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Don't Take No for an Answer: Submit Until it Sells
By Ruth Schiffmann
If you've been writing for any amount of time you've heard
the stories about rejections: Dr. Seuss collected 23 of
them before selling his first book. C. S. Lewis and Ray
Bradbury received over 800 a piece. Undoubtedly, you've
collected a stockpile of your own, but don't let the
disappointments stall your submitting. Follow these steps
to take you out of the rejection doldrums and into the
land of future sales.
Plan ahead. Have three markets chosen for a piece before
sending it into the world. This will save you from having
to work through the "is it really good enough?" thoughts
while considering sending it out again. There's nothing
to consider. Of course you're sending it out again – to
the next market on your list.
Re-examine. When you run out of markets for the nostalgia
story you've been submitting, take another look. Maybe it
would work as a children's story. With some vocabulary
adjustments and a change in your POV character, you can
target a whole slew of children's markets.
http://www.goodolddaysonline.com/pages/magazineinfo.html
http://www.storiesthatlift.com/STL-routines/submitstories.htm
Change genders. I wrote a story with boys as the main
characters and targeted Boy's Life, Boy's Quest, etc.
After a handful of rejections I thought I'd run out of
markets. Faced with retiring the piece or altering my
marketing plan, I changed the characters to girls,
adjusted a few details, and started submitting anew. It
sold its first time out and I had the pleasure of seeing
it in print and cashing an acceptance check.
http://boyslife.org/home/383/resources-for-contributors/
http://www.gemsgc.org/main_pages/shine_guidelines.html
Squeeze into themes. A story of mine titled "Center Stage"
was about kids spending summer break in a community
theater production. I renamed it "Winter Break Blues,"
changed a handful of details, and submitted it for a
winter theme. I changed the title again to "Here Comes
Summer" for a "summer fun" theme. It finally sold when
targeted to a theme of "being compassionate." Funny thing
was the publication did some squeezing of their own, and
changed the title to "Here Comes Spring."
http://funforkidzmagazines.com/bq_guidelines
http://funforkidzmagazines.com/hs_guidelines
Look at the big picture. You may have a very specialized
article that you've written for a very particular market.
If it doesn't get snatched up, try widening your focus.
I've reworked homeschooling articles so that they were
of interest to any parent looking for educational
activities to enjoy with their children, opening the door
to the endless market of parenting publications.
http://www.mediaforliving.org/contact/
http://www.mops.org/page.php?pageid=553&srctype=linklist&src=657
Try the less obvious. "Me and My Big Mouth" was a fun
story about boys having a back yard camping adventure
and their encounter with a bat. I targeted a few general-
interest boys' magazines with no success. After some
fine-toothed digging through guidelines, I found a
magazine put out by the National Wild Turkey Federation.
They were looking for fun outdoorsy stories. I sent it
off to the editor, who asked me to elaborate on the bat's
navigational system and then made a hasty offer to buy.
http://www.nwtf.org/tv_magazines/Writers_Guidelines.html
www.youngbucksoutdoors.com
Crank up your target age. Pushing an article aimed at
the' tween market, but running out of publications to
approach? Pump up the vocabulary and add a little more
meat to the content then target the many YA magazines.
www.six78th.com
http://www.relatemag.com/about/
When you get yet another rejection (and you will), it
doesn't mean it's the end of the road. It may mean you
have to take a detour to find the right market. No one
ever said the road to publication was straight and narrow.
Follow the twists and turns, enjoy the scenery, and don't
stop until you've made that sale.
BIO:
Ruth Schiffmann shares the trials and triumphs of
freelance writing with her husband and their two daughters.
Her stories and articles for children, teens, and adults
have appeared in more than 50 publications both in print
and online. Because the joy of an acceptance speaks louder
than the doubts of a rejection, she is constantly digging
up new markets and doesn't take no for an answer. To read
more of her work, visit
www.RuthSchiffmann.com
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