You’re famous. You’ve written the next cult novel, the like of Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, or The Name of the Wind. It earned you millions of dollars that now sit cozily in your Swiss bank account.
What now?
The experience of writing something so immensely popular destroys most writing careers, sometimes even before the conclusion of the series in question.
Because how can you top Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, or The Hunger Games? You can’t. Even if you’re the author.
You have to come to terms with the fact that, in all likelihood, you’ll never again write anything as popular as the previous thing you wrote. You’re reduced to becoming your own copycat. And the expectations run too high.
Some people take the cynical view that authors of these super-bestsellers cashed out, but I don’t think that’s true. Most if not all did what they did out of love for writing, not money, and being successful has sadly made writing near impossible for them.
