Hugh Howey
"When it comes to my own work, I've long embraced piracy. I don't see piracy as any different than a friend borrowing a book from a friend, or a single book making its way through a household or a school classroom. To me, the value is in being read. The danger is in losing an audience."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | reading, books, the successful artist, reaching your audience, Hugh Howey, art piracy
Follow Your Curiosity
"Keep the physical limitations that some readers have in mind. Not all readers live near a bookstore, or have the eyesight for the small print of most published books, and some have no eyesight at all. Ebooks have been a boon for older readers, both for the large print and the weight reduction. Audiobooks have opened up worlds for the visually impaired. Online shopping and home delivery are the only option for millions of readers."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | reading, bookstores, publishing, Hugh Howey, books vs. ebooks, etc., audio books
Follow Your Curiosity"The time to start marketing is when you have lots of works to offer, or one of your works takes off, or you land a special deal somewhere with an agent or publisher or media outlet. Until then, the way to market is to be yourself and to put that self out there."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | writing, reaching your audience, KEEP CREATING, publishing, agents, Hugh Howey
Follow Your Curiosity"My best advice on how to form this habit [of writing every day] is twofold: Get comfortable staring at a blank screen and not writing. This is a skill. If you can not write and avoid filling that time with distractions, you'll get to the point where you start writing. Open your manuscript and just be with it. Secondly, learn to write rough. Stop caring about spelling and sentence fragments and plot holes and grammar. Get the story down. Listen to the dialog and try to keep up with your fingers. Get to the end of your manuscript and THEN worry about the quality. If you can master the art of powering through to the end of your story, you are on your way."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | creating isn't easy, writing, KEEP CREATING, Hugh Howey
"I know a lot of authors who are saying 'no' to offers because publishers want all the rights, and nobody wins in that scenario."
— Hugh Howey
"There are thousands of editors out there looking for work. The big publishers use a lot of freelance editors these days. I can hire the same people I might end up with if I were to go the traditional route, pay them once, and still retain ownership and control over my work."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | create for YOURSELF, editing, publishing, protect the art, editors, Hugh Howey, creative freedom
"I had an offer of a small advance and a traditional contract, which meant someone else paying for the publishing, providing editing, cover art, marketing, all of that. I was sure I'd never get another offer, and I loved the editor I was in contact with, so I took the deal. I learned a lot from that, but I also saw that all the tools for publishing were available to anyone, so I went on my own with the second book. I even went back and acquired the rights to my first novel. I've been self-publishing ever since. Even now, when I have publishers asking for the next thing I write, I choose to self-publish."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | writing, publishing, Hugh Howey, never stop LEARNING
"Save up and invest in your work. Pay yourself a dollar for every 500 words you write. Set that aside, and you'll have enough to publish your book when you're done with it."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | novel writing, writing, publishing, word count, value the art, Hugh Howey
"The biggest [advantage in self-publishing] for me is the freedom to write what I want when I want. I can jump genres and write several novels a year. Traditional publishing is much too restrictive. I don't want to pump out the same book over and over. I want to challenge myself and produce the work that I feel is missing from the marketplace."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | create for YOURSELF, novel writing, KEEP CREATING, publishing, genre, Hugh Howey, creative freedom, never stop LEARNING
"You need to write. This seems axiomatic because it is. The only way to amass a pile of words into a book is to shovel some every single day. No days off. You have to form this habit; without it you are screwed. I'm going to assume [you] already have this down. If you don't—you won't make it."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | novel writing, the successful artist, writing, KEEP CREATING, the creative life, Hugh Howey
"Worry about the writing and nothing else. Don't worry about sales, agents, publishers, any of that. Get a dozen works under your belt of whatever length you feel comfortable writing, polish them within an inch of perfection, and get them out there. The rest can be a slow burn."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | creative fear, the successful artist, writing, KEEP CREATING, publishing, Hugh Howey
"The biggest for me [by self-publishing] is the freedom to write what I want when I want. I can jump genres and write several novels a year. Traditional publishing is much too restrictive. I don't want to pump out the same book over and over. I want to challenge myself and produce the work that I feel is missing from the marketplace."
— Hugh Howey
for Creatives | create for YOURSELF, novel writing, writing, publishing, genre, Hugh Howey, creative freedom
"Self-publishing is a marathon, not a sprint."
— Hugh Howey (photo features author Haruki Murakami)