How to travel as a writer.

Someone on Facebook asked for information about maximizing time when on a research trip for a novel. What ho!

  1. Set a time every day to FaceTime or Skype with your children.
  2. Have something else going on. For example, I practice Tai Chi. I knew that there would be a lot of parks where the Chinese community practiced in the early mornings. I made a point to be in the neighborhood park by 6am. I met so many caring locals. They told me great places to eat and insider tips about the city that your characters need to know. One also helped me figure out which neighborhood in Bangkok my main character would live in.
  3. Spend more time on your book than seeing the sights. Limit sight seeing to elements that appear in the book.
  4. Write or edit on the plane. You write; food arrives. Tea arrives. Life doesn’t get better–until your kids arrive!
  5. Use your computer rather than a notebook. On days I used my notebook, I was too exhausted to transfer my notes. Still haven’t.
  6. Go to a library. My novel is set in the mid-90s. In the 90s, no newspaper in Cambodia published on-line. I went to the library at the Hun Sen University and read bound, back issues of newspapers.

––Bon Voyage!

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100 Submissions as of September, 2019

tally marksSubmissions:         100

Acceptances:          2
Rejections:             69

Good Rejections:    26

Publications            1

Although I am 32 REJECTIONS shy of my goal of 100 for the year, I have somehow SUBMITTED 100 short pieces. As those pieces are reviewed, I expect to hit my goal of 100 rejections. 😀

As of this moment, I have 52 submissions out–short pieces, that is. I submitted  my novel, As Far as You Can Go Before You Have to Come Back, to seven different agents. I received a single form rejections. One. The rest: crickets. Even from the agents I knew or had a personal connection to; and those who had asked to review the complete novel as well. Chirp chirp.

Taking a critical look at my submission pages (usually, the first 30-50), I realized that in revising, I had opened the book at a chapter that was, mmmm, well, dull as a opener.

I am re-working on the  opening. And the rest of the book. I found a new editor, to give it a fresh eye. Do eyes other than my own refresh a manuscript! I expect to be approaching agents by mid- to late month.

Are we not David Sedaris?

I read a great question on Facebook, and decided to pontificate:

Have any of you solicited agents based on an essay (or essays) that you’ve published and feel would make a compelling book?


  • The Fabulous Ms. Sandra Sing Lo, also essay collection-worthy

Yes. I learned:

  • essays are “harder to sell” than poetry, unless you have a massive platform such as David Sederis or Sandra Tsing Lo. 
  • You have to put together a proposal that is a cross between a nonfiction proposal and a novel proposal- – which are similar themselves, but there are differences. 
  • For example, in your query letter, the theme of the essay is more important stress (marketing! marketing!) than is the case when pitching the novel. 
  • Similar is that that the power of the writing the reason agents would chose and essayer novel, especially for a first-timer. 
  • It is best to have new essays, as well as previously published; again, unless you are “Joad Didion: Collected Essays.”
  • Small presses might take a more serious look that than what you might get from an agent/big house route.

Sorry to be so real-world disheartening. In no way should a writer cease pursuing her dream. Sometimes, something gives.

Internal Feedback Information: Literary Magazine Edition.

On July 30, 2019, David K. Slay published an incisive, revealing article, CRITICAL FEEDBACK AREAS FOUND WHILE REVIEWING SUBMISSIONS. It is an original analysis of submission to Craft Magazine.

Hear are just the first gems:

STRUCTURE (54 percent)

  • Narration
    • Unclear, inconsistent, lacking form (arc, pyramid, or otherwise); or structure too apparent, too visible; internal inconsistencies, illogical
  • Pace
    • Narration moves too slowly, too quickly, or is irregular
  • Beginning / Ending
    • Starts too soon; ending weak, contrived, or telegraphed
  • Orientation
    • Confusing time or tenses; reader not grounded in time and place
  • Point of View (POV)
    • POV choice doesn’t facilitate the narration

IMPACT (39 percent)

  • First line, paragraph, or page confusing or missed opportunity (see discussion below); story unengaging, unremarkable, little at stake, lacks tension; or impact is “unearned,” using “surprise” endings, melodrama, gratuitous violence, sex, profanity, etc.

CREATIVITY (37 percent)

  • Too familiar theme, plot, or story; uninspired figurative language; overreliance on adverbs or adjectives, clichés, or stereotypes

LANGUAGE / PROSE (35 percent)

  • Irregular or unnecessarily complicated syntax; limited vocabulary; distracting rhythm, comma misuse; run-on sentences; excessive amount of grammar or spelling errors

EXPOSITION (16 percent)

  • Too explanatory, telling more than showing, or too cryptic—suggesting rather than showing; sacrifices clarity for style; imbalance of scene/dialogue and exposition

VOICE (15 percent)

  • Distracts from the narration, is affected, inauthentic; doesn’t fit the character(s) or narrator; or indistinct from that of other characters

ECONOMY (14 percent)

  • Overly long, needs to be pruned; repetitive or superfluous words; lacks clarity and concision

You can read the entire piece at:

https://www.craftliterary.com/2019/07/30/read-submissions-david-k-slay/

At long last, a PARENTING post.

Despite the fact that About Childhood’s tag-line is “For writers, parents, and former children,” I have not posted about “parents and former children” in forever. My children are now teens and I feel their stories belong to them. I hesitate to co-opt. ADMIRABLE OF ME, I know.

The good news is that today I read a wonderful article in The Washington Post by Lauren Tanabe. Please hop to it.

“I was pregnant and depressed. Why wouldn’t anyone take me seriously?“

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