Good morning… If you’re a writer you know some of the struggles of a writer. Maybe you’re not a writer and you ask what I’m speaking of, well here goes. As a writer you have many struggles and I’m listing just the top five.
- Time – A lot of writers aren’t full time. They work other jobs and have to fit their writing in between business meetings, job hours and family time. It’s a true struggle to meet deadlines and get everything else done. But as a writer, you strive to get that few minutes here and there to write. The story has to be told.
- Being seen – This is a real struggle in a market that is bursting at the seams with other writers just like you. You have to find the right niche, then make sure you stand out among the thousands, in some genres, millions of other books.
- Money – If you haven’t had that break out moment, then you’re having to pay for a lot of advertising and promoting. It’s a struggle when you spend more than what comes in.
- Reviews – Oh yeah, this is a struggle for traditional and indie authors. You don’t want to buy reviews, you want genuine, heartfelt reviews that draw in more readers. But more and more I hear fellow writers say it’s almost impossible to get their readers to post a review. Reviews help us authors build our reader base.
- Respect – Wow, this one is hard to gain. Most people look at you strangely when you say you’re a writer. Some even say, oh I can do that, but don’t have the time. Then they say, can’t you find a better way to spend your time, or you need to do something other than write. In my opinion those people don’t have a clue as to the draw of a writer to the writing. We have to do it.
So, do you feel the struggle?
As always, good writing and May God Bless You…
Stephanie Hurt - Romance Author 
There’s so much to be told on the subject. Where I come from people do respect the work writers put in, they are interested and check out what you write if they hear about you. Again IF THEY HEAR ABOUT YOU. Thing is, as a writer I do understand them readers. Let’s be fair, there’s a lot of bad stories or bad writing out there, and it’s hard to give every indie writer a chance. My people we have a saying: Quality will always stand out, but do you think that’s a fact or rather a white lie?
In my opinion, it’s a “white lie.” Good writing doesn’t guarantee that readers will like an author’s stories. However, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to be the best writers we can.
True Linda. We should publish the best we have inside of us and make it even better than that!
That’s one those gray areas I guess. I’ve seen some books stand out that weren’t in my opinion quality. It made me wonder what they did to stand out so well. Great comment as usual Ana!
Great post as usual dear Spethanie! Hugs
Back at cha girl! Hope all’s well with you.
Great post as usual, dear STEPHANIE! Sorry about the typo. Hugs!
I agree with all of your points, Stephanie, especially regarding “reviews.” In the prevailing climate, readers seem more likely to post reviews for books they didn’t like rather than books they do like. Once in a while, someone will enjoy our books enough to leave a positive review. That’s what keeps us authors going, I suppose–that and our love of writing.
Exactly! I’ve seen some authors post about the many negative reviews, but they’re bestsellers, so something has to be good, right? It’s a crazy world! Thanks for the comment Linda!
You’ve nailed what it is to be a writer, Stephanie. As for those elusive reviews, I couldn’t agree more. I’m still on a high from someone who found me through Goodreads, and read my debut novel (published through Amazon October 2012). She reviewed it on Amazon.co.uk in Sept. saying ‘it was like starting a box of chocolates and then being unable to stop’. As a writer, for a reader to say something like that is more than gold.
That was a great review. Good luck.