Pinpoint The Sense of Smell in Your Writing

As a writing exercise today, let's concentrate on using the sense of smell in your fiction, personal essays, family stories, and poems. We all know that some things smell wonderful while others can literally turn our stomachs.

Write two paragraphs showing your character dealing with a smell. One should be with a pleasant smell and the other one should illustrate something that smells bad. You might use the same character in both paragraphs to show how he/she reacts to both a good and a bad smell. Or create two different characters.

Use descriptive language and active verbs. Be sure to show the reader how the character reacts. Don't just tell them.

An exercise like this one helps only in details of your writing, but by making those details come alive, your story can only benefit. Doing this by showing will bring your reader into the scene.

I thought about giving you a sample paragraph but decided against it. I would rather you come up with something entirely your own, uninfluenced by anything else.

Give it a try.

Believing In Yourself Is Important For Writers

You'll see a lot of articles and essays by writers who tell you to believe in yourself. Do that, they say, and you'll have a much better chance of success in the writing world. 

I agree but would also add that you'll enjoy your writing journey more if you truly believe in your ability to be a writer. With belief comes self-confidence. The more of that you have, the better writer you can become. You'll be willing to venture into writing spots you might have shied away from previously, to tackle writing projects you might never have thought you could do.

I have two short stories to tell you about the power of believing in yourself. Many years ago, a writer in my town told me she had this great idea. "Let's put on a conference for mystery writers who write small town mysteries." I looked at her like maybe she'd been drinking a bit too much or some wire in her brain had come loose. Marilyn kept floating the idea to me and to others in our small critique group. Most of us thought a town of 50,000 population could not put on a conference that would draw writers from all parts of the USA. Marilyn persisted until she had convinced the group to give it a try. She believed the conference would be a success, even with the many Doubting Doras on her committee. We worked hard on every facet of creating and running a conference, still having reservations. Long story short--it happened and was so successful that it repeated for a few years. It happened because Marilyn believed in herself.

Another writer friend has dealt with health issues for some time. About a year prior to her 80th birthday, her doctor made the declaration that she would not live to see her 80th birthday. She didn't snivel and cry. Instead, she told him that, yes, she would see 80. She began a countdown to that day in April when she'd hit that magic number--magic for her. Her friends noted the days that went by, too. There was no hesitation on her part. She believed she would celebrate that birthday, and she did. Her health did not get miraculously better, but neither did it get worse.

It's obvious to most of us that having that belief in self is a big factor in accomplishment. The bigger thing is how do you get it? One way is to work on achieving a positive attitude in all things. No Negative Nellie is going to believe in herself. People like that are more apt to put themselves down at every turn in their journey. You can train yourself to think positive. Whenever a situation comes up, pick out the good things first. Make them your priority. You can develop a habit of searching for the good. 

You can also keep a list, mental or real, of the positive things that have occurred as you move down the writing path. Don't tell me that there have been none. Every one of us has some pluses in our writing life. If you think there are none, open your eyes and look again. No matter how small, add to your list. And be proud of those good things you've done. 

Believing in your own ability as a writer is something no one else can give you. They might, however,  be of some help if they compliment you on some aspect of your writing. Even so, it's you who must be the believer. 

The first year of the conference I referred to above, I was the person to welcome the group and to introduce Marilyn--the woman who believed. I asked if those present remembered the movie Field of Dreams in which a man believed in doing what seemed impossible. Marilyn, I told the audience, had a belief every bit as strong. I said, "All of you sitting here this morning are proof of her belief." As Marilyn came to the podium, she received a grand reception from the audience. As for me, I went to my seat with a great big smile. 

Writers Should Subscribe To Newsletters and Blogs

Reading a Newsletter

Do you subscribe to newsletters or blogs about writing? If you don't, you should consider doing so. I receive several and find lots of good information and tips on where to submit my writing, as well as listings of contests that are open. Also, calls for submissions for places seeking new writers.

Many successful authors, or publishing houses, offer these missives to help other writers. They are also adding to their brand.  If you receive something from Susie Smith on a monthly basis, you're going to remember her name and know a lot about her writing. The same goes for a publishing house. The ones we are familiar with are the ones we're most likely to submit to. 

If you visit an author's website, you're likely to find a place to sign up for a newsletter or a blog to be sent to you on a regular basis--daily, weekly or monthly. If you find the website of interest, go ahead and sign up. Give it a try. If you decide it's not as good as you thought, all you need do is click on the Unsubscribe link. Couldn't be simpler.

One caution--don't subscribe to more than you time to read. It's quite easy to find yourself mired down in myriad publications. All that does is eat into your writing time. Make your own writing the priority, the reading of others secondary. It's easy to fall into the trap when you see a newsletter that is interesting or inspires you. 

How do you find them? Rely on the search engines you like best for help. Use keywords like newsletters about writing or blogs on writing. Ask other writer friends for suggestions. If you have indicated on Facebook that you're a writer or interested in writing, writing-related articles will start popping up. 

A few of the newsletters/blogs that I have found of interest regarding writing tips and have been helpful in finding places to submit my work to are listed here:

• Aerogramme Writer's Studio
• Submishmash by Submittable
• Erika Dreifus  
• Annette Gendler

There are many others which you can find on your own as suggested above. 

Has Your Writing Improved?

Ready for another rainy day!

Here in the Plains states, we are bracing for another round of thunderstorms, some possibly severe. We're pretty waterlogged already with some areas dealing with flooding and the aftermath of tornadic activity. The umbrellas in today's photos might be of use once again.

I have read at least three articles by writers recently that speak about the embarrassment some of their earliest writings have brought them. They each wondered how they could have written the pieces that had been published by websites and blogs that were content driven. Those editors needed something to publish daily and were wont to accept less than perfect offerings. 

The writers then went on to tell of how much their writing had improved, that they were selling far more now than ever. Isn't that as it should be? Aren't we suppose to get better at whatever it is we do as we continue on our journey? I would certainly not want to tell people that my writing has become worse and worse over the years. Not the way it should work, is it?

