Delusion and Delirium by Poppy Gee

Being part of the literary community is one of the best parts of being a writer.

What would you do differently if you were starting your career in today’s publishing landscape?

The best part about most jobs are the people - and the writing life is no different. You spend a lot of time alone, so you need to invest time in building literary relationships. This was something I didn't do until a few years ago. Making writerly connections has been one of the best bits about my recent writing journey. 

As for the business of writing, there is no magical formula for a way to wrangle yourself a positive and hopefully lucrative experience in book publishing. There are so many stories of people who succeed and fail, or fail and succeed, or are holding on during a rollercoaster ride of everything in between. 

Here are some ideas on how to get great sales:

1. You could write a series with a smart policeman or a smart journalist as the progagonist. I see writers doing this and getting some longevity out of it - Dinuka McKenzie, Chris Hammer, Ann Cleeves, to name a few.

2. You could write a strange, warped, shocking novella like Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh - a weird and brilliant crime fiction book that was shortlisted for the Booker - the only crime novel ever to do so. 

3. You could write generic crap that seems to sell well. (Sorry! but it's true).

I've always written from the heart and that gives me satisfaction that no matter what happens with book sales etc, I have been honest, and tried my best. 

One thing I would tell my younger writing self is to not listen to the love bombing from people inside the publishing industry. I have an email saved, sent to me in 2013, from a senior US publishing industry figure, who told me I was the next Tim Winton, among other sweet pillow talk that makes a young writer's heart flutter deliriously. They should never say such things. And if I knew better, I would never have listened. When that person slunk away, disappearing like a thief in the night, my feelings were deeply hurt. It sounds silly! But a good lesson learned. 

My key advice to anyone starting out is to find a great writing community. This is vital to being a good writer. They give you oxygen, they are an ecosystem in which you will thrive and survive. Attend events, go to book launches, connect on social media, have fun and be a good literary citizen - before your book gets published. And then, when your book comes out, you'll have a great community to enjoy the experience with.