(I'm checking the box to share this to Notes so more people can discover you :-)) Jade, I'm so happy to discover you're here, writing about writing! (and running!) At least you send queries. I hardly ever do, except to "safe" editors I already know who'll accept my ideas and give me a green light. My summer project list on a Post-It on my desk includes "clean out files," meaning the disorganized files of journaling and book ideas in nonsensical subfolders—ideas and paragraphs that went nowhere and developed into nothing. I can't bring myself to re-read and organize (or delete) them because I'm afraid my fresh eyes will confirm that the ramblings were pointless or just very mediocre writing. At least you're here, you wrote this post. My 2-year-old Substack "newsletter" (really, a good ol' blog) has given me the structure and an audience I needed. At least I can produce a post every Wednesday, and that adds up to something. Keep at it!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Sarah. I have had the same tendency in the past to only pitch if I knew that it was at least 50% likely that my query would be accepted, in part because it's a lot of work to put together a thoughtful pitch but also because it can be tough to justify the time spent doing so without the guarantee of being paid. That said, I'm working on expanding what (and for whom) I write, so it's helpful to share my experiences on here as a way to stay accountable and do just that.
Your Substack has been an inspiration for me and I've really enjoyed seeing how much it has grown over the last few years!
(I'm checking the box to share this to Notes so more people can discover you :-)) Jade, I'm so happy to discover you're here, writing about writing! (and running!) At least you send queries. I hardly ever do, except to "safe" editors I already know who'll accept my ideas and give me a green light. My summer project list on a Post-It on my desk includes "clean out files," meaning the disorganized files of journaling and book ideas in nonsensical subfolders—ideas and paragraphs that went nowhere and developed into nothing. I can't bring myself to re-read and organize (or delete) them because I'm afraid my fresh eyes will confirm that the ramblings were pointless or just very mediocre writing. At least you're here, you wrote this post. My 2-year-old Substack "newsletter" (really, a good ol' blog) has given me the structure and an audience I needed. At least I can produce a post every Wednesday, and that adds up to something. Keep at it!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Sarah. I have had the same tendency in the past to only pitch if I knew that it was at least 50% likely that my query would be accepted, in part because it's a lot of work to put together a thoughtful pitch but also because it can be tough to justify the time spent doing so without the guarantee of being paid. That said, I'm working on expanding what (and for whom) I write, so it's helpful to share my experiences on here as a way to stay accountable and do just that.
Your Substack has been an inspiration for me and I've really enjoyed seeing how much it has grown over the last few years!