Yesterday morning I was heading to work on the T (the subway, for all you non-Bostonians), reading the Metro and I saw a story about Jeff Kinney. I am sure you can imagine my surprise and joy. To see a writer of kids’ books featured in the subway paper that usually displays stories about corrupt politicians, murders, and the Boston Red Sox made me feel like kidlit is truly on the rise.
The story was not long, but what it lacked in stature, it made up for in impact. The article looked at Jeff Kinney’s career, at the struggles he had trying to make it as an illustrator. It also looked at the struggles he still has. And I found it inspiring.
Jeff Kinney did what many author’s today are doing. He turned to electronic media, in his case a website, to pave his way, to create his own audience. And it paid off.
But what I also liked was that Jeff Kinney admitted that writing is hard. So often I hear stories of the writers who can complete a book in a few months. While this is encouraging, it can also become frustrating since I’m not yet at that level. To read that it takes him 9 months and that he doesn’t always find it easy to come up with his jokes was refreshing.
As an author, how are you paving your way? Do you have any special tricks? If you’re still trying to find your way, try checking out this article, 17 Ways for Writers to Publish their Content for some ideas. And which do you find more inspiring: authors who can crank out content or authors who are a bit slower?
