Welcome to my blog, Write To Live. This is a blog dedicated to the literary works of Michael Beers as well as an informational blog about writing.

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Thursday, March 17, 2011

Rejection and Rebirth

So, I finally heard back from the Writers of the Future Contest for Quarter 1, and the news was not so good.  I was not a winner in the term and there was no mention of honorable mention or anything.

Back to where I started years ago when I first submitted to them.

But, there is new hope for this.  I have decided I'm not waiting around for Writers of the Future to make up their minds if I'm a good writer or not.  I'm submitting my works as soon as they are finished instead of sitting around and waiting for them to say I'm good enough.  It may involve a lot of rejection letters, but all a rejection letter means to me anymore is it needs one more revision.

Which leads into my writer's tip

In the words of a green wise man (since it is St. Patrick's Day and I feel like quoting Yoda)

"Do or do not.  There is no try."

Therefore, in writing, there should be a similar feeling about it.  Don't just try for one thing and see if it pans out for you.  You must constantly submit to different websites and allow it to help you grow.  Right now, I have three stories going out to publishers and one submitted to Writers of the Future.

Also, be sure to do it properly.  I've been having to go back and change a bunch of stuff on my writings because they ask for things a certain way.  You should be well versed in Manuscript Form whenever you submit to a publisher.  I wrote how I wanted it to appear first, but then realized I needed to change it later on.  And, believe me, it's harder to change it later on than to just learn how to do it the first time around.

Random Sentence
The wind blew Tyler around and around, making his head spin with possibilities.

Quote of the Week
"There is a major difference between a story and literature.  A story will entertain you while distracting you from the fact Rome is burning around you.  Literature will tell you where the fire extinguishers are located."
~Self

3 comments:

  1. I noticed you started following my blog. I don't know who you are, but that's OK if that's the way you want it.

    About WotF and rejection. I've submitted there for 12 straight and have 6 HMs and 6 rejects. I also have 10 sales, all to sub-pro. I don't think that's bad for about 3 years at it.

    I probably have submitted to close to 100 markets, thanks to the ease of firing stuff off via duotrope and email. Isn't that hard, though reading the guidelines is a courtesy that occasionally pays dividends, like the fact that Redstone doesn't like dark courier.

    I don't moan about rejects in my blog, I just chronicle wins. Keeps me focused.

    Submitting is just mechanical. Do the chore. The fun is in creating, IMHO.

    Best of luck. But in the end, I think you make your own luck.

    Scott

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  2. I apologize for not introducing myself. My name is Michael and I have been writing for years, but began to seriously creative write about 3 years ago. I haven't submitted much because I realized when I submitted to WotF 3 years ago, I needed to grow as a creative writer and find my style. Since then, I have built myself up to a point where I feel like I can market myself.

    This blog's purpose is not to moan about my life, but to rather give a tool for other aspiring writers to learn with me. I posted about the "rejection" because I made a mistake and allowed myself to merely rely on one medium for a sale (as seen in the post).

    I use the blog to have people learn from my failures and from my knowledge. Just as my quote on WotF forums used to say...

    "When I finished my first story, I smiled. My journey as a writer had begun. When I received my first rejection letter, I jumped for joy. My journey as a great writer had begun."

    So, if my rejection letters give me knowledge, I want to share it with everyone.

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  3. The "moan about rejects" comment wasn't a knock on you or anybody. Your blog, say what you want. Sorry about that. I don't call them rejects, BTW, I call them responses. I don't count them, usually. I had a story taken after 14 rejects, and to a fairly high market.

    Yes, great idea to broaden yourself. I like WotF because it is blind and amateur only. However, there's a guy in my crit group who has just turned pro. He had a finalist, semi-finalist and maybe six HMs. Lot of WotF effort, no cigar. He turned pro through Flash Fiction Online, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and most recently, Fantasy and Science Fiction wins. There have been people who have turned pro without a print pub, since OSCIMS and others are only online.

    The point I'm trying to make is, submit everywhere, top down. My recent-pro friend kept 18 stories in circulation. I'm trying to do the same.

    Scott

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