Writers' Nook

BUSINESS BALLS—Get 'em, Got 'em, Flaunt 'em

PAN Workshop given at 2006 RWA National Workshop in Atlanta, GA with Bestselling Authors, Lisa Gardner and Victoria Alexander.* What good girls (and bad) need to know to succeed in this business)
*What follows is Carly's talk from the workshop

usiness is harder for women than for men. We're genetically more sensitive. At least I choose to think we are. We tend to apologize more which makes us appear weaker. And lastly we also tend to want to please. Taken all together, this put many of us in the position of acting too passive in our careers.

Three examples of passivity in our careers at different levels:

1. You just sold your first book and you're so grateful, you think you have to give in on EVERYTHING.

2. You don't think you're "all that big" in the scheme of things at your publishing house, so you think you don't have the right to ask for what you want

3. And here's the big one for me: I tend to think people in the so-called "position of power" know more than me, hence I should give in.

In all three examples, these presumptions are WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. For the most part. Notice I said for the most part.

1. You're so grateful you'll say yes to everything—RWA teaches us before we ever publish to be prepared BEFORE we get the call. To listen, write everything down, then say I WILL CALL YOU BACK. I'd like to meet the author who had the balls to do this! I know I didn't. As a result, I agreed to take a pseudonym on the spot, despite the fact that I a) wouldn't own my name; and b) would have to ask for permission to use it with other publishers. Boy did my author friends rip me apart for doing this, but I felt I'd given my word. I didn't want to rock the boat. In the end, this worked out for the best, however when I think about what COULD have happened to my career, I cringe. However, in my case the publisher's reasoning for the pseudonym made sense, and I believe helped in the success of my career. Still, I'd been warned and I was TOO AFRAID to even think of saying no.

2. You're not big enough to ask for what you want—back in the year 2001, myself and two other Blaze authors put together an anthology proposal, cornered our Harlequin editor in a hotel room and pitched the idea to her. Although she loved the concept, we weren't big enough to carry it ourselves. In particular, I was the biggest problem, with the least amount of books and name recognition. We'd need a big name and one of us would have to drop out. One of us did. Julie Leto agreed to write a prequel full length Blaze to lead into the anthology and a full length Blaze afterwards. We approached a big name harlequin author and asked if she'd consider writing the lead title with us. Vicki Lewis Thompson said yes. Then we crossed our fingers, Janelle Denison, Vicki, Julie and I, and hoped we'd get approval. We did. By the time the book was published, I was a NYT Bestseller—I refused to take lead because it was Vicki's spot. And we sold an anthology because we had the balls to believe we could in light of all obstacles.

3. The position of power issue—this is the same thing as when we thank a cop for giving us a speeding ticket. Instead you need to remember that your agent works for you AND you and your editor want the same thing. A damn good book. But as Victoria said, PICK YOUR BATTLES. You want to have the reputation of being easy to work with, but you should have enough self respect not to accept being treated badly or agree to mutilate your work to please an editor when your heart—NOT YOUR EGO tells you the revisions are wrong.

CARLY'S SUGGESTIONS on having business balls:

1. Know the market, know your facts, know your strengths and weaknesses—your editor and agent may know what they think is best but it doesn't mean it's best for you. If you're going to disagree with them however, do it with respect and with facts that back you up.

2. Don't base your career "wants" on what another author has. Yes, you may use other authors as guides but remember you never, ever know the whole situation.

3. Remember the egos of those involved—agents and editors, like authors have egos. If you're going to treat them like they know nothing, they will treat you the same way.

4. Remaining silent when you are unhappy is no way to live. It stifles your creativity and leads to an unhealthy work environment. Besides, the agent or editor can't fix what they don't know about. Be open about your concerns and if things don't change, THEN it's time to move on.

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