Before I begin tonight’s article, I
wanted to tell you something that I have been struggling with… Living, Breathing, Writing on Kindle has
been my “baby” now since May of 2009, but this will be the last installment of
my Kindle Blog. The new Kindles no longer support the blog format and Kindle
blogs are not available on the computer — in effect new technology has killed
off the possibility of this blog reaching the masses. I’m sad, but I believe my
time is better spent on other writing avenues. The good news though is that ALL
of the LBW articles [from the beginning] are available on a website which I
will gladly share with you; all you have to do is send an email to ChelleCordero@gmail.com with a brief
review (as a subscriber) of my
Kindle Blog Living, Breathing, Writing.
My publisher and I will use a few of these reviews to publicize my current and
future books about writing (60+
Days to Live, Breathe, & Write). Make sure you put LBW in the subject line, include your
brief review with your name as it should appear under a review, and be sure to
include your email address so I can send you the link to ALL 729 LBW articles. (And
if you want to, please feel free to post your review on the Amazon
site for Living, Breathing, Writing.)
I always
liked to write. I would write “scripts” for my favorite TV shows, poems,
fantasy stories, and more. I also found a way to embellish every story about
things I did in my everyday life to make it sound more exciting and
interesting. Because I was so vocal about my love of writing I found that I had
SOME people who were supportive, some that used it as a way to hurt me, and
others who were very blasé and even applauded my every word even when they hadn’t
bothered to read anything I wrote. Of course the discouragement hurt, angered
and annoyed me, but I never let it make me stop. Then meaningless praise,
though often very well intentioned, didn’t help to educate me or encourage my
striving to be better. The support was wonderful because it bolstered me
whenever I came across a bump in the road and yes, there were many of those.
I had to
decide what I wanted to accomplish with my writing. Did I want to write whether
anyone else read it or not? Did I just want to make money doing something I
love? Or did I want to experience the thrill of knowing people were reading my
words? I guess it really was all three although making money at writing is not
an easy task. Of course almost all of us have to make money somehow so if I
could… I absolutely love seeing reviews of one of my books or a letter to the
editor of a publication my writing appears in about the subject matter in my
article. Of course seeing my byline is a thrill that is hard to describe (even
for a writer). In the end I have two writing personas, one is as a creative fiction
writer writing Passion
and Suspense and the other is as a journalist with various
periodicals. To be perfectly honest, the journalist things pays me more. Now
some people do make a decent wage writing but very few are self-supporting
without some kind of a hook (such as employment with a newspaper or magazine
for example). It is hard work, but it is work you love, right?
As a writer people
are going to want to take advantage of you, it’s not anything against you it’s
just everyone having to look out for themselves. There was this newspaper I did
a lot of articles for, the editor I worked with was terrific (we’re still
friends to this day), but the simple fact was she was working under a budget
and had to economize where she could. I was lucky, she tried to offer me the
best pay scale, but not all editors will do that. So you have to be relatively
firm when you set your prices and you have to stick with it; that doesn’t mean
you can’t find room to compromise (for instance you are offered a package deal,
six articles in a week or so…). Unless you have a really well-established name,
the editors are not going to come looking for you but they probably would be
happy to hear from you with a query and a proposal (Dear Sir, The town of ABC
is rich in history and the centennial celebration is a time to show some ABC
pride. I would like to write an article featuring the town square’s rich legacy
and its important role in the settling of our town…).
When you are
querying, whether it’s an article or full length book, be sure to follow the
rules and guidelines for submissions. The editor at the receiving end will be
gauging how easy you would be to work with, if you can’t be bothered to follow
the guidelines the editor would figure that you would argue every editorial decision
made. Having an online presence (FaceBook, Twitter, Google+, etc.) is not just wasted
time, it helps to get your name out there when it’s done well and lets
potential editors see you are serious about your craft. Remember to keep your
public presence very professional and centered on the image you need to
portray. Remember that you can keep a FB timeline private (friends only) and
have a Page (always public) for your writer “stuff”.
There are
going to be a lot of rejections, bad reviews and even more “no response” days. Don’t
let it throw you, don’t let it stop you. Your second piece/book will help to promote
your first and it goes on from there. And as a dear fellow writer friend once
said to me, “Do you like every book on the shelves of your local bookstore? Not
everyone is going to like your book, that doesn’t mean it’s bad.” Make friends
with other writers, share experiences, new industry highlights — but don’t let
someone else’s frustration get to you. Listen to every one’s advice but learn
to filter through what really is helpful. Money is no guarantee so if it is
possible to combine your money-making-income-source with your writing do so, at
least until you have a steady income or a reliable fallback-nest-egg going on.
Finally, say this to yourself out loud, WRITING
IS MY JOB, I AM WORKING WHEN I WRITE, and don’t let anyone else guilt you
into extra tasks (household, etc) because they think you are just playing on
the computer (or typewriter).
You are good enough and you have
things to say that others want to hear. So KEEP WRITING!
Writing
exercise: Rewrite
this post in your own words.
Writing
Prompt: Describe
your ideal writing “office”.
Writing
Challenge: Write a
fictional story based on your life. Use facts and settings but create an event
that may not have happened or write it having happened another way. Write up to
20-thousand words if you can.