Athletes, artists, carpenters--all of these people most likely get better at what they do as they ply their profession or trade. Why? It's as simple as the fact that we learn as we work at what we do. We pick up little things that, when applied, make a difference. We become aware of the errors made and work to correct them.

One way we learn as writers is by reading what others have written. The more we read, the better writer we should become. As we read, our subconscious gathers bits and pieces about the method of writing, then stores them away. Sometimes, while reading, we have a very conscious 'aha!' moment when we note a device the author has used that impressed us.

What if you're a beginning or newbie writer? Is what you're writing now the highest level you can achieve? I hope not. It may be alright, even good at times, but we always need to strive to continue to improve as writers. 

As a beginning writer, I know that, while my content may have been quite alright, my mechanics were not always the best. I used cliches. I relied too much on passive verbs. I felt like adverbs had to be added to dialogue tags. I repeated words too often. These 'mechanical errors' were minor, but as I learned to correct them, my overall rating as a writer increased. 

Hopefully, you write with more depth as you continue your writing career. That, too, makes you a better writer. Beginning writers might only skim the surface of a topic or of a character. The longer you write, the better you become at reaching farther.

Don't judge yourself as a writer on your earliest efforts. Instead, look at what you've achieved, how you've improved. Have you reached the pinnacle of your writing journey? I would hope not, but that you continue to write better and better. As for those early attempts in your writing life, don't be a bit embarrassed. Instead, be pleased that you have made a significant improvement over the years. 

Memorial Day--Remembering A Special Cemetery Visit

Chapel Mosaic at WWII Rhone American Cemetery

This is Memorial Day weekend, a time when we recognize and honor those military men and women who died while serving in one of our Armed Forces. In 2010, my husband and I had the opportunity to visit an American cemetery in the south of France near the area where the Allied invasion took place. We are more aware of the D-Day invasion on the Normandy beaches on the northern coast of France. Visiting the cemetery with our tour group proved to be a very moving experience. I wrote about our visit after we returned home. The story was published in The Best Times, a monthly newspaper in the Kansas City area. I am sharing the essay here for the holiday weekend. Enjoy your picnics, games, reunions and more but do remember what Memorial Day means.

Soldiers and Angels

On a two week visit to France, I didn’t expect to be moved to tears and left with a memory etched on my heart forever.

 After a day and a half exploring Nice, our group of forty-two Americans boarded a motor coach to travel to a river cruiser for the next leg of the trip. Our program director announced that we’d be making a stop at the WWII Rhone American Cemetery in Draguignan where 861 U.S. soldiers are buried. These soldiers were ones who died in this part of France during the August 1944 invasions.

The southern invasion of France is not so well-known as the D-Day invasion along the beaches of Normandy in northern France. The invasion from the Mediterranean Sea began in August of 1944 and holds its own important place in the history of the war and with the French people.

We were informed there would be a wreath-laying ceremony for our group of seniors, many of whom remembered those war years as either veterans or children of vets. I was a small child during those years, but I still remember many little things about our life at the time, and I have read a great deal about this period in history because it feels personal to me.

We filed silently through impressive iron gates. The brilliant blue sky was dotted with fluffy white clouds, and the sun warmed us. The rustle of leaves in the many stately trees that surrounded the cemetery proved to be the only sound as we gazed at the rows of white crosses and Stars of David. No one spoke as we moved between the graves on the pristine grounds, reading names until the cemetery director arrived.

The Director told us the soldiers’ families all had the option to have their loved one’s body repatriated or to have them buried near the place they had died in battle. How difficult, I thought, such a decision would be. Sometimes, there were no parents left at home, or a young wife had already moved on with her life and needed no reminders of an earlier marriage, and so the fallen soldier never went home, staying in France where he died.

Everyone strolled slowly along the path that led to a large stone memorial depicting an angel. It served as one outside wall of an open-air chapel.

Inside the chapel, a stone altar was dwarfed by the huge mosaic picture that towered above it. The mural-like picture, done predominantly in shades of blue, featured an angel in the center. My eye was drawn to her first, and though I studied the other, smaller figures, my gaze kept returning to her. The angel was seated. She cradled the body of an American soldier. The artist managed to capture pure love in this figure. He succeeded in drawing visitors’ eyes to this central theme. Gazing at the two figures, I felt a lump in my throat and my eyes brimmed with unshed tears. Yet, I could not stop looking.

I thought about my uncle who flew missions over Germany but came home. I thought about my friend’s uncle who spent half of the war in a prison camp. I thought about my dad’s cousin who died in a plane that exploded on a runway. I thought about the memorial plaque at my grade school that listed the names of graduates who had not come home. The angel and soldier in the mural spoke for all of them.

Our program director held a large bouquet of fresh flowers. She asked if there were veterans of any war present who could participate in the wreath laying. The red, white and blue ribbon tails on the floral piece fluttered in the soft breeze that swept into the chapel from the two open sides.

Three men stepped forward. I learned later that two were veterans of WWII, having been very young men in the final days when they were called up. The third appeared to be a bit younger, although all had gray hair. He had been a pilot in the Korean War. Their shoulders were a bit rounded, and wrinkles creased their faces. As they neared the altar, they stood side by side, the rest of us gathered behind. The trio marched forward and laid the floral tribute between the Christian cross and the Star of David.  The three men snapped to attention, standing taller than they had in years and saluted the soldier lying in the angel’s arms. For one magic moment, they were young soldiers again. Even these many years later, they shared a common bond.

The gentle breeze of only moments earlier turned stronger, and the now-frantic rustling of the leaves surrounded us on both sides of the open-air chapel as we were invited to sing our national anthem. One or two people began slowly, and soon others joined in.

I tried to sing, but the emotion of the moment rose up and blocked my throat so thoroughly, I could not have sung had my life depended on it. Instead, I listened to the strong words of the song that is the pride of our nation.

