So Much Work, So Few Writers
Recently, I had a brief exchange with a very talented writer who expressed a fear of rejection so strong that it was keeping her from publishing. Her feelings have been on my mind for a while and I just want to share a few thoughts in case there are others out there feeling the same way.
The Princeton Review reports that there are only 357, 000 writers (I'm assuming they meant in the U.S. although there wasn't a specification noted). Now, while that number may seem like a whopping estimate, when you think about all of the markets that are available, that number is really low. Everyone's not a fiction writer, a non-fiction writer, a lyricist, a novelist, a journalist, a copywriter, a grant writer, a technical writer, a freelancer, a screenplay writer, a playwrite, etc. So, with that 357,000 spread out amongst so many markets, I figure it's a wide open field for the creative go-getter who's not afraid to take chances and who doesn't let a little word like "no" defer their dreams.
I love and encourage constructive criticism of my work. Sometimes it brings about a change in my writing and sometimes it doesn't. Either way, I don't fear it. Having my writing flat-out rejected has never bothered me much either. Since I write, primarily, for myself, if I'm happy with something, I don't give much thought to the fact that someone else rejects it. I also bear in mind that the rejection could be for a variety of reasons besides disliking my work. Perhaps the editor didn't feel it was right for her audience, perhaps the publication recently ran a story on the same subject and it was too soon to repeat, perhaps someone else wrote something from a different, more preferred angle...doesn't mean mine was bad, just that a business decision had to be made and mine didn't make the cut. My point is that I don't stress over rejection and I hope that none of you do either. It's par for the course in this business and something that we all have to get used to. Besides, what one editor refuses, the next one just might embrace, so just keep submitting until you find that right one, okay?
And speaking of submitting, take a peek at these sites and see if there's anything you can use:
http://www.iluvcats.com/writguidfori.html (notice that they also accept fillers which we talked about recently)
http://www.chickensoup.com/ (note that the last email address that I posted for them hasn't been confirmed yet. This is the official site, so it's best to start here with submissions)
http://www.hopekeepersmagazine.com/ (a Christian magazine for sufferers of chronic pain)
http://www.guidepostssweet16mag.com/guidelines.html (an inspirational teen mag)
http://www.hopeforwomenmag.org/contact.html (a Christain women's mag)
http://www.lifetoolsforwomen.com/wrtr-subs.htm (inspirational women's mag)
http://www.fabjob.com/writers.html#guide (have a fabulous job and want to write about it? Pay starts at $2,250!)
As always, I hope you all have a fabulous writing day!
Until next time,
BabyBlogger
The Princeton Review reports that there are only 357, 000 writers (I'm assuming they meant in the U.S. although there wasn't a specification noted). Now, while that number may seem like a whopping estimate, when you think about all of the markets that are available, that number is really low. Everyone's not a fiction writer, a non-fiction writer, a lyricist, a novelist, a journalist, a copywriter, a grant writer, a technical writer, a freelancer, a screenplay writer, a playwrite, etc. So, with that 357,000 spread out amongst so many markets, I figure it's a wide open field for the creative go-getter who's not afraid to take chances and who doesn't let a little word like "no" defer their dreams.
I love and encourage constructive criticism of my work. Sometimes it brings about a change in my writing and sometimes it doesn't. Either way, I don't fear it. Having my writing flat-out rejected has never bothered me much either. Since I write, primarily, for myself, if I'm happy with something, I don't give much thought to the fact that someone else rejects it. I also bear in mind that the rejection could be for a variety of reasons besides disliking my work. Perhaps the editor didn't feel it was right for her audience, perhaps the publication recently ran a story on the same subject and it was too soon to repeat, perhaps someone else wrote something from a different, more preferred angle...doesn't mean mine was bad, just that a business decision had to be made and mine didn't make the cut. My point is that I don't stress over rejection and I hope that none of you do either. It's par for the course in this business and something that we all have to get used to. Besides, what one editor refuses, the next one just might embrace, so just keep submitting until you find that right one, okay?
And speaking of submitting, take a peek at these sites and see if there's anything you can use:
http://www.iluvcats.com/writguidfori.html (notice that they also accept fillers which we talked about recently)
http://www.chickensoup.com/ (note that the last email address that I posted for them hasn't been confirmed yet. This is the official site, so it's best to start here with submissions)
http://www.hopekeepersmagazine.com/ (a Christian magazine for sufferers of chronic pain)
http://www.guidepostssweet16mag.com/guidelines.html (an inspirational teen mag)
http://www.hopeforwomenmag.org/contact.html (a Christain women's mag)
http://www.lifetoolsforwomen.com/wrtr-subs.htm (inspirational women's mag)
http://www.fabjob.com/writers.html#guide (have a fabulous job and want to write about it? Pay starts at $2,250!)
As always, I hope you all have a fabulous writing day!
Until next time,
BabyBlogger
posted by BabyBlogger at 1:00 PM
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