My post-CONvergence update will be a little late, as I have been distracted by allergy medicines and a fog of con crud. Strangely, the two brain cells I have left, are rubbing together on another topic: how writers are role models.

Writers can be cave trolls and never interact with other human beings, but there’s a lot of pressure to blog, be at conventions, go to workshops, etc. What do we blog about? Sometimes our work or lives, which includes commentary on social ills that we encounter. Now, the question is: when a topic, like gender equality, comes to the fore — does that have an effect on fandom?

Yes. Yes, it does. As one example, I overheard several fan conversations at CONvergence while I was lurking in the background. Fans trying to educate a friend who didn’t understand why stereotypes were bad. How sexual harassment can be a problem for guys, too. That they never realized how awful it was for women in different situations. Etc. Etc. Etc. We may be behind-the-scenes, but conversations on heady topics will make fans (and those surrounding us) think. Discuss. Learn. Is it “dangerous”? No, it just means that the writer provides the spark of inspiration and fans will be inspired to think. This, in my opinion, is a good thing, but the depth of conversation depends upon how that topic is presented as well.

From something as simple as “love” to a hateful word like the “n-word,” words are containers that carry weight. It is not censorship to suggest to someone they should think twice about what words they’re using. Why? Because the expression of words is a gift. You are giving words to someone who will receive them, interpret their meaning, and assess their value.

As an example, you can’t walk up to [Insert Very. Famous. Author. Here.] and say: “Dude, your book sucked. Can’t see why anybody would waste money on it.” and not expect a reaction.[1] What would you expect the V.F.A. to do? Shoot back with something witty? Or tell you to write a book of your own? You were being rude and that comment has a consequence.

I know we’d like to think that writers are wordbots who sit at our computers all day, then don skin suits to be out in public, but we’re not. We’re very human and when fame hits us, in any context, we deal with it in different ways — in part because we’re not trained to be celebrities. Being a celebrity isn’t just as simple as having fame, it’s also a job. Suddenly, there’s that feeling of having less freedom. We don’t get to “be a asshole” or “act like a bitch” because we have an audience that’s relying on the gift of our words. The greater connection to our audience (e.g. the internet), the less “free” public figures are.

When a V.F.A. says something like “striped socks are evil” and it’s taken in a negative context, it’s because the audience isn’t receptive to that statement. The V.F.A. should expect consequences. Those words are a point-of-connection from reader to writer and it doesn’t matter if that author wrote a great book or not. Some people will care what was said; others won’t. But, the fact of the matter is, it’s the human-to-human connection that’s influencing decisions here — not just the human-to-inanimate object (e.g. book).

And that, dear reader, is what I feel freedom of expression means. It’s not just about what you say, it’s also about how the listener incorporates the meaning of your words (both semantic and litera) and responds with words of their own. Or, in other words, say whatever it is you want — but be prepared to deal with the consequences both positive and negative.

[1] I wouldn’t try that on any author. I employed the power of the V.F.A. to support my later point.

Mood: Dude, where’s my wordcount?
Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: I SHALL NOT REVEAL MY STATE OF CAFFEINATION FOR FEAR OF IMPRISONMENT.
Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: I think my eyelids fluttered once or twice.
In My Ears: Touch by Daft Punk
Game Last Played: Final Fantasy XIII
Book Last Read: Can’t remember the title. I blame con crud. 🙁
Movie Last Viewed: Some Disney crap with singing in it. (I fell asleep.)
Latest Artistic Project: *Still* *still* *still* need to take pictures…
Latest Release: “The Button” We Are Dust anthology and for gaming, a fun Scion: Extras (Supplemental Yet Can Be Somewhat Useful On Occasion Scions)

And here you probably thought I was going to tell you about places to find work, eh? Where you look for jobs depends upon what you want to write and how. So, for me to cover that in a single post, well… It’s very possible I’d give you incorrect or not-as-useful advice.