As we retraced our steps through the cemetery, passing row upon row of graves, I thought of what so many Americans had sacrificed during the war fought on foreign shores during my childhood years. Lives were lost and families grieved, but others lived freely because of it.

I thought of a well-known quote that seemed to fit this small cemetery. All gave some, some gave all. 

Proofreading Help--Reading Your Work Aloud

Sometimes the simplest solutions to a problem are overlooked. When a story we've written doesn't feel right, won't come together in the way we'd hoped, we look for ways to help us see the light, find the little errors that act as roadblocks to a satisfying piece. 

Reading your story, essay or poem out loud will be a big aid in finding places that need attention, mechanical errors that you've overlooked when proofreading by means of silent reading. Your eyes flit across the page and catch many bits and pieces that need correcting. Those same eyes also pass right on by other trouble spots.

Give your ears a chance to find more places that you need to revise or correct. Reading silently is fine, but adding another reading by actually speaking what you've written will be an additional help.

I'd suggest that you don't do this at the dinner table, on a bus, or sitting in a crowded coffee shop. This exercise is one to do all by yourself in a quiet room or outdoors in a place where it's you and nature. Stand up. Straighten up. Begin reading in a normal voice, as if you were reading to an audience. Side note:  When I am going to be reading my work to a live audience, I do read it aloud at home first. It helps to make you more comfortable when actually reading to people.

You can do it once through or try it a second, even a third time. Poetry, especially, benefits from more than one reading. 

What kinds of things are you apt to find when you read your work out loud? 

• Sentences that are too long--if you must stop and take a breath while reading one sentence, it's probably too long. You might not see it reading silently, but you will hear it reading orally.
• Missing periods--you will read with one sentence running into another.
• Overly long paragraphs
• Too many dialogue tags--you needn't use one with every bit of spoken conversation. In a back and forth between characters, use the tag sparingly. Readers can figure out who is speaking.
• Repetition of words
• Repetition of information
• Poor opening--no hook
• Blah ending
• Rambling

There could be others, as well. The more you read your writing out loud, the more your work will benefit. Like so many good practices, you need to establish a habit. I read some of my writing aloud but not everything. I'd like to increase the times I do this and to create a set habit. One of the reasons I, and maybe you, don't always do it is that it takes more precious moments that we're not always willing to give up.

I read this post out loud, and guess what? I found several places where I changed bits and pieces. If you've never tried the oral reading as help to editing, give it a try. If you've done it only occasionally, try to do it more often.If you do it all the time, pat yourself on the back.

Call For Submissions For An Anthology

Chicken Soup for the Soul has extended the Call for Submissions on a new anthology that has the theme of forgiveness. The new deadline is June 30, 2019. The title of the book has also been changed. It's now The Forgiveness Fix. 

This is not the first book this popular anthology series has published on forgiveness. I have a story in another one published a few years ago. 

Forgiveness is powerful and allows us to mend broken relationships, find peace within and move on from a troubling situation. There's even self-forgiveness which can be as difficult to accomplish as forgiving someone else. 

I've been mulling some ideas for a story to submit for this new book. It took me quite some time to decide on what I would write. I've got the first draft finished, have submitted it to my online writing group for their opinion and suggestions. While waiting for that, I've had more thoughts about what might be added or omitted. Writing one 1200 words or less personal essay is not a swift process. The writer who dashes off a first draft and submits it immediately is not going to be sending what we term 'best work,' at least it's not going to happen except in a very few cases. 

Here is a list of suggested topics that the publishers have given to help you come up with an idea: 

 • Making the decision to forgive
  • Setting yourself free by forgiving
  • Apologizing if you were the one who caused the hurt
  • Letting go of anger and resentment
  • Adjusting your attitude
  • Healing and compassion
  • That first step — reestablishing contact
  • Working it out
  • Helping someone else forgive — how you did it
  • Forgiving yourself
  • Understanding the motivation and the issues behind the hurtful actions of others
  • Learning not to take things personally
  • Forgiving parents and grandparents
  • Forgiving children
  • Forgiving siblings and in-laws
  • Forgiving spouses or partners
  • Moving past crime through the power of forgiveness
  • Lessons from strangers about forgiveness
  • Role models who helped you access the power of forgiveness for yourself

Remember to study the guidelines section on the Submit Your Story page. I sense that the reason the publishers extend a deadline is that they are not getting the quality of stories they want to see, or perhaps the quantity either. You have well over a month to write, edit and revise a story to send. If your story is accepted, you will receive 10 copies of the book and a check for $200.

From my own experience, I have learned that Chicken Soup for the Soul editors like humor, dialogue, and stories that are heartwarming and inspiring. They like emotion by the writer that brings emotion from the reader.

While you're on the Submit Your Story page, check the Possible Book Topics as there are other books that need your stories, too.

Family Trees and Family Stories

When writing our family stories, we hope that they will also serve as somewhat of family history as well as a memory of an individual or group of family members. We would like to know the dates of births, deaths, marriages, immigration and more. One of the places I have found extremely helpful is a website called Family Search. It's a genealogical website sponsored by the Mormon church.

There is no religious material on the site, and, best of all, it is free for anyone to search for family members. I had heard it mentioned in a group of ladies at a luncheon so I thought I'd look into it. I was happily surprised when I did. I filled out our family tree, both mine and my husband's side of the family. The amount of information that came forth was both surprising and interesting. I never knew that my great-grandparents on my father's side immigrated from Quebec, Canada. Nor did I know their first names until I started the search.

One of the things I like about the website is that once you are signed in, you receive new tidbits of information off and on in the form of an email. One day, I received a copy of my paternal grandparents' marriage certificate, totally unsuspected. The only problem I have had with the site is that I am apt to spend too much time there. It's as addicting as facebook! Still, that's up to each individual as to how long you linger.

The Family Tree chart I used is the one above. You can download it here. You can also find many more through your favorite search engine.

