m. c. de marco: To invent new life and new civilizations...

Last month Jonathan McCalmont, roving critic, described the Stross Formula. Charlie Stross responded in the comments with a cautionary tale of early success and contractual deadlines:

Back in 2005, I made two classic mistakes: I signed a pair of multi-book contracts with major publishers — each of whom expected a book every 12 months — and I got ill (which swallowed about 6 productive months, and drastically reduced my ability to work). My reason for signing two contracts was simple; I needed to earn a living, and one book a year was simply not enough. But, having signed, I then had to deliver: and what had looked like an easy workload in 2005 turned out to be unexpectedly onerous by 2007.