QUOTE: Originally posted by ritab512

Rita is leaving the ring now. After spending an hour reading this thread she still couldn't figure out if she should move to the right or the left.[%-)] Her hair is dishevelled, a bruise on her right cheek sustained when she failed to duck in time, clothes tattered and one shoe missing. [B)] She limps away clutching her writing books and submission guidelines she's been collecting for ten years ,glad she studied and praciticed writing, too. She is laughing though, because the people on this forum are just so darned funny! [(-D]


[bow]HaHaHaHaHa, ritab512!!! I like that a lot. I have to scratch my head too. And I'm kinda wondering, which side should I choose?[%-)] Or rather, which side did the most intelligent people step to? Because you know what? I think I need to step into that line.[:p] Nonetheless, I think I'm gonna bid everyone a warm farewell and hope to see some kindness shown on this darn strand. {{{Not really, keep up the repartee, people. Me likey it a lot.}}}[swg]

QUOTE: DiTryin:
Now... no matter what I say or how gently I walk on eggshells, SOME people are going to blow it out of proportion, twist it into something I never intended,....

…ohhkay…

QUOTE: DiTryin:
They're a lot easier to spot in person: they are control freaks; they are extremely insecure; they are the center of their own universe -- nothing else matters except what they want, what they need, etc.; they have no conscience and are not capable of feeling remorse; they get their jollies by crushing everyone's feelings around them (e.g. While standing in line at a crowded movie theater behind an obese person they loudly say: "How can anyone let themselves get that way?"); they typically have no friends; former lovers call them "psycho;" their spouse is a beatened down empty shell of the person they once were who daydreams about killing them or themselves just to end their nightmare; their parents are/were typically extreme opposites (e.g. tyrant father/over-doting mother); etc., etc., etc.

And the saddest part is: psychos breed more psychos.

Right! Now I understand…(tongue in cheek)

Believe me Diane, I get your point. A complete writer has both book knowledge and practical experience, combined with a sound educational background and should not rely too heavily on one or the other. The evidence of such is the garbage articles you and other editors receive. I get it.

I feel though, you seem to think that if any of the unwashed dare offer additional advice or even question your authority, we are labeled as…wait let me make sure I get this right:
control freaks, insecure, no conscience, not feeling remorse, crusher of feelings, no friends, spouse beater, empty shell, daydream killer, tyrant father, over doting mother, did I miss any? Oh wait, psycho!

I feel sad for you, I really do. What a way to go through life.

With so much beauty in the world, why would one want to dwell in a pit of anxiety and despair.?

---

"Every man is the architect of his own fortune." --Appius Claudius

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jamesaritchie

QUOTE: Originally posted by DiTryin


Here's something that's been grating my cheese since the day I said my newsletter is a paying market: writers don't go out of their way to learn their trade.

Maybe I'm the only one who, when the decision to get into freelance writing hit me, I bought books and ebooks, signed up for newsletters, and read the articles on writer sites trying to learn everything I could to so I would succeed. (Yeah, ok, so I'm book-smart and experience poor, but this will work in my favor once I start submitting)

But if you get more rejections than you do acceptances, do yourself a favor and READ! Learn how to do it right so you'll stop doing it wrong. Learn how to write a good, attention-getting query, learn how to submit it, proofread your piece before you send it, run it by someone else (preferably a writer) to make sure it's clear and as good as it can be before you send it to an editor, look at past issues to see if it's even a good fit for this publication (someone once sent me a piece on LINUX (the computer code) -- and then sent me a nastygram when I said it wasn't a good fit for my newsletter! And writers wonder why some editors don't respond! <pound head on desk>),..........

Have you ever heard that editors can only use 10% of what they receive? I'm here to tell you -- that is s-o-o-o-o true! You don't have to be in the other 90%. Do a little homework. Learn from the pros what works and what doesn't. If you really want to succeed -- do yourself (and editors) a favor and do it!

[8D]

Diane

http://www.coolstuff4writers.com/FreeShipping.html




You make very good points, and nearly all new writers would serve themselves well by listening. Learning to write well usually takes time and practice, but new writers do so many needless things wrong that it greatly lengthens how long it takes to become successful. Mearly all these newbie mistakes could be avoided just by reading how-to books and magaines.

And most editors can only use 1% or less of what comes in. Often less than one half of one percent.



which how-to books and magazines would you recommend?