How to Submit Your Writing Like a Boss

In Wednesday’s post I talk a little bit about not keeping your writing hidden. But how should a writer go about sharing their work with the world. Easy. By submitting them.

Whether it's poetry, flash fiction, short story or a novella. There’s a publisher/editor waiting to add it to their publication. But how to find them?

Well, there’s several ways to do that. Writer’s Digest has a listing of publishers, editors, agents, contests, etc to submit your writing. It’s called the Writer’s Market and has many editions based on genre and subject. It’s printed annually. And updated with information on editors. It also sample query letters, indexes showing if a market pays or not. And whether they accept new and emerging writers.

Can’t afford to buy the book every year? Here are a few free resources found online:

• Aerogamme Writer’s Studio publishes news and resources of upcoming open submissions.
• Poets & Writers has a literary and magazine database. All you have to do is sign up and search by genre and subgenre.
• NewPages Classified is a recent find. They have a call for submissions list for writing, art, and photography from magazines, publishers, writing conferences, and more. You can delve deeper by searching by genre and type.
• Published to Death is another recent find. They’re a great resource in finding publications that pay. As well as accept reprints, free contests, accept unagented manuscripts, etc.
• Blogger Rachel Poli blogs monthly updates of publications accepting submissions on her blog.
• Another resource is joining a social media group.  Members post and share information on upcoming submissions with each other. I've joined Calls for Submissions and Creative and Professional Writing Information Exchange on Facebook. And I'm a member of the Writing Resources community on Google+.

Now that you have at your fingertips a plethora of places to submit to what comes next is keeping track of them all. Most publications only accept digital submissions and use Submittable. Another submission manager is Duotrope but I use the former. Others have their own online submission manager like Agni.  Duotrope is a subscription-based submission manager. Like Submittable they track your submissions and it has a searchable market database too.

I take another step further and track my submissions in an Excel spreadsheet. The spreadsheet shows me the name of the press/journal/magazine I’ve submitted to. The number of times I’ve submitted to them, the submission period and deadline. The pieces I submitted to them. And the genre and the date I sent it. It’s normal to wait 2-4 months before you hear back from a publication. If the allotted time has passed, then I'd contact them to inquire about the status of my piece(s).

Lastly I note whether it was declined and if any feedback was given about the piece. Which also determines if I’ll submit to them again in the future. Especially, if they used words like:

• although we enjoyed it, the poems weren't quite right for the us/issue/magazine
• made to last round of consideration
• received careful consideration
• welcome to submit again

And if the piece(s) were accepted I review the spreadsheet to find other submissions. Then contact the editors with a short and cordial explanation to why I'm withdrawing it. It's a rule of submission etiquette to do so just like following the submission guidelines.

The submission process is both a long road and a two way street. Just as you're looking for places to send your work. Publishers and editors are searching for writers to feature in their publications.  So do not take it to heart when your work was not accepted. It doesn't mean your writing sucked. But that it wasn't the right fit for them or that particular issue.  Yet, what wasn't right for them might be a better fit somewhere else. So don’t give up hope and keep submitting.

What resources do you use to find contests, anthologies, magazines, etc. to submit? Do you use Submittable, Duotrope or another submission tracker?

critical factors

I was reading my Writer's Digest Magazine last night, and once again came across a superb article about why some novels become successful and others don't. Culprit number one, according to Donald Maass, is timid voices. "A snappy premise and meaty plot can hook us and keep us reading but cannot by themselves work that magic. It takes something extra: voice." Further, "voice in a novel is not the author's thoughts or vocabulary but the sum total of what her characters observe, think, feel and express in their own unique ways."

The fix is easy. Write your characters with strong voices. Let them speak in their own words and tell the story.

(Which is exactly what I've been doing with my latest wip! I know, great minds think alike, right? Me and Don? We are so on the same page when it comes to characters. It's scary.)

Anyway. Moving on. Culprit number two, according to Maass, is untested characters. If they don't do anything then what was the point? How compelling is it to read about a character who doesn't react? The best characters act bravely even though they're scared, jump to defend their principles and rise to face their deepest fears. They come out the other side, changed different, and so do we for reading about them.

But the last and best is culprit number three (Overly Interior or Exterior stories), which really hit home: "Certain story patterns are pretty much guaranteed to lead to fiction of underwhelming force," especially novels heavy with "delay, suffering, and being stuck." Fiction of underwhelming force is, of course, the last thing we want. The way to rectify this, Maass says, is to give interior stories "more dramatic outward events; by the same token, dramatic outward events need to create a more devastating interior impact."

Yeah. I had to underline that last part. Brilliant, right? Especially the devastating part.

And if that doesn't get you all fired up to write something then I'll give you a last gem I found, a question to ponder. Ask yourself, what's the biggest thing your protagonist could possibly do, but can't? By the end of the story, have her do it.

Hmm. I think I might.

The Blog Tour Exchange

I'd like to introduce a new resource for writers, the Blog Tour Exchange. The Blog Tour Exchange is a free matching site for authors who wish to conduct blog tours to promote their books. By becoming a member, you agree to promote other authors' books on your blog and they do the same for you. 

You don't need to have a publishing contract to Become A Host.  By being a host now, you'll build connections with other authors and a platform for marketing when you do have a book ready. If you've been a host for at least three months at any time before you have a book to promote, you can be matched without having to sign up again. If you complete your three months before your book comes out you can use your precious time for marketing when your tour is live.

