Christmas stories! They're loved by so many and therefore published by myriad numbers of magazines, websites, newspapers, and book publishers. They need to be marketed months and months ahead of the Christmas season. Think of how many editors are reading Christmas stories as air-conditioners keep their offices cool on a hot summer day.
Should you write a Christmas story in April or June so you can send it out in July? Some writers can do it, but for me, my best Christmas stories have been written during the Christmas season. The simple reason is that during December when we're surrounded by Christmas and all that it involves--from the religious to the commercial side--we have more emotion to spread through our story. We feel the story inside so strongly that we can write it easily. It's a time when so many memories are triggered. It's now that we need to write our Christmas stories.
I hear your question loud and clear Doesn't that mean my story won't have a chance of being seen until next Christmas?. You're right. Unless you send to a website that publishes instantly, it probably will not find a home for about a year. But that's okay. Your aim is to publish your work, no matter how long it takes. Remember that one of the keywords for all writers is patience.
Write your Christmas story now. Write it while the scents of this beloved holiday are wafting through your home and other places you go. Write it while the sights and happenings of Christmas touch your heart. Write it while you hear the sounds of Christmas--the bells, the carolers, the commercial songs. Write it while you care about it. Don't wait until March and hope you can dredge up those Christmas emotions while drinking green beer on St. Pat's Day.
Write it now, then put it in a file marked "Christmas Stories" and keep that file somewhere that you'll see it occasionally. Come spring, go through the stories in that file and study market guides to see where you might submit your work.
You're busy with Christmas preparations. We who celebrate this holiday are all in the same boat, different paddle. Make writing your Christmas story a part of your Christmas tasks. Write it NOW!
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