The Myth of Overnight Success (and the Books That Sell It)

The writing books I share with students are gems—earned, honest, and useful. But the books that promise overnight success? Most working writers pause at the sight of those.

In my early, unpublished days, I picked up one such book with anticipation. It promised chart-busting success, after all. I imagined the author, post-contract, sitting in the glow of her screen, head in hands, whispering, “Someone’s going to out me for this.”

Within a chapter, I realized she had simply pasted her entire novel—from draft to completion—into a how-to format, loosely framed with vague advice. She could have summed it up in one sentence—and saved a tree.

The real success? She created a nest egg for herself. The book delivered less craft and more cash flow.

Here’s the harder truth: Revision is essential if we want to write our best stories. And yet, many beautifully written, deeply revised books are still overlooked by the public. What attracts readers—and leads to legendary book sales—is often unpredictable. The writers who do “crack the code” usually scramble to repeat the formula. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t.

That’s the game.
But let’s not forget: pimps hang out on any corner where the promise of revenue overshadows the purpose of writing.

Legitimacy, however, wears humility.
And knowing the difference helps us choose writing resources rooted in integrity—no lie.

In the end, we should write for the sheer journey of capturing humanity and dramatizing it with honesty. That’s the only formula that matters.

And the pimps?
Well, they’re always welcome to appear in our stories—as antagonists.