Travel Adventures in Writing

by M. L. Buchman

Well, last month I messed up and used this month's theme of "Adventures in Travel" for last month's blog post about writing the book of my bicycle journey around the world:
https://romancingthegenres.blogspot.com/2019/07/every-book-has-its-time.html

I figured that this month I should look at my "travels" in writing.

Recently I was part of a small group discussion about the drop-out rate of authors from the industry, many of them with reasonably established careers. We talked a bit about why it happens. I eventually proposed a "model" but I've given it a lot of thought since and wanted to explore this a bit more.

I'm not talking about the "fad" writers. "Oh, everything with Girl in the title is hot, I'll write one of those." "Oh $0.99 books with massive ad campaigns are the answer to everything." Most of these folks are gone as quickly as they arrived. I'm talking about people who want to have a good, consistent writing career.

There are a number of hurdles to clear, things that can really stop authors in such a way they may never recover:

• Actually finishing and letting go of (publishing) that first book.
• The terror of the blank page of the second book especially after all that pretty polishing of the first.
• Five books later, discovering that this career requires hard, consistent work, and that success rarely just dangles from the trees. Yes, there are the breakout writers, but I'm not talking about those, I'm talking about steady, workaday writers like myself.

But once they clear the five-book hurdle, most authors seem able to continue up to that 20-book threshold. Then a massive winnowing happens at this point and this is what aroused my (and the group's) curiosity.

Why at 20 books?

By then, especially if the author focused intelligently on a genre or series, income is often moving nicely. Maybe not stellar yet, but probably a decent income. They know how much work it is.

And then they just walk away. 

My theory on this is actually tied up in my own recent experience. I have fifty-two romance novels across multiple series. But 12 of those are in contemporary romance, which is quite different from writing military romantic suspense. And the military rom was split up across multiple series and the last 9 years (so I wrote many other things in between, perhaps bypassing that 20-book trip point that way).

But why at 20 books?

My theory is that most of the truly long career writers I've spoken to have had to reinvent themselves. Either the industry or the traditional publishers' perception of the industry created tectonic-scale shifts and suddenly Gothic romance, westerns, horror, Cold War thrillers, science fiction in general, and so on simply were no longer a viable option. A writer who wrote 20 novels without being "forced" to reinvent themselves would consider that they'd had a good run.

Then along came indie publishing. Now we are able to reach an on-going audience despite any trends or perceived trends. We are free to write 40 military romantic suspense novels as part of a career with no clear pressure to reinvent ourselves.

I think that this is the real 20-book trap. Twenty novels is typically between 1 and 2 million words. Isn't it time for a break? For a change up? For a refreshing of motivation? You don't have to do as I have and jump whole genres, but shifting from mystery to thriller, from noir to cozy, from space opera to apocalyptica, even small-town romance to urban romance. These kind of changes keep us fresh as writers. At least that's my theory.

Yes, many careers were ended by the "tectonic" shifts of the past, but how many more were created anew by an author reinventing and refreshing themselves? I'd wager the later number is far bigger.

I recently noticed that my own instinctive writer was looking for a change. My last several military romantic suspense novels have been reviewed with "thrilling, fast-paced, adventure" far more than heart-felt romance as they used to be.

So? I've decided to listen to that for a while. I'm not abandoning romance. But for now, I'm working very hard to reinvent myself as a thriller writer. We'll see how that goes...

Coming November 19th and December 17th the Miranda Chase NTSB thrillers:

More Info / Pre-order

A supersonic drone flies Black Ops missions from the most secure hangar in the nation.

A C-130 Hercules transport plane lies shattered in the heart of America’s Top Secret military airbase — Groom Lake in the Nevada Test and Training Range.

China’s newest stealth J-31 jet fighter goes missing.

The CIA, the military, and the National Reconnaissance Office are all locked in a power struggle.

One woman is trapped in the middle. Miranda Chase, lead crash investigator for the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board), becomes a pawn in a very dangerous game.

Burdened with a new team, she must connect the pieces to stay alive. And she must do it before the wreckage of her past crashes down upon her.

Think I'm right or wrong? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the challenges facing career-writers.

---

M.L. “Matt” Buchman started the first of over 60 novels, 100 short stories, and a fast-growing pile of audiobooks while flying from South Korea to ride his bicycle across the Australian Outback. Part of a solo around the world trip that ultimately launched his writing career in: thrillers, SF/F, and romance.

His titles have been named Barnes & Noble and NPR “Top 5 of the year” and 3-time Booklist “Top 10 of the Year” as well as being a “Top 20 Modern Masterpiece” in romantic suspense. As a 30-year project manager with a geophysics degree who has: designed and built houses, flown and jumped out of planes, and solo-sailed a 50’ ketch, he is awed by what's possible. More at: www.mlbuchman.com.