Doing a family search might trigger memories of a family member which could lead to writing one more family story. After my father passed away, my mother gave me a few items that had been in my dad's family. He lost his parents at a very young age, had two older sisters who were both married. The sisters divided up what was left of their parents' belongings and my then teenage dad got left out, except for a few pieces. One was a lovely gold watch, similar to a pocket watch but worn on a chain by ladies. The watch had been the last gift my paternal grandmother's father gave her before her marriage. It has lovely etchings on the front with her initials gracefully done in the center. I knew that much of the story, but finding her marriage date on the family search website let me know exactly when she had received the beautiful watch. Being the only girl in my family, my mother felt I should have it. I have passed it on to my only daughter recently with the request that someday she gives it to her only daughter. I also learned the name of my grandmother's parents when doing the search. Previously, I had known their surname but not first names nor dates of their births and deaths.

Family genealogical searches and family stories are often laced together, as the story of my grandmother's watch illustrates. If you have never checked a family search website, give it a try. You may want to delve deeper and deeper.

Writers Need Discipline

The quote above from Pearl Buck should be heeded. She wrote a myriad number of books. She'd never have been able to do so if she did not do exactly what she says above. We've all seen references to writer or painters or musicians who claim they must be in the mood to write, paint or perform. Maybe, but it could also be a fine excuse for not getting the job done.

As writers, we need discipline. To define it more succinctly, we must have self-discipline. Yes, it is up to us to create a work plan and stick to it. Many writers spend all morning writing and save the afternoon for other things in life. Some do the opposite, get things done in the morning and spend the afternoon creating stories and essays. Still, others are the night writers. They have full-time day jobs that mean the evening and beyond is the only time available to them. The time itself is not the important thing. The fact that you have a set time.  Does it mean you are doomed if you break it? Of course not, but try to stay with the schedule as much as possible.

We also must discipline ourself to work on unfinished writing projects. If you are stuck in the middle of a chapter or can't get the final verse of a poem to feel right, it's good to set it aside for a while. What is not good is to let it sit for weeks or months and not get back to revising. Yes, we sometimes must push ourselves to do that. Self-discipline comes to play here.

What about submissions? That takes discipline, too. Sometimes writers want to do nothing but the actual writing. They don't enjoy submitting and marketing and branding. Just give me a laptop and leave me alone to write. If you want to be published, to be a known name in the writing world, you will need to discipline yourself to set aside a specified amount of time to do the writing-related jobs. 

So often, I've finished a post by saying something like It's up to you. That simple statement works for this post, too. Give yourself a mental tongue-lashing if you have trouble with discipline in your writing world. I've been known to give myself what I term a 'verbal spanking' when I know I should have been doing a better job or have been lackadaisical. Discipline takes a strong hand, even when it is self-discipline. 

Writers--There's A Place For Short

Writers have decisions to make when they are new to the craft. What will I write? Long or short? Jump right in and start writing the novel that's been zipping around my mind for far too long? Or start with a few short stories before tackling a full-length book?

I am of the opinion that starting out with short stories will make you a better novelist in the long run. Master the many facets of fiction in a short story first. But I wanna write a book! Don't we all? (Well, lots of us) One doesn't just sit down and write a book. If you do, you'll most likely run into one brick wall after another. Try the short story first. You'll meet enough problems there, but perhaps they can be solved a bit more easily than the ones in the big book project.

There's nothing wrong with writing short. In fact, there is a huge market for short pieces of all kinds. I think the list below is impressive. You have so many choices in writing short.

• Opinion essays
• Personal essays
• Literary essays
• Persuasive essays
• Short stories--fiction
• Memoir
• Articles--nonfiction
• Poetry
• Fiction stories for Children
• Nonfiction for children
• Inspirational pieces
• Speechwriting
• Sketches 
• One-act plays
• Advertising copy
• Profiles

I'm sure there are some I did not add to the list. There could be several sub-headings under each of the above, as well.

There's a place for short in your writing life. Look at the reasons to consider short on your writing journey.

• Takes less time
• Great for the impatient writer
• Less research
• Large selection of kinds of writing
• Writers turn out more short pieces than books
• Pay is less but adding up several sales makes a difference
• Good practice for writing longer works

When non-writers meet a writer, they want to know about the book or types of books you write. No one ever says What short pieces are you working on? The average reader considers only books. Yet, they read articles in the newspaper which are all shorts. There are also readers who enjoy reading essays and short stories and a bit of poetry now and then. Short pieces that someone had to write. 

How about those stories I urge you to write to preserve your family history? Short pieces that can be assembled into a book form. The same goes for memoir writers. Writing a full-length memoir fills a need, is a big undertaking, and involves lots of shorter memories. Why not write some short memoir pieces to help you get ready to write the big one? 

If you've never written a book, that's fine. There is a place for short!

A Pep Talk For You and Me

Most writers have ideas for writing projects. Family members give serious thought to writing their family stories. Some writers dream of writing a novel or a memoir. They have the entire thing mapped out in their heads. As long as these projects are merely thoughts, they are never going to come to fruition. 

What's holding you back? Why do you think about entering your best personal essay in a contest but simply never get around to doing it? What makes you dream about creating a large book of family stories that you can present to family members as a fabulous gift, but it never happens? Why do you think about joining a writing group but can't seem to get it accomplished? Why do you see a book about writing in a bookstore, look at the frontispiece, give thought to reading it but slip it back on the shelf? 

We've talked about fear, doubt and lack of confidence being the culprits. A post from several days ago addresses all three. If you missed it, read it here. I'm not going to go into detail on those problems in today's post.

What I do want to bring to your attention is that it is entirely up to you to 'unleash your inner awesome' as our poster tells us. If you only think about writing projects, you know they will never see the light of day. If you know you are capable of writing, then get started. Afraid it might not come out well? So what? Get that first draft written. Consider the first draft as the springboard to a finished product. 

