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The Writer's Book of Hope: Getting from Frustration to Publication

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Keyes does a great job presenting the case for finding hope in the writing process. This book specifically discusses: dealing with anxiety, frustration and despair, overcoming the discouragers in your life, exorcising excuses for not writing and pursuing a career in writing, the rites of rejection, the nature of publishers and editors, and how to keep hope alive.

Years ago I had a basketball coach who taught "if you're not getting at least four fouls in a game, you're not playing defense." He didn't like fouls, but his point was, in the process of playing the game aggressively, fouls are going to happen. Fouls are not necessarily indicators of defeat, they are indicators of effort. Likewise, Keyes' approach to rejection is that all successful writers deal with rejection. In his book he provides numerous examples, including Nobel and Pulitzer prize winners, of authors who face rejection even after winning critical acclaim. Rejection is a fact of life, Keyes say, learn to deal with it. Easily stated, but it still hurts. According to Keyes, writers who have not experienced rejection are not sending out enough material; and, writers who don't learn to accept rejection as part of the writing process, are doomed to quit writing altogether.

Keyes is the author of another book titled "The Courage to Write," which I highly recommend. Similar books by other authors which I would also recommend for the aspiring writer include: "On Becoming a Novelist," by John Gardner, and "The Forest for the Trees," by Betsy Lerner.

Ron Atkins is the author of two children's books, Abby and the Bicycle Caper, and his upcoming (January 2005) Abby and the Bike Race Mystery.

The Writer's Book of Hope, released in 2003, continues to be a beacon of hope to those on the long and tumultuous path to publication.

Keyes gives anecdote after anecdote on writer's rejected who went on to become best-sellers.

Excerpt:

"Ursula Le Guin sent out her first story when she was eleven. She got her first acceptance at thirty-three. James Dickey endured years of form rejections before he finally saw hand-writing on one that said, "Not bad."

According to James Lee Burke's agent, 100 editors turned down Lost Get-Back Boogie (including multipe editors at the same house) before Louisiana State University Press bought Burke's first novel for a pittance.

It's a rare writer who doesn't have to hack through a jumble of rejection slips before (and after) getting published. Some of history's best-known books were rejected many times before finally being accepted. The Ginger Man, by J.P. Donleavy--now considered one of the best 100 novels ever published--was turned down by thirty-six publishers before it found a home..."

Besides happy endings to rejected beginnings, Keyes takes us inside the world of publishing. Some of the Chapter titles:

~AFD Syndrome~ (before drinking hemlock)
~Dealing with Discouragers
~Rites of Rejection
~The Publishing Tribe (Why publishing Resembles High School)
and more...

This book is one of the few writing books I can't bring myself to give up. Every so often, I find myself discouraged beyond reason, and this book takes me back from the ledge of despair.

It's a must read for any pre-pubbed writer needing an injection of optimism.

REVIEWED ON: www.firstnoveljourney.blogpsot.com
(author interviews, book reviews, and fiction related discussion)

Every writer needs hope. And hope is what I always get when I read and reread Ralph Keyes's book, The Writer's Book of Hope.
As an experienced, many times published writer, people might think I've got this writing profession figured out. But I don't. And on those days when I'm feeling lonely, dejected and sometimes rejected, I know I can turn to Keyes's book to help me realize I'm not alone in my insecurity and feeling of flakiness.

There are days when I wonder if it isn't too late to go to plumbing school or enroll in the matchbook school of mosaic tiling. Writing does that too you. Plays games with your mind and confidence.

But when those days creep up on me, I find solace in Hope. It makes my green skin turn less bright when I read John Grisham received twenty-some odd rejections and agents turned down JK Rowlings. Yet they persisted. And that, among other things is the difference between writers who stay the distance and those who let the publishing world get the better of them.

Keyes has been there. He's one of us. He's not on a perch talking down to us wannabes. He's simply further in his journey than many of us. And that qualifies him as a leader. And the fact that he's willing to share the good, bad and ugly of this writer's world is generous.

Reading the book is like sitting in an easy chair talking to a wise sage (with a little bit of mischief in his eyes) talking about the world of writing. Eyeball to eyeball. Writer to writer...friend to friend. And by doing so, Keyes offers us that thread that tethers writers together in this profession that is not for the faint of heart. And for that I'm grateful.

Susan DeBow, writer

I've read enough self-help and inspirational books, and books about writing, to last a lifetime, so when I spied The Writer's Book of Hope at my public library, I hesitated. But the title caught my eye, and I ended up gulping it down it in a few sessions. I'm glad I did-it's given me a new perspective on my writing practice. I've learned that frustration, cluelessness, and despair are a normal part of the writing process. And while I still encounter the same writing problems I did before, I'm more easygoing about them. It's as if I've adopted a new attitude: "So I'm clueness at the moment-that's OK, it will pass." I'm much more at ease and confident of my abilities, and I've developed a broader perspective on the writing process-all of which is increasing my productivity and enjoyment at my typewriter.

