It's all in how you see it

I recently had a chance to talk to a group of writers about my publishing experiences and one topic came up that's near and dear to my heart: success. As I explained to them, every author has to define for him/herself what constitutes success. You can't count on lists, royalties, or fans -- as we all know, those can be capricious ways to measure success.

I measure success by deciding on my goals at the very first. When I started in publishing, I wanted to find publishers who would accept my unusual books: older heroes/heroines, not a LOT of romance but some, a mystery at the heart (or another genre at the heart: I have time travels, paranormals, and futuristic books as well). And over all: I wanted to have fun. I wanted to enjoy this publishing journey.

I think I've been a damn good success at what I set out to do. I'm not a major NYTimes best-selling author, but I don't care about that. I don't make a ton of money, but that wasn't a goal. And I have a lot of fans, but not nearly as many as some who have set up Facebook "Fan" pages.

But I'm still having fun. I'm still enjoying the journey. I've had 6 books release this year -- 6! And it's only June (as I write this). I won't bore you with promo here: go to my web site where you can find info about the books, or go to my selling page to find links for purchase. Suffice it to say: a challenging year so far, since I'm also working full-time and packing for a cross-country move (add to that: finding a house, selling my house, speaking engagements, working...)

It's all in how you see it, isn't it? I'm enjoying my moving adventures (yeah, they're a hassle, but it's still a great experience), I'm enjoying writing (so I'm not a Big Name--do I care?), I'm enjoying life (yeah, I've got some health issues, but I'm still moving!)

Enjoy what you do and you'll be startled to find that the world is a pretty interesting place. That observation will help tide you over when hassle come up (believe me, I know about Hassles!) Just hang in there and enjoy the ride!