Still Writing (Almost) Every Day

Yes, I'm still writing (mostly) every day. But, for the moment at least, this is the final blog post for the Write Every Day blog.

This blog, an adjunct to my main blog, was launched earlier this year to be a supplement to my book "Write Every Day: Hints and Tips Towards a Daily Writing Routine." I've enjoyed talking to the people who have read that book. Hearing that what I've presented has helped inspire other people to have a regular writing routine is very gratifying.

My original idea of producing new content on this blog every day was ultimately too ambitious; even with some rather simple things like writing prompts two days per week I found myself struggling to keep up. Cutting back to one post per week helped on that front, but as I've mentioned in posts on my main blog, I'm looking to decrease the amount of time I spent on blogging in general in 2013. Part of that decrease involves no longer producing new content for the Write Every Day blog.

The existing posts will remain here and I may decide to add something new to this site from time to time. And while I haven't released official plans for a new schedule for my main blog, I can tell you that I absolutely will be continuing to blog there regularly. If you're not already following me there, I would invite you to do so. I'll continue to talk there about topics relating to writing, including the psychology of writing, and about my own goals and news about fiction I have published.

I'd like to thank everyone who has purchased Write Every Day. If you've come to this site after purchasing this book and would like to reach out to me, please feel free to leave a comment here or contact me using my contact form.

Best of luck to you all in your writing endeavors!

-Michael Haynes

Link(s) of the Month: Submissions Without Duotrope

Well, last month's "Link of the Month" post went well...

I've still got mixed feelings about the Duotrope situation. I can see ways in which their site can be useful and provide enough value to be worth $5 per month. But I've gotten such a negative sense from how the folks behind Duotrope have handled the transition that I'm really disinclined to be a part of funding the site going forward.

So I've been working in recent days on doing my submissions without using Duotrope. For the most part, it's been going fine. With that in mind, here are some links that other folks might want to keep in mind if they aren't going to use Duotrope.

Ralan.com - If you're writing speculative fiction (SF, fantasy, horror) then you should be able to get nearly as much market information by going to Ralan as you could get at Duotrope.

Dark Markets - For horror-specific information, this site looks to be very useful.

Google Drive - If you're going to be tracking your own submission information manually, you'll most likely want some form of spreadsheet. You could certainly use Excel or another PC-based program, but if you don't already own software like that, Google Drive is a free alternative. (If you do use a PC-based program and want an easy way to have access to it on multiple computers, Dropbox is a good alternative.)

Sarah Hans' Blog - One of the things I liked on Duotrope was its calendar of upcoming submission calls. A decent percentage of the information from my Upcoming Deadlines posts was drawn from that calendar. Sarah puts up monthly posts with quite a few submission calls.

Hopefully, if you decide to go Duotrope-free, some of those links will help out. If you have other links you'd like to recommend, please feel free to note them in the comments!

Upcoming Deadlines: Black Apples, Sword and Mythos, Spellbound

One of the tools I've used sometimes to help myself get started on writing is writing towards prompts or themes for upcoming publications, either anthologies or themed issues of periodicals. Below you will find information about three such calls for submissions.

First up is an anthology from Belladonna Publishing. "Black Apples" is looking for "gothic fairytales starring the classic fairytale princess – but her ending is maybe not so happy, her quest is perhaps more grim and the darkness of the tale might just come from within." This anthology is not restricted to classic princess characters nor is there a restriction that the stories can't be set in the future as long as the core fairytale princess element is present. This submission call runs through January 15th, 2013. They pay a flat rate of $120 for stories of 3,000-10,000 words.

The people who run Innsmouth Free Press are working on an anthology called "Sword and Mythos." The theme here is a combination of Cthulhu Mythos and Sword-and-Sorcery elements. Submissions for this project are open from January 15th-February 15th, 2013. Do NOT send stories before January 15th as they will not be considered. The pay rate is 5 cents per words for stories of up to 5,000 words.

Finally, the Summer 2013 issue of Spellbound, a fantasy magazine aimed at 8-12 year old readers, will focus on the theme of "Dragons." The reading period for this theme runs from January 1st-March 31st, 2013. Payment is 2.5 cent per word for stories of up to 2,500 words.

As always, please make sure to read the linked guidelines pages closely to ensure that you understand details of the submission guidelines, terms, payment information, etc.

