Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Dawn Potter on January 22, 2011 at 2:15pm

Tasha--

Most journals, both print and online, won't consider publishing work that has already appeared online, even on personal blogs. 

Permalink Reply by Liane Carter on January 22, 2011 at 3:45pm

Hi Tasha, look through the past posts for this group. You'll find some great places to submit your work. Also check out Jenny Rough's excellent list of essay markets on Mediabistro.

Permalink Reply by Tasha Keeble on January 23, 2011 at 11:34am

Thanks a bunch.  I think it's time to revise and shut down the blog.  At least give it a minute of rest.

Permalink Reply by Dawn Potter on January 23, 2011 at 1:08pm

You don't necessarily need to shut down the blog, just use it for informal commentary rather than for finished work. Or alternatively, commit to promoting yourself as a blogger rather than a writer who publishes elsewhere. Many of the poets on SheWrites take this approach, and I'm sure the SheWrites blog group could offer marketing pointers for writers in various genres.

 

On my blog I don't publish work I hope to place elsewhere. But I do write a post almost every day and find that it's excellent writing practice. That's worth a lot in itself. Good luck, Tasha; you sound determined, which is three-quarters of the battle, if not more.

Permalink Reply by Dawn Potter on January 22, 2011 at 4:23pm

I'm sure Liane's submission ideas are excellent, but I reiterate: most journals won't take pieces that have already appeared on blogs or other online sites. Journals want first rights to a work, which means they want work that has not had any public exposure to this point. That includes pieces that have appeared on workshopping sites such as SheWrites. This puts writers into a tricky position: basically, if you have hopes of journal publication, you can't show people your work on the Internet, except by way of private messages or emails.

Permalink Reply by Tasha Keeble on January 22, 2011 at 5:01pm

I guess that's where the prolific writer has the edge.  I am on the verge of deleting my blog--traffic has decreased since facebook changed it format anyway, and revising my essays, hopefully for-profit submissions.  Or maybe I will just keep writing and let the Universe work it out . :)

Permalink Reply by Dawn Potter on January 22, 2011 at 5:11pm

"Just keep writing and let the Universe work it out." That's the story in a nutshell. Even for published writers, "for-profit submissions" are generally a pipe dream. I'll get $80 for my most recently accepted essay, despite the fact that the publisher is a major literary journal. $80. That doesn't pay for a week's groceries.

Permalink Reply by Ana Sharma on January 22, 2011 at 6:13pm

Dawn, you are lucky to see a check.  When they pay in copies of the magazine... ahhh!

Permalink Reply by Dawn Potter on January 22, 2011 at 7:33pm

I know I'm lucky, Ana. And essays are comparatively "big sellers." Poems = $0. Well, we're not in this for the dough, clearly.

Permalink Reply by Tasha Keeble on January 23, 2011 at 11:36am

Thanks for your feedback, Dawn.  I'm really just building my audience while I "keep writing."  It is growing, and I am very happy with where I am.  I just feel as though I need to continue moving forward; quite goal driven.

Permalink Reply by Kelly Garriott Waite on April 14, 2011 at 3:34pm

This is something I struggle with all the time.  I have published essays but then got away from writing essays to pursue novel writing.  Recently, I've gotten back into writing essays, but I'm finding it's really tough to find markets.  So, I took the plunge and put some of my best essays on my blog.  It's frustrating, but I'm hoping to get a bit more visibility which will hopefully result in future in-print publication.  Good luck!

Permalink Reply by Ana Sharma on January 22, 2011 at 6:15pm

Tasha,  most of magazines have a link for submissions.  Choose a few that could be interested in your style and topic.

Good luck!