Today's guest blogger is author Paul Kilduff. Paul was born in Dublin, and qualified as a Chartered Accountant. He spent six years working in the City of London and returned to live in Dublin in 1995. He got his book contract to publish some thrillers ... but then his career took a dramatically different direction...
So there I was a few years ago with my four financial thrillers published by one of the Big 4 UK publishers, and also published in Continental Europe, when my UK publisher declined to accept my fifth thriller. Was that the end of my successful writing career? Definitely not. Here's how I identified what had happened, how I reinvented myself and my writing, and how I wrote a No. 1 non-fiction bestseller in Ireland ...
Firstly, I rationalised the rejection on the basis that my two original editors had both moved on and my new editor had different interests. And at the time my publisher was taken over by a large overseas publisher and there were many changes afoot in the company. But also I knew that I was tiring of writing financial thrillers and that perhaps ... perish the thought ... the fifth book was as they say in the business ... 'not very good.' The thrillers were about absolutely fabulous investment bankers in the City of London so perhaps in hindsight it was a wise decision to stop.
Secondly, I identified what I was interested in writing. My first editor always said that my fiction always 'had a great sense of place.' I toyed with several different ideas for a travel book and then one glorious August weekend I was abandoned by Europe's largest low fares airline in Malaga Airport. The idea for my book was born; Ruinair - How To Be Treated Like Shite in 15 Different Countries ... And Still Quite Like It.
Finally, I figured out how to best sell my travel book. I had used a leading London literary agent to sell my thrillers set in London to that big London publisher. And now the same agent was trying to sell a book originating in Dublin about an Irish travel phenomenon. So I took the brave decision to drop my London agent. I signed up with a literary agent in Dublin who sold the book immediately to Ireland's leading non-fiction publisher. A few months later in March 2008, 'Ruinair' entered the Irish non-fiction bestseller chart at No. 1 and it spent 9 weeks there. That's when Collins in London saw the success, and knew that 'Ruinair' would work equally well in the UK book market. The rest as they say is history.
My final piece of advice to all budding writers is the same as that which I see offered often by other published authors - get writing. I am amazed by the number of readers who email me to advise that they are thinking of writing a book when I would much rather receive an email to advise that they are writing a book - and there is a real difference. Wanting to write a book and not writing is like sitting all day on the edge of a inviting swimming pool whilst wearing your best swimming costume and reading a well-thumbed copy of a book entitled 'How To Swim'.
So there I was a few years ago with my four financial thrillers published by one of the Big 4 UK publishers, and also published in Continental Europe, when my UK publisher declined to accept my fifth thriller. Was that the end of my successful writing career? Definitely not. Here's how I identified what had happened, how I reinvented myself and my writing, and how I wrote a No. 1 non-fiction bestseller in Ireland ...
Firstly, I rationalised the rejection on the basis that my two original editors had both moved on and my new editor had different interests. And at the time my publisher was taken over by a large overseas publisher and there were many changes afoot in the company. But also I knew that I was tiring of writing financial thrillers and that perhaps ... perish the thought ... the fifth book was as they say in the business ... 'not very good.' The thrillers were about absolutely fabulous investment bankers in the City of London so perhaps in hindsight it was a wise decision to stop.
Secondly, I identified what I was interested in writing. My first editor always said that my fiction always 'had a great sense of place.' I toyed with several different ideas for a travel book and then one glorious August weekend I was abandoned by Europe's largest low fares airline in Malaga Airport. The idea for my book was born; Ruinair - How To Be Treated Like Shite in 15 Different Countries ... And Still Quite Like It.
Finally, I figured out how to best sell my travel book. I had used a leading London literary agent to sell my thrillers set in London to that big London publisher. And now the same agent was trying to sell a book originating in Dublin about an Irish travel phenomenon. So I took the brave decision to drop my London agent. I signed up with a literary agent in Dublin who sold the book immediately to Ireland's leading non-fiction publisher. A few months later in March 2008, 'Ruinair' entered the Irish non-fiction bestseller chart at No. 1 and it spent 9 weeks there. That's when Collins in London saw the success, and knew that 'Ruinair' would work equally well in the UK book market. The rest as they say is history.
My final piece of advice to all budding writers is the same as that which I see offered often by other published authors - get writing. I am amazed by the number of readers who email me to advise that they are thinking of writing a book when I would much rather receive an email to advise that they are writing a book - and there is a real difference. Wanting to write a book and not writing is like sitting all day on the edge of a inviting swimming pool whilst wearing your best swimming costume and reading a well-thumbed copy of a book entitled 'How To Swim'.
1 comments:
Great dear!
It took almost ten years for me to jump in to the swimming pool. Thanks God, I have already swam 3/4 of the pool and hope to reach on the other side by June this year.
MAY GOD BLESS YOU!
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