Happy writing!

No Interview Today & More On Duotrope

I don't have an interview or guest post lined up for today, so I'll be skipping that for this month unless someone is anxious to be interviewed yet in December. If so, feel free to contact me.

The other thing I wanted to touch on today was another follow-up on Duotrope.

After having promoted the site late last month and then written a follow-up post on it last weekend, I felt that I should continue to keep folks aware of my thoughts on the topic as they develop.

Having watched things play out over the past few days, particularly the tone of communications sent to Duotrope users, I've come to the conclusion that I am going to try working without Duotrope. $50-60 a year isn't a huge amount for me to spend in the abstract, but it's more than I spend on any other writing service. I'd contributed (at above the recommended amount) multiple times in the past but the new price is more than I spend on any other writing service and if I'm going to increase my outlay to that extent there are other ways I'd prefer to direct that money.

I've already transitioned back to using a spreadsheet for my submission tracking. By using Dropbox I'll have access to this spreadsheet virtually as readily as I had access to Duotrope. If I find down the road that I feel like I'm truly missing something, I'll check back in to Duotrope and see if I want to subscribe at that time.

Duotrope Is Going To a Paid Subscription Model

EDITED to add a link to my December 5, 2012 blog post about my decision to leave Duotrope.

Just about ten days ago I promoted Duotrope as my "Link of the Month."

Today they announced that they are going to a paid-subscription model. This has been the topic of quite a few discussions today in various places online. Since I had so recently called them out as being a site worth exploring, I felt it appropriate to put in my two cents on the changes.

From reading their statement on the changes, it sounds like the site will be pretty much of very little use for non-subscribers after the 1st of January. Pretty much everything I listed as being a worthwhile feature of the site will require payment starting 1/1/2013. The payment is $5 month and they offer a $10 discount when paying for the whole year, making the yearly rate $50.

That's a non-trivial amount of money, relative to my writing income. And while I've donated to Duotrope in the past, it had not been at anything even close to that level.

To be honest, when I first heard the rate and it was quoted as $50 per year, my first reaction was "No way!" At $5 a month, I suspect I'll hang around for at least a few months to see how things go and give myself time for a graceful exit strategy from the site if I decide it's not worth the new expense. Yes, if I end up sticking around throughout the whole year I'll end up paying $60 for 2013 instead of $50. But I'll have the freedom to stop whenever I find the site no longer worthwhile for me and I won't have to pony up all the cash at once.

The ultimate question will be: Is Duotrope worth $4-5 a month to me? Financially  probably not. Ultimately, there are very few paying markets which I've recently heard about only via Duotrope. For the most part, news of new markets spreads rather quickly. I do, however, like the ability to access the response time information which they compile. But there's the rub -- if too many people drop Duotrope altogether, the number of responses coming in will drop, thereby degrading the value of that data. That's where being able to go month-to-month will help; I can specifically watch and see how much impact the change has on the utility of those stats.

For me, at the moment, it will be worth paying the $5 per month because I've been lazy about maintaining a separate spreadsheet of submissions. That's totally my fault and I specifically suggested that people NOT be wholly dependent on Duotrope in that way in Write Every Day. This is a time I wish I'd heeded my own advice since I figure it will take me a couple of hours to get everything back up to date. Every month I pay Duotrope $5 I put off that task. Of course, every month I pay Duotrope $5 and don't work on that task I only make it more onerous. The smart thing to do, assuming I decide I want to disconnect from Duotrope at some point in the future, is to start slowly updating my old personal spreadsheet a bit at a time until I get to the point where I could make the switch whenever I felt Duotrope was no longer worth it to me. That will also protect me if this switch to a paid model is an utter failure and the site goes dark sometime down the road.

What would I suggest to someone who had not used Duotrope yet? If you can, take it for a "test drive" in December and see if you find it worth $5 a month. Make a point to NOT make yourself, in any way, dependent on their service during that month. If you don't think it's worth it, then you can let it go at the end of the month. If you do find it worthwhile, then you can decide if you want to go monthly or annual.

