Skip to main content

ISWG December Post

Believe it or not, I almost forgot today was the fist Wednesday of the month! Sorry for posting so late in the afternoon today, guys and dolls!

What am I insecure about this month? Does it ever change, or it always the same old same old?

YES

It changes and this month, I am being totally completely honest....


I must sit  back and ask, is it worth it? Is the waiting, the rejection, the wondering, the tears, and the waiting some more? Is it worth it?

I know it is. I know I MUST stay focused and determined. But it's hard.

It's hard to see other writing friends I have met who started the publishing journey the same time as me. See them with agents, or contracts, or published books. It's hard. It really is!

Don't get me wrong. I am so thrilled and happy for them it's almost like seeing my own work published and successful. But then reality sets in and I know it's not MINE, but my good friend's manuscript soon-to-be published book. Can I act like it doesn't hurt? Should I act like it doesn't make me wonder what's wrong with my writing?

I've come to the conclusion there must be something wrong with my writing. Maybe my technique? My style? My voice?

I don't know, but I am DETERMINED to find the answer and correct my problem.

I will succeed.
I will win.
I will be published.

YES!!

Comments

  1. Alex J. CavanaughDecember 5, 2012 at 12:05 PM

    You will win if you don't quit! It's all in the timing, which is crappy I know, but you have to hold out for your moment to shine. It will come!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookDecember 5, 2012 at 12:25 PM

      I'm holding on so tight, I have rope burns:) wait a minute. Those are from my crutches!

      Delete
  2. AnonymousDecember 5, 2012 at 12:08 PM

    I love Anne Lamott's words concerning jealousy, "But if you continue to write, you are probably going to have to deal with it, because some wonderful, dazzling successes are going to happen for some of the most awful, angry, undeserving writers you know-- people who are, in other words, not you."

    If you haven't already, read or reread her chapter on jealousy in Bird by Bird. I don't think any of us are immune to this!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookDecember 5, 2012 at 12:22 PM

      Thanks Julie. I'm not jealous. I'm really not;) I don't want to be jealous. I'm truly happy for my friends success. It's just hurtful waiting for my turn to come. It dies sound like jealousy, though. Doesn't it? But I'm not....

      Delete
  3. M. R. ButtarsDecember 5, 2012 at 12:24 PM

    You will win! Way to be positive about it all. Also, keep in mind that is may not be you that is the problem. The publishing companies gravitate towards things that are popular, and they think will sell. Don't give up!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jennie BennettDecember 5, 2012 at 12:28 PM

    I am so there! It's hard to watch the success of others even when you are beyond thrilled for them. You just wonder why you aren't there yet. But it will happen, as long as we keep working we will get there.

    Love your Christmas design!

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownDecember 5, 2012 at 12:56 PM

    Keep your chin up!! Gosh, you always have the cutest blog! It's normal to feel these things; we all do from time to time. Believe in yourself. Happy IWSG post day. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. VikLitDecember 5, 2012 at 1:22 PM

    That's the spirit - we all just have to keep on keeping on ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. prerna pickettDecember 5, 2012 at 1:28 PM

    awesome! Keep going, you can do it!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Jenny S. MorrisDecember 5, 2012 at 3:25 PM

    I think all of us go through this. No matter where we are in the journey. If you keep at it, you will succeed!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Krista McLaughlinDecember 5, 2012 at 7:34 PM

    Your "someday" is coming and though it's hard to wait, we will be celebrating for you someday! :) Keep going!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Georgina MoralesDecember 5, 2012 at 8:05 PM

    Maybe there's nothing wrong with you but you are writing ahead of your time, or you have a different style that people is not used to. Believe in yourself and keep knocking on doors. Sooner or later you'll find a mind alike.

    Best of luck!

    ReplyDelete
  11. EllaDecember 5, 2012 at 9:17 PM

    Thanks for being real! This is exactly how I feel on so many levels. My art, my poetry, my writing...today I thought about giving up and then I decided to visit you!
    I know I am just having one of those days~ Keep going I believe you will succeed! :D You are amazing~ @>---------

    Thank you!!! xo

    ReplyDelete
  12. Tasha SeegmillerDecember 5, 2012 at 9:36 PM

    I have heard several authors say that they couldn't think of one single person who kept at it that didn't make it. Several have said it took them the better part of a decade - and many have said that the first four years are like the work in college toward a degree. Dedication will equal success.

