Discussion: Q1 Volume 40

Posted by: @kent

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They are all rejections, but they are informative rejections. The rest of the world sends a kind, placating letter. We get graded on our progress

This is one of the reasons I keep entering this contest (aside from the forum camaraderie and the brilliant prize for the lucky deserving winners). It gives you a chance to assess your progress as a writer. There's little to be learned from form rejections, other than there is SOMETHING not working. At least with WotF, there is a scale of where you are with a story. AND you get a chance to resubmit it to see if it fares better. (Though, the one time I resubmitted I went from a SHM to a R !)

Posted by: @watt_writes

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My Q2 I changed about 3 days ago because I just don't have the energy to edit the story I wrote a few months ago so I'm doing a snippet of my novel like some loser

I think Patrick Rothfuss did this with an extract from what eventually became The Name of the Wind, and it worked out well for him in WotF (and beyond). You never know, it could work out well for you too.

Posted by: @jvashley

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I think you have to submit a story in Q2 that you love MORE than your Q1 so that you secretly hope your Q1 DOESN'T win so your Q2 can win. And THAT is how you win Q1. 

This makes so much sense it must be true! At least, I hope so, because this is how I am feeling about my Q1 after having submitted my Q2 .

Posted by: @watt_writes

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... I think, for me, getting HMs and a SHM but not higher was exactly what I needed to see, and was so much more motivating than if I got in the finals off the bat. It gave me the little pat on the head I really needed, saying, "You got potential kid, but you still gotta lot to learn." If I came in and won right off the bat, I probably wouldn't have learned as much as I have in the past year about writing. I'd probably be sitting here all huffy like "well why isn't my novel selling?"

Agreed.

Finalist 1: 10/12/2011

OK, I got this. I'm pro level, right?

Nope.

Finalist 2: 1/6/2015

OK, I've done my time in the trenches. This is the one.

Nope.

Took some time off, had some bad personal weather, got serious again in 2020 and really started to learn new writerly things. That or they finally sunk in. Either way I feel leveled up (by 2022) - and am looking forward to the next level up. Because if it's one thing I've learned, (Yeah, Socrates, I know you tried to tell me...) it's how much there is to learn.

And not just technical stuff, which is what I'd always figured, but also about myself, how I operate, motivate and create.

Internal journey - external journey.

Sound familiar? 😉 

Posted by: @tj_knight

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And not just technical stuff, which is what I'd always figured, but also about myself, how I operate, motivate and create.

Internal journey - external journey.

Sound familiar?

Very much so. Well said, Dustin.

& writing helps with the discovery of oneself, too, forces a self-reflection when creating and empathizing with believable characters in troubled situations. 

Y'all are talking about how great it is to keep submitting, and I'm starting to feel bad about not submitting anything for Q2. I'm working on a couple novel length things, and so my workload has been pretty astounding since I want to finish the longer stuff reasonably fast, and I just haven't had time to write a novella for Q2. I know, I know. You don't find time to write a novella, you make time, but I haven't done that either...  

Posted by: @joel-c-scoberg

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I think Patrick Rothfuss did this with an extract from what eventually became The Name of the Wind, and it worked out well for him in WotF (and beyond). You never know, it could work out well for you too.

Yeah that's actually how I learned about this comp! I feel like I remember him acknowledging it in the 10th anniversary addition. I don't want to diminish Rothfuss's accomplishment, but he was already a skilled writer. My motive for being here is to learn and I'm trying to create new things and try new tools and see how they fair. Using a snippet from a novel where I had a whole novel arc to understand my characters and their motives and their back story feels like I'm cheating the process. Maybe I should stop being silly because I did write it after all. Haha. And I was working on this novel during the Q2 window so maybe I should stop fretting.

Posted by: @tj_knight

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Took some time off, had some bad personal weather, got serious again in 2020 and really started to learn new writerly things. That or they finally sunk in. Either way I feel leveled up (by 2022) - and am looking forward to the next level up. Because if it's one thing I've learned, (Yeah, Socrates, I know you tried to tell me...) it's how much there is to learn.

And not just technical stuff, which is what I'd always figured, but also about myself, how I operate, motivate and create.

Internal journey - external journey.

Sound familiar? 😉 

So familiar 🤣. "Personal bad weather." I think I'm going to borrow this term to describe all of 2022 for me haha! Personal hurricane abouts. But as far as the learning journey -- I literally could not have said it better myself!

ALL THE TWITCHING

Posted by: @bbnickell

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Anxiously awaiting any kind of results for Q1. I'm thinking they release the names after the Awards Ceremony of last years awards. Does anyone know if that's the case?

Brenda,

They will - if they don't prior. It's all dependent on the schedules of the folks who do the things.

Kary's probably done slushing.

Jody might be done judging.

Joni might have time to call and get the e-mails ready with results - or she might not. (Prior to the worshop/gala, I mean). We've seen both over the years, so it's NNiNN (no news is no news) for now.

[is that a faint smoke signal?]

[??????]

Posted by: @m-norris

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You don't find time to write a novella, you make time

Send a short story then. That's easier than a novella. You can do it.

Posted by: @physa

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[is that a faint smoke signal?]

[??????]

I'm not sure if there are smoke signals yet.

Posted by: @physa

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[is that a faint smoke signal?]

[??????]

*Sniffs the air, thinking*

Ugh! Sorry gang. That's me. Left the cookies in the oven too long!

Posted by: @morgan-broadhead

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Posted by: @physa

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[is that a faint smoke signal?]

