There was plenty of social media chatter over the weekend about Dorchester’s decision to go direct to digital. If you’re looking for more scoop or skinny or super secret insider info here, let me redirect you to others already rushing to share how much they’re in the know (although, when you look closely, you might find there’s a whole lot more speculation than knowing being shared). This blog has always been about writers and readers and sharing how our lives intersect and mirror one another. My posts about this key transitional time will be more of the same: how one author sees the world around her, and how my observations might help other writers and maybe even readers as they face their own challenges.
You’re not going to hear me bash professionals or point fingers or rant and rave. There will be no rush to hypothesise, predict or leak juicy bits of gossip. I respect this business and my partners in it too much to sensationalize something that is already difficult enough for everyone.
What you will see out here on Day 3 of Dorchester’s change, is me talking about an emotional dynamic that is very similar to what I’ve seen fellow authors go through for years–when unexpected decisions made by their publishers greatly affect their hard work and careful planning and leave them spinning in a place that feels uncomfortably like starting over.
No one really talks in the amidst of these kinds of transitions. Not out in the open. These are confusing, uncertain times, and none of us like to appear as if we don’t have the answers to our own business problems.We like to wait until we’re sure of what we’re doing before we talk about it in public.
Except I’m getting emails and texts and phone calls and facebook messages and tweets about this every day. And even though I’m as confused and uncertain as the next writer, I don’t see me being sure of much of anything for a good while to come. This is all happening too publicly to stay on my island and watch from a distance. There are too many people in the same situation, too many folks commenting and speculating.
So, though I have no answers yet to share, I’m throwing out some more things to consider. Things that, unlike my last post, veer today toward emotions rather than business:
1) Remember that what’s happening to Dorchester authors now is happening to real people. They’ve happened to lots of other people before us (obviously not this particular change, but authors have been watching their publishing worlds shift and often shrink with alarming frequency over the last few years). And when you’re watching change happen on this large a scale, it’s easy to talk business (as I did in my Day 1 post), and say whatever comes to mind without stopping to consider that the news and updates you’re bandying about are affecting the lives of very real writers.
And when it’s happening to you, it may be easy to think of your personal situation as far more precarious than anyone else’s. I suspect it’s not. This isn’t my own unique circumstance, nor yours. My hope for all the authors struggling with this is that it helps just a little, knowing there are other kick-ass writers and families out there facing the exact same delima.
2)The first reaction to change this big is going to be emotional. I don’t care how good you are at staying focused on your business and staying positive and constructive, having your world shift so suddenly and having no control over the decision isn’t a happy place.What I try to remember when this happens (and, yes, this isn’t my first ride on the roller coaster) is that decisions made during heightened emotion are almost always the ones I’ve wished later that I could go back and change. In other words, I’m doing a lot of yoga right now. A lot of deep breathng and list making (already sent several long ones to my agent ;o) And studying. And I’m very privately discussing the situation with close friends in the business whose insight I value. All these things are helping neutralize the emotion, at least enough of it for reason to grab a greater hand.
3) When the unknown takes over everything you thought you knew, the second reaction (fast on emotion’s heels) is typically panic. All hope is lost, you’re going to have to start over, and maybe it seems pointless to even try…That sort of thing. My experience in my own career and from watching the long-term success of others is that this is one of the most critical phases of dealing with the kind of surprising change Dorchester authors are facing.
This is the point where I need to decide to keep fighting, or to take my toys and go home. How much do I really want this? How creative am I willing to be about getting to the finish line? How deep am I willing to dig for the motivation and confidence and belief that this can be only a bump in the road, instead of a roadblock I’ll never get past?
4) Luckily, when the shock of the first waves of emotion and panic have passed, I’ve learned to gravitate toward a place where I can step back and respect the situation and options before me for what they are. In other words, I slowly begin to drag myself back from the ledge and remove my emotions from the questions I have to answer. I regroup and try to attack the decisions facing me with intelligence and optimism, rather than emotions and a sense of impending doom that could easily become a self-fulling prophecy.
For those authors facing this same crossroads, and for those readers and writers facing other difficulties that seem just as daunting, I encourage you to let yourself feel the emotions and let the panic have its first rush of power. Venting all that yuck is an important step toward getting your mind where it needs to be to think clearly about your situation and your options. And there are always options. There are always choices you can make to improve your situation and your chances for success. You just have to get yourself mind ready to do battle again.
And luckily, on Day 3, that’s where I’m finding myself. Calmer. More aware of the bigger picture. Ready to get back in the game…
I hope you are, too ;o)
Tags: Anna DeStefano, digital publishing, Dorchester Publishing, ebooks, ePublishing, Legacy Series, writer, writer resource, writing, writing articles
