First Submissions Done!

My first submission period is over! There were a lot of details to consider, from notation format for my craft annotations to the best way in which to advise my mentor of lines that refer back to chapters he hasn’t seen (as he is letting me submit new material from a work in progress). My Interdisciplinary Study submission was due five days later, and for that I was less prepared and had to really work through to the last day. I have begun a traditional fantasy story based on changeling lore, and submitted the first chapter. I think, overall, it was a good attempt at fantasy, since I haven’t tried this genre before. But I knew there was no high concept twist to it, and that concerned me. My writing group discussed it this morning, and I think I may have the twist that was missing. For those of you who are writers and not working with a writing group, I highly recommend it. Don’t jump into the first group you come across, but rather look for a group leader who seems to really understand your area and be devoted to supporting fellow artists. My group has been an invaluable resource for moral support, improving my writing, educating me about authors or books I otherwise might not have discovered, and story ideas. A good writing group is, in essence, the MFA process condensed.

I received my faculty mentor’s comments yesterday, and they were very thoughtful. There is definitely a benefit to someone who is a superb writer giving your manuscript a line by line review. Of course, one doesn’t have to get their MFA to achieve this, but it is a viable method for the serious writer who wishes to take their craft to the next level.

As a parting thought for this post, I have subscribed to a very good blog for those of us writing for children and teens: Writing and Illustrating by Kathy Temean. You can follow her on WordPress.

Have a great day!