What does it mean to be a successful writer?
This I ponder while I write, and write, and write.
I would love nothing more than to quit my day job, make a living from my art (says every artist everywhere). At the time of her death, even Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes couldn’t manage much, though both of them were getting published and were known in literary circles. Writing is one of those careers that’s difficult to eke out a living, but even if you can, does that make you a success?
While I’ve asked such questions many times over the year, when a published author followed me on X after I reviewed his book on Book Smart, I was flabbergasted by his lack of social media influence. He had already published several books, yet he had less than four thousand subscribers on his X account. A 12-year-old girl probably has more social media followers.
This author had written multiple books, has had some books turned into movies, and has appeared as a guest analyst on several different news shows. I realize that only less than one percent of the one percent of writers who get published will ever be a Stephen King or a J.K. Rowling, but really, less than five thousand subscribers? Is it because people who read nonfiction are not into social media? Is it untrendy to read nonfiction? Yet it’s true crime, and true crime is everywhere. Is it because he doesn’t partake in social media trends, posting himself leaning or twerking or exercising? Is he too smart for the average social media person, who will only read for two seconds and then move on to the next video? I want a reason why a published, and what I considered a successful author, had so little influence or popularity.
What constitutes a success in the writing world?
Obviously if Oprah picks your book for her reading club, you’ve won the lottery and can quit your day job even if you never write another word for the rest of your life. But what does success look like without Oprah?
When publishers select manuscripts to publish, they only expect to sell about five thousand copies. No one is making much money off a book that only sells five thousand copies, yet with the vast selection of books out there, that’s the low figure to shoot for. If one has over five thousand followers, say up into the six digits, does that automatically make a writer publishable even if they’ve never published anything before? Even if they aren’t even much of a writer (I’m thinking all those Teen Moms who fashion themselves as “writers”)?
Are you successful if you’ve participated in the Iowa Writer’s Workshop, held every summer? If you have an MFA and are published in scholarly literary journals? Is success based on how many appearances you book, how many readings you give, how many podcasts you present?
Are you deemed a success if only other writerly snobs know of you, in those tight-knit circles of Very Important People who believe that they are Very Important People? If the Today Show gives you a two-minute segment to promote your book? If Drew Barrymore, Emma Roberts, or Mindy Kaling read your book? Certainly you’re successful if George Clooney or Reese Witherspoon turn your memoir into a movie. Or David E. Kelley transforms your novel into a limited series.
Is a writer successful if they self-publish a book, a finished product that looked like it came from a publisher, even if they only sell twenty copies? Wouldn’t that be like an artist carving a sculpture that sat in her backyard, with only her family, friends, and neighbors to look at it? The success is garnered by the audience, the viewers, the readers.
A writer must have readers to be successful. The question is, how many turn you into a success?