Hi everyone,
I'd like to thank Steven for starting this interesting thread. I'm sorry he's no longer participating in it. I suppose, though, that this frees us to consider his example clinically and without fear of offense - for the offense has already been taken.
I agree with many of you; while I admire Steven's tenacity, I'm not convinced that I would enjoy his taste. His book covers aren't particularly appealing, and his blurbs don't grab me. I agree that "ONUISSANCE" is a bit off-putting; as it's not really Latin it seems a tad pretentious.
I downloaded the Onuissance Cells, and found the first few paragraphs a little bit clumsy. Were the book written by a known author, or recommended by a trusted friend, I'd probably plow ahead. Perhaps I'd be rewarded. I'll most likely never know. With thousands of books on my reading list, I'm inclined to make a snap judgement.
Is this fair to Steven? Probably not. But there are too many authors out there to be fair to all of them.
If Steven were a dear friend, and I could find an artful and affirming way to communicate this, here's what I'd suggest to him:
1) Thicken your skin. Rejection is an essential part of the game.
2) Choose one book to give away. Work on it with an editor, writing group or teacher until you are convinced it's at least as good as Heinlein. And if you are modest about it in public, make sure we know it's false modesty.
3) Get a website and a cover makeover.
4) Thicken your skin. Rejection is an essential part of the game.
5) Rewrite your blurbs until you yourself are curious to reread the books they're selling.
6) Make sure, whatever you may post about on this forum, that your posts are beguiling, charming, well-written, funny, clever, etc. Use a pen name when you can't resist being banal or argumentative. A movie star always looks good in public; an author should always be compelling. Think of Stephen King writing into the New York Times or New Yorker....
7) Thicken your skin. Rejection is an essential part of the game.
What do all of you think? Do you agree?
One final and perhaps vague thought about the entire enterprise - I've a friend who is a conductor. His mantra is that "the music will save you every time." He repeats this to himself whenever he's nervous about performing, or realizes he has just made a mistake. And when he can let go of his ego and appreciate the art, everything comes together.
I think something similar is true wherever there is craft, be it in writing, or graphic design, or woodworking, or public speaking, or even athletics. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi called it "flow," but I'm inclined to call it "grace." It's what I'm looking for when I seek out art. It's what I hope for when I try to create it. I've no illusions that it's easy to find, but I'm heartened by the millions of people trying.
Those that find it are worthy of my attention and my dime. All the rest have my compassion and my best wishes.