Is it okay for a writer to seek “advances” gathered from a variety of contributors in order to write her book? Writer Deanna Zandt did just that recently, and it seems to have sparked a controversy, judging by Michelle Pauli’s post yesterday on The Guardian’s Book Blog.
Some support Zandt’s move. Others blast her for, “vanity,” “shameless self promotion,” and what they perceive as the lack of a strong enough work ethic.
Seems to me that some of these irate folk are forgetting something basic – namely that writing is a business. And writers – magical as we may be in the practise of our Craft – also need that cup of java and loaf of bread in order to churn out our work in the wilderness.
Consider this: J.K. Rowling, who contributed fabulously to children’s literature (as well as the global gross national product) was, before she was discovered, a welfare mom; she wrote her first book “on the dole.” There was nothing wrong with her work ethic. She just wasn’t Superwoman (able to raise a small child, write a superb book, and hold down a day job at the same time). When her first novel was going to press, Barry Cunningham, the publisher who agreed to the small print run – of only 500 books (and no, that is not a typo) – of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, advised her to get a day job. He didn’t believe she would make a living from her work. Fortunately, in 1997, the Scottish Arts Council awarded Rowling an £8000 grant. The rest is history.
Bottom line: Magic can benefit from a few Galleons, Sickles and Knuts thrown its way. (After all, wands don’t come free.) Crowdfunding is not something I personally would pursue, but if a fellow writer finds a resourceful way to fund her work, I say more power to her.
Photo by Curious Expeditions.
