Killing the Top Ten Sacred Cows of Publishing

by Dean Wesley Smith

The publishing world continues to evolve, but myths about who can make a living as a fiction writer maintain a life of their own. Whether you pursue traditional or indie publishing success, you need to know the pitfalls and traps that undermine many writers' careers. In this WMG Writer's Guide, USA Today bestselling author and former publisher Dean Wesley Smith addresses the ten most damaging myths that writers believe in modern publishing. Topics Include: Right vs. Wrong Writing Speed Rewriting Agents Books as Events Quality Writing to Trends Making Money Writing is Hard Career Killers

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Business, Reference, Essays

126 pages, Paperback

First published February 9, 2014

About the author

Pen Names
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley

Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.

With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.

Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.

Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.

Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.

Reviews

[A.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dean Wesley Smith published 11 novels in one year. GR has him listed as having 336 distinct works and he’s sold a heap of short stories to anthologies and magazines. Plus, he has pen names.
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
D.W. Smith
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley
Oh, and he's also a ghost writer.

He’s been a writer, editor, story coach and still plays poker professionally. He has posted a daily blog for something like 1257 days now. His website is headed ‘the writing and opinions’ of DWS because he is very outspoken about his opinions.
http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/
The ones he hates the most are the ones like these myths that stop people writing. This book is made up of some of his blog posts rewritten a bit.
***
I think this was in a Nanowrimo humble bundle I grabbed one year.

And for heaven’s sake, be extra, extra careful when you listen to any writer who is not a long distance down the publishing road ahead of you. (Kindle Locations 94-95).

I can’t tell you how often I have used Kindlespy to look up a person’s sales figures to see if they match their claim. They usually don’t. And they are usually WAY off.
Or seen courses on ‘how to write’ from people who haven’t published a thing (other than ‘how to write’ books).

This business is fluid and crazy most of the time, and the need for security screams out in most of us. So in the early years we writers search for “rules” to follow, shortcuts that will cut down the time involved, secret handshakes that will get us through doors. It is only after a lot of time that professional writers come to realize that the only rules are the ones we put on ourselves. In my early years I was no different.
Writers are people who sit alone in a room and make stuff up. The problem we have is that when we get insecure without rules, we make stuff up as well. (Kindle Locations 158-163)

Ain’t that the truth!
Myth: Slow writing is better.

I am the world’s worst typist. I use four fingers, up from two, and if I can manage 250 words in fifteen minutes I’m pretty happy. I tend to average around 750-1,000 words per hour of work. Then I take a break. I am not a “fast” typist, but I am considered a “fast” writer because I spend more time writing than the myth allows. (Kindle Locations 367-369).

This week I know I had a few periods in which I wrote 2,300 words an hour or 38 words a minute. That’s a slow typing speed but a little faster than Smith. I did it in 20 minute spurts and went for walks in between.
Laurie Starkey wrote 46k words (her whole YA book) in one day just to see if she could.
Whether it’s good or bad is up to the reader, in the end. But rewriting it endlessly doesn’t fix major errors. You can’t polish a turd.
Smith loves Robert Heinlein’s writing rules.
He’s pretty down on literary agents.

You go to a hotel and meet a total stranger. They agree to take months of your work and sell it, then you trust this total stranger after they have sold your work with getting you all the money from your work and all the paperwork for that money. You don’t know the person. And only in publishing do otherwise sane and smart business people think this sort of thing makes sense. (Kindle Locations 797-800).

Yeah… okay, that’s terrifying when you put it that way.
He’s not keen on sensitivity readers either.

Writing careers can NOT be killed unless the writer stops writing. But the belief that a career can be killed by a mistake is often terminal for a writer. (Kindle Locations 1866-1867)

Write a scene, then write another, and another; make sure they connect to take you through the story.
Tell your story - you’re the only one who can.
4 stars

[KBeautiful1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are looking for what it will be like being an indie writer and indie publisher, I highly recommend this book.

Author Dean Wesley Smith breaks down the myths from the truths in the world of indie writing and indie publishing. He gives such a great breakdown which I had no idea that goes along the life of an indie author my mind is blown. I remember one indie author saying that there was so much to learn, plus she made a lot of mistakes and how she wished she knew what it actually took to publish books on her own, it would have saved her a lot of grief and headaches. Well this book will surely save me from all of that.

I especially liked his no nonsense approach and the fact of it not being a book that is a couple of hundred pages. The author got right to the point and I highly appreciated it. If you are looking to enter the world of writing, not wanting a publisher, and you want to become an indie author/indie publisher than this book is for you. It will break down a lot of information that you will need and save you from a lot of wrong information that is out there.