A mountain climber will never reach the summit unless he/she takes the first step, the second and third and keeps going. Sitting at the bottom of the mountain thinking about the climb gets him/her nowhere. The only thing it does is delay what he/she had come to do. It wastes precious time. Wait too long and he/she will gather their gear and head home. Maybe tomorrow, they think. Not so different from the writer who can't take that first step in writing a novel or a special poem. 

Time for true confessions. I have delayed and delayed submitting to my state writing contest. This 'pep talk' post is as much for me as it is for any other writer who finds himself/herself postponing a writing project or submitting work to a contest or for publication. I know it's time for me to get with it and work on polishing a few pieces I've thought about entering. I'm having difficulty choosing what to send. Maybe the answer is to send all that I feel good about. The deadline is only a month away, so I need to get moving. 

How about taking that first step and unleashing what is swirling around inside your head? Let it come forth. An old adage comes to mind:  Once begun, you're almost done. With a writing project that might not hold true as we can take weeks or months from start to end. Even so, once begun, you're on your way to the finish line. 

A Link To Writing Contests and More

May Flowers--Just because...

Besides publications, writers should consider entering contests. If you place, you will get a prize or publication and a credit to add to your file. If you lose, you still gain by preparing an entry and submitting. That in itself is good experience.

Yesterday, I accidentally ran across a link to a blog written by author, Erica Verillo. The title is Publishing...And Other Forms of Insanity. Clever. The post I found was one that had a list of 16 recurring writing contests to enter that have no fees. Sixteen in on fell swoop is a treasure trove. Check it out here. Be sure to read what Ms. Verillo has to say about entering contests. I couldn't have said it better myself. 

I've heard writers ask where one finds information about writing contests. It's not difficult to put writing contests in a search engine and wait seconds for the list they'll send. You can refine your search by using keywords like writing contests with no fees or writing contests with cash prizes. I'm amazed at the number of people who don't take advantage of a search engine to help find whatever it is they are seeking. 

Keep in mind that many no-entry-fee contests give smaller prizes or just publication as a prize. For many writers, that's just fine. If you're aiming for the big prize money, expect a large entry fee. It's the way these contest managers accumulate the funds to award to the winners. 

Does your state writers association have an annual contest? Maybe the individual districts run writing contests, as well. Our local library sponsors a writing contest for school children to commemorate Martin Luther King Day. Check your own local library for contest possibilities. 

Many writers shy away from contests because they have little confidence in their own writing ability. You'll never know if you are a winner if you don't enter. Pump yourself up a bit and send in a piece you feel good about. The very first poem I submitted to a contest won 1st place. No one was more surprised than I. At the time, I had written very little poetry, knew next to nothing about writing poetry. Even so, I came up with a winner. So, I know it can happen. It doesn't matter if it is a poem, an essay. a memoir piece or fiction. 

I think that we enter contests because we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Well, maybe you lose the entry fee, but you wouldn't have entered if you had a problem with losing that bit of cash. For the winners, what better boost of confidence can a writer have? 

Check the list in the link above to see if there are any contests you might consider entering. Then look for others via a search engine. As for me, my state writing contest deadline is only a month away. I have several pieces in mind to submit, but it's time for me to get them in final form and entered. 

When Your Writing Is Rejected

Yes or No? What will she say? Or is it, what will he say?

Yesterday, my Guest Blogger, Molly Flowers, gave a case for rejection. She had a viewpoint that many writers may not have considered before. Lots of food for thought. If you didn't have an opportunity to read it, check it out here.

The silhouette image above shows a man and woman, one of whom may have to deal with rejection. It's difficult to determine which one is the rejector and which the rejectee! It doesn't matter because rejection still hurts, no matter who is the recipient. These two people are not writer and editor, but most likely a couple about to break up. Haven't most of us been there at some time in our life? Were you the one to who hurt the other one, or were you the person who got hurt? If you've lived a few decades, you might have been on both sides at different moments. Maybe you wondered if you'd even live through the situation. You began to doubt yourself as a person. You didn't want to try for another relationship. Not ever again! 

Guess what? A writer who receives a rejection after submitting his/her work has many of the same emotions. Thoughts run through your mind, one tumbling over another. Things like:  That stupid editor doesn't know a good thing when he sees it. I'll never submit another piece. Not ever! Who needs to be hurt like that? I must be the world's worst writer. What's wrong with me? We all go through it. Get the thoughts out and then move on.

Once you're over the pity party (oh yes, we all hold a little pity party right after the rejection comes), ask yourself some questions. 

• Did I pick the wrong market?
• Did I follow the submission guidelines carefully?
• Did I send a clean, edited copy?
• Did I proof and edit more than once?
• Was my opening one that grabbed the reader?
• Did I have more telling or more showing?
• Did I use lots of active verbs?
• Did I have a beginning, middle and ending? Or was it a jumble?
• Did I over-emote?
• Did I use similes and metaphors to bring my story to life? 
• Did I spend enough time looking for a market to submit to? 
• Did I use sensory details to make the story realistic?
• Do I need to scrap this piece or revise and submit again?
• This is an important one:  Is it possible the piece I sent is just fine but the publication couldn't use it anytime soon? That they may have published something in the same vein in recent weeks?  

When you answer the questions above, try to be objective. Attempt reading that submission as if someone else had written it. How would you critique it? 

I wouldn't suggest answering the questions above immediately after receiving the rejection. Give it a couple days before you tackle it. 

Submit the revised piece to another publication when you feel you're ready. We all know stories about very successful writers who submitted a zillion times before finding that success. So, what makes us think we're going to hit the jackpot the first time out? It can happen, but it's nor the norm. 

There's a reason I stay with my two keywords, which are patience and perseverance.

A Case For Rejection

Molly Flowers

My Guest Blogger today is an old friend. Molly did a freewrite exercise not long ago that I thought had some good points in it. I asked her if she'd polish it up a bit and submit it for me to use on this blog. Being not only a good friend but a fine writer, as well, she readily agreed and sent me the following.

