Publishing — like music, film, business, or sports — is not a solo act. Therefore, climbing the ladder of success always involves some sort of compromise, some sort of give and take. Of course, WHAT one is willing to give and take along the way is the cause of much heartbreak.
Writers typically frame their dilemma this way:
“Do I compromise what I really want to write in order to make a living or get my foot in the door?” or “Do I write the story of my heart and let the chips fall where they may?”
There is a certain nobility (sometimes feigned) by artists who rage against the machine. You know some of these people, right? They refuse to adapt their style to the market. They rail against the money-grubbing gatekeepers. They scoff at “the rules.” They chafe against industry decorum. They denounce the status quo. They disparage what is commonly accepted as popular art. They would rather die anonymous than be a patented sellout.
They are [insert angelic choirs] principled.
Sometimes being “principled” is a cop-out. No, I’m not suggesting being a sell-out isn’t. I’m suggesting that we sometimes use the term “principled” as a smokescreen.
Sometimes being “principled” is really just
- Pigheadedness
- Inflexibility
- Disdain
- Institutional prejudice
- Lack of professional savvy
Of course, there’s many artists who have resisted conformity and we are better off for it. But is “resisting conformity” the golden rule? Truth is, the “starving artist” is often one who holds the ticket to her next meal. Your “hunger strike” could be avoided by simply seeing your talent as a tool rather than the Holy Grail.
Nevertheless, knowing when to compromise and when to hold your ground is the gist of creative enterprise. Just don’t be fooled into thinking that all compromise is selling out.
- Compromise is “selling out” when you become a puppet of the institution; your talents exist only to oil the machine, your originality and vision is replaced by groupthink, the ties that bind are actually nooses, you are an organizational prop.
- Compromise is “selling out” when your integrity, morality, and highest principles are sacrificed in the process; you lose yourself for the sake of success / power / fame / advancement / personal gain, “high ground” is vacated for “safe ground,” your birthright is squandered for three square meals a day.
- Compromise is “selling out” when your unique voice and vision is squelched; you no longer have any real creative freedom or input, you are coerced into complicity, you cannot air opinions lest you bite the hand that feeds you, someone else holds the deed to your creative license.
No matter how unique your vision, you probably can’t go it alone. You will need to compromise, involve others, solicit others, confide in others, team up, and make concessions along the way. This is definitely true in publishing. I know, I know — the publishing world is changing, you say. The self-published author can do it “their way” (which is code for remaining [cue angelic choirs] principled).
But while the solo artist might maintain creative freedom, they often lose something in the process, namely collaboration. It is precisely the thing that they most fear (other eyes), that they can most benefit from.The self-published author may not have sold their soul to the devil, but the chances of them selling their book is equally remote.
Compromise can be painful. But if it makes my product better and gives me the opportunity to make more of it, then it’s the smart thing to do. Or as Benny G said, “You’ve got to give a little, take a little, let your poor heart break a little.”
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Question: Do you agree that being “principled” can sometimes be a cop-out? Do you think it’s better to compromise what you really want to write in order to make a living or get your foot in the door? Or is it better to write the story of your heart and let the chips fall where they may?
WordServe Water Cooler 
Compromise! Mmmm, I think being principled and compromise can work together. You don’t have to be a traitor to your principles to compromise, you can compromise your compromise, if you know what I mean!
As a children’s author I was concerned at the level of witchcraft, magic, werewolves, anger and aggression etc, in children’s lit today, but when I sent my first manuscript to be edited, I was told it was too sweet, cute & cuddly and it should contain more antagonism. So what should I do? I felt my characters were supposed to be cute & cuddly, and I wanted children to feel warm and fuzzy and I didn’t want to make them have flaws. Eventually, after thought & prayer I did rewrite it making the characters more rounded individuals and it worked. I didn’t have to compromise on my principles, but I did compromise to fit with todays market.
However, if you want to make money out of your writing, you may have to re-evaluate if your book is too morally high. Reality without dropping your principles I feel is possible.
This is an interesting “real-world” perspective on the post. I love your thought about reality without dropping your principles…that’s what I’m trying to figure out. Particularly where children are concerned, we have this compulsion to protect them from all ugliness. I think about people I know who don’t believe young children should know anything about or be thinking about death at all–yet death is a normal part of life, and one we should be teaching kids to approach with a healthy attitude, not a morbid fear. I think there’s value in portraying reality, acknowledging it, and trying to show a healthy and morally-upright way of approaching it.
I don’t have any answers to your questions, but I thank you for the thoughtful way you ask them.
I am in the midst of this dilemma in writing my dissertation about church unity. At one point in the approval process, I had rewritten my proposal for the fourth time to give the professor exactly what he wanted — and then never submitted it because I didn’t want to give into the pressure to conform my thoughts to his theology. The fifth proposal was eventually accepted and is moving forward, albeit slowly — and I am doing my best to capitulate to the opinions of the reviewers.