So why am I talking about mistakes? Because this is very rarely addressed, but it happens often. You WILL screw up. You WILL piss somebody off, miss a deadline, bail on an anthology, go off the rails at a fan, sign a bad deal, work for less than you’re worth, and talk shit or complain to the wrong person. It’s just going to happen. Why? Because you’re a human being, not a pre-programmed cyber-author who does what you’re supposed to at all times. The only way you’ll learn what works for you, where the boundaries of what you will and won’t do, can and can’t do — is to do it. Not read about it. Not buy a book. But to actually do it.

Have I screwed up? Oh, hell yes! These moments stand out to me (like they would to you). But, they’re not a reflection of all the things I did right.

Now, your flavor of self-worth is going to vary based on your experiences and your personality. I will tell you, that I advise against dumping every, single part of you into your career as a writer with the expectation that you will “make it” some day. As I stated before: that success is not a guarantee. I would strongly encourage you to have a support network who’s not connected to the industry and engage in hobbies that are off the computer. I understand that conventions are part and parcel to being a professional writer, but throwing every aspect of your life into this will backfire on you and skew your perspective, much like being on the internet all day does as well.

Is it difficult to address grievances? Yes. They often don’t get resolved overnight and your issue may never get sorted with certain people. I’ve worked with a lot of people from all corners of multiple industries and there are folks who remember slights from twenty years ago. Twenty.

I don’t want to be that writer. It’s exhausting and I’m more interested in finding readers, doing the work involved, and building a support network than dealing with negativity. There are people I find it difficult to work with because I don’t believe in the pecking order and I have zero tolerance for plagiarism. (The perceived pecking order can cause people to do and say really stupid shit.) I have learned through trial-and-error to ask questions up front before deciding whether or not to have a vested interest in a potential partnership or engagement. And, it’s worked. For the most part, it has worked and I’m very glad the issues I had were early on in my career.

The thing is, the more problems you encounter, the more time it takes away from your core competency, and the more money you lose. Knowing you’ve screwed up and addressing those issues quickly are crucial to moving on quickly to something else. That’s the secret, folks. I’ve found that if you address what pops up in a timely manner, your workflow will remain healthy.

That’s all the time I have for this week. I’m off to a convention and my attention is being pulled away toward other things. If you have questions about anything I said, post ’em below!

Over the past few days, I’ve been talking about core concepts to help you figure out how you want to develop your business. Yesterday, I talked about your core competency.

Today, I want to talk about why you want to be a writer, but not from an emotional, super floofy perspective. Why? To be validated? Recognized by your peers? Or do you want something else, to be like a particular writer, to live life on your own terms, get an award, etc.

It doesn’t matter to me what it is you want, but I will reiterate something before we get into talking about goals, and that is: the so-called pecking order is based on social interactions, perceptions, and personalities — but not on the reality of how well folks do (or don’t) in their career. That success, and how to achieve it, is subjective. As long as YOU are happy with what YOU’RE doing, that’s the only person that really matters here. Then, you don’t have to worry about what anybody else thinks and you can decide what works for YOU.

Or, as someone else put it yesterday, have your own agency. It will be 10,000 times harder for you to figure out whatever it is you want to do, though, if you don’t have a clear goal in mind. Those goals can evolve, but you won’t be able to achieve milestones or create a plan without them.

Here is a list of sample goals for you to consider:

Now, the thing is, a number of these goals are outside of your control. But, knowing what you want means that you will set smaller goals to work towards that, or you will unconsciously research what needs to happen in order to put yourself in a position where those goals are likely to happen.

That’s the thing about publishing. There is no guarantee, but you can help yourself by knowing what you want and working toward that possibility. Luck favors the prepared — and to be truly prepared it really is a three-part forum of knowing what you want, working toward that end, and then placing yourself in positions where that opportunity is most likely to either happen or be presented to you to take advantage of that.

The “guarantee” part is why there’s so much angst, drama, and negativity. It’s really not due to how awful people are. There are MANY great people in the creative industries on ALL levels. When bad shit happens or crap is being flung or writer punch down or sacrifice others, it’s because the security of being a full-time writer is always in question.

That’s enough to drive anybody mad, mad, mad. And this is why I’m saying: know this up front, and find a way to work around it.