The Renegade Writer Blog

I didn’t expect to have a revleation in my kitchen. My kitchen is very small and was painted a pink grapefruit color by the previous owners, so I try not to spend too much time in there.

But there I was, flipping through the October issue of ASJA Monthly while waiting for my tea water to boil. Bob Bittner’s “From the President’s Desk” column made me stop and think about what I’m doing with my freelance career. He wrote about taking stock of where you are as a freelancer, and asking yourself if it was time to look in another direction. Was I letting the work guide my path, or was I setting the path and making the work follow?

A quick summary of my posts here: I was picked for a Renegade Writer makeover on the basis that I wanted to be a book dork for life. I reviewed for a few newspapers and magazines and wanted to turn that into a major prong of my freelance career. So I sat with the galleys, the catalogues and pitched newspaper editors based on my abilities, and on possible reviews. I had success. I started reviewing for the St. Petersburg Times, started a book column at a local paper, placed an essay about one of my favorite books in Paste Magazine and increased my writing-about-books output.

But then I was met with an unexpected windfall: my book proposal was accepted, and I was on my way toward writing a travel guide about the Jersey Shore (The Jersey Shore, Atlantic City through Cape May: Great Destinations). It was a long, tedious and, at times, exhausting project. But now that the manuscript is with the publisher, and it’s scheduled to be published in May 2008, I feel like it was all worth it. I had a blast, and am impatient to see the book in print.

Since I turned that manuscript over, I’ve been puttering around my house. I was pitching articles and reminding editors I was alive, and working on a few regular corporate projects. But I didn’t know what I wanted to do work wise. I was so tired, and the thought of sorting through the fall/winter catalogues felt like a chore. We also had a death in the family this spring, so I helped my family work through the changes that brought us. I replanted my lawn, cleaned my house, unpacked boxes and wrote on my blog — basically got back to life without having to write 10 hours a day.

I also went to the Haddonfield Library Book Sale, like I do every year. And as I browsed the hundreds of books up for sale, I was tempted to grab as many titles as I could. But my practical side kept telling me to put the book back because I couldn’t sell a review about it. Sure, it might be interesting, but I would be better served spending that time reading a book I could review, and be paid to review. That bothered me. Was reading now solely a job? Should I feel guilty because I wanted to read something that interested me because it interested me, not because I could turn a profit? Isn’t reading about enriching the mind, not just lining my pockets?

Add to that the fact that the book reviewing world is changing. Writing for newspapers is not always lucrative — I could spend hours reading a book, reviewing the book and then get a check for less than what I’d make writing for a small regional magazine. I’m not going to wade into the book review argument here. You can read all about that at the National Book Critics Circle blog. But this, combined with Bob’s column, and that family death, made me take a hard look at why I was moving in what directions.

I got into freelancing for the freedom (among other things). I wanted to pick and choose what to write about, but those topics had been getting stale. I felt weary at the thought of pitching another service article, or scrapping to write a book review that paid less than my grocery bill. I’m still taking stock of where I want to go with this writing thing — maybe travel writing, maybe serious nonfiction. I will never stop reviewing books. It’s too much fun. But will it be my main goal anymore? I’ll have to think about that one.

Until then, I’m well into Thinking Like Your Editor: How to Write Great Serious Nonfiction–and Get It Published
by Susan Rabiner. I’m reading this one because it interests me — that’s what reading should be — and because that might be the next direction I turn. I’m also pitching and writing articles based on book research, which has been fun, too, and uploading books into my Goodreads.com account. Stay tuned! [Jen Miller]

Share This