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Thread: Mistakes writers make (young, new, inexperienced, etc. we've all made a few here are some I know by heart)
1- You think your talent is enough. It's not.
1- You think your talent is enough. It's not.
2- You send an important email and either a. forget to Cc someone important, or b. intentionally don't Cc someone important c. accidentally Cc someone important
Yikes. Double check.
Yikes. Double check.
3- You think your career will be a straight line up. Once you make your bones, or once you break through, or once you ______. It won't be. Plan ahead. Save money anytime you have money. Plan for the backside.
4- I say this one a lot: being a successful writer is a game of sardines, not a game of hide and seek. You MUST build a team. You're only as successful as the team you build. (TIP: avoid sociopaths & have potential team members take The Dark Triad test: https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/SD3/ )
5- Not realizing your entire career is in a fish bowl. Whether an email you send a friend or rep, or a post here on Twitter, or just the ol' grape vine:
Assume that everything you ever write or say or do will end up on CNN someday. EVERYTHING.
Assume that everything you ever write or say or do will end up on CNN someday. EVERYTHING.
6- Not realizing you're already building your reputation. People talk. This is the only thing you have that matters. Whether you're in it for your ego, or you're in it for your team, get your priorities straight. Know that other people can see right through you. Command respect.
7- The mistake of not realizing that people only do business with people they like. The note here isn't be like-able. It's be the real you. Some people won't like you. "Next" them quickly. Move on to those who get you. Partner them. This will save you years of pain.
8- I encounter writers who don't spend enough time focusing on the craft early on. They don't know what they want to say. Or they have a big agenda of what they want to say, but don't know the poetry of the craft. Let the craft teach you - put in the hours, the research, heart
9- READ. Read more. Read everything in front of your eyeballs (yes, even ads!). Discover in what you read what you hate- what you don't want to be; what you love- what you want to be more of. Find your influences. Borrow. Learn. Grow. Practice. Fail. Continue.
10 - Honor the connections and intros others make for you. If someone tees up an intro for you- follow through, play full out. The intro you fail to follow through on is the intro you won't get next time from that person who risked their own reputation to position you.
11- You're prickly about notes. Oops. Get over it. As a novelist or a screenwriter, your work will ALWAYS be shaped by others: editors, networks, publishing houses, showrunners. Your success is riding on your ability to make others feel good about sharing notes with you!
12- In business, as a writer or anywhere, if you get a "yes", stop talking. Pivot to the next phase of the deal.
Say, "Thank you!" and collect your check. Yay!
END.
Say, "Thank you!" and collect your check. Yay!
END.
