I’ve been reworking a short fiction story for the past two weeks and though I really liked the idea, and was growing increasingly fond of many of the sentences and some of the full-length scenes, I could tell the story wasn’t really popping off the page. If I were being honest with myself, I knewContinue reading “Does Your Writing Reek Enough to Pass the Five Senses Test?”
Tag Archives: Brevity: a journal of concise literary nonfiction
The “Writing What You Know” Rule is Baloney
A lot of you writers are probably throwing up your arms in disagreement at my sacrilegious statement. But honestly, fiction writing would be really boring if authors strictly stuck to writing only what they know. Books wouldn’t portray fantasy creatures that they concocted because they never experienced meeting one themselves. Can you imagine how awfulContinue reading “The “Writing What You Know” Rule is Baloney”
Unexpected Writing Scams: Should You Pay to Submit Your Writing?
Like Brevity, I’m a little confused about the cancellation of the Richard M. Thorson Literary Prize for Agrarian Prose, for the allegedly unacceptable practice of charging contest submission fees. Very nearly every sanctioned writing contest I’ve ever entered, I’ve been required to pay a small reading fee. None of them were scams. Many were postedContinue reading “Unexpected Writing Scams: Should You Pay to Submit Your Writing?”
Lesson: You Can Get a Rejection Letter at Any Time
Despite the fact that it’s Sunday morning, I was able to wake up and smell the roses with a form rejection letter in the mail. A form rejection letter at that. [Depressed hang of head]. But at least we learned something from it, yes? Palooka: A Journal of Underdog Excellence Official submission response time: Continue reading “Lesson: You Can Get a Rejection Letter at Any Time”
How to Grab an Editor’s Attention: Bragging (Politely) in Your Query Letter–With Example
For those of you who are shy and don’t like bragging about your publishing credits for fear of being impolite, stop being shy! Literary journal editors and literary agents WANT to hear about that stuff! A query letter and a cover letter are like job interviews. Proving that you’re a qualified writer helps you–andContinue reading “How to Grab an Editor’s Attention: Bragging (Politely) in Your Query Letter–With Example”
Tips on How to Win Writing Contests
Since this blog is for the underdog, the yet-to-be-discovered, the unpublished or occasionally published writers, we really need to start talking about writing contests. While at this stage everything would be a “big break” in your writing career, winning a writing contest has a couple extra bonuses: Writing contests usually have a bit of moneyContinue reading “Tips on How to Win Writing Contests”
Listen to Your Mother: Waiting By the Phone Never Gets You Anywhere
Sixty-five unopened emails greeted me. Not a single one was about my submissions. An awful great amount were from Victoria’s Secret and Barnes and Noble, warning me about last-minute sales. Lame. One was The Honors Review, announcing that the print version of this year’s issue are heading out in the mail this week (!!!) So,Continue reading “Listen to Your Mother: Waiting By the Phone Never Gets You Anywhere”
Mythbuster: The “Good” Rejection Letter
Believe it or not, there are two types of rejection letters: bad ones, and good ones. The bad ones are form letters, one that the editors obviously composed and mass sent out to authors, merely filling in the blanks for name and perhaps the title of the submission. Good rejection letters, on the other hand,Continue reading “Mythbuster: The “Good” Rejection Letter”
Hannah Karena Jones 