Well Until My Next Review...Ciao!

[Carrie Daws · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a refreshing read! Much of what he says in this book is what I've sensed or discovered in my own writing/publishing journey but was afraid to commit to because it was so counter-cultural to what "everyone" is saying in the publishing world. Now I'm more motivated to follow my own path, my own discernment in my writing.

[Kalin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yesterday, I came across a counterpoint to the chapter on agents:

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7032590

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prolific author Dean Wesley Smith tackles and dismantles 10 prominent myths that have arisen alongside the digital indie publishing industry that are keeping writers, especially newer writers, from building careers.

I originally read this when it was a series of posts on Smith’s blog, alongside the companion series, “Killing the Top 10 Sacred Cows of Publishing “. Both series give new writers a much-needed kick in the pants, namely: stop looking for the magic secret to success and learn what actually works for you as a writer building a business.

Though it was a solid read overall, there were a couple things I disagreed with Dean on that made me knock off a star.

Firstly, he conflates copyediting with proofreading. These are two very different stages of the editing process. What my copyeditor does is very different from what my proofreader does. Copyeditors edit for style, consistency (in prose and plot/character), word choice, sentence structure and even semantics. Proofreaders generally correct for errors only, though they might query if something is unclear. I’m surprised that Dean, as a long-time editor himself, conflates the two.

The second thing is more a matter of opinion. In Sacred Cow #10, he suggests writers may be better off in the long run by learning to design their own covers rather than hiring a cover designer and putting their cover in someone else’s hands.

This seems a wee bit paranoid to me. Sure, there are bad artists out there, but the good artists are easy to find now and their prices are more than reasonable for the value a great cover provides. Could I spend years and hundreds of hours studying the market, learning color theory and photo manipulation to create covers of the same quality as my designer does? Sure. Am I better off spending that time writing? Yes. It fails my personal WIBBOW (Would I Be Better Off Writing?) test. But your mileage may vary.

[Miguel Ángel Alonso Pulido · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sobre Dean Wesley Smith solo puedo decir que si estoy escribiendo ahora estas líneas es gracias a él. Su blog es una lectura obligada y un ejemplo de cómo ofrecer todos los días contenido fresco, interesante y útil. Con todo, no es un superventas, pero es que no necesitas ser un escritor de best-sellers para vivir de la literatura y Dean es un buen ejemplo de ello. Parte del éxito de Dean está explicado en este libro, en el que no deja títere con cabeza y acaba con diez de los mitos más arraigados en escritores y lectores sobre la escritura. Sigo a Dean desde hace tiempo y ya había leído estos artículos cuando los publicó en su blog, pero volví a comprarlo en un pack de storybundle porque lo merece. Es un libro que te hará abrir los ojos y perder el miedo a escribir y a divertirte escribiendo. Si quieres dedicarte a escribir, no pierdas ni un minuto y hazte con él.

[Miguel Ángel Alonso Pulido · Rating 5 out of 5]

Si el primer Killing the top ten sacred cows fue uno de los libros que más me impulsó a escribir, como conté en mi reseña, esta segunda entrega sube el listón y afronta el lado económico de este negocio (porque es un negocio, si te lo tomas como un pasatiempo no necesitas leer este libro). Hay muchos buenos consejos encerrados en este libro, que recomiendo a todo escritor independiente que quiera ganarse la vida escribiendo. Me quedo con la necesidad de pensar a largo plazo y escribir siguiendo tus impulsos artísticos y no las tendencias del mercado. Viniendo de un escritor con cuarenta años de experiencia en todos los campos de la publicación tradicional e independiente, creo que esos consejos tienen mucho más valor. Una lectura absolutamente recomendada

[E.S.O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book, an excellent blog, and an excellent series.

At first I was turned off by the blog because it was so revolutionary and contrary to everything I'd been told about being a writer--and having gone to graduate school for creative writing, I'd been told a lot of things. But the more I researched and the more I thought about things, the more it seemed that Dean Wesley Smith is, in fact, brilliant.

I'm so grateful I came across these books when I did. They have totally shifted my approach to writing and publishing.

[Lawrence Caldwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book on the various myths in the writing business. I can't remember what all was in this because I read it a while back, but I remember it being a valuable book. I should probably read it again.

Edit, February 2021
Great reminders in here. Glad I picked this up again. His chapter on the Magic Bakery stuff is really good.

[Winter Bayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick myth buster. Lead me to his blog which I enjoyed reading.

[Anna Tan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been putting off reading this for a while now, so it's probably 4 years out of date, seeing how fast the publishing industry changes year to year. I mainly picked it up because I needed more ammo for my Paths to Publishing project, so I thought I'd see what Dean Wesley Smith had to say.

