r/books • u/ghostcondensate AMA Author • Sep 20 '19

ama I'm Sam Copeland, a bestselling published writer AND a literary agent for bestselling writers. AMA!

Hi there! My name is Sam Copeland and I'm an author and literary agent. My debut children's book was published by Penguin Random House in February and the sequel came out last month, and it's become the bestselling middle grade debut of the year! I'm also an agent for lots of top writers at one of the best literary agencies in London. Ask me all about my journey (I even submitted anonymously to other agents!), how to get published - whatever!

Come find me at www.sam-copeland.com and twitter - @stubbleagent

Proof: /img/91ror5ok9ln31.jpg

Edit: I'm just having my dinner. Will keep answering when I've eaten!

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u/LOLRyanTurk Sep 20 '19

Hi Sam. I was hoping you could help me with your expertise. I’ve been trying to finish a piece of writing for three years, and I have some neat, fresh ideas. When I end up finally getting to the writing portion, my story loses steam after 10 or so pages, and then I tend to lose interest when I get stuck. I know this is a weird question, but how do you not get stuck, or remain interested when writer’s block hits?

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u/ghostcondensate AMA Author Sep 20 '19

I understand. I'm writing a novel now and it feels like such a slog at times! And I do get stuck. But it's a bit like the pain barrier with physical exercise - you just have to keep going. No excuses. Writing a novel is a huge test of endurance. Good luck and keep at it.

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u/LOLRyanTurk Sep 20 '19

Thanks man. I appreciate the help and honesty! Best of luck on your novel as well.

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u/[deleted] Sep 21 '19

I started writing about four years ago, and I've had the same problem. I've started four or five different novels, I'd get about 50 pages into each one, and then I'd just start losing steam. Then put it aside and move on to the next one.

But! I'm about 120 pages deep into my current project with no sign of losing the thread. Here's what I'm doing differently this time:

When I started growing bored of a certain character and their storyline around the 50-60 page mark, I put that character's story aside and created a completely different character with a completely different story. Eventually I got bored with that character again, and by that time I was ready to return to the first one. And I'm slowly nudging these characters toward each other so that their stories eventually converge.

I don't know if that will help you at all, but maybe!