Reinvention or Invention? (a game of Warmer-Cooler)

by M. L. Buchman

I remember a game in a personal growth workshop that I took ages ago. There's a simple kid's game called "Warmer-Cooler." For those of you who missed it, one kid is blindfolded. They take a step and the target answers with warmer or cooler depending on if you are moving toward or away from them. Eventually, the blindfolded kid reaches the target by following the general trends of "warmer" and avoiding the "cooler" directions. (Does this mean we were all uncool as kids? Hmm...)

At the workshop, the instructor reminded us of this game, then he stepped onto the floor. Warmer, cooler, warmer...a big jump in the wrong direction earned him a "cold!" And then he simply stood still and waited. And waited. And waited. No movement by the instructor equaled no response of the target.

Well, that was a huge lesson for me in a Duh! sort of way. If you don't take action (and listen), you don't move forward. I had never stopped moving, I was still too young and excited by possibilities. Since then I've done it with intent and attention.

A second story. My Dad got out of college, looked at the world, and decided that it sucked. His comment, "I gave up introspection at twenty-five as a waste of time." He was very successful at this career, and as far as my sister and I could tell, happy for none of it. He'd stopped trying. He saw the track ahead and followed it relentlessly without any thought to, well, anything.

I spent thirty years as a corporate project manager. I built computer systems, changed policies, and made office operations more efficient. I saved corporations thousands and occasionally millions. I was hard on that track to success. 

But I was also always looking for what was interesting. I think I was more excited about the challenges of each of my jobs than my father was for his at almost any time.

Warmer. Cooler.

Here's where the writing comes in.

There I was in full corporate mode...well, sorta. I'd burned out badly and was taking a break, but I knew I'd go back to corporate--as I eventually did. However, I also decided to write a story. A silly story. One that turned into my first novel and eventually my first novel sale.

http://www.mlbuchman.com/deities-anonymous/

A fantasy novel made perfect sense to me. I loved science fiction and fantasy. There'd been decades where I wrote nothing else. My next big book was a massive science fiction epic (still one of my personal favorites even if it is early writing).

http://www.mlbuchman.com/books/nara-reaction/

That was the path of my reinventing my project manager self as a writer. But I was a long, long way from making this into a career. I moved a major step closer when I decided to plunge in and try my hand at writing romance.

I hadn't known about romances growing up; I was an SF/F geek after all. Then I was dragged to my first ever romance conference at about the same time as the initial release of Cookbook From Hell. I read my first romances during the nights...rather than sleeping. Totally hooked! Though it would be another ten years before I felt I'd read enough of them to try my own hand at them.

http://www.mlbuchman.com/where-dreams/

The Where Dreams series was the result. Five romances set in the heart of Seattle's Pike Place Market. (BTW, this title is currently on a rare $0.99 sale to celebrate all new covers for the series if you want to try it out.)

From there I launched into the military romantic suspense series that I'm now known for: The Night Stalkers, Firehawks, and Delta Force.

I'm a corporate project manager...except I'm not anymore. I'm a full-time writer.

I'm an SF/F writer, except I'm not anymore. I now have series in: SF/F, contemporary romance (3), military romantic suspense (3), and even thrillers.

By not buying into anyone's view of myself other than my own, I have avoided stagnating to others' stereotypes. By not buying into my own view of myself, I grow and evolve as a writer. (You've all read those writers who stop growing? The ones you stopped reading because they just weren't fun anymore? Well, guess what, they weren't having fun either...and it shows.)

I finally decided that I haven't reinvented myself. Instead, I've never stopped inventing myself. I just read an interview with Nicole Kidman: I Still Act Like I'm 21. Is it any wonder that she has four separate films up for awards at the Cannes festival?

I want to always write like I'm 21. Unafraid, seeking to always be better than I was yesterday. Taking risks. Because guess what?

Every single time I take a risk, I get a response: Warmer / Cooler. 

I'm getting warmer all the time.

M.L. Buchman started the first of, what is now over 50 novels and as many short stories, while flying from South Korea to ride his bicycle across the Australian Outback. Part of a solo around the world trip that ultimately launched his writing career.

All three of his military romantic suspense series—The Night Stalkers, Firehawks, and Delta Force—have had a title named “Top 10 Romance of the Year” by the American Library Association’s Booklist. NPR and Barnes & Noble have named other titles “Top 5 Romance of the Year.” In 2016 he was a finalist for Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA award. He also writes: contemporary romance, thrillers, and fantasy.

Past lives include: years as a project manager, rebuilding and single-handing a fifty-foot sailboat, both flying and jumping out of airplanes, and he has designed and built two houses. He is now making his living as a full-time writer on the Oregon Coast with his beloved wife and is constantly amazed at what you can do with a degree in Geophysics. You may keep up with his writing and receive a free starter e-library by subscribing to his newsletter at: www.mlbuchman.com