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Yikes! Extremely negative reading, puzzling advice about publishing: 62.3.4.6->23

mulberry

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Hi all,

Since I have been struggling with how to move forward as a writer, I asked Yi, "What can I do to write a publishable book?"

I've gotten in response one of the most strikingly negative and foreboding readings I ever remember receiving in all my years (10+) of consulting the oracles, especially for something I consider rather benign or at least not actively the wrong path for me to take-- but perhaps it is?

I received 62.3.4.6 into 23. Line 3 is the infamous "If one is not extremely careful, Somebody may come up from behind and strike him." Line 4 warns not to make any outward attempt towards the desired end, that going brings danger and one must be on guard. "He meets him without passing by". Line 6 is "He passes him by, not meeting him. The flying bird leaves him.Misfortune. This means bad luck and injury." and gives the image of the bird flying to high from its nest it overexerts itself and falls in the hunter's nest.

All of this leading 23, Splitting Apart, which has never been anything but a serious and negative hex for me (one which luckily I receive maybe once a year-- I can't remember when I last had 23 in any form).

Well, yikes.

I've asked about writing and publishing in the past, and shared some of the readings on Clarity. (For example here: http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/frie...40-56-2-3-gt-64-Querying-Agents-for-a-Project ). My usual pattern has been to receive 56 the Wanderer in some form for these questions. I don't really enjoy 56 as a hex nor welcome it when I get it, but I feel I have an evolving relationship with understanding its challenges and how they apply to my life. I was very much raised in a 56 Wanderer kind of family (my parents were both spiritual practitioners) and there's something there that I can identify with and learn through. 23 on the other hand is alway unambiguously inauspicious for me.

So. Does this reading seem to indicate I should not continue to write with the the intent of publishing at all? That I'm risking some kind of calamity by doing so? That it will take energy from something else I am really meant to do? (I'm heavily involved in another creative area in my day to day life at the moment, though I did work in publishing for several years.)

I've always, since I was a little girl, seen writing and publishing as my "true" calling. But perhaps I was wrong.

I'm hoping very much someone has insight on this, one of the most upsetting and confusing readings I've ever received... I would be very humbly grateful. And I promise to update in whatever way I can.
 
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pocossin

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What can I do to write a publishable book?
62.3.4.6 >23


If by 'publishable' you mean a book that will pay you more than minimum wage, you cannot. (I am the hard-nosed person at Clarity who tells querents they cannot. Most of the others talk happy talk that can waste your life.) The odds are 10,000 to 1 that you will fail as an author.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-dietrich/the-writers-odds-of-succe_b_2806611.html

If you descend into self-publishing, you will not recover your costs unless you have fantastic marketing skills. You may have already written a book that is better than anything else on the market. Doesn't matter. No marketing, no profit. "Pollsters report more than 80 percent of Americans would like to be an author," according to the Huffington Post. But what can you do? Marketing research. First, set up a blog. This can be done with no out-of-pocket expense, and you will discover how much interest there is in your material. Next, you can set up a website and appraise traffic. I did this and cast my pearls before swine. I had an intelligent response about every two year. No way will I struggle to write a book, though friends and relatives tell me I should. Next, self-publish -- if you have someone else to edit your text. And last of all, attempt to find an agent and pursue a commercial publisher. The way publishing used to be isn't the way it is now. Computers have changed everything. I resent being expected to deal with paper that I cannot handle electronically. For example, I have what I want of Hilary's and Bradford's books in text files, and I can copy, past, and annotate them with abandoned. To look at the casting, high flying bird (62) to preparation (23), realistic but not at all negative. You will need to come down to ground. Your expectation of a happy life through authorship is false. You haven't don't the really hard grunt work. Don't think that you can start at the top. And since I read for connotation and your handle is 'Mulberry', and since mulberry pulp is the original source of paper, I think you have a more auspicious chance than most.
 

mulberry

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You will need to come down to ground. Your expectation of a happy life through authorship is false. You haven't don't the really hard grunt work. Don't think that you can start at the top.

