How to Have a Hell of a Writing Career with Jason Mott

This was previously published on Sub Club. You can find the full, original interview here.

Many of us dream about making a living as a writer, even though the odds are really, truly, horrifyingly stacked against us. Still, some manage it—and Jason Mott is one of those rare writers who has. Is there a secret to his success?

For this interview, I talked with Jason—who, among many other accolades, is a National Book Award Winner as well as an overall just wonderful human being—about the business of being a writer. We talked about his journey, both the successes and the challenges; the daily (or near daily) practices he commits to; the importance of mentors and community; and the inspiration for writing book after book after book.

Justine Payton: You're a National Book Award-winning author from your most recent title, Hell of A Book, but you wrote a number of novels before this one, too. What has that journey as a writer looked like for you?

Jason Mott: The short answer is that it's been a winding road with lots of ups and downs. Writing is a strange art, and publishing is a strange industry. Navigating the two has been a learning experience. But overall, it's been a great ride. I got really fortunate with the success of my first novel, The Returned, and with my fourth novel, Hell of a Book. And I got to see slightly less success with my third novel. But that's the nature of both the art and the business. Thankfully, good friends and mentors have made the journey pretty wonderful.

JP: Your first novel, The Returned, was adapted into a TV series. What was that experience like? Did it change anything about the way you write, or how you view your writing?

JM: My experience with adaptation was really smooth, thankfully. The production company was terrific, and the showrunner was a great guy who wound up becoming a friend.

I didn't have any involvement in the TV series, and I think that contributed to the positive experience. Over the years, I've learned a lot about how Hollywood works, and I'm not sure it's a place most writers really want to be. Most writers like to have control over their art. Hollywood can take a writer's work and turn it into something they never saw it becoming—for good, sometimes, but often for ill. There are simply many, many more cooks in the kitchen in Hollywood. And that's not saying there's anything wrong with that, it's just saying that most writers aren't prepared for that and, usually, don't enjoy the process very much.

JP: What are some things about the business of being a writer that you wish you would have known sooner?

JM: I wish I'd known just how much work—and by how many people—really goes into the production and, hopefully, success of a book. I think the image is that there's just the writer and, maybe, the editor who make a book. But that's not true. There's a whole team of people, from publicists to cover designers to interior designers and more. It takes a village to raise a book, to twist the old expression.

I guess I was surprised by how much people in the publishing industry really do care about books and want to introduce them to readers. Yes, there's a corporate component at the higher levels that can't be ignored, but overall, the people who are in publishing just love books and readers in a way that most people don't understand.

JP: I'd love to know a bit about the inspiration behind Hell of a Book. Does its success create any sense of pressure when it comes to your future books?

JM: Hell of a Book came about largely due to the Freddie Gray murder in Baltimore and a lifetime of being Black in America. I wanted to write about all these thoughts and feelings I'd had my whole life.

For the record, I did not feel it was my best work. I thought it was a mess that nobody would like or understand. I was terrified when I showed it to my agent and even more terrified when my agent sent it to editors. Thankfully, people connected with it.

Actually, I think the success of Hell of a Book takes away from the feeling of pressure. The National Book Award wasn't something I ever thought I would achieve. I just wanted to tell a story. So that's still the approach I take to all my writing: I just want to tell stories. For me, "success" means putting "The End" on that last page.

JP: What is your writing practice like? How has it changed over the years?

JM: I write about five days a week. I'm a believer in consistent writing. But I also want to say that it's extremely subjective—each writer needs to find what works for them. The only thing that's changed for me is that I've throttled back a little on how much I let writing consume my life. When I was younger, I didn't allow much else in my life other than writing. Now, I make time for friends, family, and loved ones. I've learned when to step away.

JP: What role have other writers or mentors played in your life? What is the value of community in relation to our creative writing?

JM: Mentors have made me who I am today. I've had poetry mentors, fiction mentors, and simply "writing life" mentors. They've all been invaluable.

This lifestyle is challenging. And it's really easy to quit. That support of community is what keeps you coming back to the page when writing gets difficult. And make no mistake about it: writing is always difficult.

JP: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

JM: This is going to sound contradictory, but don't get into writing with the hopes of making money. You have to write because you love writing. Period. The odds of making money as a writer are astronomically slim. So if that's why you're doing it, you'll get frustrated very quickly, quit, and walk away feeling like you wasted time. You can't be in it for fame or success or any of that. There's simply too much rejection in this business. You have to love writing. You have to be obsessed with it. You have to do it simply because it's who you are.

Justine Payton is an MFA candidate at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington and a published writer. An avid hiker and ecofeminist, she explores the themes of resilience and discovering wonder in the small things.