On the whole, most of what he says seems to be good advice and supremely encouraging for a new writer trying to "break" into publishing. He seems to be more of a self-publishing advocate, though he holds that there are good reasons to try to get into traditional publishing. (Funny, since he's traditionally published for the most part). A LOT of what he says also goes against the grain of what is being taught in creative writing courses *clears throat*... but are also things that I've picked up along the way from the past three years figuring out my writing and publishing goals.

...Also, he uses the term indie-published, indie writers, etc, so I feel slightly vindicated because I got chewed out for using "indie publishing" to refer to self-publishing and small/one-person publishing houses or collectives in outlining my proposed project and was told that "I need to show my professional knowledge of the industry" by um, not using the term that everyone else except old farts are using. I shall try not to be bitter. The world changes very quickly; it's easy to become irrelevant without realising it.

The only thing I am unsure about (and maybe it's a sacred cow I'm too scared to kill) is that agents have 0 use in the industry. I mean, personally, I know that agents are probably made too much of and you can succeed without one, or by going indie, but at the same time, the way the publishing industry seems to work in the UK, you most probably (like 80%) need one to get a foot in the door at all. He seems to indicate that it IS possible to ignore "no unsolicited/agented" notices and direct email the editor anyway, but I don't know if that's a UK/USA difference, his prediction of the agent/publisher relationship has veered off in the intervening 4 years, or he's not realising the industry-veteran privilege he has for having been in the industry for 30+ years.

Still. It's a good book to read if only to open your eyes to the myriad ways you can actually succeed as a writer and not buy into the starving-artist-closed-market-constant-rewrite mindset.

[Janine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dean Wesley Smith details ten of the most destructive and well spread writing and publishing “rules” that has crushed writers, new and old over the years. If you have had a serious interest in writing fiction for any amount of time, you’ve come across at least one, if not all of them. Smith calls them “sacred cows” of publishing due to their spread as hard fast commandments in much of the writing community, both online and off. He explains each of the “sacred cows”, their origins and why they are destructive, and counters the myth through the lessons he has learned in his four decades of fiction writing experience.

This book was, and still is a life saver; I was trapped in the myths for a while, and found my interest in writing almost snuffed out. Smith does not sugar coat with his blunt delivery, but at the same time, it’s a relief to be free of a lot of the constraints that have been put on by myself and others because “it’s the way it’s done” in the writing world. I’m able to do things my way instead of crushing myself trying to follow “the right way”. I come back to certain chapters as a confidence boost when I get bombarded with these sacred cows elsewhere and feel like I’m doing things wrong. As a warning, you have to have an open mind to at least consider his proposals. If not, you’re not going to get much out of this book, sadly.

There’s a follow up book, Killing the Top Ten Sacred Cows of Indie Publishing that is geared more towards indie writers and authors, and a third book in the works, which will be published once he assembles ten more myths (he’s up to #6 as of this posting).

[K.M. Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that new writers will want to set on fire. However, if you are no longer a new writer, but kind of a medium writer with a few books under your belt, and the old tips don't seem to apply to you anymore ... this is the next step. This book will tell you how to take charge of your writing, of your career, and move forward in your business. But you can't be a new writer who is still learning to write. However, a new writer could benefit from this book, because it will clear out a lot of bad advice that they're probably busy ingesting from all the big name writing blogs. This book will teach you how to be a butthead. And in business, you want to be a butthead.

[Greg Enslen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent insider look at "indie" publishing over the last twenty years--actually, the author lays out the argument that there have always been "indie" publishers and vanity presses. Edgar Rice Burroughs apparently started his own press to publish some of his works, so it's not outside the realm of normalcy for authors to seek other avenues to publication rather than genuflecting to the New York City publishing empire. And interesting read, and one that generated a lengthy list of "to dos" for me to tackle in the upcoming months. Wish me luck!

[Charlotte Dune · Rating 5 out of 5]

every writer should go read this

This book is extremely relevant. I actually wish it was outdated and I wish publishing had changed since 2014, but if anything it’s gotten worse so this book is perfect. I know so many writers falling for these myths, and by falling for the myths they are reducing their output by at least 50%. Some even to 100%. Smith is spot on. I cannot emphasize enough that every writer, whether traditionally published or self-published, should go and read this book right now. I wish I had read it years ago.

[Jery Schober · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were some useful bits for me, but about 90% of the time I disagree strongly with the author. So this book just wasn't for me. And I don't understand the hatred for teachers. Mine were all supportive, helpful and encouraging, from grade school to college *shrugs*

[Massiel · Rating 5 out of 5]

great as always! wow there are some gems in here that i would never have thought of. Dean does the work and the math and then it just clicks! boom! I shake my head with all the negative myths I held! I would read again, to remind myself about those myths I hold.