Three Things I Learned From Attending Philcon

Philcon was, in many ways, my first "real" science fiction convention as a writer. (I wrote up a brief trip report on my main blog.) I attended Context earlier this year and had a very good time but was only there for one day and wasn't a participant on any panels, so it was a different type of experience from Philcon. Being in the Philadelphia area for all three days of Philcon, staying in the convention hotel, and being on my first panel all made for a very different type of experience. Here are three things which I took from that trip:

Link of the Month: Duotrope

EDITED to add a link to my December 1, 2012 post on Duotrope's move to a paid subscription model.
EDITED a second time to add a link to my December 5, 2012 post on deciding to leave Duotrope.

Duotrope is likely best known for its extensive database of markets for short fiction and poetry. While that's certainly the core feature of the site, there are a number of ways which writers can use the site to their benefit.

• The Theme Calendar is one of the major sources which I use for generating the monthly Upcoming Deadlines posts. Currently there are over 200 listings in the calendar, primarily for short fiction submission calls.
• The Interview page has a collection of over 500 interviews with editors of various periodicals. For publications you are not familiar with, this can be an additional way of learning about the preferences of the people who will be reviewing your submission.
• The Market News and Updates page is a very quick way to see what entries have been added to the market database in the past week.
• Finally, the Submission Tracker allows you to easily stay on top of your current and historical submissions. If you've got a lot of stories or poems out at market, this can be extremely useful.

If you haven't already used Duotrope, it's definitely worth your time to check it out. Are there any features of Duotrope which aren't mentioned above which you have found useful? If so, please mention them in the comments.

Interview with Alexis A. Hunter

Alexis A. Hunter is a writer from West Virginia whose short fiction has appeared in Post Mortem Press's The Ghost IS the Machine, Insatiable Magazine, Interstellar Fiction, Kazka Press, and many other publications. I had the pleasure of meeting her briefly at Context earlier this year and am glad that she was interested in doing this interview. I'm also glad that she was patient as I worked to pull this post together in my post-Philcon rushing around.

Alexis A. Hunter

1) Can you describe what your usual writing routine is like?

Usually I start with at least an idea – sometimes that idea is taken from a first-line or photo prompt, a specific submissions call or contest. I like to listen to music as I write, just to tune out everything else, so I've got a set "writing" playlist on Youtube. Headphones are a must as well. I don't usually do a lot of plotting ahead of time unless it's a larger project. I like to just take the idea and run with it, allowing the pieces to come together as they flow from my brain and out of my fingers.

2) Do you find trying to write every day to be a comfortable routine or do you prefer working differently?

Writing every day is a fascinating and extremely helpful challenge in terms of strengthening my writing. However, I have trouble keeping up all year round, so I usually resort to a story a week. Sometimes I write more frequently – for instance I hammered out 5 stories over two weeks not too long ago and felt pretty great after that.

I love working on prompt-based or challenge-based writing, so I often scour submissions calls and contests in search of inspiration. Sometimes I just work better having that focused goal and the limitations that come with it.

3) You did "Story-A-Day May" earlier this year, a feat which I'm truly in awe of. Can you talk about what that experience was like? The good and the bad?

Story-A-Day May is one of the most thrilling challenges I've ever participated in – and much more beneficial to me, a short story writer, than NaNoWriMo. I've participated for the past two years, sitting down every day in May and writing a story. Sometimes that meant taking a notebook to work and scribbling down stories on my fifteen minute and lunch breaks.

The good part is, it really gets your brain in the habit of taking little ideas, words and images and blowing them into something larger, a story you might not have thought of afterward. I usually sit down each night as the prompt is revealed and think out my story ahead of time. I honestly rarely had trouble during the challenge coming up with some idea to write.

The bad part is it can wear you out. By the end of May, I usually begin to feel the toll. Which means, in June, I don't normally write a lot. I'm usually so busy editing the pieces I wrote and taking a break that I just can't manage it. I actually still have pieces from May I haven't touched. It really builds up your story catalogue!

4) Are there some authors that you feel have been especially influential in your development as a writer?

I'm a bit ashamed to admit that I don’t read a lot of big name authors. The one author who I know has had a major impact on my writing is Matthew Stover. I've only read one book of his – don't laugh, it's "Revenge of the Sith", the Star Wars novel. He used a lot of sentence fragments to great effect in the book, and I remember reading it and just instantly being rocked by how awesome the fragments punctuated certain lines, emotions and moments. I went overboard for a while with the fragments in my own writing, but I've learned to scale back and only use them when most effective.

