Not all blog posts need titles.

[theladywolf]

I think a month has passed. It must be time for a blog post. J

Comments

[ideealisme]

"Seriously, submitting shorts when I really want to be a novelist may just be the dumbest thing I’ve ever done. See how I speak for nobody but myself there."

Haha! Hahahaha! ::voice cracks::

I *keep* getting sucked into that. J is on to me about it now. "Just DO the fuckin thing," he says. J, of course, is right. He's always right. It's why my predecessor gave him the flick and I didn't :)

Congrats on the honourable mention - that's a nice warm feeling. Boo to the rejections. Is it Irishy stuff your getting the rejections from or genre stuff in the US?

[theladywolf]

Well, there comes a point where when you get serious about getting the novel done, the short stories become like pesky little flies buzzing around you. For me, that point comes, I mean. See how I speak for nobody but myself there. ;)

Do as J says please.

Regarding rejections, I have been rejected on both sides of the Atlantic. Published on both sides too though so I should be more cheerful about it. It's just that one little short story can generate an awful lot of rejections, and rewritings. :)

[ideealisme]

There's a point at which I stop rewriting, dig my heels in, and say - this is it. But sometimes I just don't have the emotional energy to do a rewrite because it will really be that - a rewrite - rather than just a trimming.

I'm working on the novel outline. I really should have done that on the first draft but oh well. Fuck me, it's hard.

[theladywolf]

I know what you mean about rewriting not tweaking. I have one short which I think is potentially great, except it will need a rewrite, and then what? Submit and reject cycle all over again? Maybe it would get somewhere, but so what to that even. I need to get a novel done.

I always think first draft and outlines are close relations by the way. Sometimes I think pantsers and outliners are not as far apart as they claim to be. ;)

[bogwitch64]

I don't submit my short stuff. It's just not worth it to me. Everyone is different, but I can't juggle all that up and down and anticipation etc while trying to write a book.

Of course, I'm pretty apathetic about submitting in general, so I might not be the best one to listen to. :)

[theladywolf]

That's exactly it. The up and down anticipation stuff. It does my head in. I sometimes wish I had never done shorts and had just cracked on with novels.But no regrets, eh? :)

[silverwerecat]

I started as a novelist too, because I rarely had any shorts' ideas worth exploring. Now those darned shorts breed like horny kittehs. :S

And congrats on the HM. It feels great, doesn't it? :D

Sorry about the rejection as well. Some of them do sting more than others...

[theladywolf]

Neuter those kittehs. :) And then go get you a tiger.

The HM does feel great. It would have felt greater without the accompanying rejection, that is true, but the rejection sting does go away, and the HM will always remain. :)

[justin_pilon]

Wow! Congrats on the HM. Yeah the short story game can be a bit of a killer. I haven't been so effective at mixing short story/novel mode. Novel needs a full commitment I think. There's a new specfic submission group up, though that's mostly for subbing short stories.

[theladywolf]

Thank you.
I don't know how a person gets encouragement on the novel writing road. It's nice to have a bunch of people in LJ who at least know about writing I guess. Most communities seem to resolve around writing shorts and subbing. I don't know how a community dedicated to noveling would work. I'll think on it. :)

[xanthalanari]

See, I like the short story game. It gives me a sense of acheivement when I actually get somewhere.

I'd love to be part of an online community again too, but I emailed LH to ask for the invite code and no one's bothered to get back to me so I guess that's it.

[theladywolf]

That's exactly what happened to me with LH. I think you have to email Mike personally to get it, but I wish he'd just be upfront about it. Plus, I had recommended the place to lots of people and none of them got in. I don't know what's going on there, but I do miss the place.

Regarding the shorts, I know what you mean about the sense of achievement. Any story of mine that did something made me feel I was getting somewhere. But all the rejections, man. It's too much hurting. :)

[xanthalanari]

That seems weird, it always used to be relatively easy to get in if you wrote. Maybe they've got more strict. I miss it, but I'm not sure I want to jump through hoops for it.

I'm OK with rejections now, usually they hit me on bad days anyway. ;)

[theladywolf]

Well, I have Mike's email address if you want it. Another former LHer and I were thinking of trying to start up something similar and easier to get into. Maybe if there's enough LH refugees wandering around homeless, we'll get onto it. ;)