The past few weeks have been very exciting on the writing front . . . but not for me.
I've had to fake smile and send email congrats to numerous people from contest finals to acquiring a new literary agent to garnering multi-book contracts to selling a gazillion books to readers in the UK to . . .
Get the picture?
Yeah, jealous some. Totally bit by the green monster.
In my mind, I know this is stupid, but my heart differs. It's hard. It hurts. And I'm tired.
I've been trying to break into this biz for over 10 years. For ten years, 99% of the feedback I've received has been negative. It's the nature of the business, but it doesn't make it easy. My skin might be tough, but my soul is pockmarked with despair.
I'm sad that these stories that I've written and love won't be making it into the hands of children. Parents won't be spending their money on an unknown author--ME.
I can't say that I really blame them.
But one thing that I have learned this year is that I can't MAKE people buy my books.
I can't make reviewers READ my books.
I can't force readers who promised a review for a free book to REVIEW my story. Heck, out of all the books that I gave away for reviews, I've only seen a 2% return in the form of reviews.
Hand-selling my books is out of the question, because they're electronic. I've done everything I can think of in the form of publicity to get my stories out there for kids to read. But nothing has worked.
I'm beat. Tired. Done. I quit.
Will I continue writing?
Probably. A spark was ignited when I saw Janet Reid post a flash fiction contest. I came up with a story and submitted it--it's a nod to Stephen King's CARRIE--but there will be hundreds of entries to choose from, and my story style isn't their preference.
It is what it is.
Dealing with the business of publishing is hard, and I need to heal my soul and make it whole again.
In order to do that I want to give away one of my currently published stories to anyone who wants to read one.
All you have to do is ask.
Send an email to me at magolla@cox.net with the title of the book you want and I'll send you a copy of that story.
That's it. No having to fan my FB page, or follow me on Twitter, or do handstands while chewing gum. I hate the hoops and games that so many authors resort to. Just simply ask. I will provide the story. Period.
This offer is good until November 1, 2011.
Later, Peeps!
Showing posts with label Janet Reid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Janet Reid. Show all posts
10/24/11
7/21/10
How it all began. . .
Today's blog post brought to you by another question from Iggy:
Did you study writing or is this all stuff that you have gleaned from experience (or, both)?
OR
"How I Began my Career as a Writer and then Diverged into Dabbling among Unrelated Professional Fields as well as Marriage, Motherhood, and Pet Care until I could See My Way Clear to place my Passion for Writing ahead of All Else except for The Hubster, The Kidlet, a Shaggy Dog, and The Zen of Swimming Pool Maintenance"
I was not born with a pen or keyboard in my hands, though I did write an article about Redbud Valley for the Girl Scouts when I was eight. That was all the writing I did for years, except required school work, until twenty years ago when I took a writing class at the local Junior College to get an international student ID--I went to Europe for my bro's French wedding and backpacked alone for a few weeks--and with that writing ‘experience’, I stopped writing for 12 years.
Fast forward, I was thirty-nine and just had my first, and only, kidlet and I wondered if I could write a book. Yes, I was like all those women with too much time on her hands. Of course, this was after I had taken 20 years of Bon Appétit magazine recipes and organized them into 13 binders.
I wrote the NEXT GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL! Yay!! Too bad I was the only one who thought it was good. I joined RWA (Romance Writers of America) and my local romance chapter RWI (Romance Writers Ink) and started the looong trudge up the learning curve.
DAMN! It was tough. I went to conferences, read numerous craft books (I’ll name favorites if pressed), and suffered through the red pens of some wonderful women who wanted to help me become a better writer. Though I must confess that it didn’t feel like they were helping at the time!
I didn’t ‘work my way up' to writing novels—I started out writing novels, most of which are under the bed. Each novel that I wrote taught me about writing—along with the numerous rejections that I’ve garnered over the years. I used get upset with ‘form’ rejections, but now, I just shrug off the personalized ones. If it isn’t for them, so be it, it isn’t for them.
