Pithy thoughts on writers & success from the BookBitch...

How to Tell if You Are a Newbie, AKA, Struggling New Writer:

1. You're self-published.

2. You found an agent but still received enough rejection letters to wallpaper your bathroom.

3. Your agent got you published, one book only, with a small publisher that is so new, no one ever heard of it.

4. Your agent got you a contract for one or possibly two books, although after publication of the first book this may push you over the line. (see line below)

5. You can't quit your day job and live off your royalties.


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How to Tell if You Are an Experienced, Successful Author:

1. You have a reputable agent from a well respected agency.

2. You've had at least two books published by a major house - otherwise you can be a one-hit wonder like, say, Harper Lee.

3. You've been nominated for any award in your industry.

4. You've had your book selected for a TV book club.

5. Your income from your books is enough to live on so you can write full time.

BONUS THAT GOES WITHOUT SAYING: Oprah.

PULITZERS AWARDED

FICTION

March by Geraldine Brooks (Viking)


HISTORY

Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky (Oxford University Press)


BIOGRAPHY

American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin (Alfred A. Knopf)


POETRY

Late Wife by Claudia Emerson (Louisiana State University Press)


GENERAL NON-FICTION

Imperial Reckoning: The Untold Story of Britain's Gulag in Kenya by Caroline Elkins (Henry Holt)