Writers Need Patience

 

Throughout the eleven years of writing blog posts,  I've promoted my own keywords which are 'patience' and 'perseverance.' Neither one is easy to achieve. 

Today, let's look at 'patience.' I readily admit that I have never been a patient person, not in my growing-up years or most of my adulthood. When I entered the writing world in my mid-fifties, I concentrated on learning the craft, refining my beginner skills, and writing on a daily basis. When I finally felt that I could start submitting my finished pieces to editors, the first lesson on patience on this journey arrived. The infernal waiting to hear from an editor tried every bit of patience I had, even though it was very little. You wait and wait and wait... Sometimes a rejection was sent, other times nothing came to tell me that they could not use the story sent. 

 As time went on, I started receiving a few acceptances. Even so, the wait proved longer than anyone likes. A piece of advice in a book on writing served has served me well. 'After submitting a story, forget about it and start working on the next one.' No matter how long you've been writing, you feel anxious waiting for the result of a submission, so why not keep busy by writing more?

Many guidelines give an approximate number of weeks before the editors make a decision. It helps to know that, but you still need to develop a way to wait without getting antsy. Not all editors put the amount of time for waiting in their guidelines. They may feel it's too restricting for them., but hey aren't the ones who have to learn to be patient. You do.

Writers who have little patience are often the ones who give up, and usually all too soon. To become a good writer and a published writer takes time. Lots of it. If this was a recipe, I'd say 'use a cupful of time and 3 cups of patience.' Today's poster says "Go over, under, around, or through, but never give up."

Patience comes in dribs and drabs, never in one fell swoop. It's a mental state that you need to develop a little at a time. I've found that the older I get, the more patience I have. You can't very well make yourself older so that you have more patience quickly, but it might be good to know that impatient people do find it easier to wait when they've added a few years.

If you ever feel like giving up on your writing journey, give yourself a quiet lecture in a mere sprinkling of words. 'Take your time.' Maybe making a small sign that you can put near your computer would help. If you see those words every day, aren't they bound to sink in? Work on acquiring patience instead of giving up.

A few quotes on patience: 

All great achievements require time.  Maya Angelou

Patience is a key element of success.  Bill Gates

The secret of patience is to do something else in the meantime.  Croft M. Pence

Trust the process. Your time is comng. Do the work and the results will handle themselves.  Tony Gaskin

Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.  Aristotle

Patience is the calm acceptance that things can happen in a different order than the one you have in your mind.  David G. Allen 

Patience--Is It One of Your Virtues?

Many times I try to encourage newbies in the writing world using two keywords--patience and perseverance. I think I could write a book for new writers that included only those two chapters, maybe only those two little words! That's how important I feel they are.

Today, let's look at patience. It isn't only writers who need this quality. A whole lot of folks in other walks of life could use a healthy dose. One of the big problems with a dose of patience is that it runs out and we have to swallow another patience pill. If only there was such a medication!

Seasoned writers learn that patience pays off. I've often joked to friends that I think God pushed me into the writing field in order to teach me to be a more patient person. It's true--I am and always have been a most impatient person. When I want something, I want it now! Bad trait, believe me, as it leads to major frustration. As I've aged, I've mellowed a bit and am definitely more willing to wait for things than in my younger years.

Sending a story to an editor is a very satisfying feeling. A project you've worked on, maybe for weeks, is finally polished enough to meet the eyes of she who will say Yea or Nay. But then you have to wait to hear from the editor. Some submission guidelines state the response time, and I find that most helpful. If they say six to eight weeks but ten weeks have elapsed, then I can be fairly certain that they did not want the story. In that case, I send it to another editor. There are many who say they have too many submissions to notify those they reject. Understandable on their end, a lot harder for the writer to swallow. I greatly appreciate those editors who do send rejection notices. We don't have to hearing a negative, but it lets us know where we stand and that it's time to move on.

Each of the above scenarios requires patience on the writer's part. So how do you get it? It's a mind-set, I think. You need to make up your mind that you are going to have a long wait before you hear from an editor, if at all. The longer you're in the writing world, the more practice you get in being patient.

While you wait weeks or months to hear from an anthology group or a magazine editor, get busy on a new project. Pushing the other in the background and working on a current story is the best antidote for the Impatience Syndrome.