CM Simpson: Writer & Gamer

“Don’t just put your nose against the grindstone: rub your entire naked body against the grindstone . And then film it. And put it on Youtube.” (17 January 2012; Terrible Minds Blog; Chuck Wendig, novelist, screenwriter, freelance pen monkey) I laughed out loud. Yes, it has context for writers and in that context, this says it all. If you don’t like swearing, don’t read this post… or the blog, for that matter, but, if you can cope with a little cussing out for some good writerly advice, go read this blog. It’s a timely kick in the pants.

For a long time now, I’ve been toying with the idea of writing a novel for a couple of roleplaying companies. I’ve completed a couple of overviews and started chapter outlines and drafts, but I hesitated. Why? It wasn’t because cracking those markets is hard—which it is, by the way. Cracking the traditional market for any kind of fiction is hard, with the chance of rejection high even if you are ‘good enough’. This rejection is something everyone has to face, no matter how well established they are in the industry, so, if rejection wasn’t it, why hesitate? I had to think about that, but I guess it’s because anything I write for a specific already-published setting isn’t really mine. Yes, it’s a market with prestige; yes, it might draw readers to my other fantasy work; and, yes, there’s already a market out there so I wouldn’t have to work as hard to build the initial readership (maintaining and developing it, is another question entirely)… BUT, on the flip-side, the work would ...