Face Your Fear Friday - Episode 2

Face Your Friday is back, after a long (unplanned) hiatus. 


Just like with "Take A Chance Tuesday", I want to make this weekly feature more accessible to those you juggling far more than I can or do, but at the same time remember, facing one's fear's take TIME. 


All Face Your Fear Friday's about is taking the 
FIRST BABY STEPS to facing the writer fear of the week.


For example, if the theme was "Reading what Scares You" or "Name 5 writers you respect, even if their books are just not your thing, and why" all you have to do is admit and share a little from your personal experience. There are no right or wrong answers here.


Writers are all different, even if our goals overlap in the the general sense (Those of us who are struggling for their first SALE, be it book-length story or magazine piece, poem, etc. Already published writers trying to advance their career, etc) how we get there is varied, and some wait longer than others, but unless your naturally pragmatic in your thinking, you can feel alone in your frustration sometimes, especially if most of the writers you know are strong in areas your weak, and it's those weak areas that might be holding your writing back. 


Sometimes simply admitting to a fear, however off the wall it may be, is the first step to getting better at facing that fear and pushing past it to achieve your writer dreams and goals. You have to acknowledge your fear is REAL, no matter what anyone tells you, many writers I know don't feel the same level of frustration about writing YA level fiction, and don't have problems writing nonfiction, but these are barriers for ME, in the same way some of those pragmatical writers don't feel as in tune with their imagination as I do,


While that makes critiquing each other's work hard, we can appreciate what the other does better than us, and its imperative that support goes both ways.


With that said, let's get into this week's challenge.


All you have to do is answer the following question-


"If you could name ONE writer skill you could magically enhance, what would it be and why?"


My answer: Better Query Letters, Better Query Letters, Better Query Letters!


Why? Because these letters are becoming all the more vital, but I HATE writing them regardless, because it's easy to feel like the most hapless writer on Earth because they have to be so professional without being soulless, and anyone who takes this lightly will be sorry, that's as much speaking from my personal experience as it is a friendly warning.


Now it's your turn! Share you answers to this week's challenge in the comments below.


Please keep your answer PG-13 and below, and please stay on topic (No "I don't have time to comment" type comments) comment when you do have time, or try again for next Friday's challenge.


I moderate the comments on T.A.A. and will not approve posts that don't follow the guidelines.


Your answers must be posted by Friday, April 20th, 2012, Noon EST, think of it as a mild time challenge, since for some of us, admitting to fear or weakness is a BIG DEAL, and sharing it among our fellow writers can help take the fear away, or at least bring it down to less traumatic levels, and we may even find a precious gem of advice, insight or a comrade-in-revisions (Comrades in Arms for writers, get it?) that will serve us well for the future.


Anyway, see you here next Friday.


UPDATE (4/20/12): Commenting Closed.

Is All Published Work Really Created Equal? Or When Taking "Baby Steps" Aren't Enough Anymore

Sorry for going dark again, but I had to think hard about what I wanted to do next, and I needed the write words to come to me, and they have.


At the outset of this blog, I said I was unpublished, and it's true, but only in terms of being paid.


Last summer, my old critique heard about these anthologies that were looking for submissions, and they all suggested I submit to them as they did,

At first, I resisted. Why? Because I wasn't getting paid to contribute, and it won't count as a clip I can use, since I wasn't paid and the anthologies weren't from a well-known press.


So, why'd I submit anyway? One reason only-
I was tired of hearing "No" from agents I queried my books to.


They accepted nearly everything sent in, no fierce competition was nice, but it felt hollow to get published this way. The few short stories I've written are longer than most magazines are willing to consider, 500 word gems do not come easy to me, no matter how much I work them.


Another perk was these anthologies didn't want "All rights" as most magazines do now, and I've yet to learn how to write things I know I won't want to reuse the same world and characters but still have the level of quality and care put into it.


I thought if I'd be able to let go of my frustrations if I sent those anthologies my stories because I knew they wouldn't say "No" unless I submitted too late and all spots were spoken for, but that didn't happen.


Even now, nearly six months later, and despite all my efforts to do so, I don't feel any different about this.


Everyone in my group and other writers I know preached to me it doesn't matter and that I should be grateful I was published somewhere at all whether I was paid or not, but they don't understand how I feel, because they have other things they're good at, things people value and are paid for their hard work. Even if they never get published (Which would be a shame because I know how good they are) they do so many other things that make them feel needed and feel some sense of accomplishment, even if they hate the job.

I know there many writers who believe any non-scam published work means something, and yet many writers believe writers disserve to be paid for their hard work. I think both points are valid, but even though many writers don't make a living solely through their words, it doesn't mean we always want to give or work away for free. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for being charitable and sharing what help I can offer to my fellow writers, we all need some kind of support, but I still want to be paid for some of my hard work, and I don't think that's shallow to feel that way.

I know these are frustrations I'll always have to deal with, just like the writers before me, but I hope solace comes for me sooner rather than later.

I'd love to hear from you. How do you handle setbacks in your writing career? What helps you make peace with the waiting game we in the business always play?

Did writing stop being fun for you? Were there times you felt like you weren't getting any better in spite of the months and years spent revising?

If you are interested in the anthologies where my work appears, click here, and search for the following titles.


Trunk Stories


Something in the Attic

Yarns for our Youth 2 (Not yet Available. Coming Soon!)


I might not update this weekend, as I've got a lot of reading and soul searching to do, but check back Tuesday, March 1st for an important update about ttheT.A.A. Prose and Poetry Slam.


Until Next Time, May the fantastical fauna be with you,


Taurean