Writing is Like Poker...

I was at a game of poker last night with my husband and some friends and it occurred to me that writing and playing the publishing game is a lot like playing poker...very much like gambling. You put your words together and throw your "ante" out there to the publisher, who is like the dealer because they hold all the cards, and as you sit around the table of marketing and promotion with your fellow authors you hold in your hands your secret weapon...the "cards" that you feel will win the table over and enable you to win. And so you toss in your chips as you pay endlessly for items needed to promote yourself, whether it is bookmarks, posters and announcement cards or a fee you pay an agent, those chips go into the middle of the pot and it grows. Some hide behind a name and bluff their way to the top as everyone folds to them, intimidated. Some have true talent and hold the winning hand. Some just play to have a good time and do what they enjoy. Regardless, it is difficult to find your way around those who up the ante higher to be able to play with them and you find yourself questioning your own worth in the business. But, no matter where you fall in the ranks...if you love doing it, never stop because you can only get better!
I am not a very good poker player but I keep going back and I learn something new each time I play. The same goes for writing. Everytime I publish I learn something new, every booksigning I learn something new, every author I meet I learn something new. I just have to get better...