Rejection hurts. Your insides shrivel, your brain shrinks, your eyes burn and maybe tears spill over. Rejection might even make you feel like you want to die. In fact, you do die a little, because everything seems to shut down. So why do we writers, and other creatives, set ourselves up for rejection every time we submit our gorgeous words for publication? I am also an artist, and as an artist, I continue to court rejection each time I submit an art quilt for an exhibit. When the inevitable rejection letter comes back, I tell myself I will never, ever go though this pain again -- until the next time.

But rejection doesn’t have to be a negative. I’m a firm believer in the adage, “The Universe will provide what you need, not what you want.” What we need and what we want are totally different outcomes. We might WANT to gain acceptance to a certain exhibit, or to sell an article, or even to wear a Size 10 again, but do we NEED those things? Not necessarily. When faced with rejection, ask yourself what you really need.

During my quest as a new writer to find an agent, I eventually came to expect The Dreaded Rejection Letter. I’d shrug off the disappointment and file the letter away. One more rejection ticked off on the way to the limit I set for myself before giving up. How many rejections can you handle at any one time? One? Two? Twenty? I racked up over forty rejections on my first novel before I decided to move on to a different project.

Luckier with my second novel, I found a publisher before the Fateful Fortieth rejection arrived. He said I only had to make certain changes, and he’d publish my novel. Unfortunately, those changes meant a major rewrite. Since I didn’t even like my main character, I decided not to go through the hassle and moved on. My choice. I thought I wanted that novel published, but it turned out I didn’t need it. What I NEEDED was validation. That’s what the publisher gave me, and that made me happy.

J.K. Rowling collected many more than forty rejections. I forget how many. A  thousand? Whatever. She believed in Harry Potter and needed for her dream to be published, so she kept going. Just look at her reward! Nancy Julien Kopp will tell you to persevere in the face of rejection, to never give up -- and she’s right. But consider, too, the Want vs Need angle.

If your work is continually rejected, that can be a good thing. Why is it being rejected? Take a long, hard look at your product and then decide if putting it out there for public consumption will give you what you want or what you desperately need. If the reward is merely something you want, you may decide to forget it and move on to something that appeals to you more. However, if it’s something you need, you’ll learn from those rejections, make the proper adjustments (even a major rewrite!) and send your work out again and again. Eventually, that rejection stream will end in a sale.

Bio:  Molly Flowers: After 20 years of corporate life, Molly Flowers became a free-lance technical writer and was fortunate enough to retire early from the workaday world. She has had several articles published in magazines and newsletters and 2.5 unpublished novels hiding in the hard drive of her computer. She now spends most of her time attached to the coattails of her globe-trotting husband. When she’s not traveling, she’s immersed in textile art. Although she lived most of her life in Georgia, she now resides in the Low Country of South Carolina. Her textile art website is https://www.mollyflowersart.com/about-the-artist 

Writers Can Conquer Fear and More

Fear looms large in the list of problems writers face. Many times, it's what keeps us from taking the next step on our writing journey. There's another guy that goes hand-in-hand with fear. His name is Doubt. Their sister, Miss Lack-of-Self-Confidence travels with them. Any one of them can wreak havoc on a writer, but put them together and disaster might be the result. 

I wonder if any writer can say that he/she has never had to deal with fear, doubt, or lack of self-confidence at some point. I fall short of calling anyone a liar, but I'd say these people would be hiding from the truth. Granted, there are varying degrees. Take fear, for instance. You can be paralyzed with fear to the point that you can't go on any longer, or you can have just a niggling little bit of it that gives you pause until you push it aside and move on. 

We doubt that we can write for the top name publishers or best magazines so we continue to submit to very small circulation places. We're not confident that we can compete with hundreds of other writers in a contest so we don't enter. We think things like:  I'm not a good enough writer. I'd never get an acceptance at that place. I'm just a so-so writer. I'm only a little fish in a big pond. 

Instead of continuing with that line of thinking, have thoughts that will help your confidence. Positive ones like:  Who says I can't do this? I've got as good a chance as anyone else. If I don't try, I'll never know how far I could go. I'm proud of my writing. 

One way to build your self-confidence is to keep learning about the craft of writing. Read every newsletter or book about writing that comes your way. If they don't fall into your lap, seek them! Go to workshops and conferences. Join writing groups. Have a one-on-one session with another writer. Ask questions. No matter how long you've been writing, there is no end to learning more about this skill. 

Another help is to make a vow to be more positive than negative. Negativity gets you nowhere in a hurry. We must stop putting ourselves down. Instead, make it a point to do all you can to build yourself up. 

There are people who allow fear, doubt and lack of self-confidence to accompany them for a very long time. The subconscious feeling can be that if I have all these problems to deal with, I don't have to produce. In other words, they hide behind their problems, use them as an excuse for why they don't submit their writing or take a long pause in writing. 

Even when we have success with our writing, we have bits of fear and doubt. If an author has a book published for the first time, they can't stop thinking about the reviews, the sales, the publisher's comments. Again, it can go by degrees--from passing thoughts to keep you awake every night reactions.

It's human to have a little fear, doubt and lack of self-confidence at times. A small amount can serve to push us to do better. What we don't want is to let those problems take over and push us away from the writing world, to push us backward rather than forward on our writing journey. I seem to say this often, but you are the one who is in control.  

Submitting To Anthologies

If you write short pieces, as opposed to full-length books, anthologies are markets to explore for your work. The two book covers above are anthologies in which I have been published. A publisher decides to put together a group of stories by different authors, usually around a specific theme. 

The one I first submitted to and where I've had good success is Chicken Soup for the Soul. Their books are always filled with stories geared to a particular theme. They stay with a specified number of stories in each book--101. The stories they seek are heartwarming, humorous, heart-tugging true tales. No horror or erotica here. (Go to the bottom of the page where three columns are shown in blue ink. At the top of the third column, you will see Submit Your Stories. Click on this to go to the page that gives you all the information you need to submit. 

