Appeasing the publishing gods

Feverish drum beats echo through the sultry jungle night as natives with torches, like a line of wavering fireflies, make their way up the side of a rumbling volcano. The tropical breezes drift past unnoticed as they climb past trees and around boulders, each clutching a sacrifice to his or her breast.

Finally, as they attain the rim, the reverberation of seismic activity throws them to the ground. Their chief is the first to struggle to his feet.

"My fellow writers!" he thunders to the crowd. "We must appease the publishing gods. Have you your sacrifices?"

As one, they respond with an affirmative cry over the grumbling of the volcano.

"And are they first drafts, unedited and pure in their original form, printed on pastel paper in colored inks so they are sure to gain the attention of an editor?"

"Yes! Yes!"

"Are you certain you have made no attempt whatever to research which publishers might be interested in your genre or type of writing?"

"Yes!"

The natives are in a wild frenzy by now, waving their manuscripts over their heads.

"It is time!" shrieks the chief. "Throw your sacrifices into the volcano. The publishing gods must be appeased!"

In a cascade of colorful papers completely lacking sufficiently postaged self-addressed stamped envelopes for return responses, the manuscripts plunge into the fiery depths where they are incinerated before they can touch the molten maelstrom below. A wailing keen fills the darkness as the natives hurry down into their jungle huts.

"Do you think we'll hear anything this time?" one native whispers to his neighbor.

"Absolutely. This time I added a handwritten note about how my kids and wife loved my story. I'm guessing they'll get back to me in less than two weeks. By the way, I'm looking for an illustrator for my picture book. Can you recommend anyone?"

If you haven't heard: It's WriteOnCon 2011 right now!

If you haven't heard about it, it's the beginning of WriteOnCon 2011. If you get the chance, head over to their website for this wonderful online conference. Check out the contests that are available for your finished manuscripts or even WIP, too. One of this year's offerings is a free trailer for your manuscript on the Belief Suspenders blog. Check it out!

Learning curve

I'm blogging a day early this week because tomorrow promises to be a busy day. It's supposed to be the first day we start homeschool.

There are probably other schools that will be opening the doors to the hallowed halls of learning tomorrow, but I know that many are not starting until after Labor Day has passed. We tend to start a little early because it enables my kids to have more time for subjects like math. (You can't have too much time to do math.)

For me as a writer, it's different. I thought of this after speaking to a new writer today who was just starting out as a writer for children. I recommended Harold Underdown's book, and then reflected that this young man had many things to learn. The sooner he began his cache of writing knowledge, the better it would be for him. (What was possibly less encouraging was that I had already been at this writing craft thing for years and knew I still had a long way to go.)

It's too bad, but gone is the luxury of trotting off to the school bus stop to be whisked away to an academic paradise where I can study subjects for seven to eight carefully alloted school hours a day. Now there is no beginning or end to my personal school year. Besides this, I have to fight tooth and nail to fit any kind of a study of writing into my normal life.

So here's a thought for you this week. Do you constantly strive to learn more about writing and the publishing industry? Do you struggle to fit it all in, but do you find that, looking back, it's worth the sacrifices you've made to to be a better, educated writer?

Writers Read... and Listen

I am blessed to be able to have a dedicated daily writing time - although it is occasionally disrupted by having to finish reading a book. The last two books I have read (Rashi's Daughters by Maggie Anton, and Breath by Martha Mason), have helped me greatly with my writing! The first provided great historical insight and the second provided me motivation and inspiration to keep writing!

A few weeks, ago, I had also decided to read poetry to help my writing. I chose a volume of children's poetry. It didn't work. I don't think you can read poetry with that purpose.  I have read some great poetry - most recently by my friend Stuart Card, who writes beautifully about life's challenges and a childhood in Scotland. But, I think poetry's influence is far more ethereal and subconscious -- and indirect.

I have always been a Joni Mitchell fan. I used to sing and play and listen to her music for hours on end. Over the weekend, I rediscovered her again, and what a poet she is! That poetry was implanted in my brain at an early age, and now, I can appreciate the images and stories she told in her poetry and allow that influence in my writing. She truly captured the essence of some interesting characters and the passions of a generation. I have already made some changes in my current project based on some of her musical character sketches.

Sometimes, maybe most of the time, our poetic souls cannot be fed deliberately. They need to graze and ruminate and absorb. Music helps that for me. So does time...

When life is closing in

I can't give you any philosophical thoughts today, although I have had some recently. School is looming and I'm still trying to catalog my materials from last year while getting ready for the coming year. Somehow, someway, I've got make life work. My mom says that I've got too many things going, and she's probably right, but I hate to give up on any front. (Has any military commander ever been happy to retreat? Of course not.) The real problem is that much of what I do must be done. I've delegated much of our the housecleaning to my children (who need to know how to do laundry, vacuum, and dishes anyway, especially after the domestically helpless roommate I lived with at college), but still, there's a lot left to do in other areas.

At least on the writing front, I'm developing a measure of consistency. I'm not writing tons, but making a little progress each day. That's the name of the game. Step by step.

: ) Have a great week.

Writing in the margins

I read a post by Kristi Holl today called "Overloaded Lives," and it reminded me of a comment by a friend. She said that when she had free time, she liked to just sit and think or dream. She almost seemed embarrassed to admit it. How sad that time to dream has been spurned to such an extent that it's something no one has time for.

Kristi went on further to talk about the importance of keeping our lives from getting away from us—to make sure that we preserve our margins. The margin is where we can dream.

This week, check out your own life. Do you have any margins? Have you overloaded your own life to such an extent that you no longer have quiet places to sit and dream?

Not-so-lazy summer days

Last week we were on vacation, and things were so hectic before and after it that I didn't post. (Hopefully a few of you were on vacation as well so that you didn't notice!) Anyway, I did a bunch of reading and journaling, took lots of photos, and did a little deep thinking about life and projects in general. I didn't solve any world problems, and I'm not sure how I'm going to keep up with my new art lesson gig in addition to what I already do once school starts, but I've got the rest of July to figure it all out.

In the mean time, I hope you all had a happy 4th of July, and that your summer is as glorious and golden as mine has been so far.

In the next few days I'll be posting an interview with the wonderful Paula Yoo, writer for PEOPLE magazine, TV writer and producer, and (last but not least) children's author. Check it out on my Examiner.com page later this week!

: ) Beth