Yesterday, I wrote about how authors sometimes join organizations and they don’t fully participate. They miss the point of the organization and neglect to become involved in (or even aware of) all of the offerings that could possibly benefit them and their publishing projects. I want to continue with that theme today.
Of course, this occurs within every club, association and group. There are people who join without truly understanding the premise of and the offerings of the organization. Some of them want a specific benefit: to get feedback for their manuscripts, to land a publisher, to sell more books… When they don’t get what they want from the group, they typically blame the organizers for failing them.
In reality, some have joined the wrong organization. This may be an organization that does not offer what they want/need. Others join the right one, only they don’t know how to tap into the information and resources they need. They expect their questions to be succinctly addressed in some automatic fashion just because they are members. Some don’t even know the right questions to ask in order to get the answers they need. And, unfortunately, even when they are presented with the answers they need, they don’t recognize them, so they reject them.
Here’s an example: Jonathan joins ABC organization because he wants to know how to go about getting his manuscript published. He is presented with newsletter articles and he is encouraged to visit the archives to locate earlier articles and resources related to publishing. He has the opportunity to communicate with other authors and publishers through an online forum and he is told about books featuring the basics of publishing, but he doesn’t have (or take) the time to pursue any of these things to any degree. Finally, one day he sends an email to the executive director of the organization asking how to get a book published.
She explains that becoming published is generally a process that takes some understanding of the publishing industry, enormous specific preparation and plenty of involvement. Then she points him in the direction of some excellent resources, recommends that he write a book proposal and, when he is ready, suggests that he attends a writers’ conference where agents and publishers are present. She puts the ball in his court, where it belongs and he fumbles.
If he writes back at all, he might say, “Thank you for your time, but all I want to know is how to find a publisher for my book.” He wants to transition from the craft of writing to the business of publishing without a proper introduction. He doesn’t understand what I tell you periodically, that publishing is not an automatic extension of your writing. You can’t move from writer to published author easily, uniformly and without a major shift in your perspective and your activities.
So you can see how an organization may not benefit someone with preconceived ideas about what he or she needs and a tightly slammed shut mind.
If you are on the brink of joining a club or organization, please do so with your eyes wide open. Know what your ultimate goal is, of course (developing a salable manuscript, getting your book published, selling more books, establishing a career as a freelance writer…), but take some time to understand what you need in order to achieve this. Once you know what your responsibilities are in the process and what the steps toward success entail, you will be more well-prepared to choose the right organization.
One way to make the right choice is to know who its members are. Are they mainly authors—at what stage or level? Are they freelance writers? Are they hopeful authors still working on their manuscripts? An organization with members who have aspirations and accomplishments similar to yours will most likely address your specific concerns in their materials.
Study the website and/or the material coming from this organization. Does it include plenty of information and resources related to your situation? Without having done some preliminary research, you might not actually know what you need. So I strongly urge you to attend a course related to your interest (publishing, freelance writing, etc.). Read at least one good book on the subject. Join a local writers’ club and listen to what the guest speakers and members are talking about.
And for goodness sakes, once you decide to join, partake of the benefits. They will do you no good unless you do.
An organization rarely fails its members. It’s the members who fail themselves by not preparing themselves properly for the field of their choice and then entering into a membership agreement without doing the appropriate research.
In order to learn more about what is involved in publishing, please read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html
If you are interested in knowing more about freelance article-writing, order my $6.50 book, A Writer’s Guide to Magazine Articles
http://www.matilijapress.com/writingpage.html
If you are (or aspire to be) a freelance writer or published author, consider joining SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org
And if you have any questions about resources to help you learn more about your field or if you want counsel with regard to which organization is right for you, contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.