The question that changes everything
How to reach your (real) goals faster.
One simple question for you: What would you do differently if you truly believed you’d reach your writing goals?
If you were certain to become a New York Times bestseller, or make millions from your novels, or whatever your true dream—the one you don’t admit to anyone—might be:
Which of your current problems would no longer seem like problems?
How would that influence how you spent your time, energy, and/or money?
What would you change right now?
It’s worth taking a few minutes to answer these questions as specifically as possible—and then adjusting your action plan accordingly. (I did this very exercise this morning and it prompted me to carve out half a day each week for book marketing.)
Call it the publishing paradox: Behaving like a novelist who’s already reached their goal is exactly how you reach that goal. For example, many writers tell me that they’ll spend more time interacting with readers after they’re a bestselling author. But interacting with readers is part of how you become a bestselling author. Those positive comments, emails, and DMs are how you build an audience of readers who can’t wait to buy your next book.
Admittedly, acting “as if” can be difficult—because the logical part of your brain will want proof the changes will be worth it. (Remember, the human brain is wired to preserve energy and avoid discomfort.) Clients will often tell me, “I don’t want to waste my time or money if I’m not sure I’ll have anything to show for it!”
I get it. But the truth is, getting good requires repetition. As I pointed out on a recent podcast episode, how does an athlete go pro? They practice all the time. How does an artist master their craft? They work on it constantly and consistently … until they have something to show for it.
One more question for you: Is doing what you want to do and working to become the person you want to be really a waste of time or money?
For me, the answer’s always going to be no.
If you’re published—or under contract to publish in the next year—I have three spaces available in the Prolific Mastermind. After running two cohorts of Prolific earlier this year, I can say with certainty that the curriculum’s the best I’ve ever created and the community isn’t just supportive; it’s a game-changer. You’ll find the curriculum here. We kick off June 11.
Happy writing,
Camille
This email was written without AI.
Amazing as usual! I used to roll my eyes at people who were blindly confident starting out and now I'm finding myself being that person because it feels like it's working!
Great piece! I definitely needed to read this. Acting "as if" is so tough even though I know it's ultimately the final barrier. I'm trying to improve at this by using the following stratgies:
1) Pretend like I'm talking about someone else's book, so the stakes aren't related to me at all and it becomes just a story I'm excited about.
2) Pretend I'm talking about food I've cooked instead of a book I wrote. I've devoted years and years of practice to improve my skills in the kitchen and in writing, but for some reason hyping something I've cooked is way easier and less personal. (This could easily be adapted to any competency.)
3) Remind myself of my "resume" writing skills. No, I am not a bestselling author, but I've spent fifteen years building a writing-based career, including publishing 60+ articles in my local newspaper and working as a QA editor in Big Tech customer care for over 7 years. Devoting more time to fiction, my first and deepest writing love, is only the natural next step.
All of these make me CRINGE but practice makes perfect I guess 🫠 In a year I hope to be much more comfortable with it all.