[Paul Swann · Rating 5 out of 5]

wish I’d read this years ago

Excellent advice. I’d never heard of him before last week. But I do know that I spent over 15 years trying to prepare to write by ploughing through books telling I have to outline first. Waste of years.

[Mitchell Price]

Informative and enlightening. Dean Wesley Smith both motivates and educates the contemporary writer in his thoroughly detailed advice here. Myth #5 stood out to me in particular.

Can’t wait to keep writing!

[Aaron Leyshon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Wesley-Smith's attitude. It's refreshing and honest. And if I'm going to have a career at writing I certainly ought to stop worrying about killing it by posting reviews on Goodreads.

[Jaq Greenspon · Rating 4 out of 5]

If there's only one thing to take away from this book it's that Dean Wesley Smith has traditionally published over 100 novels. Seriously. He tells us this repeatedly in order to prove his bonafides. This makes sense when you remember these ten essays were originally published on his blog (and are still there) so you weren't getting them all at once. Might have been nice to reformat or go over the collection in advance of compiling them into a book, but one of the other bits of advice we get is (in other words) never look back - keep moving forward.

Okay... that may not be entirely fair. Smith has published a lot, has run his own publishing company and given breaks to a number of unknown writers. And there's certainly some good stuff contained within these covers (I picked up the book as part of the NaNoWriMo 2014 Humble Bundle which had a number of interesting "how to" books included.). I think the biggest problem comes in when Smith asserts (and correctly, I believe) that every writer is different and then proceeds to only use himself as an example, belittling any other way of doing things. When he tells you he wrote a story in 3 hours and it sold and is still selling and see it's easy everyone can do it, he's missing the point that not everyone can, and certainly not everyone can do it in 3 hours.

His bigger, more universal ideas, that it takes practice and you need to write more than one thing are good. But then he kinda blows it again by waiting until well into the series of essays to talk about getting a grounding and learning the craft. Instead, he starts off talking about writing and self-publishing everything you write, since you can't tell what's good and what's bad - again, I tend to agree with this. What I don't agree with is the notion that publishing everything you write is good for you. As someone who's been doing it for 30 years and had some decent success, especially within the confines of "traditional publishing" (since self-publishing wasn't the option it currently is) it makes sense for him. His takeaway, that if it's not good, no one will notice and it won't hurt you in the long run, is accurate up to a point. What he doesn't take into account is ego (both good and bad) and improvement. You don't get better if no one is telling you what you're doing wrong. Merely having a reader fix your typos isn't sufficient in all cases.

He quotes Algys Budris about "No matter how many times you stir up a steaming pile of crap, it's still a steaming pile of crap." This is all well and good, but what if it's NOT a steaming pile and just needs a little touch up? Smith's advice seems to be if it's not salable in the first draft, chuck it and start over. And here again, this might be what works for him, but he never stops to consider there might be other ways of doing things... and I think that's a huge disservice to writers.

All that said, once you get past his words on paper writing advice, his business advice seems to be pretty sound. His rage against agents seems a bit personal but it is what it is. His take on self-publishing makes sense. Even his thoughts on what to write all jibe with good business practice. So yeah, in the end the essays are worth reading (especially grabbing them from his website) just understand his advice that all writer's are different and most writing teachers don't know anything includes his words, too.

[Marion Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the last ten plus years as an author-publisher, I have learned about the publishing business on that level. Also, I have carried a lot of beliefs that I’m unlearning. Dean Wesley Smith (along with his wife, Kristine Kathryn Rusch) has helped in that unlearning process and I’m truly grateful there are veteran authors willing to share their knowledge and hard-earned wisdom about being a fiction writer and a publisher.

Originally posted on his blog, Smith has taken on the top ten myths in traditional publishing. According to him, these myths have been more detrimental to writers’ careers than required. Smith makes clear throughout Killing the Top Ten Sacred Cows of Publishing this is only one writer’s advice and every writer’s path to a professional career is different. Let me repeat that last part of the prior sentence. Every writer’s path to a professional career is different. And this will be the first piece of advice I would give to anyone who wants to pursue writing professionally in the social media age.

