okay, more about the Hugos
I read George R.R. Martin’s response to Larry Correia and, man, he’s more sane and measured in his response than I ever would have been. I tried reading Corriea’s original post and lost track of the number of self-references in the first two paragraphs. You see, I always wanted to be a writer, and I always wanted to be recognized, and blah blah. But They Hate Me! Outrage!!
I love how Correia seems to think this is a new argument, somehow. I worked at a literary agency right around the time of Dan Brown, and, you guys, we had SO MANY Da Vinci Code ripoffs pitched to us. Mostly from retired guys living in Florida. Dear Agent, I have this great idea, and it’s about the Catholic Church, and the Illuminati, and Hitler, and a couple of weird military hobbyhorse things only I know about. The Da Vinci Code sold 80 million copies; how would you like to quadruple that? (This was an actual line from an actual letter; I’m sure he got it from some how-to-pitch-agents book. Be sure to use Real Numbers in your cover letters, authors!) Oh, and by the way, I won’t accept less than X amount, and Brad Pitt must play my protagonist in the movie.
(Do you know how many people asked for specific celebrities to play their characters in the movie? A LOT. Make sure you’re on top of that, Dear Agent.)
Everyone thought they were special, everyone thought they were pitching something unique, and everyone (well, lots of them) got TOTALLY OUTRAGED when they were turned down with a polite form letter and a returned manuscript (often paid with our postage, because some people don’t understand the concept of a self-addressed envelope). Oh, so much outrage. Swears, even.
(One guy emailed back, “How DARE you turn down a New York Times bestselling author!” I looked him up, and he was, in fact, a New York Times bestselling author. 25 years ago, way far down on the list, ghostwritten nonfiction. He was pitching a novel. It was terrible. I regret nothing.)
I pity the poor assistants who had to deal with the deluge after Twilight, or Divergent, or Gone Girl. (See, it’s about this woman, and at first you think she’s the protagonist but then you realize you don’t know her at all!) Maybe the wannabe-John Green deluge is better. (See, it’s about this girl with cancer…)
But, clearly, if your writing isn’t an instant shortcut to the people’s ovation and fame forever, something is wrong. The game is rigged! NO ONE IS PAYING ATTENTION TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. I BLAME THE MEAN PEOPLE. It has nothing to do with the quality of your work. Or the market. Or anything else.
Wahhhhhhhhh.
I love how Correia seems to think this is a new argument, somehow. I worked at a literary agency right around the time of Dan Brown, and, you guys, we had SO MANY Da Vinci Code ripoffs pitched to us. Mostly from retired guys living in Florida. Dear Agent, I have this great idea, and it’s about the Catholic Church, and the Illuminati, and Hitler, and a couple of weird military hobbyhorse things only I know about. The Da Vinci Code sold 80 million copies; how would you like to quadruple that? (This was an actual line from an actual letter; I’m sure he got it from some how-to-pitch-agents book. Be sure to use Real Numbers in your cover letters, authors!) Oh, and by the way, I won’t accept less than X amount, and Brad Pitt must play my protagonist in the movie.
(Do you know how many people asked for specific celebrities to play their characters in the movie? A LOT. Make sure you’re on top of that, Dear Agent.)
Everyone thought they were special, everyone thought they were pitching something unique, and everyone (well, lots of them) got TOTALLY OUTRAGED when they were turned down with a polite form letter and a returned manuscript (often paid with our postage, because some people don’t understand the concept of a self-addressed envelope). Oh, so much outrage. Swears, even.
(One guy emailed back, “How DARE you turn down a New York Times bestselling author!” I looked him up, and he was, in fact, a New York Times bestselling author. 25 years ago, way far down on the list, ghostwritten nonfiction. He was pitching a novel. It was terrible. I regret nothing.)
I pity the poor assistants who had to deal with the deluge after Twilight, or Divergent, or Gone Girl. (See, it’s about this woman, and at first you think she’s the protagonist but then you realize you don’t know her at all!) Maybe the wannabe-John Green deluge is better. (See, it’s about this girl with cancer…)
But, clearly, if your writing isn’t an instant shortcut to the people’s ovation and fame forever, something is wrong. The game is rigged! NO ONE IS PAYING ATTENTION TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. I BLAME THE MEAN PEOPLE. It has nothing to do with the quality of your work. Or the market. Or anything else.
Wahhhhhhhhh.