The Moments series of anthologies does not pay the authors. All royalties for the books go to an international charitable organization called Samaritan's Purse. You can read more about this series here. Submitting here, and being accepted, gives you a publication to add to your list and offers an opportunity to help others in our world.

Bards Against Hunger is another no-pay series of poetry anthologies. Royalties for the books go to fight hunger around the world. Again, it's one more publication if you are accepted. 

If you subscribe to writing newsletters, you can be on the lookout for anthologies that need submissions. You'll find lists of calls for submissions, anthologies being only one type. 

Do a search on your favorite search engine. I tried that just recently. I was surprised at the number of horror anthologies listed. There are also a lot of sci-fi and erotica books that are looking for stories. For people who write in these genres, it looked like a fertile field. 

As always, read the guidelines carefully. Read samples of the anthology if possible to give you an idea for what they like to publish. 

Here are a few links to anthologies looking for submissions:

• Crack the Spine--theme is The Year
• Heroines
• The Fiction Desk 
• Once Upon An Enchanted Forest--witchcraft stories
• Untitled Time Anthology--theme is Time
• Horror Anthology
• Travel Tales  (some dates are past, some still open)

Writers and Social Media

We hear the term Social Media a lot. Do you know the official definition of the word?

Webopedia Definition
A term used to describe a variety of Web-based platforms, applications, and technologies that enable people to socially interact with one another online. Some examples of social media sites and applications include Facebook, YouTube, Del.icio.us, Twitter, Digg, blogs and other sites that have content ...
https://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/social_media.html

I'm guessing that a great many writers use some form of social media. The question I ask is to what

purpose? I'm not putting it down. I use it and am a proponent of writers becoming involved with various outlets of social media. I ask the question to let you give thought to your reasons for using it. 

Do you pop onto Facebook daily for some sociability with friends and family? That's fine, but do you also use Facebook to promote your latest publication, speaking engagement or conference attendance? If not, you should. Many writers have two facebook pages--one for personal life and one for their writing life. I have both, but I use the personal one to let friends and family know what goes on in my writing life, too. 

One of the suggestions for branding yourself as a writer is to use social media. Get your name spread often enough that you gain some recognition. We're fortunate to live and write in a time where reaching others and informing them of your writing life is so very easy. 

Did you notice in the definition that 'blogs' are included? That surprised me, although it probably shouldn't as a blog fits the definition quite well. Instagram was not mentioned, but it seems to me you could share a photo there of you and your latest publication. Have you tried using YouTube to promote your writing? Here's an article that might help. Twitter seems to be a big part of our world today. We see 'tweets' on the news on a daily basis. If you haven't already, you should consider signing on at www.twitter.com. Every time something of interest in your writing life occurs, hop on over and tweet. 

If you haven't used a lot of social media, there's no time like the present to begin. It may all seem like Greek or nonsense to you at first, but stay with it and soon you'll be an old hand. 

I put links to my blog posts on several writing-related facebook pages plus my own writer's page and my personal page. I tweet each post on twitter, too. I've gained many new readers by doing this. Does it take time? Yes, but not a large amount. When you do it five days a week, it becomes routine and goes fairly fast. 

I also have many Friends on facebook who are writers. and they promote themselves there as writers. I enjoy seeing what new publication they might have or an award won. It's a chance to congratulate or commiserate when rejection happens. Writers sometimes put questions on facebook and get numerous answers. Their Facebook Friends occasionally help choose a book cover with a poll the writer uses. 

If you never use Social Media, consider giving it a try. If you're an occasional user, up the amount a bit. The more you put into it, the more benefit you receive. You've probably heard that people spend far too much time on Social Media sites. That can happen, no doubt about it. The solution to that is entirely up to you. Put a limit on the time you spend there.

Teachers Who Influenced Your Writing

This is National Teacher Appreciation Week, and today is National Teacher Appreciation Day. What better time to give thought to the many men and women who taught you and me over the past decades? Narrowing it down here to those who helped us become writers.

There are three parts to today's post:

1.  Teachers who helped us learn about the craft of writing: 

We must thank those teachers who introduced us to the world of writing back in grade school, middle school and high school. They were classroom teachers, ones who taught the language, and those who concentrated on Literature and Writing only. Did they all teach us to be writers? No, but we derived bits and pieces of learning to write as we moved from grade to grade. 

Some of us can pinpoint one specific teacher who set us on the path to a writing journey that has continued into adulthood. Maybe it was a college professor whose class on Creative Writing in which you soaked up knowledge about writing like a sponge. It could have been a person who conducted a workshop for writers at a conference. Or someone who wrote a book about writing skill that you have read time and again. 

Certain teachers stand out in our mind as ones who offered us the most useful and interesting material that helped us pursue our writing. The one who offered inspiration to write and keep writing. 

2.  Writers who become teachers of writers:

When we attend a writing conference, nearly every workshop presenter or keynote speaker is another writer. These people are willing to share their knowledge and experience with both newbie writers and seasoned ones. I am firmly convinced that we are never too experienced nor too old to learn more about our craft. 

Do we appreciate these 'writers who teach writers' enough? Next time you sit in a workshop taught by another writer, think about the time they put into preparing the lesson for you? What about the time they must take away from their own writing? They make this sacrifice to give you the gift of what they know about the subject, be it mystery writing, essay composition, or novels. 

Authors who write books about writing have dual purposes in most cases. They want to share their expertise, but they also want to publish another book and enjoy the royalties. When an author with a recognizable name writes a book about writing, others tend to pay attention. 

There are plenty of writers who are not willing to give the time and effort required to teach other writers. Some don't feel qualified. Some are terrified of speaking publicly. Some are takers, not givers. There are any number of reasons, and none are to be criticized. Instead, those writers should be all the more appreciative of writers who can teach other writers.

