Continuing my quest to find out what makes a bestselling author, I picked up a Ridley Pearson novel to reread, but he lost me even before the first chapter.
In his dedication thanking his three mentors, the men who led him into the creative life of writing and publishing fiction, he wrote, “There is no greater argument for the importance of mentoring.”
It struck me as a smug comment, as if he were congratulating himself for having figured out that a mentor was important, as if the rest of us were so stupid we couldn’t come to the same conclusion. The problem is, even though we do know the importance of a having a mentor, we can’t just go to Mentors R Us and pick one out. A mentor has to choose us and, in my case, whenever I met people who could have mentored me, they always turned their back. Like the teacher who told me that she saved papers from every student she thought would become a writer, but that she never saved anything of mine. Wow. A bit harsh coming from a teacher.
I suppose that the only way we can mentor or be mentored is for us unpublished authors to mentor each other.
With that in mind, I have a suggestion. I have been reading a novel that’s being posted here on WordPress. Some scenes are excellent, and really pulled me in, but when he switched to other scenes, he lost me. He needs to have more than just one person telling him when or if they lost interest in the characters, so if you have a chance, read his novel at
http://nomananisland.wordpress.com
My only request is that you be respectful without undue flattery. Flattery is such cheap currency, and doesn’t help us see our work as others would.
November 3, 2007 at 5:30 pm
I think mentoring is over-rated. The only way to learn to write is to write–alot. You can show your writing to those of your friends and acquaintances whom you trust to be honest with you. It should be someone who reads and likes the same genre as your writing.
Ultimately getting published is a matter of patience and more importantly, persistence. To be cruelly realistic, the chance of being the next Jk Rowling, or John Grisham is more a matter of luck than talent.
The best and most accomplished author I can think of–Gene Wolfe, has never written a bestseller. But I would much rather have the command of language that he possesses than a spot at the top of the list.
I went about getting published in totally the wrong way. I didn’t write and submit a whole bunch of short fiction first, to try and build up a history. I didn’t get an agent. I sent my manuscript to editors who had a strict no un-agented submissions policy. But I got a contract. For four books.
My point is, if I had had a mentor, he or she might have dissuaded me from doing any of the above.
Suzanne
November 3, 2007 at 9:12 pm
I appreciate that you think my writing is worth refining — I welcome any comments and critiques of my work, because I consider life a learning process and I would like to know how my novel affects people.