Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Victoria Goddard. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Victoria, appreciate you joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I have been writing quite seriously since I was a teenager, but initially pursued an academic path for my career. About ten years ago I came to the end of my first teaching contract and decided that instead of chasing academic jobs around North America, I would instead focus on my creative writing as my career as well as my vocation. After spending some time travelling, I settled in a rural (and relatively inexpensive) region close to my family and looked for something that would more or less pay the bills while still letting me have a lot of time and energy for writing and building that as a career. I ended up buying a small business selling cheese at a local farmers market, and while there was a steep learning curve for the business side of it, it did indeed allow me to keep writing. It also taught me a lot about business, which has been extremely useful for getting to the point of a full-time living.

I came up with a business plan of sorts for my writing career. I decided to go indie (self-publishing) because it provides a great deal more control over all aspects including the business side of things, and because I decided that what I wanted to write–interconnected series and standalones–would do better if I could be in control of publication. After doing more research, I determined that I could probably expect to be making a living after I had around 17-20 books out (this counts both novels and novellas; short stories are a bit different). I was at, I think, 17 when one book took off and started to lift sales of all the others, and around 20 when I reached the point where I felt confident that it wasn’t just a spike but a new level. I was therefore able to sell my other business, and have spent a year writing (and publishing) full-time with no regrets.

I’m not sure I could have sped up the process any–I needed to get to a certain level of craft, and that requires practice. Learning about how small businesses work was immeasurably helpful, and I think I could have done well to learn more about that earlier. I was struck by how many long-term full-time authors talked about how knowing business was key to their success, and I’m glad I listened. I am also glad I persisted–taking the time to research, develop a reasonable plan, and sticking to it even when things didn’t seem to be going anywhere was what let me take advantage of the incredible stroke of good fortune I had when another writer with a large following discovered one of my books and promoted it to their social media followers. That was luck, absolutely, but I had set up my processes for success and so was able to ride the wave and build on it.

Victoria, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a fantasy novelist who writes stories with a strong theme of friendship; I find goodness in all its multifaceted variety very interesting, and enjoy exploring different ways of trying to act well in difficult circumstances (large and small). I also like exploring other worlds, magic, different cultures, and imagining how other forms of government or social organization might work.

While I started writing as a teenager, and have been exploring the same narrative universe ever since, I started off with an academic career. I have a background in the humanities and medieval studies (I did my PhD on the interplay of philosophy and poetry in Boethius and Dante), which comes out in circuitous ways in my stories. I enjoy playing with form and expectations, but I think my love of people in all their diversity tends to be what draws people to my work. Sometimes it’s nice to read about people making (mostly) good decisions and still finding their life very complicated as a result.

My most popular book is “The Hands of the Emperor,” which is about peace, order, good government, and friendship between people who are not equals but would like to be, as well as exploring questions such as cultural assimilation, family dynamics, traditional knowledge and lore-keeping, and retirement. That book and its sequel, “At the Feet of the Sun,” are the books I am most proud of–though I keep pushing myself and perhaps in a year or two I’ll have another one to add to the list!

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

One of the differences between a creative vocation and many other careers is that artists tend to do their work regardless of remuneration–but that doesn’t mean we don’t want to be paid! In the beginning stages, when I was writing and publishing with very little response, I definitely had people question the validity of my activities. I even developed a business plan, which helped. Now that I am more successful (in terms of people finding and enjoying my work, and also making a living from it), it’s easier for people to accept that it’s ‘real work’.

I suppose what I can say is that it’s important to encourage and support persistence, especially at the beginning. Artists can’t start at the very top, any more than lawyers or plumbers (or university professors) do. If you look at “treating your art as a career” as the beginning–equivalent to starting specialized training for your profession–then the fact that it is undoubtedly going to take three or five or ten years to get to solid renown is easier to comprehend. It’s also easier to be patient and persistent when you look at it that way!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I love getting to share my stories and the characters I have been imagining for years with people. I really enjoy having people tell me how my books have touched their lives–I have been so strongly shaped and impacted by the books I have read over the years that it’s absolutely wonderful to be able to pay that forward through my own work.

There are practical things I find very rewarding, too. I really like being able to shape my day more or less as I want, to walk the dogs when I need a break, etc. I find it very rewarding to be able to look on a book and I know that I did all the work bar the actual printing (though of course that’s my own interest–perhaps in future I’ll hire out for more parts of the book design process), and I find it incredibly pleasing to be making a living through my storytelling. I am proud of myself for persisting through the years of indifference or very little response, having faith in myself and my art, and being able to keep writing and having fun now.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.victoriagoddard.ca
• Twitter: @_vgoddard

Image Credits
Victoria Goddard