scary time (for writers)

Welp it's scary time for this writer, aka marketing and promotion time.

My happy place is several hours of creative writing, maybe some light editing, finding a through point in a story or solving a problem with a plot. 

I can tolerate the submissions side of things, reading through calls for submissions, preparing the document properly -- some journals read blind, so names come off of documents. Some have word limits, or themes, or extremely limited windows to send stuff in. And don't get me started on fees. I could buy a used car with all of the submission and contest and entry fees I've paid over the years. 

My absolute least favorite though is pitching to an agent. In the early days you went to writing conferences and signed up for a 10 minute slot to pitch in person (and get rejected in person). I was never successful. Now pitching mostly happens online, which is less terrifying, but you still have to write a synopsis and proposal and sometimes a chapter-by-chapter outline and also a cover letter. There are formatting rules here too, sometimes they want the first 5 pages of the manuscript, or the first 10, or the first 10000 words. 

It will be worth it, I think, but as with most creative pursuits, it's not all wild-eyed genius at work. It's head-down weeding through opportunities and persistently trying and trying again. My most recent story was accepted by 3 venues (lesson to self to withdraw promptly) and also rejected by about 10. 

As my writerly uncle used to say, it's at some level a numbers game.