    ReplyDelete
  13. RachelDecember 5, 2012 at 10:14 PM

    Your attitude is so great. I also want to say there are SO many options, Ink. You can self publish, get an agent, do the e-book thing, small press, etc. i love it. There's not just "one way" anymore. :) There are MANY ways!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. ConnieDecember 6, 2012 at 9:15 AM

    I think so many of us are at this point. I sure am. I constantly question myself at how much wasted time I have sat and wrote something that may never get published....then I smack myself in the head and say IT ISN"T WASTED TIME! Even if it never gets published it was something I enjoyed every minute of and I enjoy the chance to meet other authors and blog hop. So it is worth it but I feel the same "weird" feeling every time someone gets an offer. I'm sure the day I get one someone else will get the same weird feeling.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Suzanne FurnessDecember 6, 2012 at 3:01 PM

    Don't give up you have to stay positive that your time will come. I get days like you, I guess most of us do, in fact I posted something similar to this on my blog. It is hard though especially when you get one knock back after another. Success may be just around the corner :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. M PaxDecember 6, 2012 at 4:24 PM

    I like how decked out for the holidays your blog is.

    Don't be discouraged. The odds are against you in the first place. It may just be a simple matter of not coloring within the lines so much. As the publishing world changes, they get pickier about what they publish.

    One day it will be you and you'll get a fan letter telling you how much love they have for what you wrote. That moment, will make all the moments before worth it.

    ReplyDelete
  17. UnknownDecember 6, 2012 at 6:43 PM

    I have only one thing to say: This (phase) too will pass. John Mantooth (my friend) and I were published in the same mag ten years ago. I stopped writing. He didn't. Right now, his debut novel just came out from Penguin. I asked myself, would that have happened to me if Id kept writing? Probably, but each boat rides its own wave. It was his time.
    If Im honest and sincere and good, mine will come too.

    That's what you should remember, Talyn. Ours will come too.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Operation Agent Ink

UPDATE: PLEASE FILL OUT THIS QUESTIONNAIRE AFTER YOU SIGN UP. Have you ever wondered what agents were dying to find in their inbox/slush pile? There have been many times I entered a contest and not even received a comment, not even from one of the agents. Or maybe the agent was kind enough to leave a comment that simply said, "Sorry, this just isn't what I'm looking for, but I love the premise and your voice." I always walk away feeling unsatisfied. If I had known exactly what the agent wanted beyond, "YA" or "Fantasy" I might not have even entered a contest I knew I wouldn't win! Even more, I wasted a very busy agents time! Well, your time of guessing is up! OPERATION AGENT INK to the rescue! That's right! This workshop will help aspiring authors get on the list of an agent's WISH LIST! When the workshop is over, your manuscript will be ready to view by a group of AMAZING agents who are dying to see what you've wri...
111 comments
Read more

Writer In Motion CP feedback

Hey beautiful guys and dolls! Here it is! My CP feedback edited story. Had a hard time with this, but I hope it makes sense. I've got a post I'm working on I plan to put up after Thanksgiving. Here ya go. Enjoy... Every morning I wake to carnival day.  Today, though, I have my key. If I don’t use it before midnight, my way of escape will gone. It’s a silver key with a twisted metal handle, a sapphire stone half moon and engraved stars. There’s a tiny inscription on the moon, but it’s so small, I’ve never been able to read it.I’ve always kept mine in my jewelry box, but today, I string it on a ribbon and tie it around my neck. My two best friends will be wearing theirs, too, and I wonder how they will escape this carnival of dreams. “What’s it for?” Cress asks as we stand in line for the swings. I run my fingertips over the entire silver surface. “I don’t know. It belonged to my grandmother,” I say. “Whatever.” She shrugs her shoulder in a dismissive way. “Have ...
3 comments
Read more

Workshop 10

Today, let's get readers hooked from the very first sentence. If you do, you are off to a great start and hopefully a great first chapter. We are going to focus on the first and second sentence and how you can draw readers in while introducing two major items about your book: 1. Your MC 2. The main conflict. How? Is it really possible to do this in only TWO sentences? YES! Example: My name is Snow, like the white powder that falls during winter, though I don't know what my mom was thinking because it was ninety degrees the day I was born. I turned twelve the year I married a man I hated and thirteen when my first baby was born. This sentence tells us a lot. It shows us a little about Snow's personality, it hints toward a shortened childhood and could possibly point to a different time era. I also can definitely see the conflict. Can you? You only have a few minutes to make a good, first impression. Make sure you wow your reader enough they'll actually t...
115 comments
Read more