The Truth Comes Out

While I'm working on the book of my heart, I'm gearing up to work on the books of my pocket book. Before you condemn me, you must understand that as a freelance writer, I have written some pretty deadly stuff, from white papers on why hospitals should merge (or not be allowed to have cardiac units), to boatloads of stuff on how to handle toxic wastes, to campaigns to get people to save energy. I've written about trucks, nuclear waste vaults, education reform, psychiatric hospitals, financial stuff, economic development, women's colleges, employee recruitment, cancer insurance, singing Christmas trees and things I can't or won't remember. I've been doing this a long time. I draw the line at tobacco and have never had to draw any other line. You want it written? I can write it.

So, when my accountability partner told me about how a friend of hers is doing rather well writing romance novels, I had a rather haughty and snobbish response. Then I found out how much money she was making -- and how she takes FIVE months of the year off to travel and visit friends.

Toxic waste will not do this for you. Neither will writing about pet food, energy efficient appliances or breast self-exams.

I have had a few plays produced, including one off-off Broadway. I have had short stories published in high-minded literary journals where they pay you in copies. My current work-in-process borders on literature, but I'm trying to push it into popular fiction, like The Secret Life of Bees.

In other words, fine literature rarely pays. (This is not to say that I'm writing fine literature but let me believe it, okay?)

I will continue to pursue the work of my heart. However, did you know that romance novels publishing is a $1.4 BILLION a year industry? I could make a tenth of that and be happy.

Literary fiction brings in $466 million. If you want to see how the book market shakes out, look here.

Sell to the masses, eat with the classes. Sell to the classes, eat with the masses.

So, I snuck off to Books-A-Million the other day and bought a.... hold your nose .... romance novel. Did you know they have a whole line of romance novels geared to NASCAR fans? I didn't buy one of those, but the one I did get is actually a decent story line. There's just too much about the people in it "radiating raw sexuality" as they stand in doorways.

I've been practicing that. Paul said I don't radiate, I exude, so I will continue to practice radiating. I will not keep you posted on this.

And I laugh out loud when I work on these things. Maybe that is payment enough.

Comments

[Cheryl]

So, are you going to become one of those sireeens?

[Anwyn]

And suddenly I've found my goal in life: to write convincing sex scenes without using words that make me cringe and get paid a slice of tat $1.4bil pie.

[lifepundit]

Cheryl, no chance of me becoming a siren, I'm afraid.

Anwyn, there are categories of romance where the characters radiate sexuality from the doorway but when any kind of consummation takes place, they shut that door. I'm not writing sex scenes. There are also Christian romances. My accountability partner found an editor who is looking for new writers and you get to shut the door on the sex scenes, so that's my target.

Should have made that clearer.