by James Butler

Created on: April 30, 2008   Last Updated: December 16, 2009

I think there is one and only one reason real writers write; they love to do it no matter what the outcome. Getting published, famous, rich and such are desired perks, but not the driving force of putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboards. I am not talking about the people who dream of going on the talk show circuit to brag about their new best seller without ever making the effort to pick up a pen. They are no different than the people who dream of being an NFL quarter back without ever trying to throw a football. They do not understand the internal satisfaction of creating something of their own has to be rewarding enough on its own to keep them going even as the cold and cutting rejection letters come pouring in.

I can say for certain that is what has kept me writing for thirty years without a commercial success. Not to say I do not want a commercial success big enough to get me on the talk show circuit. My life long dream is to be the token intellectual in the last 3 minutes of the tonight show, even if most people turn it off when the token intellectual comes out. My latest middle grade novel length manuscript has been requested for review by a top agency even as I write this! (Optimism or insanity? Only history will tell. Or you could ask my wife who will give you an immediate answer.)

Just what kind of person does it take to keep writing for 30 years without a big royalty check? Well, I'm stubborn, because I'm part German, arrogant, because I'm part British and always right because I'm an American. So there you have it. Nothing can stop you if you are stubborn, arrogant and always right. And since you will not have any friends, you will have lots of free time to keep writing.

I have had a desire to write book length stories for as long as I can remember. I first declared my intentions to write a book in seventh grade at the age of 12. The science teacher gave us an assignment to write a one page paper on making a trip to the moon. (It had not been done yet. It was 1965.) I started writing about the struggle the family men must go through just to decide to undertake such a dangerous assignment. I had six pages written and nobody had even started training yet! When the teacher informed me my paper was over due, I informed him it would take awhile because I was writing a book about the trip. He was not amused. I turned in what I had. The instructor said I was a good writer but a poor scientist and gave me a C' for my efforts. I kept working on the story for awhile though. Then little league started and that was the end of that.

I did not think seriously about writing again until 1978, but have not stopped since. The goal of every aspiring writer is to get published. In order to accomplish that goal the first thing an aspiring writer needs to do is keep writing, no matter what. Sound easy? I have read that something like 90% of all books that are started never get finished. It is pretty hard to sell something that is not finished. Ever try to sell half a car?

I have become something of an expert at persistence over the last 30 years. Not many writers would want to wait that long to become a 'New Published Writer' though. At least not per the commonly accepted definition of 'published' in the writing industry, which is to say, getting paid for what you have written. I hope sharing why I have continued to write will inspire others to keep going and at least finish what they start. Just keep one thing in mind as you work on your project. It is very hard to get a great story perfectly prepared published.

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