NEW USERS! INTRODUCE YOURSELVES!

Welcome to you all,
Darren,
Matt,
Scott,
Gio,
Francois,
and
Alberto!

The forum's full of answers to questions to benefit all, newcomer or not!

Delve into the past threads and mine their gold! Or ask something new!

Thanks for the Welcome!
Hope I can contribute more and better as I get more acquainted with the topics of discussion. And of course, all of you, the recurring writers and participants of the Genre, the Contest and the Forum.

Welcome, Alberto!

Hello everybody,
My name is Alberto and I sent my first submission ever to the contest for Q3 V.29.
I heard about the contest last year and have since bought V.27 & V.28 which I enjoy very much.
I've only posted twice in the past in the "Problems with E-Submitting" thread to share my (so far) perfectly good experience of submitting for the first time online.
And I have to say I'm very impressed with everyone's background as continuous honorable mentions and finalists as well as winners.
🙂

Welcome Alberto to our merry band of half crazed-writers.

Nice to have join us...which isn't implying that I think you are half-crazed a few people are sane..,..mostly.

But happy writing and happy learning.

Welcome Alberto to our merry band of half crazed-writers.

Nice to have join us...which isn't implying that I think you are half-crazed a few people are sane..,..mostly.

But happy writing and happy learning.

Thank you. And thank you dantzel!

I won't deny having felt a little crazy half the time I have been writing 🙂
But the merry band part and the happy learning sounds very promising 🙂

Hello everybody,
My name is Alberto and I sent my first submission ever to the contest for Q3 V.29.
I heard about the contest last year and have since bought V.27 & V.28 which I enjoy very much.
I've only posted twice in the past in the "Problems with E-Submitting" thread to share my (so far) perfectly good experience of submitting for the first time online.
And I have to say I'm very impressed with everyone's background as continuous honorable mentions and finalists as well as winners.
🙂

Welcome Alberto to our merry band of half crazed-writers.

Nice to have join us...which isn't implying that I think you are half-crazed a few people are sane..,..mostly.

But happy writing and happy learning.

Only half crazed? You're too modest!

Geez, c'mon, peeps. We're only all-crazed during results season. the rest of the time it evens out to half.

Geez, c'mon, peeps. We're only all-crazed during results season. the rest of the time it evens out to half.

And at the end of submission season, with the last minute rush to finish and submit. And at the start of submission season, with everyone frantic about what they're going to write. And in the middle of the quarter, with all the calls for crits. And all quarter long with the dumb jokes and the Evil Pesonae.

Yeah, I'm guessing we might have as many as 4 non-crazed days per quarter!

Crazed? Don't talk to me about crazed...

Hello!
My name is Jeremy (decided to write under "J. D. Brink" -- seems more eye-catching somehow) and I actually started on the forum during the long Q1 storm but never got here to intro myself. I've been in the Navy for a while now and would love to be able to do nothing but write and read all day. And I've just recently taken my writing fate into my own hands, starting a website and hoping the new-fangled e-publishing helps jump start my career. I made finalist in Q1 and am hoping to find time to revise a story before the Q4 window closes. I've been writing for about 10 years with little to show for it. It takes a thick skin and stubborn attitude (read "perseverance") to break into this business and I'm giving it all I got. Well, when time allows.
Good luck to everyone and may we all reach our dreams one day!

Jeremy

It seems weird to say this after you've e been here for months, but... Welcome aboard, Jeremy!

Hi all,

So this is me:

I earned my BA in Philosophy in 2001 from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. Having decided not to go to graduate school, I joined the US Coast Guard and spent the next four years aboard a Seattle-based cutter chasing cocaine smugglers, policing fisherman in the Bearing Sea, and maintaining a weapon system I thankfully never had need to use. After my tour was complete, I moved to Chicago where, after a brief stint at a detective agency, I spent the next year and a half studying Calculus and Computer Science at Northeastern Illinois University. Prior to completion of my degree, I was recruited by IBM to participate in their IT Skills Program which led to a job as an ethical hacker at their mainframe lab in Poughkeepsie, NY. In 2011, IBM and I parted ways when I was accepted into the San Diego State University Masters Philosophy program. My areas of interest are philosophy of mind, ethics, and existentialism. I also write fiction, produce animated shorts, and am unabashedly in love with both gaming and sci-fi.

This is my second time entering the contest, the first netted me an 'Honorable Mention' for a story that ended up in a now defunct magazine. My two sole sci-fi sales were to that magazine and netted me about $15 (for which I was and am very grateful!). The piece I submitted this quarter took me over a year to complete and now that it's been submitted I'm finding it difficult to put it out of my mind and wait patiently for this quarter's contest results.

Regardless of what happens this quarter I wish everyone the best of luck and look forward to seeing what kinds of awesomeness my fellow writers have come up with for this year's contest.

Welcome aboard, David! The best way to stop worrying about your last story is to write your next one! (The second-best way involves a fifth of tequila... )

And some lime juice and Triple Sec...

Welcome!!

Most of the socializing happens in the Jibber Jabber threads, which are divided quarterly for better obsessing during deadlines and results time.