The book is clearly the result of a lot of research. (Check out the photos on Keyes' Web site showing the yards of file cabinets in his house.) Keyes doesn't trot out the tired authors' anecdotes that we've all heard before; he serves up a host of tidbits that were new to me. The quotes by masters (such as Tolstoy) about their lack of "talent" are alone worth the price of the book. I also appreciated Keyes' no-nonsense tone. I was expecting New Age warmth and fuzziness, but Keyes pulls no punches. Take his observation that some people who give up writing do so not because they lack talent, but because they are uncomfortable spending long periods alone. That's not a "nice" thing to say, but it's truthful and important to know.

The Writer's Book of Hope delivers on its promise. It provides practical hope and inspiration to writers based on a clear-eyed view of the writing profession. It gave me a new lease on my writing life.

The Writer's Book of Hope is an excellent antidote to the discouragement toxins that build up in writers over time. Actually, it's a whole medicine cabinet of antidotes. Anxiety, Frustration, and Despair are part of the emotional experience of all writers, from beginners to established professionals, and Keyes offers a wide range of uplifting and motivating perspectives that will help writers to keep doing the work that nourishes them. This volume is every bit as good as Keyes's previous title, The Courage to Write. Both are highly recommended.

-- Bruce Holland Rogers, author of Word Work: Surviving and Thriving as a Writer.

Ralph Keyes' books about writing have helped pull my ambition out of a tail-spin twice. His first, The Courage To Write, helped me finish my first novel, which eventually got published. The follow-up to that, The Writer's Book Of Hope, helped me get started on my fourth book, at a point when I was beginning to feel frustrated with both the business of writing and the relentlessly demanding craft of it. What Keyes does in this book and in the first is to map out the tricky and sometimes dangerous emotional landscape of writing, and he does it by giving us examples and anecdotes from famous and sometimes legendary writers who've had similar frustrations. Better than practically any book on writing out there, The Writer's Book Of Hope offers those of us who spend our days in front of typewriters and computers making up worlds with words the boost we need to carry on. And Keyes does this not with some sugar-coated inspirational messages, but with honest, realistic and historical examinations of the traditional difficulties that all writers, regardless of their fame or lack or it, face and how they have coped and kept writing. Highly recommended.

Ralph Keyes' The Writer's Book of Hope manages to be most encouraging to any writer and very interesting to anyone else. This book is well-written, funny, challenging, consoling and very informative. If there is a writer who ever said anything interesting and provocative about writing, there is a good chance he or she is quoted in this book. We read Nobel Prize Winner Thomas Mann's remark that "The writer is someone for whom writing is harder than for other people;" novelist Gail Godwin's reflection about time spent writing with little energy and hope: "I find I have indeed written some sentences that wouldn't have been there if I hadn't gone up to write them;" and a hundred others. Such observations encourage writers as they find their own doubts and frustrations mirrored in those who have overcome them. Perhaps most important, the writer realizes that he or she is part of the great fellowship of writers not because of publishing success, but through the simple act of showing up steadily to write. This is the central theme of the book: stay with your writing; don't give up; don't be stopped by mood, doubt, confusion or fear, and something will come of it. A writer who has this book next to the computer has a most helpful friend as company. Someone who gives this book to beginning, or even accomplished, writers has found a believable way to offer support and useable knowledge.

The book is full of clear information about subtle and direct discouragers of writing and about the availability of encouragers and where to find them. Keyes tells the writer how to get started, keep going, get help and how to finally find and influence publishers to get your book in print. Chapter titles include "Dealing with Discouragers," "Exorcizing Excuses," and "The Publishing Tribe." Ralph Keyes has been teaching writing for over thirty years while himself publishing ten books and countless articles. The writer henefits from the experience and insight of a person who has watched hundreds of writing projects begin and far fewer achieve completion -- and has learned what makes the difference.

I've been a tremendous fan of Keyes since I read his earlier, awesome book "The Courage to Write". Reading his work is like having an intimate conversation with an old friend.
Keyes notes, "When publisher's say,'There's no market for such-and-such a book' they're usually right with regard to existing markets. On the other hand, new markets, big ones, are out there waiting to be tapped. There are readers not being served because publishers don't know how to reach (i.e. how to go beyond existing categories and create new ones."
Keyes warns the fledgling author of the dangers of discouragers, those who "fear you'll succeed and no longer be their friend." They may be worried that you might write about them, or worse yet- that you won't."
On the other hand, he advises "Finding the right encouragers at the right time, is one of the developing writer's most important tasks."
The book is interspersed with fascinating tidbits of famous authors own struggles and triumphs.The quotes alone are worth the price of the book.
Keep this gem near your keyboard, or on your nightstand. You'll be glad for the support and quidance from one of our best inspirational writer's.

This book really opened my eyes to the reality of the publishing world. It also helped disapate a lot of anger and self pity I was feeling. Who knew you had to work this hard? Well, now I do. So it goes. I can now forge ahead without feeling so sorry for myself!

As a writer, I find myself drawn to reading books about the writing process and the struggles that virtually all writers go through - the endless internal battles and external forces that sometimes threaten to overrun our progress or even our love of writing in general. Books like this give me the motivation to continue - especially when you see that even the more accomplished writers throughout history (and today) deal with the same thing. This is a great read.