The Agony, and the Victories Ahead, of an Unsuccessful Book, Movie, or TV Deal
I’ve been down this road before. A bunch. And then fortunes finally turned. Yours can too.
Claude Raines in “The Invisible Man” (1933), Copyright Universal Studios
Have you ever felt invisible?
Many of you reading this are writers; I’d be surprised if you said “no.”
I mean, really, you work for months at a time on the Great American Novel, or a genre-transcending screenplay.
Or maybe days or even weeks on an article you hope you will the most impactful ever presented.
And then … crickets.
Maybe, not even them.
I mean, literally, nothing.
Is there a cure? How can you, as a writer, possibly go on if your most heartfelt efforts have led nowhere to this point?
I’ve been there. Convincing yourself there really is no choice in the matter is the only way to go.
I’ll give you two examples, both I’ve written about before:
The loss of both projects were heartbreaking.
The bottom line, however?
We all still need to move forward.
This is a deliberately short piece. Only you can convince yourself of the value of proceeding in your career based on your personal circumstance ... but I’ll continue to be on your back(s) with my words rooting you on. Never give up! If you have projects that have failed, as have I, and you bet everything on those projects, from first-hand experience I can commiserate with your anguish, or sadness.
As artists, though, I strongly believe we have the duty to move on. You’ve all heard it before: Books have been found years after their release, films have taken years to get off the ground and then have been hugely successful …
Keep going, my friends. Keep moving forward and keep creating. Build and inventory and refresh that inventory.
I believe there is always a way. We just need to find it.
Thank you for reading.
P.S. Foolish me. I neglected to mention “the victories ahead” as mentioned in the title. I just sold two new projects. Articles forthcoming. If I can do it, so can you.
That’s the message of this piece.