5) You attended Context here in Columbus earlier this year. What were you favorite parts of that experience? Do you think you're likely to attend future conventions as time and such allow?

I had quite a few favorite parts of Context. I loved getting to hang out with other writers, especially the ones I'd come to know online quite well. The workshops were amazing, especially Timon Esaias' Self Editing and Rewriting workshop. I learned so much and took so many notes, it'll probably take me eons to soak all that information up. I also really enjoyed the flash fiction contest hosted Friday night of the convention – I made myself participate and really found it a rewarding and fun experience. And yes – I'd definitely love to go back if time and such allow.

6) What comes to you most easily in writing?

I'd have to say either dialogue or communicating backstory through subtle hints and references.

Dialogue has always sort of flowed for me without much work. Maybe that's because I was super shy growing up and did a lot of listening, not just to kids my age, but really mostly to adults.

And the backstory thing – I'm not a huge fan of exposition. I don't like reading stories where I'm told something, I like that little thrill I get when I put together the puzzle pieces about a character's past. Or realize a character is pregnant just by the subtle way that character touches their stomach. I enjoy that thrill, so I like to try to offer that for my readers as well.

7) What do you find most difficult about writing?

My plots tend to wobble a bit, mostly because I don't plan out a lot before writing. Sometimes the endings feel a bit unresolved for the same reason.

I also have a hard time doing major edits or rewrites. If I don't nail it the first time around, the story is somewhat doomed. I'm great with cutting parts out of my writing – just not so great at adding stuff in afterward or rearranging it.

8) Is there anything else you'd like to tell my readers about?

Two things.

One, if you get a chance, try out Story-a-Day May. That challenge has done wonders for my writing. I used to face bouts of extreme writer's block, sometimes stretching for weeks or months. After participating in SaDM, I rarely run into such problems. I think it's about getting your mind in the habit of constantly imagining, constantly spawning ideas from the little things.

Two, check out Scribophile.com. I've been a member of the site for about a year to a year and a half now. In that time, my writing has improved leaps and bounds. I know I would not be anywhere near where I am today if I hadn't joined Scrib. I've developed many great friendships and critiquing relationships with writers on that site from all nationalities and walks of life. That sort of varied feedback, from newbies to pros, really helps me hone my skills.

Upcoming Deadlines: Gaia's Misfits, Night Terrors, Arc

One of the tools I've used sometimes to help myself get started on writing is writing towards prompts or themes for upcoming publications, either anthologies or themed issues of periodicals. Since these markets tend to be open for only short periods of time, they're also good to keep track of for submissions of stories which you have already written which might fit more general themes. Below you will find information about three currently-open calls for submissions.

The one with the tightest timeline is Gaia's Misfits, an anthology of Young Adult Fantasy aimed at readers 11 and up. Submissions are due for this anthology by December 1st, 2012. They're looking for stories of 1,500-10,000 words and the payment is a flat rate of $15. There is some room left open in the guidelines for possible use of previously-published stories and the guidelines suggest that no exclusivity period would be required by the publisher.

Another submission call with an even broader theme is for Night Terrors III from Blood Bound Books. They are looking for previously-unpublished horror stories of 750-5,000 words and the pay rate is 5 cents per word. Submissions are open through January 1st, 2013.

Finally, Arc (a publication of the New Scientist) is currently running a contest for science fiction stories on the theme of "Is the Future Friendly?" The submission call is open through January 13, 2013. (The website says "before January 14, 2012." I presume the year to be a typo and since they say "before" I would be inclined to not push my submission to the last moment and get it in by the 13th.) They want stories between 3,000 and 5,000 words and will be paying £500 for one winning story and £200 for five runners-up.

I hope that one or more of these submission calls strikes you as being interesting. Best of luck with your writing and submitting!

This Week's Interview Delayed

Due to a variety of circumstances including a lack of wifi on my train, this week's interview is delayed. I'll post it before TOO long.

---

UPDATED November 14th:So... Philcon and related travel definitely did a number on my scheduling. I'm going to get this week's Upcoming Deadlines post up late tonight or sometime tomorrow (Thursday 11/15) and I'm aiming to get last week's interview posted on Monday 11/19. I figure I should have everything back in gear just in time for next week's Thanksgiving holiday to knock me off-schedule again!  ;-)

The Moments That Make The Work of Writing Worthwhile

Some days writing feels relatively easy; other days, not so much. For me, developing a daily writing routine has helped me push through the not-so-easy days because making the time to work on writing every day has simply become part of daily life for me, part of my routine. But, whether it's a day when the writing feels like a breeze or a day when it feels like I'm pulling every word out of my brain Syllable. By. Syllable. there's one thing that's true. It is work and it does take up part of the 24 hours that I have for that day.