And some lime juice and Triple Sec...

Welcome!!

Most of the socializing happens in the Jibber Jabber threads, which are divided quarterly for better obsessing during deadlines and results time.

ha! I was just beginning to wonder what the timeline would be to hear back from them

-----------------------
David Daedalus

 

If we're talking Q3, results should start to come out in the next week or two (my money's on Monday), and we should have Finalists by a month from now.

For Q4, the entry deadline is the end of Sept and results should be in before Christmas. 😉

As always, YMMV.

Welcome, David!

Don't mind the straight-jackets,
*shoves them into a corner behind the couch*,
the empty bottles of tequila and triple sec and discarded lime quarters,
*shoves it all under the couch*,
or the marshmallow shooters and flame throwers,
*scrapes oozing marshmallow from the ceiling and windows*

Um, we had a little misfire during the last attack. *licks fingerstips and gestures to the couch* Please! Have a seat and make yourself at home!

Welcome David!
So are you the San Diego region like myself?
I second that advise about moving on to the next story. I know it can be hard. (Coming from the guy who held an 18 month grudge against the contest after one particular flat rejection.)

Welcome David!
So are you the San Diego region like myself?
I second that advise about moving on to the next story. I know it can be hard. (Coming from the guy who held an 18 month grudge against the contest after one particular flat rejection.)

yuppers - I'm getting my Master's at San Diego State

As for writing something else - I totally agree. It's really the only thing that's going to distract me from stewing over the contest entry :p

So be welcomed David even if this is late.

As everyone has stated already and as you seem to be doing write the next story, then write another and while you're eating for results write some more. Continual rejections can be a bore to say the least, as I know very well, but keep at it.

And you're one up on me none of my HMs sold even to a defuncted magazine.

As to the straight jackets and such...well they just might be the normal uniform around here---casual attire that is.

hey all

thanks so much for the warm welcome!

so I am curious - have y'all found the spec fiction market as difficult as I have? it seems like very few people are actually reading short stories anymore (other than fellow writers) and as for novels, unless you are writing a 100k word count space opera it seems like publishers aren't interested. I know epublishing has made things a bit better, especially for genre fiction, but not by much. bottom line - if you're an unknown author it seems like you're pretty much SOL. Other than this contest (for which I am exceptionally gratefull) where can good stories find an audience?

Oh Deckard, Deckard (AKA David)....

First of all welcome and as far as where to submit: let me show you here to the rabbit hole. Your life will be forever changed.

http://www.duotrope.com

There are a ton of pro markets to sell to and this is the database that holds many of them.

(sorry to anyone who caught all the major typos in my first attempt at this post...but by now you all should be used to me doing this).

And David, once you're done being amazed at Duotrope, check out a number of different writing blogs, starting with Dean Wesley Smith and then looking at others he links to. Dean is no polyanna. He's not going to tell you this is easy. But he IS going to tell you it's by no means impossible, and he'll discuss things to try. Check out his Killing the Sacred Cows series for a start.

Almost by definition, few of us here are pros. (And we are oh, so grateful for those few pros who do hang around!) So none of us have a magic secret to share, and I doubt there even is one. But my general rule for creative fields is this: the odds are against you, absolutely insurmountable odds; and yet every single book or short story you read was written by someone who surmounted them anyway. Go surmount them!

Oh Deckard, Deckard (AKA David)....

First of all welcome and as far as where to submit: let me show you here to the rabbit hole. Your life will be forever changed.

http://www.duotrope.com

There are a ton of pro markets to sell to and this is the database that holds many of them.

(sorry to anyone who caught all the major typos in my first attempt at this post...but by now you all should be used to me doing this).

First - thanks for the responses 🙂

I probably should've mentioned that I'm familiar with duotrope, blackhole, ralan, am a former 'critter', etc, etc, etc. My point wasn't that I can't find places to submit, but that the ratio of people writing spec-fiction (supply) to people paying money to read spec-fiction (demand) is epically skewed in favor of supply. As such, the market is exceptionally difficult.

Almost by definition, few of us here are pros. (And we are oh, so grateful for those few pros who do hang around!) So none of us have a magic secret to share, and I doubt there even is one. But my general rule for creative fields is this: the odds are against you, absolutely insurmountable odds; and yet every single book or short story you read was written by someone who surmounted them anyway. Go surmount them!

well said - and you're right - there isn't a some secret trick. I was just wondering, seeing as we're all probably in the same boat, what you guys have been doing and how successful your methods have been with respect to getting 'pro' sales. That is, beyond producing quality work, are you going to conventions? Are you working the eMarket more than the traditional one? Have you run into the "it has to be 80k or we won't touch it" BS and if so - what did you do about it? Are you trying your hand at YA stuff more than adult stuff?

I should also mention that I'm asking specifically about sci-fi and not fantasy or horror. I don't write either of the latter and while I assume the market challenges are similar for all three, I have nothing but an educated guess to back that up.

