Here we are once again with a new month before us. I'm actually posting this on the final day of March as I have a jam-packed day on Monday. But April is close enough, even today. Here in central Kansas, we have a spectacular day. The sky is clear, allowing the sun to spread its glory, the temperature is cool but with a promise of warmth to come. Our tulips are peeking a few inches above the ground. Yesterday's rain and snow mixture have fled.
That's one of the best things in life--that no matter how dark the day seems, there is always a better one ahead. Our writing world is much the same. Those rejections we receive make us feel like we're living under a big, dark cloud. It drags us down for a while. It can be a long while if we succumb to the negative feelings. Let yourself have a small tantrum, a few tears and a lot of sighs for a short time, then move on. Seek that sunshine instead of lingering under the cloud.
I had the most wonderful message on facebook a couple of days ago. A reader of this blog wrote that she was giving a big shoutout to Nancy Julien Kopp for encouraging others to submit to a Chicken Soup for the Soul book. One that I had highlighted caught her eye as she had a story she felt would fit. She submitted the story and went through the long wait. The sunshine for her was the acceptance she received. Her story will be in a new book with the theme of 'running.' The really great part of this is that it will be her very first story to be published. Needless to say, I was thrilled for her and so very pleased that this blog had been the springboard for her success.
April is National Poetry Month so I will be featuring posts off and on all month about poetry. If you've never tried writing poetry, you should make the effort. I have never had any formal training in penning poetry, but I've written a lot of it and had a few published; one even won first place in a contest. Believe me, if I can do it, so can you. I write poems from my heart about things that move me in some way. Subbing them to my online writing group has helped me polish them, and I've learned a lot from those who critiqued my poems. If poetry has never been appealing to you, give it a try. Read some poems online, or pick up a book of poetry at your library. Give it a chance. You won't like all of it. No one does. But you'll probably find some you do enjoy. One important thing to do when reading poetry is to read each poem more than once. It's like watching a movie twice. You always find more in it the second time around.
The first week of April is National Library Week. I can't begin to cover all the positives about libraries. They are one of the great gifts our country has given its people. We receive a world of knowledge, pleasure, and satisfaction all for free. If you visit your library this next week, take a moment to thank the librarian at the desk.
April is National Volunteer Month, and April 20th is National Volunteer Recognition Day. There are opportunities for writers to volunteer. Give a program for no fee, give an afternoon a week or a month at the library as a helper, or volunteer to make a visit to a classroom to feature writing--your own and others. Submit to a charitable anthology like Bards for Hunger or Samaritan's Purse. You won't be paid, but you'll feel good about using your writing ability to help others.
April is a good time to write and submit holiday stories that deal with our fall celebrations--Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year's Eve. Magazines and ezines work months ahead.
Spring is a time of rebirth and renewal. Use this time of year to give yourself a pep talk about your writing world. Feel silly giving yourself a talk? Don't feel that way. Who better to encourage you than yourself? Who knows you better inside and out? Try something new. Work on old projects and make them new again.
In our northern hemisphere during spring, the earth bursts forth in all its glory. Trees and bushes have leaves again and some offer blossoms of color and beauty. Colorless winter grass turns green and spring flowers dot our yards with splashes of color. There is much to celebrate this month. Make it a great one as you move along your writing path.
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