Don’t do what I did. In other words, don’t give up. The only way to guarantee failure is to stop trying.
Michael J. Sullivan has had two writing careers – one he gave up on and one he didn’t. During his first writing career, he wrote thirteen novels but received no interest from the publishing industry. Finally, he quit, vowing never to write creatively again. More than a decade later he returned to the keyboard to write a series of fantasy books for his daughter, with one condition: He wouldn't seek publication. After reading the third book of this series, his wife insisted that the novels had to "get out there." When Michael refused to jump back onto the query-go-round, his wife made her mission and the rest is history! Now a bestselling author, we caught up with Michael to talk about his winding path to publication, tips for a productive writing day and the value of having a direct link between reader and author.
Please give us a brief overview of yourself and your work
I’m a New York Times, USA Today, and Washington Post bestselling author of fantasy with unlikely heroes and fast-paced narratives. My first book was published in 2008 and I currently have fifteen released novels across three series: The Riyria Revelations and Chronicles (10 books), Legends of the First Empire (4 books, with 2 more coming in 2020), and a standalone time-travel science fiction novel, Hollow World.
How did you begin writing?
Boredom is what got me writing. When I was a child, there were no video games and only three television stations (all of which signed off around midnight). I started writing stories as a way to entertain myself and to ensure that my reading would be tailored made to my particular tastes. At the time, I had no idea it would one day be my career.
Do you have a writing routine?
I do! I write every day, and I do so in the morning. I get up, drink a cup or two of coffee (an essential ingredient) while reading the paper, and once I find myself yelling at what I read, I know I’m awake. I generally will read one or two pages of a book I’ve been enjoying (to get my head in the game), then I start in. I’ll write until lunch which usually means I’ve worked for three to four hours. If I try to go beyond that amount of time, I’ve found that the quality goes down to the point where whatever is on the page will have to be rewritten. Each session generally results in 1,500 to 2,200 words.
How do you outline your work and begin writing?
I generally have anywhere from three to five books “in the pipeline.” When an idea comes to me, I start taking notes in a Moleskine notebook. These notes may “simmer” for six months to several years. Once it’s time to write that particular book, I put the notes in Scrivener and organize them by chapter, scene, and point-of-view character. Usually, it’s no more than a few bullet points for each scene. The books rarely turn out to be exactly as I outlined because new ideas pop up as I’m writing. But I never change course without knowing where the new destination will be.
Do you have any tips for a productive writing day?
Sure. (a) Write every day. (b) Write at the same time every day. (c) Set a word count goal and try to stay within 90% of that goal before you get up and do something else. (d) When ending a session write one or two paragraphs into the next section so that when you return the next day you have a bit of a runway already in place.
Is there any particular incident that has happened along your writing journey that you’d like to share?
I had two attempts at a “writing life.” The first one lasted for more than a decade and produced thirteen books that never received any publishing traction. Thoroughly depressed, I decided to quit and vowed never to write creatively again. More than a decade later, I broke that vow when I started writing a series to give my dyslexic daughter something she might enjoy reading. I had no intention of seeking publication, but after devouring the first three books in my series, my wife took over the business side and made it her mission to “get the books out there.” The rest, as they say, is history, and she has handled the publishing aspect of my career ever since.
Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Don’t do what I did. In other words, don’t give up. The only way to guarantee failure is to stop trying. Read often (including books outside your genre) and read critically. It’s important to try to dissect what an author is doing and why. Don’t get discouraged when your early works aren’t any good (few of them are). Stephen King says that you should treat your first 1,000,000 words as practice and Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours working at something to become proficient at it. I think those metrics are pretty accurate. So, treat that first book as part of the dues you need to pay and start writing another. If you are committed to constant improvement, your books will improve over time.
What do you think is the biggest challenge for new authors?
I think many authors lack self-awareness about the quality of their writing. I’ve reviewed hundreds of submissions from authors who send me their first five pages, and only a very few are at a professional level. Most are riddled with rookie mistakes. I think they don’t realize just how long it takes to gather all the required tools to write well. If you are going to be an author, you have to be able to tell when your work is lacking and when your skills have finally graduated to the ready-for-primetime stage. Once you cross that threshold, you can see why the other books weren’t good enough, but until you develop that critical eye, you may be spending time on a project that has no chance of success.
What methods of book marketing do you find the most effective?
For a new author, it’s all about getting a handful of people to give the book a try. If the book is well-written, those early readers will start to spread the word. Success in publishing is all about writing a book that is so good that people recommend it to others. If you can’t do that, no amount of marketing will help you. Once you are established, then the best marketing is writing the next book. I am also a big proponent of having a direct line between the reader and the author. So techniques that aid in that are important. That includes newsletters, giving away a free short story in exchange for an email, and selling direct (either via your website or using sites like Kickstarter). All of those have been extremely important for my career.
What struggles did you face in the publishing process?
My first book was released through a small press. While the owner was well-intentioned, I never made a dime, and they did nothing to move the needle. When they didn’t have the money for the print run of the second book we self-published. Initially, it was slow going, but by the time we had five books released sales were really picking up. We had several months were we sold 10,000 – 12,000 copies). Before publishing the sixth book of the series, we went back to New York and had a better reception. The series I had been self-publishing was re-released by Orbit (the fantasy imprint of big-five publisher Hachette Book Group). All told, they released eight of my books (sold in five volumes because three of them were two-book omnibus editions), but they weren’t interested in doing hardcovers. For that reason, I switched my next series over to Del Rey (fantasy imprint of Penguin Random House). They produced the first three books of that series, but when it came time to negotiate for the second half, we ran into a problem. PRH had changed their policy such that they won’t sign any new contracts without the audio rights, and since we had already sold all six books of the series to an audio producer, that meant we were essentially locked out. While that would seem like an insurmountable problem, it really wasn’t. We simply went back to self-publishing. I’m finding my self-produced work earns much more than my traditionally published titles, so that’s what we’ll be doing from now on.
What is the best way for readers to find out more?
The best way to reach me is always via email at michael@michaelsullivan-author.com. I’m also very active on the Goodreads site (just received my 8th Goodreads Choice Award Nomination). I have two blogs (one for my Riyria books and one for my Legends of the First Empire series). I’m also on Twitter and Facebook.
