It is an
honor to be invited back to RTG. A few years have rolled by since I met the
Genre-istas in Portland, OR at the Rose City Romance Writers. I still remember
the awe I felt sitting in the same room with
real published romance writers … I want to touch the nearest one, lol.
Now I am one!
And 22 romance books & novellas later, it's been grand … but things change.
I was first published
in 2007, just past the age of 50. I experienced the hey-day of digital publishing,
when the small pubs like Samhain were rocking the romance reading world. Wow,
my first paychecks were big! They continued to grow as I wrote more books,
until … more publisher fish swam into the sea and they had new ways to grab
their share of readers.
This thing
called self-publishing happened. Market share of the publishers, large and
small, began to shrink even faster as readers shrugged and said, 'I don't care
where the book comes from, as long as I can load it on my e-reader and enjoy
it.' My paychecks from Samhain shrank too.
I leapt into
the self-publishing ocean. It was delightful! Those big paychecks returned,
with a larger percentage coming to me since there was no publisher in the
middle to take their share. Woo-hoo, life was once again grand.
Then, more
and more and more writers began to self-publish. Wow, getting crowded out here
in the romance ocean, even for those of us with marketable names. But paychecks
were still big, so with some advertising and a newsletter, no worries.
Next, Amazon
rolled out a feat of marketing genius (or an evil sledge-hammer with which to
destroy writing careers, depending on one's perspective), the Kindle Unlimited
subscription plan. My sales plummeted again as hordes of voracious romance
readers leapt like sharks onto this new unlimited reading plan—and stopped buying as many books.
All the
while, more writers published their works, meaning more competition. I was so
discouraged … if I didn't love writing so much, in the winter of 2015, I would
have quit publishing altogether and gone back to work at a library or in
education. I'm still selling books, still have loyal readers, and I know I'm
doing better than the vast percentage of authors now, but not making the BIG
paychecks.
But I seem to
need to write nearly as much as I need to breathe.
Thus, I
listened to a friend and mentor, Maggie McVay Lynch who said, "Many people who are
making money now in publishing aren't just writing. They're diversifying,
offering services to other writers." She herself is a shining example of
this, teaching on All Writer Workshops, helping writers decipher promotion
and other facets of publishing. I'm taking her class on maximizing
newsletter/email lists right now.
Diversification.
Great idea, but what services could I offer? Hmmm, I love writing ad copy/blurbs/cover
copy, and often volunteered to write it for friends and colleagues, who
expressed undying gratitude for my services. So, perhaps other writers would pay me to do so?
Turns out
they will indeed. In February—just as I turned 60—I opened up shop as The
Blurb Queen. In that time
I've acquired many clients. I'm now being paid to do another facet of the
publishing biz—helping other writers highlight their stories in a few, exciting
words!
Like writing
good stories, writing good ad copy is hard work, but I enjoy it just as much. So
I can now afford to keep writing my beloved romance, and working from my home
office, which is exactly where I want to be. Now that I've relaxed a bit about
the income stream, writing is once again joyous.
As George
Eliot may have said, 'It's never too
late to become who you might have been!'
Wonder what
new marketable skill I'll discover when I'm 70??
What do YOU do to subsidize your
writing career? I'd love to hear. We're all in this together, my friends.
Cathryn Cade
Red Hot Sci Fi/Contemporary/Paranormal Romance
RT 4.5 Stars
and Night Owl Reviews TOP PICK
Cathryn Cade
Keep Calm and Let the Blurb Queen Fix It!
It's so good to hear from you, Cathryn! Reading about your career has been interesting. I don't feel so bad about getting discouraged when I find out you've been in the same boat! I'm gathering ideas for diversifying. Haven't decided yet. Illness and family commitments have kept me busy for a couple of years.
ReplyDeleteYou hit on a winner with the Blurb Queen!
Hi, Cathryn. I'm glad that you found a way to supplement the income so you can focus on writing. Clearly you are far too passionate about what you do to give up. I find this inspiring. I know I'm too slow of a writer to ever make a living at it, and finding readers in a saturated market is very difficult, but not writing is not an option. Good luck with the blurb writing. It's a great idea!
ReplyDeleteThanks for guesting with us, Cathryn, and sharing your journey. I'm grateful you've added The Blurb Queen to your resume because I love what you've done for me!
ReplyDeleteLooks like I'm getting in at the wrong time. Oh, well. I'm like you, Cathryn, I can't stop writing. Even if I never earn a penny from it. But since I've spent so much money "launching" this career, I will have to try. Another income stream--that's an interesting thought. You've definitely started me thinking.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to you in the future.
Thanks for sharing your journey, Cathryn! I can certainly say I'm glad you opened the Blurb Queen! You did a wonderful job with my blurb. Thanks so much. As far as extra income, haven't figured that out. I've tried selling jewelry on Etsy, didn't earn anything. Now I'm painting furniture for resale, but it is slow going and takes away from my writing time.
ReplyDeleteHi Cathryn! Great post! I'm glad you found a way to supplement your writing. I've had people suggested several things to me, but at this point, like you I can't not write. It makes me happy. If I make a enough to buy a saddle or things I like for the house, I'm happy. I would never be able to support myself on my writing and I've been lucky my hubby has been supportive of that. Though he wouldn't mind if I could become his "Sugar Mama". ;) You are good at blurbs. I'm glad you found a way to use your strengths to help others and yourself.
ReplyDeleteSarah,
ReplyDeleteYou should never feel badly about getting discouraged at times. All we can do is decide Why we're writing, What we're going to change (attitude or practices) and Write On.
hugs,
Cathryn
Tammy,
ReplyDeleteI'm just glad you're going to keep writing! Love your stories, and always look for more of them.
But yes, we are surely not alone in supplementing our writing income majorly with other jobs.
hugs,
Cathryn
Judith,
ReplyDeleteThanks! I'm grateful to have you as a client.
hugs,
cathryn
Barbara,
ReplyDeleteI continue to believe there has never been a better time to be a writer. We have so, so many options open to us with publishing, and we can write any kind of story we can imagine, and know that we'll find at least some writers for it.
You have a true dedication to craft, so don't stop now!
Cathryn
Diana,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words. I am grateful to have you as a client.
I hear you - it can take time to find other viable income streams. Best wishes in your search!
hugs,
Cathryn
Paty,
ReplyDeleteYour life as a ranch woman adds such a wonderful flavor to your writing, I'm glad you have that too. Can't beat being able to buy a new saddle - they are such a beautiful and important tool for horsing around.
Thanks for your encouragement!
hugs,
Cathryn
I'm just so PROUD of you, Cathryn. You've stuck with it through thick and thin. You've learned new skills when you've had to and you've always kept on writing. I agree with everyone else that you are a good Blurb Queen. It is a gift.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the plugs, too. Diversity has sometimes kept food on the table for me, too. It is a different world in publishing today. For many people, myself included, there had to be a grieving process for what we thought/wanted publishing to be. But the one thing we can guarantee in our technological world is that it will change...and change regularly. Technology changes about once every 8 - 12 months. Because publishing is now very technology driven, it means to keep up we all have to grow and change at that same pace. It's not big change. It's incremental change. That is it's incremental if you do something a little different each year.
If you refuse to change for four or five years and THEN try to catch up it is quite painful. But it can be done. I see it happening all around me as authors like you, who used to have good careers with traditional presses from small press to NY big companies, join the indie publishing world.
You are a wonderful example of sticking to it, learning when you have to, or biting the bullet and getting help form others so you can keep writing. And all the while you still find a way to smile.