To celebrate the grand opening, we're having a giveaway! Sign up to Become A Host before 11/1 and be entered in a drawing to win a free full-service blog tour and other great prizes. Even if you can't sign up to be a host right now, you can still enter the giveaway. Enter here.

Learn more at How It Works.

I hope to see you there!

Great Places to Read and Get Feedback on Queries

                         Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech.

So your manuscript is completed, critiqued, and polished. Now you want a venue to do the same with your query, your introduction to the hazardous world of publishing.

With all the resources in the blogosphere, the hardest part is choosing where to go and how much to put out there.

Like-minded writers populate forums looking for help. It's a ‘scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours’ world that works for everyone involved. By posting your query, you get feedback and your writing improves when you critique. It is a win-win situation for everyone.

Consider these sites. They are free to anyone willing to give of their time to return the favor and crit:

·       Orson Scott Card. This fabulous author of Ender’s Game holds forums for writers.

·       Nathan Bransford. A former literary agent and now author of Jacob Wonderbar and Cosmic Space Kapow.

·       Absolute Write. This vast site has everything you need to put together a query.

·       Query Tracker. An all-purpose stopping place with forums to hone your query and research agents.

·       Query Shark. Enter at your own risk! Janet Reid of FinePrint Literary runs a site chock-full of advice. But watch out for the chum.

·       The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment. Run by master blogger Matthew MacNish, this site takes aim on submitted queries with a critical eye that sees all. And I love his avatar.

·       Miss Snark’s First Victim. Authoress remains incognito, still won’t reveal her name or photo. Very mysterious.

·       YALITCHAT. Where they live and breathe YA.

·       Writers.net. A site dedicated to writers.

·       And of course, Unicorn Bell, the home of writers.

These are mostly free sites with some asking for donations or premium memberships. If you are interested in paying for services by professionals, research the sites like Writers Digest.

In truth, finding help is the easy part. It’s throwing that beloved query or manuscript into the icy cold world of critique and wondering if it – or you – will survive. Suck in a deep breath and take the plunge. 

It can only get better.

Have we missed your favorite writing forum? Please share it with us in the comments.

Additions from the comments section:

Adam Heine critiques queries, jacket copy, and first pages on Wednesdays.
Evil Editor
The Public Query Slushpile
Ask Daphne! About My Query

Researching Small Presses

It's a brave new world in publishing. Traditional wisdom used to be that you must get an agent in order to land a publishing contract, but the e-book revolution has opened the door for independent authors and publishers to compete with the Big Six Publishers. Although there is nothing wrong with getting an agent and going the traditional route, that's no longer the only option for serious authors.

Who should submit directly to publishers?

Submitting directly to publishers may be a good choice for you if you have a quality product that beats to it's own drum. Smaller publishers are often more likely to take a risk on something new or different. Direct to publisher submissions are great for:

• Emerging genres like New Adult
• Genre blends or anything that is "hard to shelve"
• All things quirky, offbeat, and innovative
• Novels that appeal to niche markets
• LGBT & Multicultural
• Romance & erotica
• Anything of quality that never found a good agent match
• Anyone who has self-published or is considering self-publishing

Where to submit?

In my experience, the search for a publisher was more complicated than the search for an agent. The available databases are not as reliable or complete. Not all publishers accept unagented submissions. And not all publishers may be right for your work. This may change as direct to publisher submissions become more common. Here are some places to find publishers:

www.writersmarket.com

Sapphire Star Publishing

www.querytracker.net

Also, don't forget to try a good old-fashioned Google search. This is how I found my publisher, Curiosity Quills Press. I Googled "New Adult Publisher" and guess who I found? You may also try "publishers accepting unagented submissions" or a similar search to find lists created by other bloggers. Here are two such lists right here:

http://naalley.blogspot.com/p/publishing.html

http://sharonbayliss.blogspot.com/2012/04/list-of-publishers-seeking-submissions.html

How do I know if they are good?

Before you query and certainly before you sign, you should research potential publishers. 

First, make sure they're not scammers. You can make sure they're not rotten by looking for them on websites like this:

Crescent Moon Press

Better Business Bureau
Writer Beware Blog
Absolute Write Water Cooler
Publishers Marketplace
Predators and Editors

If they are a traditional royalty paying publisher (meaning they pay you and never the other way around) and they don't have bad press all over the web, then they're probably at least not a scam. But of course, this is your baby we're talking about. You need to make sure they're right for you. Here are more steps you can take:

• Google search. Simple but effective.
• Talk to one of their authors. Authors are just like you and me (in fact they are exactly like you and me) and most will be happy to answer your questions. If you don't feel comfortable approaching one, stalk their authors' blogs and Facebook pages to make sure they are happy campers.
• Use advanced search on Amazon to search by publisher. It's a simple way to see their whole catalog. Make sure you like their covers and that your book would fit in their catalog.

If you're offered a contract and don't have an agent, you'll probably be really happy but also completely freaking out. Here are more steps to handle your inevitable freak out:

• Repeat the steps above. :)
• Talk to your friends who have publishing contracts and compare terms (if they're comfortable with this)
• Have a lawyer review the contract.
• Read How To Be Your Own Literary Agent: An Insider's Guide to Getting Your Book Published  
• Take your time. A good publisher won't rush or pressure you.
• Ask questions. A good publisher will be happy to answer any questions you have. It also gives you a preview of how easy it is to work with them and get your questions answered.
• Follow your gut and do what feels right.

I've been through the process of signing with a publisher without an agent, so feel free to ask any questions in comments!