At the Local Authors' Fair at Topeka and Shawnee County Library, I was on a panel for ADVICE TO
BEGINNING WRITERS. Here are my notes from that event, as I promised several people. Other panel members were Dennis Etzel, Eric McHenry, and Thomas Fox Averill. They echoed many of these ideas and discussed the role of magazine editors and writers in more depth. Thanks to them all.ADVICE TO BEGINNING WRITERS, Denise Low
·
Pay more attention to quality than to publication. Being a published writer is not
like being a rock star. It is learning to articulate life experience well, and
it is a life-long pursuit. Most writers continue to improve into old age, so
buckle up for the long haul. When you go to conferences, try to learn more
about writing and less about how to publicize your writings.
·
Do the apprenticeship time. Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers
has a wonderful section where he gives examples of 10,000 hours as a
minimum apprenticeship for exceptional accomplishment. The Beatles played in Germany
seven days a week, several sets, for years before they returned to Liverpool
and become outstanding. My mentor, a novelist, said it took ten years to learn
how to write a novel. Ten years.
·
Send individual pieces out for publication. If you are a poet, send out 3-5
poem submissions to literary magazines or commercial niche magazines. If you
are a prose writer, send out short stories or essays or novel excerpts. When
you have about a third of a book already published in magazines, then consider
a book. The validation of the magazine publishing process will show book
editors that you have experience and quality.
·
Consider publishing a chapbook first. This is a 12-24 page booklet, usually staple bound or it can be a letterpress art piece. This is a closely related group of poems, in form or content. It is an inexpensive way to share poems.
· Know your local presses. Buy books from them. Support them. This is localvore literature, and you can participate!
·
Prepare for
the page, part 1: 5 ½ by 8 ½ normally, 10.5 to 11 pt font, so poets need to be
aware of limitations. Prepare for
the page, part 2: have letter-perfect grammar and spelling and usage. Hire a
professional proof reader if necessary
·
Understand
the difference between a “vanity” press and an independent press—small
literary, university, or industry presses
·
Take
advantage of print-on-demand. Start a press or magazine. Publish yourself if
your audience is local or family or another niche not served by literary
presses and/or the NY industrial complex
·
If you
submit to any press that is not vanity, be prepared to show (1 previous
publications of individual poems or excerpts if possible (2 a target audience
and indication of interest from your target audience (3 a market plan—reading schedule,
friends who will used the book in reading clubs or classes, etc.
·
Be ready to
market your work—no one does publicity any more
Here's a link to a related podcast with authors who appeared at the event, interviewed by Miranda Ericsson http://tscpl.org/author/mericsson/