This is such a great post. I always have to shake my head when I come across writers who say “I’m going to write it the way I envision it, and if someone has a problem with it, I’ll deal with it later.” I think it’s foolish to ignore the collective wisdom of those who have come before–at least, to ignore it altogether. I struggle with CW and how my writing fits into it (or doesn’t), but I’m always looking for a way to make those two visions jive. We’re *not* the center of the universe, and none of us have it all figured out. We all have things we can learn.
Thanks for the thoughtful post!
Interesting that the first comments are from kidlit folks, like moi! You touch on a HUGE topic.
I attended several conferences over several years. Each trip I learned more and worked diligently after returning home. But it became apparent NY wasn’t buying what we’re selling. The agents and editors I met were interested in pushing the envelope, being edgy, subtle sex (or in one case, outright pornography – for CHILDREN – I kid you not), dark, dystopian, no hope and the like.
I will never write that.
No compromise.
I reject that worldview, pure and simple.
Our objective with May on the Way: How I Become a K9 Spy is to offer a great story to animal lovers 8 and up, with a Christian worldview. It’s a secular story but the underlying themes are Biblical.
We found a trusted writing coach, someone who holds the same core values and worldview, and let her butcher my baby. At her suggestion, (deeeeep breath) I completely rewrote it, cutting here, adding a wee bit there, changing the POV to “first dog.” I incorporated almost every suggestion. And why not? She was correct and knows what she is talking about! (Which – duh – is why we hired her!)
Is this compromise?
No.
HOWEVER!! The main character is abused, a minor but beloved character dies… So it’s not as if we shy from difficult topics. But we choose to tackle them with the premise of hope and enthusiasm for the future. We want readers to have better lives after thinking about the story.
Then we…
GULP
independently published. (Another skill set recently tackled.)
We formed a publishing company, found a fabulous illustrator and book designer, procured a top notch book manufacturer and set off on the next phase of this adventure!
We are thrilled with the response thus far. But as you know, without a 5-6 figure marketing budget, getting the word out is a real challenge. But we’re all creative folks here right? It can be done! Library, school and nursing home visits, appearing at festivals with the real May, cross-marketing with another company (pet treats), carrying the book and plush toy around and showing people at the grocery store, in line at the bank… All this is helping. In fact, last week someone ordered 25 books for a 2nd grade class several states over! May did a backflip! WAHOO!
Bottom line? The book is in God’s plan one way or another. He will either promote this series… or not. My job is to do the best I can with the stories He gives me and the tools available, and to honor Him in the process.
I’m loving the journey so far! Posts and comments like these are so encouraging. I usually lurk but had to comment today. Thanks so much! Have a great writing weekend!!!
KC, I agree with you that some YA lit is becoming thematically darker. The instance you cite is probably a good example of when an author should not compromise. Thanks for commenting!
Yes, being “principled” can sometimes be a cop-out. I’ve seen it play out very recently, in fact. Always leaves a bad taste behind for those unlucky enough to witness it.
I don’t think the last two questions you’ve posed have to be an either/or situation. It is possible to do both. Laurie Alice Eakes is a shining example of this, and she talked about her journey through this very issue on the ACFW blog this past week.
My heart and passion is to write historical romance set in Russia. Talk about a hard sell! Michael Phillips I am not. But I also love my home state, Louisiana. So I decided to write historical romance set here where I live, in the other time period I’m really passionate about: The decade leading up to the Civil War, the war itself, and Reconstruction. The strategy is obviously working because the first book in the series has been requested by two agents. There are things I’m willing to compromise on, to sell the book. But there are other things I’m not willing to compromise. But, being willing to listen to input even on the things I don’t think I can compromise on, opened up a better way to depict my hero’s spiritual journey and contrast the cultures he’s caught between.
My advice to other writers is don’t get hung up in the either/or. There is always a way to write what you want to write, and still write something that can sell. Take the time, do the work, and find that way. I did, and I’m so very thankful I had the guts to do it.
You may as well write your story because someone will like it and someone will hate it. If it is a publisher they will choose what meets their need anyway,so just try another publisher.
I used to say I could compromise on technique issues but not on theological issues. And then I had an editor cut a very short piece I’d written in half. She made the piece ugly. The transitions didn’t work, the humor was gone, and the point I was making disappeared. It wasn’t a theological problem but an artistic one. The short piece paid a couple of hundred of bucks, but I didn’t want my name on work that was so shabbily done. So I asked her if I could publish it under a pseudonym. That ticked her off and instead of publishing the piece she returned it with a lecture on how I needed to learn to be edited. (I failed to sign the contract and return it soon enough so they didn’t pay me even though I’d delivered the article they asked for.)
