Novelist who sold 10 million copies says she "wouldn't have a career" if she started writing now because the industry demands authors get instant results and accolades
Novelist Val McDermid has sold 10 million copies and her series about the psychological profiler Dr Tony Hill was turned into the BBC drama Wire In The Blood Photo: Clara Molden
The Telegraph - 29 Jun 2014
Val McDermid, the best-selling crime writer, has claimed that she would be a failed novelist if she were starting out today because the publishing industry no longer allows for slow-burning careers.
McDermid has sold 10 million copies and her series about the psychological profiler Dr Tony Hill was turned into the BBC drama Wire In The Blood.
However, she was far from an overnight success. Report for Murder, her first novel, was published in 1987 but she did not give up her day job until 1991 when she finally secured a two-book deal.
"If I published my first three novels now, I wouldn't have a career because no-one would publish my fourth novel based on the sales of my first three," McDermid said.
"I was always writing the books that I wanted to write, books that demanded to be written at the time. But, like most writers, you start off feeling your way. I don't think many of us launched ourselves into the world of writing books fully formed," McDermid said.
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