But there are rewards. Oh, yes, there are! Here are some of the moments that make all of the work I have put into writing feel worthwhile to me.

1. Finding the right word for a sentence or the right approach for a story. Mark Twain famously said "The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—'tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning." Finding those right words can be a tremendous feeling when you just know that you've hit on the way to describe something that lives only in your mind in a way that other people will find affecting.
2. Selling a story. Maybe some day I'll be so jaded that each new story sale is "Well lookee there. Ho hum." I'm nowhere close to that. Getting news of a story sale is still very exciting to me as each one both represents someone saying "I value this enough to pay money for it." and an opportunity for my story to be available for others to read.
3. Seeing someone enjoy something I've written. Granted, I rarely truly "see" this in the sense of watching someone read something I've written. But through various message boards, forums, etc. I can get a sense of the reactions of people to my stories. There's always the chance that the reaction won't be wholly positive but so far I've felt very fortunate in the responses I've received. The outpouring of positive comments on Facebook and Twitter for my recent Daily Science Fiction story "Scraps" was particularly gratifying.
4. Holding a physical copy of a book or a magazine with a story of mine in it. In this age of electronic publications, this has been a somewhat-rare thing for me so far. I have an issue of Nature with "An Unsuitable Job for a Human" in it and my copy of The Alchemy Press Book of Pulp Heroes. Both were a thrill to receive.
5. Being able to help another writer. Whether it's been in a blog post or a critiquing exchange or even just talking something through relating to writing, there have been times where something I've said has seemed to really resonate with another writer. I like this both because it's nice to be able to help someone else along but also because of all the help I have received from other writers. I feel like I'm part of a larger community of writers when this happens.

I'm sure I could come up with other moments that make the effort I put into writing feel worthwhile and, of course, every writer's list may look different. What are some of the things that make writing feel worthwhile to you?

Four Reasons to Give NaNoWriMo a Try

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is one of the most talked-about writing events of the year. Since starting more than a decade ago, it has grown to the point where tens of thousands of participants sign up each year.

Last year, I was one of those participants. This year, I will not be, though I'm not passing it up without a bit of reluctance. However, as I've chosen to focus my writing time on short fiction and trying to write 50,000 words of short fiction in a month is an even more significant task than trying to write 50,000 words of a novel in a month, NaNo is not in the cards for me this year.

However, I had a great time last year and I think it's worth giving it a try if you're intrigued by the idea. Here are four reasons why.

1. It gives you a very specific time period in which you can prove to yourself that you can writing a novel. This was the biggest thing I got from NaNo last year. And, if I never whip my first draft into shape for submission, it will be the main thing I got from it. But it was a significant thing for me to learn. I've always been a short story writer but I no longer think to myself "I don't know how to write a novel." I do know how to write one. (Well, the first draft of one at least. Maybe sometime soon I'll learn how to edit a novel!) And, if you don't "win" NaNo by getting through those 50,000 words in November, that doesn't mean that you've proven you can't write a novel; it just means that you didn't do it that time under those circumstances. Frame it that way for yourself and it's a no-lose proposition.
2. The community opportunities are fun. Admittedly, this may not be as relevant if you live somewhere very remote, but the fondest memories I have of last year's NaNo are of the vacation days I took (one a week) when I went to a local write-in and spent three to five hours working on my novel project. There were a handful of us who were regulars and meeting and bonding with them was both a huge encouragement for my work and a lot of fun. In fact, one of the people I met later offered to critique a short story for me and her input was valuable to that story's development. Getting to know people can be both fun and valuable. And, even if you do live somewhere remote, there are plenty of on-line opportunities for socializing and cheering each other on during NaNoWriMo, both on the official site and on other sites like Twitter.
3. It could be a part of building a daily writing routine. One way to approach NaNoWriMo is to plan to write a certain number of words every day. You could aim for the 1667 words per day required to hit 50,000 by the end of the month. Or you could set a floor of, say, 1000 words and plan to exceed it significantly some days. You can also do NaNoWriMo without working on your novel project every day; as I recall, I skipped one or two days to work on other projects during 2011's NaNo. But it's a high-energy, high-support time to try to get through the beginning portion of developing a daily writing routine.
4. You'll most likely learn something about yourself as a writer. As the post I linked to in point #1 above indicated, I learned that I can write a novel. You might learn something different, but an experience this focused is likely to help you learn something about yourself, especially if you're relatively new to writing.