Smith lays out his argument by dispelling these ten sacred cows of publishing:

1) There is only one right way to do anything in publishing

2) Writing fast is bad

3) You must rewrite to make something good

4) You must have an agent to sell a book

5) Books are events

6) Selling a novel to traditional publishing will guarantee the novel is a quality; or conversely not selling a novel to traditional publishing will mean the novel is not quality

7) To sell to either editors or readers, you must write what is hot

8) You can’t make a living with your fiction

9) To be good, writing must be hard

10) If I do (this or that) I will kill my career

Smith writes straightforwardly attacking these myths and how they can cripple a writer’s career before it gains any traction. I think the sacred cows he critiques the most are the ideas that writing quickly is harmful, revising is necessary to produce quality work, and traditional publishing guarantees a novel’s excellence. I believe Smith has gotten the most resistance from going after these sacred cows.

To conclude, I will share some of the most inspiring words I’ve come across as a writer and publisher. This is from the last chapter where Smith writes what can kill a writer’s career.

Any writer that stops writing and just becomes an “author,” (a person who has written) will kill their own career. That’s how careers are killed. A writer stops writing. It really is that simple.

But if you go into everything you do in publishing, believing the myth that you can make a mistake and kill your career, you will make all your decisions from a position of fear. And you will make horrid decisions.

If you never stop writing, gain some courage, and stop worrying about killing your career, you might be stunned at what you can manage in this business. You will write and enjoy the writing until the day you die. And that’s a great reward. So stop worrying and go have fun.

Amen. I recommend reading Killing the Top Ten Sacred Cows of Publishing, even if you don’t agree with the arguments presented. It’s valuable and will encourage you to approach writing in a new way.

[S.L. Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an interesting take on the world of publishing. He gives me hope!

[Juan Eduardo Castellon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short but straight-to-the-point

[CL · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're a writer seeking publication, READ THIS BOOK!

A friend/CP recommended it to me and I read it in one sitting. Succinct, well-written, and blunt. Unlike a lot of writers on this topic, Smith doesn't repeat himself endlessly, but only underscores the main ideas a few times to hit home the truth of what he's saying. He's completely blown the lid off my notions of how publishing/editors/agents *really* work, as well as my attitude toward writing itself. The myths he lists here are probably just the tip of the iceberg, but these are all biggies and each one broke down some walls I've had in my head for a long time.

BUY THIS BOOK! :)

And I'd never heard of him before either, but I've since researched his work and he's prolific, having sold over 100 novels to traditional publishers and now he's gone the indie route successfully, too.

[Stephanie Bibb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up with the NaNoWriMo StoryBundle selection. While I don't necessarily agree with everything said, the topics are of interest to anyone planning on publishing their work, and the book held useful information. The controversial topics added a nice counter argument to many preconceived 'myths' of publishing. Regardless of whether or not a person chooses to follow these philosophies, knowing what they are and reading the points made is educational and informative, and may be useful to anyone considering whether to try self-publishing or going the trade route.

The book provides ten 'myths' and explanations of those myths, as well as arguments as to why those myths are myths, and what can be done about them.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I read it before, and then I just re-read it today. Some of the information may be common sense, some may be completely new to you. Either way, I think most people will find something good and something to motivate them to finally write that book, get back to writing, or to keep going, which ever the case may be.

The author dispels in a no-nonsense and clear way several pervasive myths that can keep people from writing. I've come away from this with a renewed enthusiasm to get back into writing. Maybe you will, too. We're drawing close to NaNoWriMo, and I think a lot of people could find this book helpful.

[Martin Rinehart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not up there with Quinn or Platt/Truant as a general purpose How-to-Succeed-as-an-Indie books, but...

First, note that he says Indie Publishing, not Indie Writing. Second, go to his writer's page and start browsing. I think he has '319 distinct works' (yes, three hundred nineteen). And his own publishing company. So if you think you'll be writing a few books Smith is for you. If you'll want your own publishing company (so you can be found in bookstores - and he says bookstores are coming back) Smith is for you.

By the by, both his 'Killing the Top Ten' books (and an incomplete third one) are available free from his website.

[E.S.O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book, an excellent blog, and an excellent series.

At first I was turned off by the blog because it was so revolutionary and contrary to everything I'd been told about being a writer--and having gone to graduate school for creative writing, I'd been told a lot of things. But the more I researched and the more I thought about things, the more it seemed that Dean Wesley Smith is, in fact, brilliant.

I'm so grateful I came across these books when I did. They have totally shifted my approach to writing and publishing.

[Adam Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another quality book on publishing by Dean Wesley Smith. This one deals with myths about the indie publishing revolution, ideas that books published ooutside the traditional means are of low quality, that it is easy to do, that you have to price your books lower because nobody's heard of you. That kind of thing. He destroys these myths in about a hundred odd pages. Necessary reading for indie writers, but be forewarned. Smith doesn't pull his punches, and if you don't want you artiste toes stepped on, this isn't the book for you.