*EDITED TO REMOVE EMBARRASSING SWAP OF YOUR AND YOU'RE*

well said - and you're right - there isn't a some secret trick. I was just wondering, seeing as we're all probably in the same boat, what you guys have been doing and how successful your methods have been with respect to getting 'pro' sales. That is, beyond producing quality work, are you going to conventions? Are you working the eMarket more than the traditional one? Have you run into the "it has to be 80k or we won't touch it" BS and if so - what did you do about it? Are you trying your hand at YA stuff more than adult stuff?

Well, I could tell you what I'm trying, but it must only be spoken of in code lest it draw down flames. So the secret code expressed as crossword puzzle clues is...

1. Author of "Star Beast"
2. Robert's ________ of Order

As for how successful it has been... Well, I'm still eligible here! But I've had two pro sales at Digital Science Fiction (a non-qualifying market, so they don't count here), a story in The Gruff Variations beside Hugo and Nebula winners and plenty of other worthies (Hi, Julianna! Hi, George!), a second place in the Baen Memorial contest, a request to see my novel by Tony Daniel from Baen, and a rewrite request from Analog (23 days and counting). I've also had 2 Finalists, a Semi, and 3 Honorable Mentions here. Plus I've sold a couple hundred dollars now in indie books. This is all because Dean convinced me to just concentrate on writing and submitting, not worrying so much about promotion and perfection.

I haven't gone to any cons in 30 years. WorldCon at month end will be my first major con. I plan to enjoy it and do whatever I can to network. But I'm counting on my writing more than anything else.

Every story's different. Every market's different. Every author's different. Your path will be your own. But you asked what my path was and how it's going, so there it is.

Now I have to get back to that novel!

well said - and you're right - there isn't a some secret trick. I was just wondering, seeing as we're all probably in the same boat, what you guys have been doing and how successful your methods have been with respect to getting 'pro' sales. That is, beyond producing quality work, are you going to conventions? Are you working the eMarket more than the traditional one? Have you run into the "it has to be 80k or we won't touch it" BS and if so - what did you do about it? Are you trying your hand at YA stuff more than adult stuff?

Well, I could tell you what I'm trying, but it must only be spoken of in code lest it draw down flames. So the secret code expressed as crossword puzzle clues is...

1. Author of "Star Beast"
2. Robert's ________ of Order

As for how successful it has been... Well, I'm still eligible here! But I've had two pro sales at Digital Science Fiction (a non-qualifying market, so they don't count here), a story in The Gruff Variations beside Hugo and Nebula winners and plenty of other worthies (Hi, Julianna! Hi, George!), a second place in the Baen Memorial contest, a request to see my novel by Tony Daniel from Baen, and a rewrite request from Analog (23 days and counting). I've also had 2 Finalists, a Semi, and 3 Honorable Mentions here. Plus I've sold a couple hundred dollars now in indie books. This is all because Dean convinced me to just concentrate on writing and submitting, not worrying so much about promotion and perfection.

I haven't gone to any cons in 30 years. WorldCon at month end will be my first major con. I plan to enjoy it and do whatever I can to network. But I'm counting on my writing more than anything else.

Every story's different. Every market's different. Every author's different. Your path will be your own. But you asked what my path was and how it's going, so there it is.

Now I have to get back to that novel!

congrats on your sales and accolades in WOTF! it seems like you are well on your way!

This is an introduction from me unto you. All of you. Staring. From the other side of the screen.

I must admit to feeling sadly overwhelmed by a great deal involving this contest. Everyone seems so veteran and experienced and I'm lurking about the forums going, '... Which Quarter am I even entered in?' It highlights my many, many questions that i shall likely continue to lurk about and try to answer them through osmosis rather than emphasis my confusion. ^.~

I go by sera and will likely use that-- or some aspect of that-- as my pen name, should I ever actually succeed in getting published. Please treat me kindly!

This is an introduction from me unto you. All of you. Staring. From the other side of the screen.

I must admit to feeling sadly overwhelmed by a great deal involving this contest. Everyone seems so veteran and experienced and I'm lurking about the forums going, '... Which Quarter am I even entered in?' It highlights my many, many questions that i shall likely continue to lurk about and try to answer them through osmosis rather than emphasis my confusion. ^.~

I go by sera and will likely use that-- or some aspect of that-- as my pen name, should I ever actually succeed in getting published. Please treat me kindly!

Welcome, Sera.

Don't feel overwhelmed. Sure, some of us battle hardened veterans here, but all of us started where you are. Even the moderator of our forum, the incredible Brad R.Torgersen (with the Analog sales, and the Hugo and Nebula nominations) once posted about how he'd received a HM and had no idea what it really meant.

A few quarters from now and you'll be guessomancing with the best of them.

Steve

Welcome aboard, sera!

And Steve has it exactly right. It's fine to lurk, but don't hesitate to jump in if you have the urge. My style is to learn by making lots of mistakes and asking lots of dumb questions; but maybe your style is to learn by watching others make mistakes. It's all good.

Thanks for the welcome, guys! I appreciate it. I think I attempt to be shark-y-- circling around in the depths of knowledge-- but that does not limit my abilities in the realm of the stupid. Many the wall have I bounced off of entirely of my own volition.

Is there a preferred place for the most newbie of questions to occur? Or perhaps even some less than newbie questions, lol.