Writing doesn't always come easy....

Skadi Winter
Sep 6, 2017
2 min read

Being a writer is not as easy as many might think. It is a profession, based on a passion for words and books. At first, I started writing on notepads, later on a type writer and finally at my laptop. Of course, I still scribble notes on a notepad until my thoughts form a frame for a new story,

As most writers are working from home, day-to-day life sometimes throws obstacles in your way which make it impossible to follow your muse because some simple things practically have to be dealt with i.e. cooking a meal, cleaning the house, taking care of children or pets, doing the shopping etc. This is, if you are a woman. When a man says 'I am working', he is usually left alone whereas women sometimes are not taken very seriously in this statement.

Since I have published my first two books, things have changed a little for the better; at least I can show some kind of an acceptable result, the fruit of my labour.

As long as a writer considers his writing being a hobby, it all works out. When a writer's dream is to earn money or make a living with his or her writing, it is a different story. To write, edit and publish a book costs money, at least if one wants to have it properly done. Fair enough! But, where is this money coming from, after umpteen manuscripts have been refused by publishers who only seem to judge a book by the prospect of hitting the best seller charts of a dubious market and reward them with a good deal of its earnings? The internet makes it possible for anybody to write and publish a book. Of course, there are many good Indie publishers around. But the downside of this unlimited market at the moment is that a lot of writers are out there who don't own the most simple skills of the trade. If you call a plumber or electrician to fix something in your house, you would expect him to have been properly trained for the profession, wouldn't you? This goes for all professional skills. Instead, many books nowadays are written in a style that makes you wonder. Grammar, punctuation, spelling rules - nothing seems to matter any more. Marketing professionals, hired by corporations who are ruling the book market, ruthlessly sell shit when it comes to that.

I don't want to lament or complain about typos or individual contemporary writing styles; it is just sad when you are asked to review a new book and you don't understand what it is about - a funny example: 'We will eat, grandma!' or: 'We will eat grandma' - then, I think, it makes you feel like wanting to throw the towel.

Nonetheless, I am bold enough to call myself a writer. I am a passionate writer and will continue being one, despite all the disillution that comes with experience in the trade. And, don't worry, I'm paying for a good editor.