Maintain your motivation
© Sanja Gjenero
To succeed as a writer you need to be able to stay motivated regardless of setbacks, rejection letters and huge amounts of competition. Keep your spirits high with our A to Z for aspiring writers!
A – Ambition
If you haven’t got an ambition to be published, why are you reading this? There are some writers for whom writing is the end in itself: they write for themselves, and for their own enjoyment. And that’s fair enough, but this article isn’t aimed at them.
This article is geared towards you getting yourself into print. It’s hard enough if you really want to see your work in print; but if you’re not ambitious, then it’s highly unlikely that you’ll get published.
B – Belief
You need to have belief in yourself. Sometimes this will be harder than others, when you’ve got an letterbox (or, more likely these days, an inbox) full of rejections. Take a good look at what you’ve sent out, and try and evaluate it as fairly as you can. Do you still rate it? Then send it out again, and believe in yourself.
C – Compromise
Imagine you’ve written The Great Story. You send it out, and you get a response that says something like: “Ye-es, I like it, but I’m not sure about the ending. It’s weak. If you improved it, we’d be able to consider it for publication.” What do you do?
If it would break your heart more to change the story than it would to be rejected, perhaps it’s worth sticking to your guns. But remember that it’s easier to get published once you are published. If you get a few things published, you can go to the next publisher and say “I’m submitting this, and I’ve been published here and here before.”
It shows that you must be able to write comprehensibly. It’s like a reference on your CV. So sometimes it’s worth compromising. It might not make the story better in your eyes, but it might make your own personal writing story a whole lot happier.
D – Deadlines
If you’re given a deadline, meet it. Meeting deadlines makes you look professional, and you are far more likely to be offered work by the same company in the future if they know they can trust you. Sometimes deadlines can’t be met for reasons beyond your control (you’re in a car crash, your mother is ill and needs nursing…). Tell your publisher or editor as soon as possible, and explain the situation. Don’t hope they won’t notice if you’re a day or two behind. Be up front about it.
E – Editing
When you first write a story, don’t imagine that the first draft is the final draft. If you can persuade a friend or family member to read your work, do it. And beg beg beg them for truthful feedback, not just to tell you want they think you want to hear.
Yes, it can hurt, but you’re likely to end up with a better story if you listen to suggestions, however brutal they may seem at first. If you get anything accepted by a publishing house, you’re going to have to learn to work with an editor. And editors have one purpose only: to get a story to publication in the way that they think it will sell best.
An editor’s job is not to bolster your ego (unfortunately!) but to make suggestions that they think will improve the story. You may or may not agree with them, but your story is likely to look at least a little different by the time the editors and you have finished with it.
F – Formatting
Read the submission guidelines of your chosen publisher or magazine. Publishers and editors like to think that you’re marketing specifically to them, that you’ve cared enough to read their notes, and that you’re intelligent enough to be able to follow instructions. If they tell you to submit an .rtf file, do it that way. (If you don’t know what it means, look it up). If they say they only accept postal submissions, don’t email them. Get the basics right.
G – Grammar
You can have the best idea in the world, but if you can’t write it intelligibly, it will get you nowhere. No editor is going to pick through a badly written script just to make sure they haven’t missed a gem. They’ll take one look at the way the piece has been written and toss it. Having ideas is only a third of the job. You also have to be able to write them well, and then be able to sell them.
H – Hope
You may believe you’re a good writer, but run out of hope that anyone will ever publish you. It’s easy to get caught up in writing something to be ‘saleable’ rather than writing something that you love. Fall in love with writing again. Write for yourself.
I – Inspiration
Some days you’re inspired and other days nothing happens. This is okay if you don’t have deadlines to meet, or if you don’t rely on writing for an income. But there may come a point at which you can’t afford to sit around waiting for inspiration to strike. When that happens…
J – Just Start Writing
Different writers take different approaches. If you’re writing a novel and you’re not quite sure what happens next in the plot, try writing a chapter that is sequentially further on. You may or may not use it, but it might give you an idea of what happens in between.
Or make a list of bullet points for something that might go into an article. Then write sub-headings for each bullet point: a join-the-dots approach to writing.
K – Knowledge
Everyone has areas of knowledge. Similarly, everyone has things that they know practically nothing about. Take advantage of your knowledge. Write a list of all the areas that you feel confident in, and make plans accordingly. Think of ways in which your knowledge could be relevent to different magazines or publishers.
If you’re an expert knitter, set a story in a wool shop, or have a knitting theme. Write an article on ‘Getting into knitting’ for beginners, and try a women’s magazine. Do a bit of research about men taking up knitting and aim for the male market.
L – Learning
Never think you know everything. No one does. Don’t be ashamed to learn from other people, or from your mistakes (or, more happily, from your successes). You’ll continue to learn for as long as you write – and frankly, who would wish it to be any other way?
M – Markets
There’s no point sending a sci fi story to a publisher who doesn’t deal with fiction. Nor one about wine-tastings to a birdlife magazine. Look carefully at your markets. Take a look at what else your prospective market has published, and make sure you’re not writing something inappropriate, or something that is practically the same as something they’ve only just put out.
