Happy Wednesday to you all! What shall we talk about today? How about submitting work to magazines? First a quote.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Norman Vincent Peale
Check it out…..”inaction is not only the result, but the cause, of fear.”
I know quite a few writers who are paralyzed by fear…..fear of rejection…fear of failure….fear of ridicule….whatever the case may be, they cannot leave home plate after they have hit the ball.
What does that stupid metaphor mean, you ask?
THOUGHT OF THE DAY
You can be one of the greatest writers ever born, but if you don’t make adjustments and stick your neck out, you will end up being just a footnote in writing history.
That’s what it means!
TIP OF THE DAY
Submit articles to more than one magazine. I just received a check in the mail yesterday for an article that was published in June. Very fast payment by the way. Anyway, the article was “A Letter to my Birth Mother Who I Never Knew.” Now I mention that because that is the third time I have sold that article.
Can you do that, they ask?
Yes, as long as you aren’t selling exclusive rights to your article, you can sell it to as many buyers as you can find. You may have to rewrite a part of it so it applies to the particular magazine you are pitching, but still, three sales for one article ain’t bad. Grand total for the three sales…..$560.
You only have to do two things: write a good article, and have the fortitude to submit it to editors.
Do you have what it takes?
OFFER OF THE DAY
Would you like to guest blog on this site for a day? As long as it is related to writing then I’m all for it. Let me know if you are interested in the comment section.
SITE OF THE DAY
Let me introduce you to a Seattle-based literary agent, Janet Reid. You can find her website here. Janet rejected Resurrecting Tobias, but she did so in a professional and very helpful manner, and I greatly appreciated that. Stop by and check her out. She answers questions daily and will give you insight into the life of an agent and how to deal with them for success.
THAT SHOULD DO IT FOR NOW
I’ll be having a contest soon where you can win a copy of my novel, so stay tuned for information on that.
And if you haven’t done so yet, please follow this blog on my website, www.williamdhollandauthor.com so I don’t have to post this to two sites. I would appreciate it. You can even buy my novel there. J
Keep writing and keep enjoying it.
Bill
“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”
Billybuc
Artistry With Words 
You are so right and do need a thick skin in this business, but still always appreciate your thoughts and tips to keep on keeping on. Happy Wedneday now 😉
Thanks, Janine, and I think you know how much I appreciate you. Have a great day my friend.
Well, that would be me. I am a scaredy cat! But my teen aged daughter recently told me that if I write and don’t at least try to follow my dream by attempting to get my work published, then there’s not much point in writing. That statement has challenged me to start submitting articles to magazines this summer.
Karen, I love it. You do it now, and let us know how it all turns out.
I can understand Bill the thrill one gets from getting the article published. I keep staring and reading-and re-reading my own article on that link as if written by someone else…lol
Once again thank you for some wise words this Wednesday morning!
I know exactly what you are saying, Ruchira….pretty cool!
I think another way of saying it is “get back on the horse that bucked one” (see, that’s the posh version. One and not you).
If you are scared of rejection then just remember that there is not a writer now or in history who did not get a rejection letter at some point. I did come across an American writer, whose name escapes me, took something like 125 rejections before his book finally got published. And then it became a bestseller.
Remember. If you are a writer then putting the words on paper is only one half of the job. The other half is that the words need to be read. And not just by the writer.
Great points, Peter, and I agree with every one of them. This is not a profession for the weak of heart.
Just thought of this bit. They say when you get on in years the things you regret are the things you did not do, not those you did do. The trick is not to have too many regrets.
Well, Peter, I’m sixty-five, and I’m whittling down the regrets list. 🙂
Bill, I’ve sent two stories to Readers Digest in the past week. They are accepting 100-word stories about a true life event. They can be funny, sad, life-changing – whatever. They’re paying $100 for each published story. That’s a buck a word. Not bad! Now I have to wait and see if they decide my stories are worthy of their magazine.
Thanks for the tip, Sha, and good luck. Maybe I’ll give them a try when I find a spare minute. LOL
I can send you the link if you like. Shoot, I’ll send it anyway. Check your inbox. Catch ya later. I’ve got 4 travel articles to write.
Thanks for sending it, Sha…now get busy on those articles. 🙂
I sent one article to a few magazines last year. All but one replied – okay, so it was only 3, but still, that kind of silence is not golden! I got a nice email back from the one magazine thanking me for the article but letting me know they’d already planned some features months in advance and the topic I chose had been covered already. I appreciated the honest feedback. Maybe I’ll give it a whirl again sometime this year. I mean, besides the money (thank you for posting that btw – it’s so good to see this because it gives us more of an idea of what to expect and why we should push to do it), seeing your name in a physical publication that isn’t yours – WOW. That’s reason enough for me! Have a wonderful summer’s day, Bill! We’re expecting rain and cold fronts this weekend, so it’s couch, DVDs and hot chocolate! 🙂
Mel my friend, it is a high seeing your byline…..the money is all over the board…one only paid $65…and one $400…so you never know…but if you have the time, and you are determined, it can be worth it financially. Enjoy your winter’s day my friend. Sounds like the perfect way to spend it.
Hi Bill,
I’m drafting two pitches to send to editors in my area. Your information was really helpful and helped me put my letters together. As always, thanks for sharing the great info!
I’m interested in guest blogging for you. Is there a certain topic to discuss or write about?
Hi Musu….how come I don’t know who this is? LOL I don’t recognize the profile name. Anyway, the topic is writing…send me an email at holland1145@yahoo.com and we’ll talk about it.