Branching out with my writing
Do you need to be convinced? Deadlines and ill-temperament have taken their toll, after all.
Paul Jun’s guest post on ProBlogger offers three reasonable suggestions to consider.
Ever had that submission spur an immediate rejection?
We’re talkin’, ‘Click ‘send’ and within minutes, boom! your inbox has a ‘Thanks, but…’ message. It’s almost as if that evil editor, assistant or, in 2017, maybe an automated script, has been just waiting for your query letter or sample chapter.
Time to give up, right?
Uhhh, no.
Jordan Rosenfeld, author of A Writer’s Guide to Persistence: How to Create a Lasting and Productive Writing Practice, offers these tips.
No, I have not yet bought her book, but for almost a year, I’ve followed her Twitter feed, which abounds with inspiration and advice for writers.
So hang in there and move on to the next potential client.
it’s crunch time.
You lost out in the eternal tug of war between what you’re supposed to do and what you prefer to do.
It’s now crunch time and you need to focus.
Seriously–focus. And focus some more. [I know, I know, I do see the irony of launching you further away from your work, but these tips should prove helpful in the end. And now…back to the cat videos. ;->]
images courtesy of gratisography.com
No, you’re not going into witness protection. And don’t expect CIA recruiters anytime soon.
You’ve taken control of your other writing projects.
But you’re feeling a little stale.
Maybe it’s time to create a new Web presence.
Explore a new topic of interest.
Give it time to evolve into something of greater value–to you and your readers.
image courtesy of gratisography.com
Stay true to yesterday’s ‘watch your temper’ advice,
Yes, counter to August 27: Your reclusiveness serves no one. , today IS STILL a good day to be a shut-in. Your editor wasn’t in a compromising mood, so the embers are still smoldering and the deadlines still loom.
No, you don’t have to totally insulate yourself.
But give it another day before you get a handle on the workload.
image courtesy of gratisography.com
Yesterday’s merciless ‘overwhelm’ endures.
The editor shoots you a ‘Where’s your draft?’ email.
You want to show him what you’d like to do with the email.
But the garbage disposal isn’t disposing.
Can you find a tolerable medium?
How about–you’ll do the rewrite if he gives you an extra week?
It’ll at least give you time to get the disposal fixed…in case of future editorial spats.
Today, September 11, is a national day of service, as requested by people who lost family in the 2001 tragedy. Here is a link to publicgood.com.
So many ideas, so little time.
So many projects, so much self-doubt.
It will be tempting to let it wash all over you.
Go ahead, give it an hour.
Call it a short-term pity party.
Then pull out your notebook, audio recorder, laptop, hammer-and-chisel [and acceptable hard surface]–whatever!–and churn out a few words.
First of all, I love short chapters.
Thank you, Joel Saltzman, author of If You Can Talk, You Can Write [1993]—50 chapters squeezed into 190 pages.
And he practices what he preaches, as Saltzman might as well be playfully preaching to us over coffee in the kitchen.
Three of my preferred chapters:
My favorite Saltzman quotes:
Saltzman also weaves in short anecdotes, pop quizzes [Ten questions you can’t get wrong], and valuable quotes from other writers, including:
This is one of about a dozen books I would snag from my shelf in case a fire broke out at home. [If it wasn’t already been planted in my back seat box of writing stuff…]
First of all, I love short chapters.
Thank you, Joel Saltzman, author of If You Can Talk, You Can Write [1993]—50 chapters squeezed into 190 pages.
And he practices what he preaches, as Saltzman might as well be playfully preaching to us over coffee in the kitchen.
Three of my preferred chapters:
My favorite Saltzman quotes:
Saltzman also weaves in short anecdotes, pop quizzes [Ten questions you can’t get wrong], and valuable quotes from other writers, including:
This is one of about a dozen books I would snag from my shelf in case a fire broke out at home. [If it wasn’t already been planted in my back seat box of writing stuff…]
And, don’t forget the one writer you should always be competing with: the previous version of you.
***
photo courtesy of Gratisography
Word Inventions