No Cats, No Coffee

Writing for the rest of us...

I think I committed the internet’s ultimate sin – I admitted I’m not a cat person.

Before you hunt me down with your keyboards, I’m not saying that I don’t like cats. I do – when I happen across one that’s content to sleep on my lap. And I’m also not saying I don’t like coffee –  I just don’t drink it. Diet Coke is my vice of choice.

Rather, updating the title of this newsletter to “No Cats, No Coffee,” is a comment about something that has perplexed me for a few years. Almost all author bios I stumble across find a way to talk about how they, 1) love a cat or a dog, 2) are obsessed/made of/only drink coffee, or 3) are some combination of 1 and 2.

Maybe long ago when the internet was young, adding these things to your bio made you stand out. It was personal, therefore different. But as the years went on and blogs became more common, it seems everyone has copied that format, to the point where it became a requirement to espouse your love of felines and caffeine to be counted among the “seriously unserious” writers of the world.

At the recent Writers of the Future workshop, I was even encouraged to post about my pets just to make me seem more personable.

I don’t have pets. And if I did, it wouldn’t be a mammal. I like bugs and fish and spiders. The five-year-old me never got over how creepy-crawly things are… cool. So, am I supposed to get a cat just to get eyes on my website?

Maybe. But I’m not going to.

One of our instructors, the multi-award-winning author Robert J. Sawyer, emphasized something else that I think is more important: be different. Robert talked about how the fiction and publishing world is a firehose of content, more so than ever with the rise of self-publishing. Even if you write amazingly well, you risk being lost in the rush of so many voices. How does one standout? Robert’s advice: show that you are different. To do that, embrace what is unique about you and don’t be shy about it.

Consider some famous authors. Neil Gaiman always wears black. Isaac Asimov had those ridiculous mutton chop sideburns. Edgar Allen Poe embraced his melancholy to write grim, dark, yet touchingly emotional poetry. Even Stephen King uses his childhood in Maine to give his characters unique Yankee voices.

So, there’s the writing lesson – be different, be yourself.

I’m going to be me.

For example, cats I’ll pass over. Bugs I like.

Take the icon for this newsletter. It’s a Green June beetle, a kind of scarab. It’s native to the southern and eastern United States, where it is a pest species for some fruit crops. However, I love Green June beetles. They have a dull, metallic exoskeleton which I find attractive. They’re also slow and docile, meaning you can easily catch one and let it crawl over your fingers or hand without fear of a bite or sting. They’re in the same family as the scarabs associated with gods worshipped by ancient Egyptians.

That’s me. But if cats and coffee are your thing, go for it. Be you.

Just don’t do it because everyone else is.

While you’re here: Today, May 7, is the release day of Writers of the Future Volume 40, containing my novelette, “Son, Spirit, Snake.” I’m very humbled and grateful to be included in this anthology, alongside 11 other award-winning authors. Each story comes with its own illustration, courtesy of the Illustrators of the Future Contest. Learn more about the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contest here, and order your own copy (print, e-book, or audiobook) wherever entertaining books are sold!