What reasons do you have for trying -- or NOT trying -- NaNoWriMo?

Link of the Month: Write 1/Sub 1

Among the things which I credit as having helped me to develop a stable writing routine, the online "Write 1/Sub 1" community is high up on the list.

"Write 1/Sub 1" is based on a philosophy attributed to Ray Bradbury of writing and submitting a short story every week. Several years ago, some writers developed a shared blog to experiment with carrying through that philosophy though with the option to have a monthly, rather than weekly, commitment. It's also a routine which could be used by those writing poetry rather than solely short fiction.

I first came to interact with W1S1ers through the forum devoted to the topic on Absolute Write's Water Cooler. (Two links for the price of one this week!) They're a friendly and supportive group of people and include a number of writers who are at a similar stage of their writing career as me. In fact, since W1S1 writers tend to have a fair amount of story "inventory" I've ended up sharing Tables of Contents with many of these writers whom I've grown to become friends with.

Deciding to follow the W1S1 spirit, particularly if you're up for the weekly routine, encourages you to write regularly and to get your stories out on submission. This doesn't mean you should shirk going through multiple drafts if a story requires that and no one's going to kick you out of the club if you miss a week (or a month) or ten. But like many of the other things we've discussed on this blog and that I talk about in "Write Every Day", W1S1 can be a part of your support structure for your writing career.

If you're working at developing a routine of writing short fiction or poetry and especially if you're having some difficulty getting over the initial hurdles of submission and publication, I would definitely encourage you to join in the discussion at the blog, the forum, or both places. I think you'll find it well worth your time.

Upcoming Deadlines: Legends of the Buckeye State, Oomph, and The Future Embodied

One of the tools I've used sometimes to help myself get started on writing is writing towards prompts or themes for upcoming publications, either anthologies or themed issues of periodicals. Below you will find information about three such calls for submissions.

The first is one related to my own personal stomping grounds. "Legends of the Buckeye State" is looking for atmospheric horror or dark fiction "based on known myths and legends within the state of Ohio." This submission call runs through November 30th, 2012. They pay 5 cents per word for stories of up to 2,500 words.

The people who run Crossed Genres are working on a side anthology called "Oomph: A Little Super Goes a Long Way." Submissions for this project are open through January 15th, 2013. The pay rate is a flat $20 plus print and ebook copies of the anthology for stories of 2,000-8,000 words.

Here's one that's a ways off in the future. "The Future Embodied" is an anthology of stories dealing with "medical and aesthetic body modification."  Submissions are only open during March, 2013. However, that would give you an opportunity to write a story with this market in mind and also try submitting it first to some of the faster pro-rate markets. Payment is 1 cent per word for stories of 2,000-5,500 words plus a contributor copy of the print book and eBook.

As always, please make sure to read the linked guidelines pages closely to ensure that you understand details of the submission guidelines, terms, payment information, etc.

Stop back on the second Wednesday of November for more Upcoming Deadlines!

Wednesday Interview with Kathryn Elizabeth Jones

In the interview below, Kathryn and I discuss her first published mystery novel, her writing routine, and more.

MH) It looks like "Scrambled" is your first published mystery. What interested you about working in that genre?
KEJ) The interest began about 2004 when I was still in college. One of the assignments from the instructor was to write a short story using specific words. After finishing the first few pages I realized that I had a mystery novel. I put the book aside for a few years, graduated from college in 2009 and then took another look at it, finished the book and then gave it to some readers. They liked it. Scrambled was born.

Wednesday List: Four Ways To Get Your Writing Back in Gear

Many writers hit a down spot in their writing routines. For some, it's perceived as full-blown writers' block where they feel like they can't get anything new written. For others, it may be more subtle -- a sense that they are not writing as much or as well as they are capable of doing.

