Every career has its upsides as well as downsides. Knowing the success and failure rate in a given field is of vital importance because it gives you an idea of what to typically expect.
This article will discuss whether authors fail because it is a common topic among aspiring writers looking to take up writing as a career.
So, let’s get down to business.
Do authors fail?
The short answer is yes, authors do fail and writing is one career that is know for its very lean success rate because it is highly competitive. Authors fail for a number of reasons but those that stick with it and grind through the rejection, succeed later on in their careers.
Why authors fail/what you should avoid
Below I’m going to discuss the main reasons why authors fail and what an aspiring writer should avoid in order to get a decent shot at becoming a best selling author.
Of course this is guaranteed because people are different and not all of you will stick with writing long enough for a career to sprout.
On the other hand, I like to be optimistic and I hope what I share here sheds some light and helps you in your career.
Bad work ethic
Each and every career demands work and this is a fact most people don’t come to terms with.
There’s no easy way out, if you want to become good at something, you have to put in the work, both physically and mentally.
Most authors fail because they simply have a bad work ethics which stand in their way. If you’re an author, that doesn’t take the time to concentrate and work on their craft. You’ll easily burn out and give up on your project.
What to do avoid is becoming complacent and always working to push your writing abilities further.
Don’t fall into the trap of Laziness because it will be the end of your career.
Competition
One of the reasons why authors fail to succeed is because writing books is such a competitive field.
There are so many writers out there and for you to shine above the noise; you have to be different and unique.
This is what most writers don’t get; you don’t need to mimic others. You can get inspired of course but what matters more is your ability to find your own voice and write using your own unique experiences.
People take an interest in writers that can express themselves well and are honest enough to tell their story without copying other peoples work.
Setting unrealistic expectations
As it is well known, expectations can set you off course when you fail to meet them.
In general, most new writers are sold the dream of becoming a best seller overnight. While it is certainly possible that this could happen, it is highly unlikely.
As it stands, only 2% of authors in the world are able to produce best sellers for various reasons. This is a disheartening statistic for most people but it is the truth.
Most authors that come into the game thinking they can shotgun everything and make a lot of money very quick usually fail.
The only way to succeed is to stick with it for the long haul. This means showing up every day to write, learning and developing a way with words that can make it worthwhile for your stuff to be read.
It may seem like a huge mountain to climb but if you’re truly passionate, you can succeed where others have failed.
A lot goes into becoming a best seller author.
Burn outs
Writing books is a very complex thing to do. Most authors after their first book fail to write anything after.
This is very common….
While other authors can use the success of their first book to ignite their imagination in order to write a follow up book, others simply become complacent or simply burn out.
There are many reasons for this and the fact is that some authors may put an immense amount of effort into writing their first book to the point where they get burnt out.
It is therefore important for any aspiring author to develop a workflow that can allow them to work consistently without losing steam or getting overwhelmed.
Low work quality
If you’re going to be an author, you’re going to encounter a lot of critics. This is why you have editors that have to read your material before they can submit it for publishing.
Most authors that don’t have the heart to take on criticism can find it a challenging career path.
And if the work doesn’t improve, then chances of success are zero.
Therefore, somebody aspiring to become a writer should welcome criticism and allow themselves to adhere to the standards by which authors are expected to write.
Inconsistency
Inconsistency is a career-ender in writing. A good number of failed writing careers can be attributed to a lack of consistency on the part of the author.
Writing requires consistent effort if you’re looking to achieve any sort of success. The more you write, the more you generally improve so it is cardinal to spend time writing every day.
The moment you start to get complacent and start to think you writing cannot get any better, you lose focus and it may be hard to write again after not having written in a long time.
Ego
If you work in any creative industry, your ego is your worst enemy because you’ll not be able to use criticism to learn and improve. Instead your ego will constantly be bruised from feedback that doesn’t walk in line with it.
Many authors fail because of their ego and their inability to put feelings aside, learn the game and do the work.
Any aspiring writer should welcome both negative and positive feedback and use it as a tool for self reflection in order to better their writing.
Depression
Most authors suffer severely from depression for a number of reasons.
Writers block for example is a well known predicament that kills the inspiration within authors.
It is therefore important as an author to manage stress well in order to keep yourself writing.
