right?

And speaking of point, The Tipping Point is one business book I really like. As Gladwell says, "The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire."

I want the premise of my book to catch like wildfire, so even though it's difficult at times, I'm more than willing to find new ways to distinguish my personal/artsy message with one that's palatable and enjoyable for others.

Think I'll be going to the library now. Business section. Pronto. Thanks, Rachelle!
Anne R. Allen

>Fantastic, much-needed advice. Thanks!
Susan Spann

>This is a great, informative post, Rachelle. I'm an intellectual property attorney in my "other life," and it's so important for writers to understand that being a good businessperson isn't "selling out" or minimizing their calling – in fact, they can be much more true to that calling if they know how to be good stewards of their gifts.

Thank you for posting this. It's nice to see it in a popular forum, from a voice people know to trust.
Sharon A. Lavy

>In another life my daughter said to me, "Mom you can do anything, but you can't do everything well."

This applies to writing. You can write in any genre you like, but few can write well in many because each takes a different focus.

So take the time to discover which genre you can be passionate enough to stick with and learn to write that genre well.
Cacy

>I better be comfortable with approaching writing as a business. Student loans help me nurture this mindset.

To paraphrase the creators of South Park, is it really selling out if making money was part of the plan from the beginning?
Michelle DeRusha

>I admit, I was horrified when I first realized that it wouldn't be enough for me to simply write a good book, that I would also have to market it and build a platform to support it.

But of course in time it's come to make every bit of sense. Publishing is a business like any other. Authors are marketers as well as writers. This I know now…and I appreciate it.

The guest post below by Karen Witemeyer, about the necessity of branding — and adhering to your brand — fits well with the theme of this post.
Sarah Cypher

>Rachelle–thanks for your blog posts. You've been nailing some great issues lately, and they are all helpful.

Ted Cross–two thumbs up for Ursula LeGuin. Her cross-genre writing is what I aim for, too.

As for the business of writing, having been in business as an editor for almost ten years, I understand that writing for publication and marketing books are part and parcel with being a writer.

Even so, getting out there and actually do it takes an enormously high activation energy. Between the concept stage of a novel (i.e., answering the developmental question, "Why will anyone care about this idea?"), and the actual marketing of a finished book, I need to forget about business. Otherwise, I get distracted by what other people are selling, and start to miss opportunities to make the story mine, in my voice, with my own approach.

Like any good business, you have to divvy up your time between marketing, research, communication, and actually doing the work.
Jillian Kent

>Hi Rachelle,
One of the best books I ever read and keep close at hand is:

100 Ways To Motivate Yourself: Change Your Life Forever by
Steve Chandler

It may not be all about business but it fits. I'd recommend it as more than a business book. It's a way to help us stay motivated to write the books for our businesses and not get burnt out along the way. Sometimes it just helps me gain perspective.
Nikole Hahn

>Thanks for the suggestions! That would be helpful. I do think of writing as both business and art. A question came up from someone not familiar with the business who said, "What? If they don't publish without an online presence, what did they do back before the internet to sell books?"

I said, "Publishing is a business. In this electronic age with so many self-published and traditional published, it's that much harder for one author to get published and compete."
T. Anne

>The comments today are as educational as the post! I’ve read a couple of the books on the list and they’ve been like iron for my anemic sense of business savvy.

This vital angle of the publishing world is paramount to our success. Publishers invest big money in writers and their work. We need to be apprised of what our customers are looking for and remind ourselves of the golden rule of sales, the customer is always right.
Elle

>i think you should take a tiny second to check out my blog from my book:

fliestohoney.blogspot.com

i think you kinda want to…

Elle
Wendy Bertsch

>Rachelle,
My first career was as a businesswoman, so the disconnect you describe has been painfully clear to me. It is understandable that the altruists and the spiritually motivated might disdain the business side of writing. But if you expect anyone to actually pay cash for your books, you're not above marketing them — so don't strike poses as if you were. It just makes you look like a freeloader.
kangaroobee

>Great post and comments Rachelle. I did a SWOT analysis on my blog a while back, but when I look back it was too broad. It should have been all about the book's swot analysis not mine. I have learned recently not to flog yourself on one piece of writing if the audience is tired of that subject. Now I try and use supply and demand as my focus before I write the first draft. Yes it is slower but you won't need as many drafts and hopefully you will be writing something that people want to buy. have you all heard of http://www.Smories.com? It is an English website where children read your stories on the web. Your story is chosen to be read if you get enough views on it. It's a great place to showcase your work relatively quickly.
Lynn Squire

>My first published book was a product of my business so viewing writing as such came naturally.

Then, a few years later, I published for my ministry. That has become the thrust of my writing – glorifying God and declaring His works. Doing this has added a third element. Now I balance ministry, business, and art. I love this combination. As the ministry God has given me grows, so does my business, and so does the desire to continually grow in the art of writing.
Mary

>I'm excited to see your post on the Business of Writing. Chris Bucci (literary agent with Anne McDermid & Associates) and I have started a series on this topic alternating between the McDermid blog and my blog, http://www.onewritersvoice.com. I think there's a lot more discussion to be had on this topic, using the model of writers as entrepreneurs.
Janica Smith

>I am an Author's Virtual Assistant and find that many of my clients understand the principles of business but are not great at keeping up with all of the details. I think it is a challenge to fully integrate the left/right brain functions of being creative and being concrete. If the implementation of the business side is not a strength there is help available.