I received the following email from Amy today:

I was really happy to see your last blog entry.  I have been reading a book about writing, and it talks so much about how hard and frustrating it is to be a writer. I really like writing, but all of this talk of how being a writer is not all it’s cracked up to be is starting to make my doubt how much I really like to write. You say that the average writer doesn’t make enough money to live on, and that kind of scares me. It’s not the money I care about, it’s the idea that you will write books and stories, but not many people will fall in love with your stories as you have. You are successful. You’ve sold many copies of your stories in many different countries. I don’t understand why everyone seems to have such a negative outlook on the writing life. I was at a bookstore the other day, and there was a newly published author sitting their, selling copies of his book. He said that he’s been writing for thirty years and he JUST got his first book published. I know that I love writing, but I need to hear more positive things about writing! If it’s so bad and stressful, then why do people spend hours plucking away on their computer every day???

Why indeed?!? I think we’re all mad!!!!! Seriously, I hope I don’t sound negative when I talk about the writing process. I’m trying to pass on the best advice I can, to help those who REALLY want to be writers -- i.e. those who are prepared to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. The underlying message of all my comments is about the most positive you’ll ever hear -- "You CAN make your dream come true!!!" Virtually anyone can become a writer. There’s no magic involved. No special deals need to be struck with Satan. It’s something you can do all by yourself, by working hard and not losing faith.

But those are the two main keys, and that’s why I come back to them so often -- hard work, and keeping the faith. Unless you’re famous in some other field (e.g. an actor or model who decides to write a book, which sells purely on the strength of your name), you’re going to have to work VERY hard to get your work published. That’s a simple fact of life, and it’s a message I like to stress, because at the end of the day it separates the wheat from the crap! When I talk about having to work hard, and spend hours and weeks and months and years locked away from the world in order to develop and get your work published, poseur writers think I’m being negative -- I’m denying them "the secret formula" which will allow them to become brilliant quickly. They believe in an Andy Warhol and Big Brother universe, where everyone should be entitled to 15 minutes of fame just for being themselves, where dreams should automatically come true.

I don’t.

I think success can only truly be appreciated if it’s earned. And most writers think that way too, I’m sure, because like me they’ve had to work damned hard to get what they have. There are two types of dreamers in this world -- those who just dream, and those who pursue their dreams. Those in the latter camp read my blog entries and (I hope!!!) inflate with positivity and enthusiasm. Because they get it -- if you work hard, and dedicate yourself to your dream, YOU can be the next Darren Shan, J K Rowling, Stephen King or William Shakespeare. Hell, you can be the next Jilly Cooper if that’s your wish!!!! Writers don’t have magic buttons which they press to succeed -- they get ahead by working hard. Would-be writers who are told that don’t sit there thinking, "Gee, I only wanted to do this if I could press a magic button and do it quickly." They think, "Thank the gods there aren’t any magic buttons -- it means I have the power to do this myself!!!!"

So, in short, I will always stress the need to work hard, because it’s the sort of encouragement REAL young writers need.

As for keeping the faith ... Well, again, although some of my comments might seem to paint a bleak picture of despair and economic doom, I continue to point out the monetary pitfalls of being a writer because it’s important that you know what you’re getting into -- and that you know you’re not in that boat alone. Thousands of books are published every year, but most of us only read the more popular books. I read the occasional out-of-field novel by an unheard of writer, but for the most part I go for successful writers whose books I enjoy. I don’t think I’m unusual in that. I imagine most of you reading this are similar to me in that respect. But that can create a seeming imbalance for youong writers. If you’re only reading work by established, top-notch writers, that’s all you’re going to be aware of. If every writer whose work you like is successful, sells millions of copies, and makes loads of money, you might think ALL writers are like that. And if you set out to become a writer, and find that you’re not one of the lucky few who crack the big time, you might think that you’re a failure, since you’ve falled short of the standards all your favourite writers have set.

But let me tell you this -- NO writer is a failure. It takes a hell of a lot of guts and imagination and bravery to become a writer. You set out on a task to create something out of nothing, to pluck ideas from the air and weave them into a story which has never been told before. The financial rewards for most writers are pitiful. Most don’t earn a legion of loyal fans. Most have to work in other jobs to support themselves. Most have trouble getting their work printed. Most writers’ works that ARE printed don’t sell very well and go out of print long before the writer dies. Most are unloved, not respected, not acknowledged. And you know what?

It doesn’t matter a damn!!!!!

Amy asks why people spend so long plucking away on their computers if it’s all doom and gloom. The reason is -- we work in the dream industry. When you write a story, you create. You bring a new form into the world. Even if it’s not a very good or original story, it’s unique. It’s something you’ve created that nobody else can do in exactly the way you did it. It’s like giving birth to a child, except you can do it dozens or hundreds of times over the course of your life -- and you don’t have any nappies to change!!! Writing is a buzz, a wonderful feeling. It’s like playing your favourite sport or game -- great fun. It’s harder than most sports, because you have to put so much into it -- you can’t just have a writing "kickabout", the way you can play a casual game of soccer at the back of your house with your friends. But that means the rewards are so much greater. The reward of following your dream. Of doing something unique. Of daring to show your inner soul and imaginings to the world. Of saying "I’m special, I’m an individual, I’m not afraid to step up to the mark, I’m not afraid to fail, I’m going to go out on a limb and chase my dreams until death robs me of them." Money isn’t the REAL reward about being a writer. Fame isn’t the REAL reward about being a writers. You can be an apparent failure in the eyes of the world, as most writers are -- but still be one of the greatest success stories this world has ever produced, as ALL writers, by the very act of writing, are.

THAT’S what I’m trying to say.

Night night folks. Keep on dreaming.