Rewards for writing

Sure, the first thing people think of when they think of any rewards for writing is the money that the big authors receive. Then they think of the perks of celebrity; the appearances on late-night talk shows, trips to LA to see the progress made on movies taken from their work, trips to location shoots, that kind of thing. Well, for most writers, there is very little money, no appearances on TV, no trips. Just the satisfaction of having some of their books rise in the rankings and possibly get nearly as far as becoming a bestseller.

For myself, I have one book that has achieved a very minor milestone that is useful only for 'bragging rights'. Gulf of the Plains has been in the Top 100 Kindle Genre Novels at least one day every week since it was published in May of 2010. And, it has been in the Top 25 in the UK at least three times. A small but enthusiastic fan group has latched onto it, and me, and is helping to drive sales. That is gratifying for a small-town boy who never had anyone pay any attention to him or his efforts at bettering himself. While I was a highly competent Mainframe Computer Operator and Communications Specialist for 34 years for a major oil company, there was always this need to write and tell stories that people might enjoy. My writing career might have been much further along if I had been able to write while I was still employed there, but I doubt it. There was little free time and my frame of mind was centered more on the job than it was on fulfilling my potential as a writer.

Now, I admit that my achievement in writing is very small; almost negligible compared to many much younger writers, but it is more than I ever accomplished before. I doubt that I will ever become one of the big authors, able to command million dollar advances or anything like that, but I enjoy what I am doing and will continue to write. If a few hundred or thousand readers recognize my name and picture, then that's more recognition than I had before.

Thank you,
Derek A. Murphy
Author of Gulf of the Plains, Gulf of the Plains II: Fog and Bog, Congruencies and others.