Whichever the case may be, there are a variety of things you can do to try to get your writing routine back in gear when it feels like it's not where it should be. Here are several of the ones which I would personally consider using at a time like that.

1. Change Your Physical Location -- One of the things I've noticed is that when I make a point to actually go somewhere (library, coffee shop, etc.) to write, I typically end up being particularly productive. For me, I think there are several reasons for this, not least of which is the fact that those writing sessions tend to be longer than average. But it's also a psychological indicator to myself that "this time is for writing" and not for anything else.
2. Write Something Different From Your Usual Fare -- I've written a whole blog post about some of the benefits of writing something different than what you usually write. If you're struggling to get words down, particularly if you're feeling that what you're writing isn't "good enough", then you could use this as an opportunity to write something with no expectations of yourself other than getting new words down.
3. Set A Specific Short-Term Goal For Yourself -- Be careful, as this can be a double-edged sword. If you set too ambitious of a goal and don't meet it, you run the risk of reinforcing negative mental narratives. But, if you set a goal which is challenging enough to make you feel as if you've accomplished something significant while also being reasonably attainable, it can give you an opportunity for a short-term "win." Bear in mind that goals are best when they revolve around things entirely within your power. Setting a "goal" of having a story accepted by a specific magazine isn't something you can completely control. That could be an "ambition", certainly. A better goal -- one that's entirely within your control -- would be to plan to write a new story aimed specifically toward that publication and submit it there within the next month.
4. Find Productive Tasks Related To Your Writing Which Aren't "Writing" -- Setting aside for the moment notions specifically of "writing every day," there are plenty of writing-related tasks which need attention. Perhaps you have work which you are circulating to publishers in general but which is not currently out on submission. Then get it back out the door! Maybe you have promised to critique a story by someone else but haven't done that yet. Use some of your writing time to get the critique written up. And so on. These aren't necessarily glamorous things to be doing, but if you get them finished, then you no longer have them sitting out there needing your attention "sometime." And maybe that "sometime" will be a time when you have an especially productive writing day.

Those are four tools I have used and would use again. What do you do to try to help get yourself back into gear when things aren't going as well as you would like?

Link of the Month: NaNoWriMo

It may still be summer here for a little while longer in the Northern Hemisphere, but it's also just over six weeks until the first of November and with that, the beginning of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).

I've got a whole chapter in "Write Every Day" about my experience with NaNoWriMo and how it might fit into developing a Daily Writing Routine. Here is an excerpt:

If you're excited about the idea of trying to write every day but nervous about doing it "on your own" here's an option to at least consider. You could jump into the deep end with tens of thousands of other people in November for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).

[...]

The first thing I would suggest if you're going to try to use NaNoWriMo as a springboard to developing daily writing habits is to put your focus specifically on those habits and not on "winning" NaNoWriMo by getting to 50,000 words. If you've struggled to be consistent with your writing in the past and find that having the support of the community around the activity helps you write each of the 30 days but you "only" end up with 25,000 words, I would say that you'd have an accomplishment there to feel good about. The goal, then, would be to keep that rhythm and energy moving forward into December and beyond.

So, if I'm saying that trying to meet the stated NaNoWriMo objective of 50,000 words needn't be your top priority, why am I mentioning it at all? Simply because there is so much energy and support in the community around the event. The NaNoWriMo website has forums filled with conversations, particularly during the month itself. If you live near a decent-sized city you can also find scheduled "write-ins" where groups of people working on a novel that month will get together for part of a day at a coffee shop, library, etc. and hang around and write together.

If you're a writer who likes to have things planned out to some degree before you starting writing, now would be a good time to consider your approach if you want to participate in NaNoWriMo this year.

As for me, I'm not likely to actively do NaNoWriMo this year. I still need to revise last year's novel if I want to see it published some day and I don't need to be piling up more unfinished work. But I'll probably try to latch on to the energy around the month online and maybe try to go to a write-in or two.

Are you thinking about doing NaNoWriMo this year? If so, are you planning in advance or just intending to hit the ground running 11/1 with only the beginning of an idea?

Upcoming Deadlines: Penumbra, Tin House, and Crab Orchard Review

One of the tools I've used sometimes to help myself get started on writing is writing towards prompts or themes for upcoming publications, either anthologies or themed issues of periodicals. Below you will find information about three such calls for submissions.

