Yesterday I got a text from my friend Ben. “Now I know why writers live in cities,” he said. “Buses are full of characters.”
Ahhh, cityscape: buses, coffee lines, sports bars, public libraries, and outdoor concerts are chock full of round characters and curious actions. Lucky for me, I’ve mostly lived in and traveled to urban places. A nun riding a bicycle in NYC’s Central Park? A policeman chasing a hoodlum in the red light district of Sydney? A homeless person camped out with a hot blond under a lifeguard tower in LA? I’ve both seen it and ‘scened’ it: those images have catalyzed stories.
Ben’s text made me wonder. What would I write about without the urban inspiration of witnessing a near smackdown on the Broadway bus, or teaching an elderly woman how to text message in a Starbucks? Would wasps and mice carcasses turn into my loony tune characters, and pollination and decay into my action? Would I be a more attentive writer and a more patient person? Or would my prose grow flat and devoid of the zaniness I like to call my own?
Maybe I need to go on a camping writing retreat to find out. As long as there was a Park Ranger with a pet ferret to write about.
SSC congratulates our instructor Mary Hamilton on the publishing of her chapbook by Rose Metal Press!
As Rose Metal describes the work, ”WE KNOW WHAT WE ARE is a collection of 13 flash fictions in which worlds are made, torn apart, drowned. The stories go small: a girl ties a ribbon on a present. The stories go big: a war is raged against the evening sky. The characters in these short short fictions find themselves in less-than-desirable circumstances. They know their plights. They acknowledge their situations. They give in. They overcome. They daydream a world where everything will be all right.”
Mary will debut her work, which won the Fourth Annual Rose Metal Press Short Short Chapbook Contest, at a reading at Open Books this Wednesday at 7.
Father, forgive me, I meant not what I thought. It has been three days since my last post. Today, sitting here at this desk, perusing the fall line up of classes, I thought, wistfully, longingly of autumn. Forgive me.
This is contrary to everything I hold dear. I’m a child of the summer! Wishing away the heat, no matter how brief the impulse, goes against the core of my being! I am Erin Elise Moore. I stand for lawn games, and cookouts, and humidity and sunburn, and Jimmy Buffett concerts and having no alternative but to drink vodka tonics on a patio somewhere because your three story walk up does not have AC.
But I couldn’t help it. As I sat, torn between Freelance Magazine Writing and Short Story Workshop, I suddenly found myself dreaming of the fall. I could see myself getting home from every single one night class StoryStudio has to offer, crock pot spewing forth those glorious chili smells, wrapping up in the classiest snuggie I own, and writing beautiful passages as a rough wind rips the leaves from the trees.
I know what’s behind this, and it’s not my passion for apple crisp. It’s that I always assume that the future holds more time to write. I have an unwavering belief that the first of September will mark a new beginning and I will spend fruitful hours writing pithy essays and stirring prose. I see myself, looking much like a model in a J.Crew ad (in dreams all things are possible) churning out incredible works with the discipline of a Buddhist monk in a cable knit sweater. It’s a wonder the New Yorker hasn’t called already!
The truth is, the future is just as busy as the present. If I learned anything from the one night class I stole last week, it’s that you have to carve out time because the world won’t stop. And that is hard. Life doesn’t pause because I thought of a really catchy opening sentence. My cousin will still have his wedding in October, whether I have a story to finish or not and I still run the risk of forgetting the great idea I am sure to have while on that business trip to San Francisco.
I know that mid-October will find me longing for cozy winter blog entries written under my electric blanket. Then comes March, which will inspire me with dreams of June journaling in Winnemac Park. July and August will once again spark my interest with StoryStudio’s fall lineup.
But I remain hopeful, if for no other reason that I know I will have my classes to keep me honest. Not only do I get to learn from others, but they expect me to participate in equal measure. Artists need deadlines and writers need workshops and we all need that community to help us along. Otherwise we’d just sit around thinking of pumpkin bread and then Christmas cookies and all the free time we haven’t yet filled.
Right now I am totally eavesdropping. The one night class Making Room with Elizabeth Wetmore is taking place in the front classroom and whoo-boy am I inspired! I’m stealing tips on carving out time and unlocking creativity and silencing the world around me so that I can actually work.
I need to get back into some of these fabulous One Nighters. They are like a 9 volt shot of double espresso creativity grain alcohol designed to inspire you to stop everything and just write. They also tend to steer you away from sentences like that one.
This class in particular is reminding me that writing can be joyful. Ms. Wetmore is showing her class (and me) that although sometimes you have to make tough choices to put your writing first, that writing is actually fun and something we want to do! Tapping into the fun of writing makes it easier to carve out the time to do it. This is the nice thing about these one nighters—with the exercises and readings and stories from the teachers, I always leave unable to do anything until I write in my journal simply because it’s more fun than anything else at the moment!
My best friend recently unearthed a copy of a book she wrote when we were in first grade. The fully-illustrated work, called Jesus, Erin and Me, tells the story of how the three of us (Chris, Jesus and myself, obviously) rescued a litter of puppies and took them to Heaven. As a reward for our work, Jesus lets us each keep a puppy! What a guy! The best part of this book, other than the title, is that it’s just dripping with pure joy. You can tell that the little girl who wrote it is having a great time telling her story. She’s unconcerned with how it will be received or who will judge it, just as long as we get our puppies at the end. I want to write like that. Fearlessly enjoying my stories! Boldly ignoring conventions and declaring myself impervious to what other people will say about my work!
Between Jesus, Erin and Me and stealing this one night class, I need to spend some quality-fun time with my journal. And given the tips I’ve learned through this wall, I’m hoping I will vastly improve in my ability to make the space in my life for this treat. I will also actually sign up for these one nighters, rather than poaching the lessons.
Q: Is getting published impossible for someone (like me) who’s never been published before?
A: No! All it takes is knowledge of current publications, a cover letter, and a shot of Patron.
Q: How do I go about this seemingly elusive practice of “publishing”?
A: First look for publications with the tone, audience, and goals that parallel those of your piece. (If you can’t see your story fitting into the feel of a magazine or journal, neither will the editors!) You may have a higher likelihood of printing in online publications, publications that cater to unknown writers, and publications you’re already affiliated with (such as those of colleges and hometowns). A helpful resource is the “Writer’s Market” series, which explains the publishing process and lists journals and magazines of different interests.
After you’ve decided where to submit, read their guidelines, which will probably ask for a cover letter. Cover letters briefly introduce the piece and author to the editors, and make a (short) case as to why this piece is a good fit for the publication. Once your cover letter is prepared, it’s time to send off your submission (guidelines will specify whether by post or email).
If this all seems too daunting, try sectioning off two hours in your Google calendar. Within the time provided, do all that you can (identify magazines or journals, write a cover letter, and send). This time limit prevents the task from seeming insurmountable: we can all fit two hours in somewhere!
Q: But what if my piece gets rejected? Will I have more night terrors and baggage to bring to my therapist?
A: Since no one has to know that you’ve submitted, no one has to know that you’ve been turned down. Instead of blaming the rejection on yourself, blame it on the sad state of the publishing industry! They’re hardly printing anything these days that’s not about vampires.
If you do get turned down, it might have meant the publication wasn’t a good fit. Try again somewhere else.
And, there’s a chance you’ll be accepted and rejection won’t be an issue.
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