Over the past year, I’ve had three of my short stories accepted for publishing on sizable literary platforms. It was something I never imagined; giving me much-needed encouragement to press forward with my work.
I’ve been publicly writing for a little over 10 years now. Fortunately, it’s been a journey full of meeting beautiful people who believe in me and my work, while giving me the opportunity to learn from their experiences. When it was first suggested by my literary mom that I should get serious about pitching my work for publication, it was an immediate “no” in my mind. But I continued to listen, because she believed in my work, and I realized that had to count for something. I had to act on it.
Like plenty of writers, my writing in the beginning wasn’t for everyone to read, let alone be read by thousands of strangers. As a kid, a did a lot of journaling and creative writing on the floor of my bedroom. Those moments became a place of escape and safe space for me; whether I had an awesome day at school or wanted to be sheltered from the dark and crazy world, writing always cradled me in a way that assured me that everything was going to be okay. Once I became an adult, not much changed, I continued to journal and dump all frustrations, hopes and prayers into my sacred notebooks.
When it came to getting my first article published, it was birthed from a place of personal experience. I was journaling my way out of an unhealthy relationship and wanted to raise awareness on Intimate Partner Violence. After digging around and researching local magazines, I came across one that highlighted women and was offered an opportunity by that editor which shocked me. Someone took an interest in what I had to say and put it on their well-established platform. Looking back, I wasn’t sure what I was trying to say in the actual article (lol), but I am very grateful to that editor for giving me a chance.
From believing to knowing
As I shared earlier, writing was a safe space for me, so going from a private to public space was very weird and uncomfortable for me. I was used to writing someone a letter about how they offended me before I sat down and had a difficult conversation with them. Now notebooks of refuge were starting to move towards open spaces where my words were being read by other people. I started working on a novel that required a lot of self-digging, reflecting, research and healing on my part. The more I wrote, the stronger my voice became with each chapter. I was still struggling to express myself verbally to people, but I kept writing. When I started working with an editor (a very good one, by the way), that forced me to deal with my writing voice in the most positive ways – even though some days were painful. Why was it painful? A lot of the times I had to explain what I was trying to say to the editor, even though it was clear to me. Some of my writing needed to be changed for the sake of an improved story. I wasn’t used to that at all but understood it had to be done. In my own private time, I continued to write and read it out loud to myself. Things began to go more smoothly between the editor and myself, and the connection between me and my writing became stronger as time went by.
The more I opened up to constructive criticism and opinion of those supportive of me, the more the connection to my writing voice grew. I had no idea how this would help my confidence to the point where I had the courage to start pitching my work to other editors, to shop my drafted novel around the literary sphere. At this point, I was warned about a lot of rejection that could come my way and that was no lie. There were plenty of “just not our fit” and “no thank you” emails after endless hours of perfecting my manuscript and query letters. At times, I would become upset and discouraged, especially if the rejection was from an agent I really wanted to work with, but there was no time or reason to keep dwelling on those emails. Then there were times where I simply didn’t care and would go about the next query, or would revisit certain characters in my story and study their journey and development, based on the feedback of what some agents shared. This only served as ammunition for me to move forward with my writing because I knew I had good content. I knew that there was quality in my stories vs. hoping someone would publish it.
Gaining Through Loss
I had two huge cheerleaders who were adamant on seeing me succeed – my sister and my father. Along this writing journey, I’ve lost both of them at unexpected times, disrupting me in the most painful ways. But I found it interesting that in reflecting on them and who they were to me while moving in resilience, I discovered more things to write about – and I learned that my dad was a freelance writer himself! While memories of both of them were being cherished and life continued to go on, I still found myself on the desktop, trying to make something happen one way or another. My energy and focus moved toward revisiting drafts of shorts stories that were abandoned years prior. I started rebuilding and renewing from that material that made me create and smile at the finished product and started submitting multiple stories at a time.
My first short story, “The Grandparents” was accepted on a platform with over 30,000 readers. When I got the email of congratulations, I was numb. I was dealing with the sudden loss of my sister and was in no place to react to the good news. Over time, it started to sink in, and I couldn’t believe it. Right when I started embracing that victory, “Night Watch” got picked up quickly by another publication. An absolute whirlwind of shock and disbelief. I received this news while I was finishing up a third story to shop around, “Salty Porkchops”. That story was accepted and is currently in the final editing process for publication.
Let the distractions and blocks happen
I noticed that a lot of my creative flow occurred after bouts of distraction and leaving my projects alone when the connection just wasn’t there. This may not be the best course for others, but I wasn’t going to force my creative. I was going to make sure that I captured the moment when it came; pausing everything to make sure I got certain elements or ideas down on paper and build as the content came to me. There were many breaks, interruptions and distractions, but in-between those moments, I always found myself in front of my desktop, trying to figure out where I left off with a story or pitch in the works.
Celebrating the publishing of three stories in less than a year is something I never saw coming. I’ve realized that when I thought I was slacking off with my writing, I was actually taking a much needed break; especially when it came to attending to life’s occurrences and challenges. Even though there were moments of frustration and not knowing how things would work out, I would make it a point to reconnect because I know I have stories to share that can be appreciated or simply make someone’s day.
The more I realize how much writing is a part of me, my voice, the more I realize there is no need to self-criticize or create unrealistic goals that will never be accomplished. I am simply embracing moments and appreciating what I have around me. If you’re struggling with writing or any other challenge you want to achieve, the journey is not going to be perfect. That right there is something you can embrace, appreciate, write and read about – the imperfect journey.