N – Need
When you send a letter to a publishing company, try and explain to them why this story needs to be told, and needs to be told by you. If it’s about students struggling to get to university, explain that you spent a year as a member of the National Union of Students governing body. Link your letter to world events: tell them it would be a good piece to publish now because the latest statistics about student numbers have just come out. Make them feel they need your writing.
O – Organisation
Keep a list of what you’ve sent where, and when. Many publishers include a line in their submission guidelines saying “If you haven’t heard within 12 weeks, please contact us again.” If you haven’t written down when you sent something, you’re going to have a great deal of difficulty remembering when precisely it is time to remind them. Which brings us on to…
P – Patience
Twelve weeks (or however long it is) can seem like an eternity when you’re waiting to hear whether a piece of writing has been accepted. It’s really tempting to contact the company ahead of time saying “Have you made a decision yet?” Don’t do it. It’ll only annoy them.
Q – Querying
On the other hand, if you’ve waited as long as your publishing company say they need, and you still haven’t heard anything, it’s time to send a query. It’s worth checking that (a) they got your submission and (b) whether or not it is still under consideration.
R – Research
Know your subject area. If you don’t know something, don’t just guess, go out and find the answer. With the internet, this has become a great deal easier. You don’t even need to visit a library.
Where possible, though, go for a first-person source - talk to the people who know. However much information ou can find online, nothing beats a first-person source for accuracy and colour.
S – Setting Your Sights
Most writers get many rejections. Even the best writers get rejections. If you’re not getting much in the way of rejections, there are two possibilities. One, you’re an out and out genius, so stop reading this and carry on writing! Two, you’re not sending enough out.
When you start up, it’s something to see anything you’ve written get into print, and if you get anything in return – a free copy of the magazine or book, or a token payment – that’s just fantastic.
But if you’ve been working at that level for a while and are almost always having your work accepted, maybe it’s time to look up a level. You’ve been submitting to places that give occasional payments? Okay, take things further. Try submitting to a semi-professional market. Cracked the semi-pro level? Try top level markets.
A lot of the best publishers want to know your credentials, and now you have your CV. Send a letter or email that details some of your previous publications. It puts you a step up before you start.
T – Tact
When you’re dealing with someone who might publish, or has published you, always be tactful. Sometimes, when you’ve waited a long time for an answer to a submission and the company seems to be messing you around, there’s a temptation to send a sharpish email saying “Make your mind up, for goodness sake!” But it’s worth being polite, no matter how irritated you’re feeling, because even if they don’t in the end accept this piece, you might want to submit to them in the future. Never burn your bridges!
U – Understand the Process
The process of getting published can feel horribly unfair to the aspiring writer. Once you’re published, it’s easier to get more things published. But how do you get to the beginning? How do you get that elusive first acceptance?
If you’ve yet to have your first work published,look out for publishers who take unsolicited submissions, and those who are especially interested in emerging writiers - turn your unpublished status into your advantage.
Target your market carfully, otherwise you’ll waste good time (and, if you posted it, money) sending something out that never stood a chance.
V – Values
While it is perfectly possible to make a living writing things you don’t believe in the slightest, it must be demoralising. Generally, people write better about something they care about. Just as it’s useful to have expertise in the area that you are writing about, it’s equally important to care about it. Write what you believe. Value your writing and write about things you value.
W – Waiting
Once you’ve sent something off, don’t be tempted to wait around and see how that piece does before you write something else. Keep writing. Write something different and submit it elsewhere. The waiting is torturous. Keep yourself busy, if only as a distraction.
X – X It
No, I’m not talking about writing erotica (though there’s a thriving market there). I’m talking about crossing out. You can’t expect every line you write to be deathless prose. Sometimes you’ll write something ordinary. Sometimes you’ll write something that just isn’t very good. We all do it.
Don’t get too attached. If you read back something you’ve slaved over, it’s hard to force yourself to cut anything, but be prepared to be ruthless. If something doesn’t quite work, get rid of it.
Y – Yes
Say yes whenever possible. If a publisher approaches you and says “Do you think you could write on [whatever]?” your answer should be a definitive YES! Even if you know very little about it, believe you can learn. Never turn down opportunities unless you absolutely have to. When you’re more well known, you might be able to afford to pick and choose. When you’re starting out, take every offer you possibly can.
Z – Zest
Be enthusiastic about what you do! Don’t write because you can’t think of anything else to do. Write because you love it. A zest for writing shines out of your prose just as a zest for life shows in the way you act. Don’t just dream it, do it. Don’t just do it, love it.
Feature supplied by Penelope Friday - journalist and fiction writer.
www.myspace.com/penelopefriday
DISCLAIMER
Neither the author nor EssentialWriters.com are responsible for any loss of business or profits arising from action followed due to this advice. This article is intended for general guidance only and professional assistance should be sought based on your particular circumstances.
