Annual Report to the Stockholders from James W. Ziskin

How do you measure “business success”? How “successful” have you been in terms of “business” this year?

I’ve been teaching French in public schools for the past three years. It’s a rewarding, if time-consuming, experience. While I love working with the students and (trying) to inspire a love for language in their hearts, the workload has definitely cut into my writing time. Nevertheless, I managed to publish a short story this year and write a new novel. I consider those two accomplishments successes, especially considering my commitments at school.

I also consider my teaching job a success. Though I’m still learning to be a good teacher, I know my students appreciate my enthusiasm and my somewhat quirky efforts to make French class exciting and fun. Years from now, they will remember the love theme from Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, because I have it cued up and ready to play whenever the word aimer or amour comes up in class. I also encourage a lot of drawing and creativity. (See my whiteboard below.) All of that feels like personal and professional success to me.

But since this is a writing blog, I’ll tell you a little about my writing business successes this year. 

1. Though I haven’t written an Ellie Stone book in three years, there was some business activity on that front this year. The series has been optioned for possible development into a film or series. I’m realistic in my expectations, however, well aware that the odds of it ever making it to Netflix or Prime Video are long. Still, it’s a business win, one that gives me satisfaction. And who knows? Never say never.

2. I was invited to a couple of conferences this past year, and even received honoraria for my trouble. I won’t get rich from the proceeds, but it’s refreshing get paid a little something. Too often, authors find themselves giving their time and expertise away for nothing, in the hopes that the exposure will magically rocket them to fame.  Think of writer conferences. We pay a fee to attend, pay for a hotel, travel, and meals. Yes, we meet great people, find inspiration, and learn lots from other writers. But it’s an expensive exercise. And appearing on a panel at one of these conferences is small compensation. The conferences need authors to attract attendees, after all, yet the authors pay like everyone else, again hoping readers will discover them and buy thousands of books. A couple of years ago, I was invited to participate on a panel for an online conference. Not only was there no honorarium, I was also expected to pay $249 to view any of the conference’s other panels. For an online conference where I was a panelist! I turned them down. No thank you.

“PRISONER OF LOVE”

3. I mentioned above that I had a short story published this year. “Prisoner of Love” is a fun tale about a murder at a 1954 New Year’s Eve wife-swapping party. It appeared this past May in Down & Out Books’ Get Up Offa That Thing, edited by Gary Phillips. One thing I feel particularly proud of with this story is the that I wrote it with absolutely no dialogue. Not a word. And I wonder if readers noticed that. If anyone out there has read it, let me know if it was obvious or if it slipped under the radar.

The Prank

4. This past summer, I wrote an 85,035-word first draft of a new standalone, tentatively entitled The Prank. It took me thirty-nine days to write those 85K words. That worked out to 2,180 words per day. Why was I writing with such urgency? See above. The day job. 

I knew I could never write a book while school was in session, so I had to make the most of my summer vacation. Deadlines are the best inspiration. As September approached, I wrote faster. It was hard, but I felt I had no choice. Finish it or fail.

I finished. And that, chers amis, is what I call success, even if it never sells.