Actually, four, since before I get to the other submission calls, I'd like to remind my readers that I am currently guest-editing the Kazka Press flash fiction contest for this month on the theme of "Love Beyond Death". Stories need to be submitted by September 20th and Kazka will be paying a flat rate of $10 for stories of 713-1,000 words.

Penumbra has opened submissions for their January 2013 issue, a tribute to Ray Bradbury. They specifically say that they are not looking for "fan fiction" but rather for stories in a similar style or dealing with similar themes. This submission call runs through November 30th, 2012. They pay 5 cents per word for stories of 500-3,500 words.

Tin House is currently reading for their Spring 2013 issue, with the theme "This Means War."  About the theme, they said: "We’re looking for the grey, the messy, the not-so-easily classified. We’re not just looking for work about armed conflict, but domestic, political, ecological, religious, and moral battles." They are looking for essays or stories of up to 10,000 words or poems (submit up to five). Submissions for this theme are open through October 31st, 2012. Pay rates are not stated in an obvious place on their website, but Duotrope does list them as having professional pay rates for fiction, poetry, and non-fiction.

Finally, Crab Orchard Review is looking for poetry, fiction, or literary nonfiction relating to the portion of the United States (generally speaking) East of the West Coast states and West of the Mississippi. (That's not wholly accurate, so please take a look at the specific regions they are including.) They describe the theme as being "Prairies, Plains, Mountains, Desert." They do not take email submissions; submissions must be postmarked by November 3rd, 2012. Creative non-fiction and fiction should be 25 pages or fewer, novel excerpts are allowable, and up to six poems may be submitted at once. Payment is $25 per printed page in the magazine with a minimum of $50 for poetry and $100 for prose plus two copies of the issue.

As always, please make sure to read the linked guidelines pages closely to ensure that you understand details of the submission guidelines, terms, payment information, etc.

Stop back on the second Wednesday of October for more Upcoming Deadlines!

Updated Blog Schedule

After giving a lot of thought to balancing time for my various writing tasks, I've decided that I'm going to cut back on blogging somewhat. I'll be retaining my usual Monday/Thursday/Sunday schedule on my main writing blog. However, instead of having daily blog posts here on the "Write Every Day" blog, I'm going to switch to a once-a-week schedule. So, starting this week I'll be having a post on this site every Wednesday.

The content will remain roughly the same, just spread out differently. Here will be the overall schedule:

• 1st Wednesday of the Month - Guest Post/Interview
• 2nd Wednesday of the Month - Upcoming Deadlines
• 3rd Wednesday of the Month - Link of the Month
• 4th Wednesday of the Month - Wednesday List post

Questions Which Might Be Frequently Asked:

• Ah, but wait! Some months -- such as, in fact, the very next month, October -- have not just four Wednesdays but five! What then?
• Well, it won't just be a lie-about Wednesday for me. But what it will be is Grab Bag -- whatever I feel like posting about for that day. The one thing it will do is, in some way, relate to writing or reading.
• We've already passed the first Wednesday of September.
• Correct! But that's not a question.
• Oh, sorry... Ahem... What about the first Wednesday of this month? I didn't see a Guest Post or Interview then.
• Indeed. So the first Guest Post/Interview with this new schedule will actually come around on October 3rd. I don't have anyone lined up just yet for that so if you're interested in participating, let me know!

So, apparently there really aren't that many questions which might frequently be asked... But if you have a question I didn't think of, do feel free to ask me in the Comments below.

Thanks for reading!

Writing Prompt: Friday August 31, 2012

(I'm on a blogging hiatus until September 10th. Enjoy the start of September!)

Every Tuesday and Friday, I'll be posting one or more writing prompts as possible starting points for stories or poems. Sometimes when I'm having trouble getting started on a particular day, I'll look for a writing prompt to help get my imagination going. This has helped me keep up my routine of writing every day.

For the prompts on this site, I'll be mixing this up as much as possible and will sometimes utilize quotes, photos, music, and anything else I can think of which might help get your creative inspiration going.

Today's writing prompt is:

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.”
-Winston Churchill

I hope this prompt inspires some of you to write something amazing. If you end up writing a story, poem, or anything else based on this prompt and it gets published somewhere (including your blog or personal website) please stop by and leave a comment so I can see what you came up with.

Come back on Tuesday September 11th for another Writing Prompt.