Pocossin, I usually appreciate your responses very much and find them apt but this one is surprising and disappointing. I think you are bringing some of your own personal issues around publishing to this question in a way that is not helpful, and you are making assumptions that are not in the reading nor based on reality. I worked in publishing for seven years, at the very center of the industry, directly with numerous authors who live full-time or part-time off their work, and with editors and PR people. A year ago I transitioned to a different but related field. I love the field I currently work in and have no desire to go back to working in publishing-- but I also have no desire to quit what I do to write full-time. I do NOT have an "expectation of a happy life through authorship". Please. Give me a break. I have known legions of miserable authors, enough to know publishing does not equal happiness. That's not my object in writing, and it's unfair and a waste of energy for you to put those assumptions on the reading. And it's offensive to hear you assume I haven't done the grunt work-- that's a very harsh to statement to make, and baffling because it's untrue. I don't think it's in the reading either. There are other factors at play I would like to figure out as to why this particular novel I wrote gets almost there, and then not quite (discussed in the reading I linked to). I'm interested in being published because I would like this book to reach people, and because I know from experience that having a published book opens new opportunities that I would like to have as well. However, writing does take energy away from my other endeavors and I'm not sure it is the correct path for me to continue on. Perhaps I should be channeling all of my energy into my other career. Or, perhaps thinking in terms of publishing is detrimental to the creative process. I'm not sure.

I appreciate your closing sentence but the misplaced lecture and admonishment before it is distracting and unfortunate.
 

pocossin

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I appreciate your closing sentence but the misplaced lecture and admonishment before it is distracting and unfortunate.

I am speaking from a depth of experience. Much to the disappointment of her parents, a cousin divorced her husband so she would have the freedom to write, and nothing, except poverty, ever came if it. Another self-published his life history, and when I offered his adult grandson a copy, he refused it. I have had friends who wrote and published original novels and poetry, without financial success, though their hopes were high. They have now gone the way of all flesh, and I am the only one who treasures their work.

However, writing does take energy away from my other endeavors and I'm not sure it is the correct path for me to continue on.

Typically, persons who succeed at writing write compulsively. Thoreau paid off the loss on his first book by making pencils. His second book was the classic Walden, and that never sold well either. At his death there were two million words in his Journal. That is the kind of sacrifices that true writers make.
 

mulberry

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Wow. This is the first time I've encountered so much malice on this forum. Pocossin, you seem to have a personal issue around writing and the publishing industry. It's unfortunate for both of us that my question attracted your interest and triggered your negativity on this issue. Why are you bringing up your cousin who left her husband to write? Really? How disappointing to post in good faith, and receive a response full of arrogant prejudice. Can you please give me the respect that is standard on this forum?
 
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mulberry

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Pocossin, I signed rejection slips for seven years. I also signed acceptance letters. And advance checks.

You're ignorant, and you're a bully, and you're trolling me right now. Please stop.

I'm not going to engage with you further. I hope that moderators will also chime in regarding your behavior.
 
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Tim K

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62 - 23.png

Richmond, 62.3:
Unless he is very careful someone will strike him from below (or behind, or an inferior position). Misfortune.

The tao (our circumstance) favours inner awareness and we avoid this by creating outer activity. When the pressure for change is from our inner reality yet this is transferred to a projection outside there is a blockage of inner flow which shows itself in activity of our "personal unconscious* and this will be heard, if we do not listen it will force its way into consciousness; accidents are formed in this way.


Yi is saying that you are ignoring something and this blocks you. Looking at transitional hexes I would say that you need to address this issue/block and then 16.4 Friends will come, new opportunities, new visions new approaches.
16 speaks of Repose, taking a break; 2.6 also warns about forcing the issue.
Look inside, acknowledge something, what does your inner self say?
 

mulberry

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Thank you, ashteroid. I really appreciate you posting and your insight. I'm hoping the energy on this thread will shift with new voices, and you're helping.
 

Tohpol

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Tom,

Can you please stop harassing Mulberry. You are appear to enjoy being "insensitive" and "unsympathetic" which is why you receive the reaction you do.

There is no reason to guild the lily for anyone but there is also no reason to to rip the lily to shreds either!
 

