Forum Stuff

I haven't been able to sign into the new WD Forum yet! I've been trying LOL.  Well, just like any new computer stuff at my job, it usually takes awhile to get the glitches out.  But in the meantime I guess I'll just keep trying once in awhile.

Published in The Windy City Times!

"Alternative Conception" has been printed as a column in Vol 26 No 41 of The Windy City Times.  It's on page 20.  Here's a link!  

http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/images/publications/wct/2011-07-20/current.pdf

Building Me Up . . .

Today I got a rejection for a board book I wrote.  And I learned from another source that technically I should refer to it as a picture book and that the publisher will decide whether to turn it into a board book or print it in hardback. I chalked this up as another rejection experience and sent the book somewhere else!

And then tonight . . . I got some very good news!  The editor I queried with my article "Alternative Conception" said they will "try" to work it in with the series they are doing on the same topic I covered!  YES!  (Even though the "try" part is kind of daunting, it's not a rejection!)  Could this be . . . an acceptance?  A paying publication?  I have to send her a 1-2 sentence bio and a picture of myself.  I'll give more details when I have them!

I'm working on an a new article called: "EXERCISING MOMS (The Myth Explored)" and have also been editing Part Two of my novel.  :-)  Novel number Two is percolating in my mind and I've jotted down some scenes from the beginning and towards the end.  I love writing!

Happy 4th of July!

I'm still waiting for word on both positive query responses I've received.  (The second is for a position at a magazine/web site.)  I watched fireworks with my family tonight and life is good.  I've finished major edits of Part One of my novel (though I will be going through the whole book at least once more.)  I've been scribbling scenes for my second book, too.  And I'm reading some great stuff and into a new exercise routine.  I've also started on another article, about new moms and exercise (or even for moms who aren't so new but still want to find time to work out!) 

What are your current projects?

Positive Query Response

I was going to wait until I knew what would happen one way or the other, but either way this is a first for me, so I thought I'd go ahead and share it!  A newspaper in Chicago is looking at one of my articles, ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTION.  They are doing a multi-part series on the topic I wrote about and said "perhaps" they could use my piece! This would be my first paying publication. 

To other writers: Don't count out the query check-in e-mail.  I submitted this article in March, but hadn't heard anything.  So I wrote back, asking if they'd received my query, with a brief description of the article.  The editor responded in less than an hour, saying she hadn't received it, and informed me about their upcoming series.  The next morning, after some edits and spending some time on what I viewed as a second-chance query letter, I submitted my work.  The editor this time responded in less than 5 minutes, saying she would read my article and get back with me in a couple weeks!

I'm excited and hope things work out, but even if I get rejected, I'm encouraged.  I know the rejection won't be "we aren't looking for this kind of story", because they are looking for exactly the kind of story I wrote.  So I hope that if she thinks my writing sucks, I'll get some advice on how to make it better.

First Draft Complete

The first draft of my novel is *finally* finished!  I'm almost done with my second read-through, making edits to the version I printed out.  I'm excited!  I've already begun my query letter and have started an agent search.  Haven't started a synopsis yet.  Blegh!  But I have begun work on another book.  This one will also be YA, but it will be historical fiction.  I'm really happy with the progress I'm making right now.

The Next Step

So this is what it feels like.  In my writing class, I have been told I should try to make my first publication something local, even if its unpaid.  This will help me gain the attention of paying markets.

And now my non-fiction story "A Case of Flowers" has been accepted for publication in the first issue of The Polk Street Review.

It's local, I'm not getting paid, and I am ridiculously happy!  The layout of all my future query letters has changed forever.  :-)