A question a lot of writers struggle with is, how many books per year to write. The answer is, it varies. A recent article with Nora Roberts includes the eye-popping fact that she writes 5 books per year. http://www.thestar.com/living/article/712090–nora-roberts-a-bestselling-author-rarely-reviewed
She might break the productivity bell-curve, but she’s far from alone. Many authors regularly produce 3-4 titles a year, especially if they write for more than one publisher, in more than one subgenre, or write category romances. Meanwhile, other best-selling authors discuss the strain of producing one novel every year. Obviously there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, here.
There are a lot of factors to consider. One is sheer experience. If you’re writing your first, second, third, etc. novels, you’re still learning a lot. The novel learning curve is steep. It might take you three times as long to produce a book as it will later, when you start to learn how to correct your own mistakes before you make them and otherwise streamline the process.
Another big factor; is the book a standalone, or part of a series? If it’s a series, you already have the world and the characters built. You’re not starting from ground zero. The difference in time can be enormous.
Then there’s what I think of as simmering time. Has the idea had time to simmer? Struggling with an undercooked idea isn’t optimal. It may take much longer to write than if you’d left it on the back of the mental stove a little longer.
How much research has been done? All of it? None of it? If you have the glimmer of an idea that hasn’t been researched, developed, and allowed to simmer, all of that process is going to have to happen in the time allotted to write the book.
How busy is your life outside of writing? Are you planning a writing schedule that has room for kids to get sick, you to get sick, a tree to fall on your house? (All of which happened to me in the last month)
Are you allowing time for edits, for proofing the final product, for filling out art sheets and working on blurbs and titles? What about for promotion and updating your website?
Finally, are you allowing time for spec projects (projects not under contract) and to develop proposals for future contracts? If your time is so tightly contracted that you can’t work toward future sales while fulfilling commitments, you will eventually be out of contract without more income safely secured.
Sometimes you say yes to a tight schedule because the goal is worth it. In my case, I set a tight deadline for Red Queen because I wanted to get it out within a year of the first book’s release (Animal Attraction). I’ve allowed extra room in my schedule for revision to compensate if it’s needed. But I already had the world and characters developed, research done, the idea had simmered, and I had a good running start on it.
I can write a lot of pages per year because I have a lot of ideas simmering, outlined, researched, developed. I have a lot of experience and my process is streamlined. But if I switched to a new genre, I might have to allow more time for a learning curve. Working with a new editor can mean more time learning how to do things his/her way. And if I start writing 1,000 page doorstoppers, well, that’s going to impact how many books I can finish per year, too. Even for me, the question “How many books per year can you write” comes with a big, “That depends”.
So when you hear about how many books Author Amazing puts out every year, forget about trying to live their life and look at yours. How many books work for you? One? Two? One every 18 months? Do you plan to quit your day job as soon as possible, or would you rather put out books, year after year, while continuing to enjoy your present career, which unlike writing, has benefits and pays regularly? There’s no right or wrong answer, just the answer that fits your life, your goals, your career, right now.
Comparing yourself to anyone else can set you up for failure. Everyone has their own pace and I think it’s good not to rush the story.
I know other writers that constantly ponder this question. I do myself. How many will I be able to write? It’s something I know I won’t be able to answer for a long time. I know Nora is often used as some form of industry benchmark, but she’s definitely not the norm! Thanks for your perspective!
Well, something to keep in mind is that speed and quality are not mutually exclusive. Some good writers write fast; some good writers write slow. And some books go faster than others, too, for reasons that remain elusive. But definitely playing the comparison game is a fast trip to insanity!
It’s a question that’s hard to answer because there are so many variables. All you can try to do is factor in those variables. Glad it helped!
This post reminds me of that old axiom that comparison is the root of all unhappiness. It’s so true. Keeping your eyes on YOUR prize is what will serve you most long term.
Great post!
I read long ago that comparison is always negative. Because we either compare our weakest point to somebody else’s strength, or our strength to somebody else’s weakness. Neither one helps us.
I never compare. I write what I write. I’m hard enough on myself without starting comparisons.
I’m making a living and, this past year, I found some time to work on a couple projects on spec. Who knows what will happen with them. I’m just glad I did them.
NJ, that’s huge.