Competition is huge for almost any business and industry out there. Whatever line of work you are in, it’s always better to sell more than your competitor, right?

That’s true enough for the big publishing houses in the writing industry, as well as book stores. However, for authors themselves, it’s a very different atmosphere.

This thought came to me at the latest writers conference I attended this year. I realized that a lot of authors who came, bought each others books. Any time I told another author that my debut novel came out just that week, they would get excited for me and ask about the book so they could get online and order it. What other industry does that?

If you were to attend a medical conference, a marketing conference, or a sales conference, everyone would be nice and cordial to each other. After all, those conferences are there so you can socialize, network, and seek out new opportunities. However, they wouldn’t necessarily be jumping at the chance to buy your latest product. Chances are, they’d be trying to figure out a way to create a similar product and sell it for a cheaper price. That’s just the way business works in most cases.

But as an author, I want my fellow authors to succeed. I am thrilled for those who have been a sensation, mourn for those who’s book sales haven’t done well, and encourage those who are involved in trying to get published. But why are we authors so different from other people in different businesses?

I think the biggest thing is that most authors are also readers. One of the most elemental tips to give a writer is to read, read, read. The more you read, the better you understand simple things like plot points, characterization, and dialogue. As you read, you figure out what style fits you best as a writer and what type of genre you want to break out into. And really, if you want to be a writer, that passion usually stems from a love of books in the first place. (If it doesn’t, you may want to rethink your career path. Being a writer is like being a teacher; you aren’t in it for the money.)

Another point is that there’s always room for more books! If you’re trying to sell something like a dishwasher, one household will only need to buy one of those. So it’s no wonder that you would be competing to present your dishwasher before the other dishwasher sales people. (I hope you guys are laughing at my comparison here! Dishwasher sales people…) But one household can buy an indefinite number of books and will continue to buy more in the future. It’s a never ending sales process.

So, in short, us authors don’t need to compete with each other. I love sitting down with my associates to see how they’re doing. I love that we all are so open to dish out advice to each other and really want each other to do well in the writing industry. It’s so great that when I attend a writers conference, it’s like sitting in a huge support group for a few days!

So, best of luck to all of you writers out there. And readers, happy reading!