So I've had some good short story news, I was longlisted for the Writers and Artists short story competition and now will be in the first publication for Floodgate Press of Digbeth Stories launching on 20th July. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/digbeth-stories-tickets-660374908127
This has been really motivating for me as I've spent many years writing prose in private without getting much out there. Developing your creative practice funding came my way this year and with it a renewed energy to keep submitting.
Submitting sounds like surrender - and it is in a way. A surrender to the fear of rejection, feeling it and doing it anyway. A surrender to the knowledge that this work, for a while at least, is out there in the ether trying to get seen. And every writer has the experience of struggling with this.
A new idea came my way this year - what if this was an invitation instead? An invitation to publish my writing, to represent it, to be a champion of this particular piece of work - come along to a party for the story! And if they turn down the invitation? Well that's not so worrying, people are often too busy, have other things on, it's not personal.
My current approach is to take it as a long game, you build the work, build the back catalogue and keep plugging away at these invitations until finally someone wants to say yes.
And say yes to yourself, put the stuff out there whatever happens.
Recently I said yes to doing a 10k and going on a yoga retreat, which has been transformative and very healthy. I might need an invitation to a more irresponsible party soon to balance it up!
If you're in the depths of submitting, be kind to yourself, sometimes we get a fancy banner, sometimes we get ghosted, it's all the same process.
best of luck
Rach x