Writers: don't focus only on publication without remembering this...

The essential ingredient of a long-term writing career

It’s a wonderful thing to hold a beautifully packaged and printed book in our hands, to see it in the shops and celebrate our achievements with readers and friends. These defining moments of a book’s publication are so visually recognisable that it’s easy to mistake such pinnacle events as the entire substance of our writing careers.

However, this is a fallacy. And it’s one we need to explode on behalf of the 98 per cent of writers who have written and published really great books, only to find that they do NOT storm up the charts and become instant bestsellers. There are many writers who know all about that whooshing noise when the publication party train leaves the station way too soon, carrying booksellers, readers and publishers merrily off to pastures new, while the author is left behind, staring into an empty space, sitting on a suitcase full of their treasured books, trying to figure out what to do now.

The close-up experience of publication is not always what it looks like on our socials.

I used to joke that I felt like a travelling salesman, constantly spruiking my wares every time I published a book. This self-consciousness was really, really hard to deal with at first, because although I believe in my books it can be deeply uncomfortable and embarrassing to keep on talking about them (and about myself) - particularly as I’d call myself a social introvert (I love social events, but they drain me too, and I only build up my energy from time alone). I felt like that annoying person at a party who corners guests and won’t shut up about their new patio blinds business, insisting everyone will love them and pressing cards into reluctant hands. We all know that salesy people can be really annoying. So how do we handle that, when we also really want readers to buy our books?

Well, I think it helps if we understand that the essential component of a successful writing career is not necessarily publication. What I’d suggest instead, my friends, is that we should all be focusing more on reach.

Whatever the stage of your writing journey, the key is always reach.

Early on we’re trying to reach our first readers, nervously waiting to see if they enjoy the story. Then it’s all about reaching agents and publishers – because publication is the gateway to a greater reach than we could ever hope for alone. After this, it becomes about an entire team of people having enough faith in your book that they’re prepared to help you reach your readers.

Reach is the component of publishing that new authors often neglect. They get caught out by thinking that because they’ve written the book and signed a deal, they finally get to relax while someone else works on the selling part. This might have worked in days gone by, but now, 99% of the time, it doesn’t happen. As authors, we are responsible for reaching our readers. And we have to remember, we’re not just selling our books – we’re trying to share stories and work full of personal meaning, which we’ve carried in our hearts for a long time, and which have consumed us so much that we’ve often made many sacrifices in order to get them onto the page.

It can look like we’re all at such different stages and on our own paths, but really, we’re each doing the same thing: working on reach, by trying to figure out where we can find more readers who connect with our work. For published authors, this sometimes happens in big moments, on bestseller charts and at packed events, which often causes other writers to feel deeply envious, particularly because this high level of reach comes sooner for some than for others. However, popular authors are some of the busiest people I know, working their socks off behind the scenes, curating and managing their efforts, and they’re extremely passionate and invested in what they’re doing. They’ve learned how to talk really well about their belief in and love of their stories, and about books and writing in general. They know how to hustle, and the importance of reach.

Reach relies on a great book, of course, otherwise we won’t get many readers anyway. So we can’t start reaching too early, before we’ve put the work in to make our books the best they can be. However, many, many great books don’t find all the readers they deserve to. What’s more, all published authors have to balance outreach with writing new words, and this is a hard and ongoing challenge, requiring us to continually make good strategic decisions in a tricky quest for balance.

Therefore, reach is always a long and individual game. It challenges us when it’s not going well, or when we’re tired or nervous about public speaking - and we can’t expect to reach thousands of readers without an excellent book campaign or some kind of big break. We also can’t hope to attract readers unless we know how to market ourselves in order to find the right readers. We have to learn a lot as we go, but this shouldn’t ever dilute the significance and satisfaction of simply reaching one reader at a time. If that reader loves our story they’ll tell a friend - who might even know someone with greater reach. Perhaps a bookstore owner or a journalist. Or someone with a publishing contact. Reach is an endless road, but there’s always joy when you connect with a reader along the way.

While publishing can feel brutal at times, reach doesn’t have to be, especially if we can dare to dream while managing our expectations, treading slowly and thoughtfully, remembering to rest but not stopping for too long. So, if you find yourself burnt-out by a difficult publishing experience, please don’t let it put you off the continual possibilities of reach. Who can you share your story with today? Who might treasure your book if you send it to them?

It’s vital that we don’t let the vagaries of the market dictate our perceptions of the value of our work. Let’s decide to back ourselves instead. And keep on reaching.