Complaining about the lack of incoming email in my inbox worked!
I woke up this morning to an email notifying me that my short story, “Reflections” was accepted by Wicked East Press for their anthology, Soul Reflections! My first paying publication (okay, not paying much, but that wasn’t the point).
I submitted this back in late February. When I sent it off, I was really unhappy with one section, but I didn’t want to spend any more time on it as I needed to move forward onto the next Odyssey story. So, I submitted it thinking that at least the experience of submitting something would be good. I never expected it to be accepted. Yay me!
And yes, to anyone who is asking ‘why would you submit something that you didn’t think was ready’, I get it. I asked myself that same question. But, I wanted to submit something before I left for Odyssey, even if it was rejected, just so I wouldn’t have to admit that ‘no, I’ve never even tried submitting anything’ once I got there. And, I already had the story when I saw the call for submissions and the subject matter fit so perfectly, and the deadline was April 15, and so I submitted it.
I guess it worked out.
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Congratulations! Nothing beats the feeling of the first publication 🙂
Woohoo! Can’t wait to read it. I’m sure you’ll let everyone know when it’s available
Congrats! Wicked East was my first publication, too! Feels great, doesn’t it?
I saw your posts about your two (!) stories at Wicked East (congrats by the way!) but I didn’t want to say anything about mine–you know, taking a risk of jinxing myself or something.
Hi Brent and congratulations! I had written a comment to you the other day when you were awash with loneliness and despair, only to have the doggone Panera online time out and lose my entire entry. And it is a fundamental personality trait that I have an aversion to repetition so re-typing it was out of the question. So imagine how my heart gladdened and my guilt lessened when I read about your buoyed spirits. Home run, baby, take your turn around the bases!
Thanks Vee! 32 days… 🙂 How’s your second story coming?
Hi Brent, not to be snooty or anything but I sent it in a while back. It just came out very quickly. I did a couple of edits and then decided not to over-think it. I dropped it in the mail before I could question myself further!
My biggest problem as a writer is bearing down and finishing things. I invariably take off on new ideas and let things get a little stale. I have never really tried to learn the craft of writing short pieces so that was one of the things I saw in Odyssey that will help me. I am sure the feeling of completing these many short stories will help me accomplish finishing the novel-length ones.
Yes the countdown is on my mind all the time. I have rarely been so excited…my Italian trip in ’95 and the first face-to-face meeting with a special girl that was delayed about three months come to mind.
I’m very jealous of you guys and your Odyssey adventures. Brent, I hope you will blog about them!
Vee, if you’re snooty, then so am I. Mine went in the mail about three weeks ago.
We sound like opposites as far as approach. I’m much more comfortable doing the short stories, novel length work on the other hand… I feel completely unequipped. And my biggest problem as a writer is getting started, once it’s underway I get a little manic until it’s done, but getting that ball rolling in the first place doesn’t always come easily for me.
Phillip, I hope to be able to blog about the experience as it happens. That’s one thing that’s been missing for me–there’s no day-to-day account of what goes on that I can find out there from past graduates. But, maybe there’s a reason for that–it’s discouraged or maybe it’s simply impossible given the workload. No promises, but I’m going to try to at least write a little bit each day unless there’s a reason I can’t.
Hey Brent, Okay if our approaches differ…we’ll be able to talk a lot about that and help each other. I’m looking forward as much to sharing minds as to the principles and practices we’re going to get. And it’s going to be a marathon so we’ll all need support at one time or another.
I count on friends who care to give me tough critiquing. No kid gloves for me. I can take it, in fact use it to get better. Many people around me, other writers as well as non-writers, do not understand this. They say you should be nice to yourself, nice to others, nice, nice, nice… Please. Nice is for sweet infants.
I don’t mean, of course, to justify personal attack or immature nastiness. You know what I mean. The strongest seed had to crack the rock from which it emerged.