3.  Write to a teacher who helped you learn to write:

As an exercise, write a letter of thanks to a teacher who inspired or aided you in becoming a writer. Besides your thanks, let them know what they did to reach out to you, what made you remember what they taught you. You can mail it or not. Many of those teachers may no longer be living or whereabouts unknown. You can turn your letter into a personal essay or you can use it strictly as a writing exercise. Your choice. 

We didn't become writers without help from teachers throughout the years. Give some thought and appreciation to those who helped you both before and during your writing journey. 

Marketing What You Write

Many writers are in agreement with this statement:  The writing is the easy part, selling it is much harder. As writers, we've done the work of writing, and we know that it is no easy task. Hours and hours go into writing one short story or a personal essay. A book may take years. Even so, many writers dread the task of finding a home for what they have written. I'm going to concentrate today on short pieces like short fiction, flash fiction, essays, personal essays, nonfiction articles, and poetry rather than full-length books.

Finding a place to submit your writing is far easier today than it was before technology brought us the internet. Huge market guides were for sale or could be found at the local library. They gave thousands of places where writers could send their work. A big problem was that the guides became outdated very quickly. They also took a good deal of time to read through, trying to find a fit with your story. They did narrow the guides to magazines, publishing houses, poetry and more, which helped a little. Cost proved a factor for many, especially if the writer wanted the most current guide. There are still printed market guides available, but they aren't as popular as they once were.

Today, we have the benefit of search engines on the internet to help us find places to submit our work. It costs nothing but our time and some effort at weeding. We still need to separate the possible from the impossible.

Some things to keep in mind when looking for magazines, anthologies or websites that accept your kind of work:

• Try different search engines, then choose one you like best. You can still check others at any time. This article will be of help in trying several.
• Learn to use significant keywords when using a search engine. For instance, if you are trying to sell a story to a horror magazine, use words like submission guidelines horror magazines. If you want to sell an article on making bread, use words like submission guidelines food magazines. Narrow your search so that you don't end up with a myriad of useless titles in the list you receive.
• Make a list of the ten places that seem the best fit for the story you want to sell. No sense in making a list of 50. Hopefully, you'll have success with one of those first ten that appeal to you. If not, you know where to go to add to your list. 
• Don't select a place to submit to by only the title of the magazine, website or anthology. READ the guidelines. READ them more than once. Does your story qualify? If so, send it. If not, scratch it.
• Listen to what other writers have to say. If your work is similar, take a look at places where they had some success. I see writers making recommendations now and then on social media. Pay attention.
• If you have sold a story to a particular magazine, give them a try a second or third time. They'll recognize your name and may give closer attention to your submission. If you sell multiple times to the same place, you can establish a working relationship with the editor. Always a large plus.
• Subscribe to writing themed newsletters. Many of them contain market lists that are updated regularly. They've done the initial searching for you. 

How about contests?

• Use a search engine to find contests that you can enter.
• Writing newsletters often have a section on contests to enter.
• Specify No-fee in your keywords in a search engine when looking for contests, if you want only ones that cost you nothing to enter.
• Just as mentioned above, READ the guidelines for entering several times. Make sure what you want to enter fits the guidelines.
• Remember that contests with entry fees generally award larger cash prizes than the No-fee.
• Listen to other writers to gain knowledge of contests worth entering. 

Marketing what you've written is not an easy task. The longer you do it, the better you will become at sifting and sorting the long lists the search engines will spout. 

Writers Who Worry

We send in a submission for publication or to a contest, and then comes the long wait. Some publications give an indication of how long it will be until you hear something from them--either yay or nay. Some give no timetable whatsoever. Some never respond unless they want to publish your work. Worrisome!

Contests most often state when the winners will be announced. That is less of a concern than submitting for publication. Sometimes, it's still a long time from entry to finding out if you placed or not. My state authors club contest has a submission deadline of June 15th. Winners are announced in early October at the state convention. Meanwhile, those who enter cannot submit the same piece for publication. The rule is that whatever was entered cannot be published prior to the winners being revealed. Technically, you can submit to an editor, but if they want to publish, can you say, "That's great, but you can't publish until after October." That's rather hard to do. At that point, you'd need to decide whether to withdraw your contest entry and accept the publication offer or nix it and leave the contest entry. I find it's better to not enter a contest and send the same piece out for publication possibilities. It's not going to happen often, but if it does, you have a problem to work out.

All of the above is leading up to today's topic. Writers who worry. It's the human part of us that causes us to worry about our writing ability, the long waits we endure to hear from an editor or contest manager, and the reviews or the readers we attract. We question ourself on various parts of our writing life. We fret, voice concern, and just plain worry. I doubt there is any writer who has not spent some time worrying about various facets of the writing journey. 

The bigger question is why do you worry and how much do you worry? Today's poster above gives the best advice for this problem. The biggest thing is that worrying changes absolutely nothing. It also hurts no one but yourself. Your sleep can suffer. You can lose the joy in other parts of your life by letting worry take over. You usually have little or no control over the thing you're worried about.

Is there a solution? You hold the key. No one else can do this for you. One thing you must learn to do is have faith in yourself as a writer. You must come to a point where you believe in your writing ability. Be willing to admit that not everything you submit is going to get published (or win a contest). There's nothing wrong with giving yourself a mental pep talk. Accentuate the positives in your writing life. 

If you're a beginning writer, finding those positives might be a little harder. Even so, try to consider the positives rather than the negatives. The latter will only add to your worry. What do you like about your writing? Dwell on that rather than the parts you hate. And know this--all writers hate some things about their writing, but they also have areas that are very satisfying. 

I've learned to take the attitude that, if something is meant to happen, it will. If I get a rejection, there is usually a good reason for it. The fault could easily lie in me, not that dumb editor who didn't want to publish the piece I sent in good faith. Most of the time, I don't worry. Remember that popular song of many decades ago titled Que sera, sera? The loose translation is Whatever will be, will be. No amount of worry in the world can change what happens.

Instead of wasting time worrying, work at being the best writer you can be. The more success you have, the less there will be to worry about.