On being a neopro

[eimarra]

What’s the difference between being an amateur and being a pro? There are all sorts of definitions. From most permissive to least:

The Olympic Standard: You have been paid for your work, so you’re a pro.

Breaking Through: You got paid pro rates for at least one story.

Stamp of Approval: You’ve sold three stories or a novel to a pro market, thus qualifying for a professional organization (SFWA qualifications; other genres may differ).

Going Strong: You’ve passed the SFWA requirements and even sold a fourth short story, thus disqualifying you for the contests for beginners, including Writers of the Future.

One of the Gang: You start feeling like a professional.

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Notice what I did there? Feeling like you belong comes last.

Right now, I’ve had three pro acceptances, and when that third one is published, I will join SFWA. I’ll keep submitting to Writers of the Future until I have a fourth published short in a pro market. But am I a pro?

Ha!

I’ll accept the label neopro, which basically says “good enough to get published at this level occasionally, but still wet behind the ears.” I’ve got a couple of friends who think I should do panels at cons. Seriously? Who’s going to listen to my advice when there are people who’ve been doing this for years? There’s nothing I can say about writing that they won’t say, and probably more cogently. I’m still learning, and I’ve got a long way to go.

I might have moved up to the big leagues (maybe), but I’m still spending most of my time on the bench . . . which reminds me, I need to get back to writing.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

Comments

[temporus.livejournal.com]

Who would follow your advice? The smart people in the crowd who realize that success is all about steps, and that while you can start out dreaming to be Neil Gaiman, you have to in fact, build yourself up one level of success at a time. And, you've got skills and advice that can be useful even for so called seasoned professionals. You've been running your own business as a freelancer, earning a living for years now. Those of us who haven't done that would do well to pay attention to the things you can teach. Plus, you know, it's also important to learn how to handle getting over that first hurdle, and what it looks like on the other side. Even if the truth is that it's just one hurdle in a long series of hurdles to come.

[eimarra]

Thanks, Ed. And I will volunteer to do panels. I think it's like when I was debating whether to start up my own Website with a blog to be my professional face, and I was struck by Impostor Syndrome. Who did I think I was? But I did it, and I'm comfortable with it now. (Easy enough with a small audience, growing slowly.) I'm sure this will be the same. Thanks for giving me the push and the pep talk!

Oh, and this is one more reason why I like writing. In school, when we did track, I could do one or two hurdles, and then I crashed. At least with this (as long as I don't do something flagrantly stupid), no hurdle will be a permanent setback. ;)