Tag: Writing for Publication

Candid Talks, Writing

How to Choose a Literary Journal …for Submitting Your Work

Pauline Shen

If you’re writing for publication, you need to know where your work will fit. After you’ve written a short story (or poem, or nonfiction piece…), you’ll need to send it somewhere. But where? Do you simply send your work to any and all journals that have an open submission call?

Or should you devote some time to reading current literary journals? It is a good idea to look for the best fit for your writing, so you ought to consider reading a selection of journals first. Now wait… there are so many literary journals out there! So, to avoid being overwhelmed I’ve developed a system to help narrow the field when you’re just starting out. It goes like this:

Continue reading “How to Choose a Literary Journal …for Submitting Your Work” →
Candid Talks, Writing

What’s the point …of Submitting to Literary Journals?

Pauline Shen

I saw this question on a discussion forum some time ago, and thought it was a good one. The person who posed it was just starting out as a writer and unsure about navigating all the different publication outlets. Should a writer invest time and resources in short stories and micro fiction for the purpose of submitting to journals? Is this a wise choice for a writer whose ultimate goal is to finish a novel? Can you make a living from submitting smaller works of fiction? What, really, is the point of having your work appear in those little journals anyways? Why not just go for the full manuscript from the beginning and skip all the rest?

Continue reading “What’s the point …of Submitting to Literary Journals?” →
Interviews

Interview with Anne Wilkins

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’ll be hearing from the delightful Anne Wilkins, contest-winning writer of science fiction and horror, based out of New Zealand. Anne shares her experience with writing contests, anthologies, and persisting past letters of decline. Anne also opens up on the personal side of balancing writing with life events, family, and career decisions.

Anne, you’ve got heaps of writing achievements! Multiple contest awards, several runner-up spots and honorable mentions, and an ever-growing list of publications. How long have you been writing and what made you decide to enter competitions?

Oh wow, that’s so kind of you to say because I still very much feel like a beginner. I was that kid that loved creative writing in school, from primary right through to high school, but by the time I got to university there was no time for it. All I ended up doing at university was essays, most of them very boring (Land Law — I’m looking at you). Then fast forward to a career where I was a family lawyer, and I was kind of writing stories, but true ones, in affidavit form.

When I had children, I think I finally had the time and the head space to write creatively again. Most of my beginning stories were written for my children, stories about cats, fairies, witches. I realised how much I missed that creative side of my life — the joy you get from coming up with an idea, and transforming it into a story for someone to read.

Continue reading “Interview with Anne Wilkins” →
Interviews

Interview with Galen Gower

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’re hearing from Galen Gower, writer and founder of Toad Shade Zine based in Memphis TN. Galen tells us about his creative process, shares his wisdom on incorporating feedback to develop as a creative writer, and gives us a sneak peek at an upcoming publishing venture.

Galen, you’ve started a Zine! What inspired you to launch the independent magazine, Toad Shade Zine? Tell us how it’s been going so far.

I literally decided I wanted to do a zine, bought the domain, blundered through making the website, and started sharing the submission call all in about three hours. I started out not telling anyone it was me doing it in case I really pet the rabbit with it, but it turned out pretty well.

I mentioned this in the second submission call, but the world really is full of things because people decide to do them and decide not to let fear or common sense stop them. I’ve never let not knowing what I’m doing stop me. Sometimes the results are disastrous, of course, but I’d rather go down swinging, you know?

Continue reading “Interview with Galen Gower” →
Interviews

Interview with Seralynn Lewis

Pauline Shen

In this blog post, we have the pleasure of hearing from Seralynn Lewis, contemporary inspirational romance author, writer of sweet & clean romance, and self-publisher based out of North Carolina. Seralynn gives us a glimpse into the process of writing a series, finding and working with an editor, and navigating the world of self-publishing.

Seralynn, you have multiple books available on Amazon. What has been the most surprising thing about self-publishing?

Continue reading “Interview with Seralynn Lewis” →
Candid Talks, Nonfiction, Writing

Backing-up Your Writing

Pauline Shen

Sharing your drafts within a writer’s circle, workshop, or class can be extremely helpful to the evolution of your individual writing project as well as your development as a writer. Getting into the practice of allowing others to read your writing, receiving feedback on projects, and integrating criticisms into your revision process can make for huge progress. I’ve seen writers, however, express concern that whenever a piece of writing gets shared with a group, there’s a chance that someone may be dishonest. What I mean is that there’s a consistent fear among creatives that someone may attempt to steal work.

And I get it—you struggle to finish a draft only to keep it to yourself for the realistic dread that someone out there might be ready to nab it and plagiarize. In one peer-judged writing contest, the organizer tried to alleviate this concern by coding the webpage so that text could not be highlighted (and therefore no copy function could be used). A good attempt, but there are still other possibilities left open and every participant was well aware of that fact.

Continue reading “Backing-up Your Writing” →
Interviews

Interview with Cheryl Kramarczyk

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’ll be hearing from Cheryl Kramarczyk, Chicago-based romance author, wife & homeschooler mom, and hospital lab tech. Cheryl outlines her motivation for writing romance, tells us how she got into self-publishing, and shares what it’s like to navigate the draft-to-published process.

Cheryl, what motivated you to begin writing romance stories? How did the happy ending become the go-to choice for all your stories?

Romance was a must from the start. My parents divorced when I was twelve and I longed for a happy ending—for my parents and for my sister and me.

Continue reading “Interview with Cheryl Kramarczyk” →