Beware the Self-Titled “Expert”

When I first started this blog, almost a year ago, I wanted to add my voice to a community of writers and hope that one day there will be this magical exchange of ideas where we all sit down and treat each other like adults. Almost every post that I write I try to take the attitude that even though this is my perspective on what has (or hasn’t) worked for me, maybe this same thing works for someone else. Most writers will tell you that in order to be truly successful in the field you have to be in the right place at the right time and be open to criticism. I feel I’ve achieved moderate success based on milestones that I’ve set out for myself: this year I’ll have two publishing credits for novellas. But–and this is a big “but”–I’ve never published a novel before, never dealt with an agent before. Maybe someday I will; maybe I won’t. Since I haven’t been there and it’s not on my radar, I haven’t posted about it yet because I’m doing the research to provide relevant and useful information from whaddaya know–actual agents.

For the most part, I’ve had really great responses because I’ve learned to put the caveat on what I say: I am asking this question because… or I am asking for your opinion. You’d be amazed by how quickly attitudes and egos get out of whack when you either post directly about anything or postulate a vague-ish question to generate some interest or camaraderie.
Read More…

What is the Definition of a Legitimate Publisher?

Well, we’ve now been through the cost of writing and where you can look to publish your fiction. We know that there are paid subscription listings available and a few of you may subscribe to other places like Absolute Write or the Freelance Writing Job Bank. As you go through the listings, though, you may ask yourself whether or not the publisher is “worth it.” Here are my top tips to help you create your own set of writing submission criteria for any publisher.

What is the Publisher’s Online Reputation?

If I’m researching a publisher, I like to check out what other writers are saying about them by organically searching for their name or variants thereof. I read through forums, blogs, comments, etc. to see if there are any negative comments about a publisher. If there’s only a few, I may follow up on the author’s blog to see if the comments were credible. Remember, a lot of inexperienced writers may take rejection very poorly–even if the writer was in the “wrong.”

Besides chatter online, I also look for news about their business or how well they promote their writers. Sometimes, I may accept a lower rate per word depending upon how well a publisher might treat me and my work.
Read More…

The Cost of Writing Fiction versus Nonfiction

Before I’ve offer you some suggestions on resources you can utilize to get published, I’d like to point out the financial aspect of writing. My only caveat to this post, is that parts of this post compare the difference between how much a short story pays versus what a nonfiction article might. Books and blogging are two entirely different matters, and I am doing everything I can to get some realistic figures and feedback in order to provide you with factual information. Regardless, the truth of the matter is that nonfiction pays more than fiction. Let’s take a look at some sample numbers for a 2,500 word article versus a science fiction short story.

The nonfiction rate came from a major magazine with a large distribution; the fiction rate is a “professional writer’s rate” advocated by the Science Fiction Writer’s Association. When you have a chance to sit down and look at all the different publishers yourself (the most common one being Writer’s Market’s paid subscription service, you’ll often see that nonfiction consistently pays more than fiction does.

What does this mean to you?
Read More…

Back from Wizard World Chicago 2008

Donald L Stephens Rosemont Convention Center in IllinoisSaturday I took the trip down to the beautiful Rosemont convention center in Des Plaines, Illinois for the Flames Rising webzine I’m project manager for. I had the opportunity to talk with artists, publishers, vendors and many, different folk excited about the comic book industry. This was my first comic book convention, and I have to say that I was very impressed with how nice everyone was.

I did a full write-up of the con through this article on Flames Rising, “Impressions of Wizard World 2008.” Additionally, I asked a few of the artists I had met to write some guest blog posts on topics related to our universe: first convention appearance, copyright and image rights, etc. If you have something you’d like to know about hiring artists or working with them, feel free to contact me with your questions and I’ll feature them on my blog. The artists I met were very enthusiastic and dedicated to the concept of working within a community; I’m sure that one of them would be happy to answer anything you might want to know.
Sandperson Costume from Wizard World Chicago 2008

My next big convention will be at GenCon Indianapolis where I will be working the Abstract Nova booth. Fortunately, this company is really great to work with and understands that my day job comes first. In my reflections of a gaming industry freelancer, I had talked about some of the positive and negative experiences I’ve had in the industry. My first writing credit in the gaming industry was through this company, and I’m happy to support its efforts to grow.

This week is going to be a bit on the light side for posting: I just had two, really great pieces of news come through the pipe and my deadline for the last novella is looming. With a shorter workweek due to the July 4th holiday, things are extremely busy in my world.

The two that I have in the hopper do continue the discussion about getting published and where to look: thank you to everyone who provided quotes for my upcoming posts. I will get to those posts as soon as I can.

Happy scribing and please, don’t forget to write!

From Email: How do I get Published? How do I Figure out if my Writing is Worth the Trouble?

As I had mentioned last week, today I was going to address when it makes sense to write for “free” and what the returns are. Today, though, I’m going to take a bit of a different turn and get back to basics. In the midst of getting some questions answered from literary agents for an upcoming article series, a writer was kind enough to shoot me a personal email. Here’s what struck me (Thanks so much to Thomas for letting me quote you!):

“I always wanted to know how one goes about getting published or pitching their works to creditable sources to see if they are of value or maybe it’s best I stick to business writing only.” –Thomas Cristel for Bed & Breakfast La Torretta Bianca in Italy

After I read his email, I sat back in my chair and hit my head. You see, I interpreted his question as a multi-layered one, that had several meanings. First, Thomas (who professionally writes white papers, articles, etc.) reminded me of the many writers out there who might stop themselves from submitting a different style of writing because they’re unclear of what their writing is worth. Second, he wanted to know what the process was for submitting work was and if it was worth the trouble.
Read More…

Previous Posts Next Posts




Looking for Monica’s books and games that are still in print? Visit Monica Valentinelli on Amazon’s Author Central or a bookstore near you.

Archives

Back to Top