Tim K

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I don't think Pocossin is bullying you, he just voiced his opinion.
He did say that you have a greater chance of success than most, and that the reading is not at all negative.
He also demonstrated some negative outcomes of being a writer .. so what.
It is still his opinion, he is not forcing this outcome on you :)

Maybe he is this manifestation of 62.3, that voice inside that you are not willing to hear.
Again it's just my opinion.
 

bradford

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As long as people refuse to learn, readings that look negative will be negative and those that look positive will be loaded with pitfalls.

Here is a hint on 23, with its knives and stripping away, for someone with a wider kind of mind:
What does a really great editor do?
 
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butterfly spider

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Whenever I use the word negative in thoughts about a casting I have found that the little (or big) niggle has been lurking within the question. As a publisher Mulberry you will know how difficult it is to follow this path. Your question to the I Ching possibly already knew that the answer would not be entirely tiketiboo.

I am always get most sensitive in this forum when someone is just waving it up there on a flag - or writing the answer in bold letters. It's almost like going into the toilets in a service station and seeing yourself in the mirror. It's difficult to look at yourself sometimes - is that really some old bag looking back?

I am not being flippant. I did have 62.5 for a question about direction - and looking back whilst I thought it was not entirely auspicious at the time the energy transferred to something different at a later date. Almost like a sleeping caterpillar. Hex 62 has that feeling to me of something better coming along that you could not possibly think if at the time ..

Hope this helps.
 

Tohpol

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FWIW: It isn't always about a so-called "negative" or a "positive" reading. "Refusing to learn" can also be dependent on the style of communication. It can go both ways. Sure, there are always ways to offer a reading without buffering. Being direct is essential. But at the same time, we can always do it such a way that is not absolutist (this is how it is) and doesn't unnecessarily push buttons - especially when that becomes a habit. That's just simple tact and avoids a lot of noise. I'm not saying that's always easy but it's an achievable goal.

One things for certain everyone on this thread has offered a valuable reading in different ways, so I guess I should offer a simple one after all that:

How can I write a publishable book?


H.62

Well, definitely flying low and not being too ambitious right from the get-go. Lines 3, 4 and 6 as a whole suggest not pushing this issue for now otherwise you'll come a cropper in some way.The Yi doesn't say forget the idea completely, but it does say keep your ambitions commensurate with your abilities and release the desire to achieve this goal AT THIS TIME. That's how I remember it.

I've often had this hexagram when I've been overextending myself and working too hard - especially with line 3. Often too, there is something in the background going on that is more important than my desire to complete a certain goal. 62 can be quite mysterious in that way. We can only understand how pertinent that warning was in hindsight, if at all. But curiosity killed my cat on more than one occasion! :rolleyes: i.e. "Oh. I see what you meant." Urm...right.

Line 3: A warning. Time isn't right. Stay in the nest. Pretty clear.

Line 4: This is more about what's going on inside you then outside. Pretty much reiterates line 3 saying that you maybe undergoing a process which offers a different kind of change and as such, you need to be very careful of your focus and your choices at this time. So, the Yi appears to be saying that NOT trying to be ambitious will actually help you where it counts in the long term.

Line 6: And if you do push then the result is likely to be large "splat" as the bird left the nest too soon thinking it could fly...when really it only had a couple of feathers on its bottom.

Background 23: a stripping process is the context and I suspect this is more important than attempting to publish a book right now. It doesn't mean it'll never happen but before stripping away has taken place then it's usually pointless to start something before you know what you'll become.
 
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butterfly spider

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Have just been reading a magazine (I am on a train journey so time to think). An article written byLuigi Bonomi a literary agent struck a chord.

A writer is someone who writes. Not someone who thinks they can write or who simply wants to be a writer. Everyone wants to write a novel but having an idea is just the beginning. Novels that work for the first
Few chapters are two a penny. Just start writing. If you really want to be a published author then you will.

Perhaps you need to incubate your idea first and get a good agent to hone your idea. If you have an idea that won't go away then start writing. Unless you write then the ideas will only ever remain as a caterpillar...