I started judging writing contests, first, because as a member of RWI you had to judge their contests, and two, because I started enjoying it. Each contest that I judged taught me about myself as a writer, in that the problems I saw in other writer’s manuscripts I started to see in my own work.
I think I wrote my first short story (a murder mystery) in 2005—rejections ensued. My next story was my blog serial, Sugar Plum Disaster. Short stories are hard. You have very few words to engage the reader and tell a story. Recently, Janet Reid (an agent who I’d LOVE to have in my corner. They don’t call her a shark for nothing!) started a blog challenge by listing five words that must be used in a 100-word story. A hundred words, people! Now, that’s a challenge! Another blog, Evil Editor periodically does something similar, usually when he’s bored and issues a weekend challenge. I’m totally impressed with the talent out there. And no, I can’t do it on they fly like so many others can.
It doesn’t matter what you write when you start on the path. Short stories won’t make you a better novel writer, or vice versa. Writing will make you a better writer.
My one and only suggestion: Write what you are passionate about. That passion will infuse your story, AND THAT, will shine through.
To steal a phrase from Nike, “JUST DO IT”.
Write on!
Did you study writing or is this all stuff that you have gleaned from experience (or, both)?
OR
"How I Began my Career as a Writer and then Diverged into Dabbling among Unrelated Professional Fields as well as Marriage, Motherhood, and Pet Care until I could See My Way Clear to place my Passion for Writing ahead of All Else except for The Hubster, The Kidlet, a Shaggy Dog, and The Zen of Swimming Pool Maintenance"
I was not born with a pen or keyboard in my hands, though I did write an article about Redbud Valley for the Girl Scouts when I was eight. That was all the writing I did for years, except required school work, until twenty years ago when I took a writing class at the local Junior College to get an international student ID--I went to Europe for my bro's French wedding and backpacked alone for a few weeks--and with that writing ‘experience’, I stopped writing for 12 years.
Fast forward, I was thirty-nine and just had my first, and only, kidlet and I wondered if I could write a book. Yes, I was like all those women with too much time on her hands. Of course, this was after I had taken 20 years of Bon Appétit magazine recipes and organized them into 13 binders.
I wrote the NEXT GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL! Yay!! Too bad I was the only one who thought it was good. I joined RWA (Romance Writers of America) and my local romance chapter RWI (Romance Writers Ink) and started the looong trudge up the learning curve.
DAMN! It was tough. I went to conferences, read numerous craft books (I’ll name favorites if pressed), and suffered through the red pens of some wonderful women who wanted to help me become a better writer. Though I must confess that it didn’t feel like they were helping at the time!
I didn’t ‘work my way up' to writing novels—I started out writing novels, most of which are under the bed. Each novel that I wrote taught me about writing—along with the numerous rejections that I’ve garnered over the years. I used get upset with ‘form’ rejections, but now, I just shrug off the personalized ones. If it isn’t for them, so be it, it isn’t for them.
I started judging writing contests, first, because as a member of RWI you had to judge their contests, and two, because I started enjoying it. Each contest that I judged taught me about myself as a writer, in that the problems I saw in other writer’s manuscripts I started to see in my own work.
I think I wrote my first short story (a murder mystery) in 2005—rejections ensued. My next story was my blog serial, Sugar Plum Disaster. Short stories are hard. You have very few words to engage the reader and tell a story. Recently, Janet Reid (an agent who I’d LOVE to have in my corner. They don’t call her a shark for nothing!) started a blog challenge by listing five words that must be used in a 100-word story. A hundred words, people! Now, that’s a challenge! Another blog, Evil Editor periodically does something similar, usually when he’s bored and issues a weekend challenge. I’m totally impressed with the talent out there. And no, I can’t do it on they fly like so many others can.
It doesn’t matter what you write when you start on the path. Short stories won’t make you a better novel writer, or vice versa. Writing will make you a better writer.
My one and only suggestion: Write what you are passionate about. That passion will infuse your story, AND THAT, will shine through.
To steal a phrase from Nike, “JUST DO IT”.
Write on!
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