Posted in Writing, tagged advice, blog, manuscripts, novels, reading, writing on August 20, 2012| 3 Comments »
Have you ever felt that what you are trying to achieve is impossible? Well you are not alone. I was recently listening to an author who gave his bio and it was very depressing. He was first self-published and then after years of trying he finally landed an agent. Which of course led him to becoming traditionally published. Not everyone is that lucky though.
I read an article by Writers Digest called “Why Am I Getting Rejected?” and it made some interesting points. One question said, “How many rejections slips do you consider the cutoff point- where I should give up completely?” I don’t know how many times I have asked this same question to friends and family members. Here was the answer given in the article:
If you put a lot of time and effort into a project, don’t abandon it too quickly. Look at the rejection slips as bits of advice for improvement, or as patters of criticism. Rejections, if used properly, can be a lesson to improve your writing.
If you’ve been sending the same magazine query (or book) around for many months, your idea may have grown stale for you to keep circulating it. If you’ve been attempting to sell a book manuscript, and have had some near misses, then your timing or your luck may be off; some books circulate for many years before finding the right agent or editor. As long as you feel passionate about the work, you shouldn’t give up on it – even if it means returning to the manuscript a few years down the road. Some ideas and manuscripts have to be set aside because the market isn’t ready for them.
When I feel down and out about my pile of rejection notes I turn to authors who know my pain. I love reading Nathan Bransford blogs and here is one of my favorites:
http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2009/03/ten-commandments-for-happy-writer.html
Of course he has many more insights on how to format your manuscript, write a query, edit your novel and so on. There are many great blogs out there and lots of good advice. Just go sample the variety of flavors and stick with a favorite.
The one thing I just have to keep reminding myself is to write, write and write. 
Posted in New author, tagged Arts, blog, children's books, Conspiracy theory, eHow, Facebook, Google, Pinterest, publishing, Tumblr, Twitter, Viral video, Writers Resources, writing on August 11, 2011| Leave a Comment »
In today’s technological advances there are still some who are not so tech savvy. This is including me. I am still trying to figure out why we need to “connect” to other people through a computer. How are we even “connecting” if you don’t see the other person or even hear them? How do we even know if the other person emailing, blogging, or updating stats on their Facebook is even the person we are friends with? Maybe I have read too many conspiracy theory novels. But wouldn’t it be better to make contact with people in person? Who am I though to judge how others want to “connect”? I am just a little backwards, old-fashioned and love seeing faces when I talk to someone. I like to see reactions and expressions flit across a face letting me know what they truly think. Instead of cute little smiley faces or now the ever popular heart. ❤ I had to ask my son one day what was up with the sign. He, of course, laughed (for quiet a long time too) before telling me it is supposed to be a heart. Wow! Talk about some imaginative minds out there. So here I am trying to connect with blogging to get the word out about my work.
I have several novels written. Along with some picture books in draft phase. I have been working towards becoming published the traditional way for more than four years. I have a nice collection of rejection letters from agents and publishers. If I had to brag about my work so far I don’t think I would want to. I could say that I have two articles published on eHow but most people in the writing world frown upon the website. I had some fellow classmates say once, “The people who write for eHow are idiots”. I didn’t dare tell them to count me as one of those “idiots”. Now I just concentrate on my craft and finishing school. I still have hope one day I will be published.
So in the end becoming viral is not a bad thing, but helpful for finding the right agent, and for that agent to see I am trying to help promote myself as an author. You can find me on Pinterest and Tumblr. Google someone today! ( :
Image via CrunchBase
Image via CrunchBase
Image via CrunchBase
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Vacations, Spam and Writing
Posted in Editing, Reading, Writing, tagged Abuse, Akismet, blog, Book, Comment Spam, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Dork Diaries, Email, Google, Reading (process), Spam, Tracking, United States, WordPress on June 12, 2013| 1 Comment »
It has been a while since I checked my blog because I am on vacation. So everything except reading has taken a back seat. But lo and behold, wouldn’t you know it that my spam box was chuck full. How do you keep comments on your blog from becoming over run with spam? No clue. One, there is real no solution to keep spam from sneaking into your inbox. And two, some comments accidently are sent to the spam box without your knowledge unless you check so you can not just delete them all. It is a conundrum.
When I do return I hope to start writing my new middle grade book. It is inspired by a young pre-teen girl, (She knows who she is!) and it is a comedy. For those who do not read children’s books some of the best middle grade humor series published within the last few years have been, “The Diary of a Wimpy Kid“, and “The Dork Diaries“. I hope to be numbered among these one day. There are a lot of dystopia, fantasy and historical fictional books out there. Not a lot of humorous books. So my summer will consist of reading a list of books from New York Times Best Sellers in children’s middle grade and YA. I have already read a few on the list and plan to tackle many more. Hot summer days and a good book. Who could ask for anything more?
Book cover for Dork Diaries: Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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