Just be realistic and enjoy the process of writing I think ..
 

mulberry

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Thanks everyone.

I think what I didn't make clear in the beginning is that I have written a novel, and it's been out with agents and on submission for a year now without getting traction or publication. It's not a question really of how to start writing. Maybe more of one, how to keep going and do better.

I've started a second one, and am about to finish the first rough draft of it, which is what I had in mind as I asked Yi this question. Basically, how can I make this novel better or more publishable than the first one? Which seems like it has failed.

But perhaps I was being told that writing with any kind of publication in mind is not a suitable path for me.

Having worked for many years in the publishing business, I've seen the other side and it is hard not to think in business terms when writing.

Perhaps this reading was a strong admonishment that keeping business in mind while working on this second book is not the correct path.
 
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butterfly spider

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This really does make a lot more sense - the background helps to see your question now.

It is a bit like someone asking if they could be a soloist on say the cello. If I assume that you are only an amateur I would respond differently if I knew you were a graduate from the RAM or Juilliard for example. Your background in publishing and your first novel already give you more than enough insight into the statistical odds of becoming a published author

That said however my feeling that your idea was still at the incubation stage - like a sleeping caterpillar still stand. I think that you need to enjoy what you are writing about not view it as something to get anxious about. I think the stripping away means this - get rid of the angst and start to feel how the words sound.
I hope this helps - even if your experience of publishing is already advanced. Sometimes when children write they simply write with no end game of achieving anything
Xx
 

canislulu

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Mulberry,

Bradford's response makes a lot of sense to me and I am wonder what you thought of it.
You ask, "How do I write a publishable book?" and Yi answers, "62 > 23" which, if I understand Brad's comment could be Yi's way of saying, "Be a good editor", i.e., either edit the novel the publishers haven't accepted yet or edit the new one you've started.

And I think "62" is an auspicious hexagram to receive about publishing a book. To quote from, Stephen Karcher I think, 62 can be "Words and deep feelings that carry to a new generation." ....also 62 can be "a dangerous and final transition, finalize the details and stay in the process."

62 > 23 "Small Traverses Stripping" Sounds like editing to me. I wouldn't have thought of it myself. Bradford's "wide view" suggestion seems brilliant to me.

(Also, I did not hear Pocossin as bullying. I thought he was being encouraging. Didn't he end his post by saying he thought you could do it? I think he was just concerned that you may have hopes of big income from publishing. That is fairly rare, is it not?)
 

mulberry

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A long overdue update to this thread—I got an agent the year after this post, and my book sold to a major publisher in a deal that is very good for a debut writer by current publishing standards. So, it did all work out and this cast described a temporary setback which I worked through relatively quickly after this cast.
 

chingching

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What was the actual setback, how did you work through it?

And congratulations!
 

rosada

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Congratulations indeed! I am particularly intrigued by the fact that snarl-up that originally inspired your post quickly resolved itself after you presented the situation here and thus engaged a broader field of minds and possible viewpoints.
 

liquidity

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A long overdue update to this thread—I got an agent the year after this post, and my book sold to a major publisher in a deal that is very good for a debut writer by current publishing standards. So, it did all work out and this cast described a temporary setback which I worked through relatively quickly after this cast.

I'd love to know how you see the advice in the original cast in light of what happened. What was it telling you to do or not to do (beyond the fact of the temporary setback)?
 
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Freedda

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I'd love to know how you see the advice in the original cast in light of what happened. What was it telling you to do or not to do (beyond the fact of the temporary setback)?
Liquidity and Mulberry: Looking at the original hexagram 62, it reads:

Fulfillment
Worthwhile to persist
Appropriate for minor concerns,
Not suited to great concerns
The flying bird bequeaths this message:
If not adapted to heights, adapt to remaining below
Much promise

That doesn't at all seem like a negative or forboding message; instead it might be saying to take small steps, look for small but persistent 'victories' and don't think you need to always fly to the sun when you're first staring out learning how to fly (or learning how to write or be a published writer) - and it seems that the lines could be seen as tips or ways to achieve this (and what to watch out for along the way).

Which seems to me to be very much how things turned out.
 

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