For those of you unaware of the A-Z blogging challenge, its an awesome blogfest hosted by Arlee Bird's Tossing it Out. The challenge is to blog Monday through Saturday, with posts themed A through Z. I've been trying to blog every single day, including Sundays, and this will provide some organization and motivation as far as that goes. It's not too late to sign up, if you're interested. So, for the letter A.
A is for Application.
Apply yourself. Get your butt in the chair and work. Make goals and work for them every day. Writing is fun and wonderful, but work still needs to be done. Applying yourself will truly make the difference between failure and success.
Apply to contests, magazines, agents editors. Submit your work, even though its scary. Get your poetry and short stories to some literary magazines, and even after rejection, keep it circulating out there. Submit your manuscript to agents and editors. Nobody can read you if you're not out there, and you miss all of the shots you don't take.
Apply your tools correctly. Writers have more responsibility for marketing these days then the ever have, so learn how to successfully use tools like Facebook, Twitter, blogs, even more niche sites like GoodReads, AuthorDen, Authonomy, any of those other writer network sites you can use for your benefit and that of your readers. And you don't have to do this all by yourself, either. Don't be scared to ask for help. If you have a brother who can do beautiful blog design, ask him if he'll help. Network with people, don't be shy. Correct application of all these tools will help you reach the largest number of readers.
Hope this helps! Tomorrow we'll talk about B...
Sarah Allen
Great suggestions. Some tough stuff to do ...
ReplyDeleteGreat thoughts - and thanks for turning me on to this A-Z challenge... wonder how many people will make it to K, let alone X?
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun challenge! Good for you for taking it on, and great writing advice, too!
ReplyDeleteI'm loving the A-Z challenge. It's fun to get those creative juices flowing.
ReplyDeleteAnd I DO have a brother I might enlist to help w my blog design. Thanks for the idea! I'll buy him lunch in exchange. :)
I really enjoy reading your blog, Sarah. This is a very useful post.
ReplyDeleteYou make a great point to apply to contests, magazines, agents, etcetera. Personally, I am in graduate school for science writing, so I want to concentrate on the writing not the publishing. I was annoyed last semester that my classmates spent so much time wanting to talk about how to get published!
I think I've started to come around. It's not so much that I think my writing is ready to be published (I don't! Not at all!) but it's great to dip your foot in the pool so the first time you want to submit a manuscript isn't your first time talking to an agent or writing a pitch.
I really should try the whole magazine and contest thing. (=
ReplyDeleteHi-Hi! I just started following you (last week maybe?) and am excited to see that you're doing the A-Z blogging challenge, too. Of course I'm calling it APRIL MADNESS (since who but the crazies do this? Um, like me!).
ReplyDeleteYour "A" is awesome. Yep. It's all about the application. Getting it done. Because those are the only people who succeed--those who apply themselves.
Looking forward to the rest of your alphabet!
I'm still finding my way as a blogger, but thak you so much for your visit - I'm following you now to see how it's done! Seriously, this is all both fascinating and daunting. My dilemma is how to fit it all in with the writing of other marketing material as well as a new novel...
ReplyDeleteExcellent post. That was a great choice for the first, A, one. I need to work a little on the application portion of writing.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to apply myself. I applied to several workshops for this summer, and I'm hoping that I get into one yet. But I know that I do need to keep applying myself more.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your A thought!
well-done!
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for following. I am returning the favor.
ReplyDeleteMorela
Hooray for applying yourself! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments everyone! Hopefully you find this helpful for ya.
ReplyDeleteSarah
Goal setting is must, but giving 'self' permission to fail is important, too. I'm a goal setter at heart; always have been. But when I started writing seriously about three years ago, I quickly discovered rejection. Which in my mind equaled failure and nixed my writing mojjo. Hah... Apply oneself, fall of the horse, give permission to get back on the horse, and eventually win!
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting Writers' Ally. I'm a follower now.
That would be 'off the horse...'
ReplyDeleteGreat advice that we should all heed.
ReplyDeleteContrary to my usual practice of subscribing to comments, to save time during challenge I will not be doing so during April. If you want to respond to my comment , please email me directly from your email notification for the comment.
Thanks.
Lee
Tossing It Out
Twitter hashtag: #atozchallenge
Thanks for posting AuthorDen and Authonomy. This self-promotion thing is all new to me, and I appreciate the tips!
ReplyDelete