[??????]

 

*Sniffs the air, thinking*

Ugh! Sorry gang. That's me. Left the cookies in the oven too long!

 

[Helps with a new batch of cookies.]

[Notices that today is an actual Thursday]

[Turns up volume on ringer. Just in case.]

[oops... sorry about that burned batch of cookies]

[helps to air out the tent]

[nerves are shot from anticipation]

[helps myself to a cookie from new batch]

[sits down to make myself concentrate]

[Q2 is in, but I do need to write a story to meet my March writing goal]

[I'm not twitching, you're twitching]

[ ]

[Twitch]

Sitting down to edit a story for the nth time to meet my Mike Resnick submission goal. 

[Double Twitch]

Playing music on my phone so I'll hear it if when it rings.

Note: I've found typing with my fingers crossed uncomfortable. Not impossible, but it does up the difficulty.

[I never get phones calls, but my cellphone rang.]

[I ran to get the phone expecting it to be car insurance guy.]

[But it was better than that. It was my daughter who actually wanted to talk to mom.]

[Twitching ceased while we talked]

Posted by: @m-norris

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Y'all are talking about how great it is to keep submitting, and I'm starting to feel bad about not submitting anything for Q2. I'm working on a couple novel length things, and so my workload has been pretty astounding since I want to finish the longer stuff reasonably fast, and I just haven't had time to write a novella for Q2. I know, I know. You don't find time to write a novella, you make time, but I haven't done that either...  

Sometimes, I reach a quarter deadline without anything I had planned being ready. If that happens, I do one of:

1. Resubmit something I entered before, after giving it a fresh read through and revision--ideally editing it down, but maybe even just resubmitting with cursory edits, or

2. Pick a story I already wrote that I like, but never submitted here, and submit that, or

3. Expand out some flash fiction to expand emotional and worldbuilding details, then go with that.

But I try not to submit nothing if I can avoid it. The best you can get for any submission is a win, and the worst is nothing worse than if you didn't enter at all, so I figure it's always worth a roll of the dice, even in something you don't expect to do well. (I did this with my Finalist, which I thought for certain would pick up an R. You just never know what might happen.)

Posted by: @doctorjest

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But I try not to submit nothing if I can avoid it.

Absolutely, Jest.
I've never had to re-submit a story yet, but if I didn't have anything ready I would certainly be going with one of the three options you mentioned. All good. Nothing to lose and much to win. Might as well get something in there.

I'm mostly posting because I finally spent the time to go through and figure out how many times I'd submitted and what I'd gotten and add that to my signature. I remember when I first came to this forum years ago and I would see people with this impressive list of submissions in their signature adn I was like :gulp: Now? I've got 19 of my own.
Also, I have resubmitted stories twice out of those 19. Both were major rewrites. One went from SHM to F. The other went from R to SHM.

lol, all that effort to move my 19-submission history into my signature... and it doesn't show up. 😀

Posted by: @nate

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I remember when I first came to this forum years ago and I would see people with this impressive list of submissions in their signature

Haha totally agree. I'm new here, and it can be a little for guys like us. It's a good thing I'm just such a naturally gifted writer, and I'll win after submitting twice. (or three times? Depends if you count my DQ.)

In all seriousness though, I'm still glad to be here. Makes me feel like I have writer friends. 

Now I'm just watching for the fabled "cryptic post" that signifies results are on the way. But I'm also terrified of that moment, because as long as I don't have the results I can still pretend my entry was perfect. Not looking forward to my wake-up call, in the form of a rejection.  

I'm getting twitchy anticipating the twitches. 

Posted by: @nate

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Now? I've got 19 of my own.
Also, I have resubmitted stories twice out of those 19. Both were major rewrites. One went from SHM to F. The other went from R to SHM.

Awesome work.  Good to know about the resubmits with edits.

Posted by: @m-norris

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I'm still glad to be here. Makes me feel like I have writer friends. 

Now I'm just watching for the fabled "cryptic post" that signifies results are on the way. But I'm also terrified of that moment, because as long as I don't have the results I can still pretend my entry was perfect. Not looking forward to my wake-up call, in the form of a rejection.  

Glad you're using the forum. I've met a lot of good people in the forum. They've helped improve my writing so much over the last year. Please, I feel more like writing because there are others writing too.

Rejections are part of the experience. We all have are share of them.

Hang in there and keep on writing. 

@m-norris 

Don't feel bad about not submitting for Q2. If your stil writing, then that's exactly where you should be. Keep up the great work!

Posted by: @henckel

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@m-norris 

Don't feel bad about not submitting for Q2. If you're still writing, then that's exactly where you should be. Keep up the great work!

Thanks for saying that, I'm really invested in the project I'm currently working on, and I honestly think it's the best use of my time right now. Writers of the Future is great, but it's also not the only path to success. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed for my Q1 story, and considering a Q3 story. 

As a side note, Happy Birthday! 

I had a dream last night that I was a finalist for Q1 of illustrators except Joni showed up at my door instead of calling. Then I was all stressed about whether I should invite her in because my house is a mess 😂 LMAO 

@clfors

Posted by: @clfors

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I had a dream last night that I was a finalist for Q1 of illustrators except Joni showed up at my door instead of calling. Then I was all stressed about whether I should invite her in because my house is a mess 😂 LMAO 

Hahaha that's hilarious. 

Can I just say how much I love these forums? The internet is so toxic right now, and we're just so chill, talking about dreams and messy houses. You guys make me so happy.