So, was I too difficult to work with? It not only cost me 225 dollars but it cost me future work with them and it cost me a clip in a national magazine. I’ve never regretted it, though. If I don’t believe a piece is well done, I don’t want my name on it.
Had she sent the article back to me and asked me to cut in half I would have done it, even though that’s not what the contract called for. That’s a compromise I am always willing to make.
Sometimes compromise is related to cooperation. We can’t afford to see things absolutely through our own eyes. We should be willing to acknowledge that the other person might have a good point too and try to see both sides of the issue.
Failing that, if one can afford it, they can publish their own stuff and do everything on their own. In that case, have fun marketing your own principles.
Lee
I’m not smart enough, talented enough, and don’t know enough to write a book without first readers, an agent, editors and encouragers. I love your definition of compromise, Mike. It makes a lot of things fall into place.
Very well said! What I have written has always been better after being subjected to good editing.
Mike, this is a very good post, and thought-provoking.
Yes, I see the “principled” on the blogs. I think there’s a good reason and a not-so-good reason to be principled. A good reason is that you refuse to offend your Lord and Savior or violate your basic morality. I won’t write a book that would shame me in front of Jesus. That doesn’t mean my books are or will be perfect (ha ha ha), but that my goal in writing them is to bring glory to Him and entertain in the process.
A not-so-great reason to be “principled” is that the “publishers are all wrong; all published books are dreck; so-and-so would never be published these days”, etc, etc, etc. As a degreed musician, I’ve seen plenty of this “principle” applied in the music world. What people don’t realize is that Mozart wrote party music and most of the great composers were hired to write what their employer wanted: ie, church music, party music, music to greet dignitaries, etc. They were given much creative license to make that music reflect their tastes and talents, but they were still somewhat restricted by their assignment.
The modern comparison is movie soundtracks. Many composers are hired to write music for movies. They know they can’t write a piano concerto for a horror movie, but they can be creative within the bounds of what they’re hired to do. It’s just professional savvy to deliver what your audience expects; it’s artistic license to be able to have great input into that final product within the expectations you’ve been given.
I want to write books that sell. Perhaps that makes me a “sell out”, but what good is writing for publication if you never consider what publishers want? In the meantime, I have a story sitting on my hard drive that is purely my “from the heart” book (not that I don’t pour parts of my heart into every novel I write). It matters not whether that novel sells. In writing it, I learned much about God, myself, and the world around me. That’s enough of a payoff, even if it never sees the light of day.
Sorry this is so long; this is an aspect of writing I think about often. God bless you.
I am a “real novice” and I am so appreciative for all the questions and comments from all of you. I have a blog that I post to frequently and I am adamant about “keeping it clean” though I wish others would do the same. I am always excited to receive feedback. The more salient the post is, the more feedback it gets. I tend to write about my life experiences and my relationship with my Savior – this doesn’t seem to draw a lot of attention. However, I must be true to myself and not let me get drawn into compromising for the sake of “getting more feedback”.
Thanks again for being so honest and it helps others to see what others think.
I wouldn’t term being principle as a facet of copping out. As someone starting out in the writing business, being practical and ambitious needs to strike a balance. There are days that I would honestly prefer to just write my book (whose market I don’t know), but more often than not, I do that in my spare time and instead do the SEO and blog posts that actually help pay the bills.
Principle, applied, means knowing when to prioritize and part of our job as writer is to make sure that we’re healthy enough to do what we love to do. Sometimes that involves taking on jobs that is far from the topic, niche or type of content we’re passionate about, and seeing the “for meal” jobs as a means and not an end.
Deciding to be inflexible in the name of being principled is not a total cop-out, but a form of narrow-mindedness that will stifle the full realization of your potential in the long-run.
When I began writing ten years ago I think I misunderstood compromise and journey. I wanted to write from the deepest places of my heart and share my hard-earned insights. Wise novelists ahead of me on the journey suggested I try simpler stories first, learn the ropes, get my foot in the door, etc. But it felt that would be a compromise. I believed I knew my calling and kept digging into difficult projects. I don’t regret my choices. I needed to learn all I learned from that experience. But ten years later I’m different. I still protect the place I believe the LORD is taking me. I still want to eventually writer from those deeper places with more difficult story set-ups. But I’m also learning I can write my Father’s heart in a myriad of ways; it doesn’t have to be within the perimeters of the boxes I began with. And guess what? Doors are opening for me. Funny how that happens.
Since when is being principled to be equated with “nobility”? I work in an ethical profession, and I assure you I don’t consider myself among the nobility because I refuse to do something, sign something, issue something that violates professional ethics. How is it any different with writing? Compromise has nothing to do with principles. Compromise is seeing how principles have been misapplied, and that another way—a better way—exists to meet your goals without sacrificing principles.
I really don’t understand that part of your post.