Writing is Hard: Stop Calling Me!

No, no. You don't have to stop calling me. The title refers to writers who harrass their editors.

An anonymous editor wrote an article for Gawker.com about what not to do if you want your editor to be favorably inclined towards your work. Most of the list involves nagging.

By way of supporting that, I found that link on the blog of another editor who whole-heartedly agrees. And, as a comics critic who is sometimes pestered by well-meaning publishers and/or creators about why they haven't yet seen my review of their books, I'll co-sign my own name to the rant.

But even though the point of that lesson is to ease off the editors, there's another lesson for writers in the article. It may not offer any practical advice for writers to follow, but it's a sobering revelation about editors' thoughts on the importance of authors in the Grand Scheme of Things.

"...authors are a cross to bear somewhere between 'creepy messenger guy' and 'can't even afford a new coat from H&M' on the job-dissatisfaction scale. Because, with a few glowing exceptions, authors are the craziest, meanest, strangest, cluelessest people you've ever met."

The bright side to that complaint is that if you can avoid being crazy, mean, strange, and clueless, you're likely to stand out as someone editors would like to work with (assuming you're any good).