Ruminations of a new writer

Picture by Shelley Jackson

I spent half of this weekend scouring books and journals in Barnes & Noble, trying to figure out where to publish, who would love to publish my work and what I’d do when I see the letter “Your work has been accepted into our journal”. I think about writers before me whose names I now know like I know the names of my siblings and family members without an ounce of doubt. I think about the ambition and perseverance these authors must have had to take rejection letters like bullets to the chest and rise above self-doubt like David in the face of Goliath. It must have been even harder then without the technology we have today, which we can send off manuscripts with the simple click of a button.

How many times did Paule Marshall, for instance, send off pieces? Which cafes did she find that she could sit for hours pouring coffee in a mug as the sunlight shift from East to West? Who were the people in her writing circle who told her that it would be more poignant if Selina, the protagonist in her bestselling novel “Browngirl Brownstone”, refers to her mother as “the mother”? Back then MFA programs and cafes weren’t so chic like they are now. Even Virginia Wolfe acknowledged this when she said that all a woman needs to write is a room of her own. Nowadays, we find our favorite neighborhood cafes and sit with our laptops as ideas flow from our minds to our fingertips. Forget laundry and cooking and other housewifey stuff (well, for now), a story needs to be told and we’re telling it.

The challenge comes when it’s time to publish. First, in order to submit a piece I’m finding that I have to cut chunks out of a story in order to fit the word limit. This means that three paragraphs of pertinent details are at the mercy of the delete button. For instance, how in god’s name would the readers know that Sarah and Benny were friends with identical moles and a hair sticking out of it? Oh Shoot! Editing becomes an instant tool as we revise our pieces, cutting irrelevant details and repetitive words. In two hours, your 9000 word manuscript would be a new, glistening 7500 words.

Another thing I’m finding out as a new writer is dating. I’m not talking about dating people; I’m referring to dating journals. That’s what it feels like to me as I sift through the shelves of Barnes & Noble in search of Journals that seem like they would like my work. I research ways to court those journals, take them out to tea like a true lesbian and give them a thorough reading before calculating ways to seduce them, using the techniques I notice that they “fall for” in the work they publish.

However, usually I stick to my guns with my stories though, sending them off hoping that the journals would like what I already have. Like true love ought to be, unconditional. I strongly believe that as writers, we should write for ourselves first and think about the audience later. Just like how I believe as individuals we shouldn’t change ourselves to be accepted by others. Writing is about purging, so what’s the use of swallowing your own vomit to please someone else? (Well…if you’re writing for a magazine or a major blog that’s paying you instantly per word then that’s another story. Rent needs to be paid, so swallow that ego right quick!)

Seriously though, I wonder if the fact that I’m a woman has anything to do with my inclination to be complacent with “dating” journals. You know how as women we were taught to be courted and not the other way around? Therefore, now I’m trying my best to do the exact opposite. I'm putting out like there's no tomorrow. I’m reaching out to these journals and submitting work as though my rent is due today and I need to get paid! In the back of my mind, I hear a man’s voice saying in a fatherly way, “That’s my boy! Go get ‘em!”

Lastly, I’m beginning to see the importance of writing retreats and conferences. For a new writer, this is as fundamental to our development as breast milk is to a baby. (Even if you weren’t breast fed, you catch my drift). At conferences you meet the gods of publishing. This is where you put on your best “writerly” self (minus the overpriced vintage outfits and fedora hats). I’m talking about networking, rubbing shoulders, sipping wine as you gush to other writers about their works and cross your fingers that they’d introduce you to their publishers, editors, or agents. Perhaps you have sent out query letters before, but being present at a conference exposes you to options galore!

Also, going on writing retreats will help keep you away from the distractions of daily life. Sometimes these retreats are perched on mountain tops and in deep forests where we will connect with our spiritual and creative selves. For what is a writer without a soul rooted in the universe? It is the universe that grants us our deepest wishes when we come face to face with our truths.

Nicole © 2011
(blog soon to be published in Poets & Writers)

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