Five Key Elements of a Successful Writer, Part 1, Patience – Guest Post by Amanda Bridgeman

When I saw a tweet from Amanda (pure luck with the timing as I’m rarely on Twitter) asking if people would be happy to host her on a blog tour, I jumped at the chance. Amanda’s a fantastic writer with some great insights into the publishing industry (not to mention a lovely person), so I was keen to host her here.

I asked her to  share some of her experience into her writing career, and randomly picked ‘the darkest hour’ as a topic.

Well, she knocked the topic out of the arena, across three States and into a pretty neat little Territory called the ACT, almost punching it into orbit on the way.

This is part one, on the subject of… [drum roll]… needing patience as a writer!

When I asked Chris what he would like me to write about for this blog, he suggested discussing my darkest hour.

I thought about this, and decided to discuss the ways in which you can help avoid experiencing that darkest hour.

The one thing I have learnt about being a published writer is that it is a constant roller coaster of a ride and it will continue that way until you decide to pull the plug.

I’ve never been much of a roller coaster fan, but I’m slowly getting used to it.

You will have your awesome ‘up’ days, and you will have your depressing ‘down’ days.

But that’s the life of a writer – you either accept it or you don’t.

There are ways to minimise the impact, though, by preparing yourself and managing your expectations.

So here is the first of five aspects I think every writer must strive to embrace in order to ward off your darkest days.

Patience

If you want to be published, you must realise and accept that it takes time.

A lot of time.

Firstly you must write that book, then you must whip that book into shape, then you need to ship it around to all the different players, then you need to wait for responses, then you need to negotiate contacts, then you need to go through several rounds of editing, then you need to market and sell your book.

All of this can take years. And even then, when you finally release your book, it is highly unlikely that it will be an overnight sensation – rocketing up the charts.

You need patience to bring your book to publication, then you need patience while you build up your readership.

There is a phenomenal amount of books out there, so it can take time to reach readers. So be realistic with your expectations. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Serious writers are in this for the long haul, and patience is their most prized possession. Don’t believe me? Check out these blogs by Peter M Ball:

• Five (or more) books between writers and their audience
• The Talkative Writer: Guest post by Peter M Ball

Born and raised in the seaside/country town of Geraldton, Western Australia, Amanda hails from fishing and farming stock. The youngest of four children, her three brothers raised her on a diet of Rocky, Rambo, Muhammad Ali and AC/DC. She studied film & television/creative writing at Murdoch University (BA Communication Studies) in Perth, Western Australia, which has been her home ever since, aside from a nineteen month stint in London (England). Her debut novel Aurora:Darwin was published with Momentum in May 2013; the sequel Aurora: Pegasus was published in December 2013; and Aurora: Meridian will be released on 11 September 2014.

• Amanda’s Blog : amandabridgeman.com.au
• Facebook: Amanda Bridgeman
• Twitter: @Bridgeman_Books
• Pinterest:http://www.pinterest.com/BridgemanBooks/

Part 2… “Willingness”