IWSG - Writing Spaces & Links

It's the first Wednesday of December, which means it's time for another edition of the Insecure Writer's Support Group, created by Alex J. Cavanaugh.

The purpose of this group is to out your writing woes, gain support from fellow writers, and give support to those who need it. All are welcome to participate. Just sign up HERE. Post on the first Wednesday each month and hop around to visit others. We recommend trying to visit twelve new blogs and meet some new people!

This month's optional question is: What are 5 objects we'd find in your writing space?

How about some photos?

You'd see my Funko Pops (each one represents a short story sold).

Movie posters and artwork (the xenomorph was created by my friend Jade as a 40th birthday present last year).

Pictures of loved ones.

(I've got pictures of my parents awaiting frames.)

Badges/nametags from events where I've presented.

My library lamp.

And a bonus of my super sloppy shelves, which include craft books, contributor copies, and lots of horror stuff and personal objects (plus photo albums and my X-Files collectors cards from the 90s).

Last month I titled my blog post The Little Things then completely forgot why I'd titled it that way. What I'd intended to post was a little story about exciting small things that happen in writers' lives. So I'll tell you this month instead. As writers we deal with a lot of rejection, so we have to celebrate the little things when they come along. 

One of my neighbors, who I didn't know very well, but we were friendly, asked my husband if I was a writer. She'd done a search on Amazon for horror short stories and found my anthology. Having no idea it was me, she'd ordered it on Kindle and read it. When she got to the end, she recognized my headshot. Ultimately, she ended up ordering a stack of signed books to send out to friends and family, which is probably the coolest experience I've had as an author, so far.

I know the holidays are hard on a lot of people, so I did a post last week about depression and some coping methods for those who might need it. At the very least, know you're not alone.

Okay, it's time for submission stats. Each month, I run through the stats for the previous month to keep myself accountable.

In November:

6 rejections

1 withdrawal (they had zero activity on Duotrope for the last year, and I wanted to submit the story elsewhere)

0 acceptances

6 submissions

Right now, I have 10 short stories out on submission.

Don't forget that this is a WEP month! WEP and IWSG have joined forces. 

Next month is IWSGPit! Get ready to pitch to editors and agents!

Now for some links! Bear in mind I'm not endorsing these, merely passing them along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Accepting Submissions:

Bad Dream Entertainment is seeking humorous horror stories for an anthology. 1500 to 8000 words. Pays $.06/word. Deadline December 31.

Unlit Press is seeking stories on the theme of Darkness for the anthology Curse the Darkness. 3000 to 10,000 words. Will pay about $100 (payment is in pounds). Deadline December 31.

Zombies Need Brains is seeking fantasy and sci-fi stories for three different anthologies: Portals, Temporally Deactivated, and Alternate Peace. Will pay a minimum of $.06/word with further royalties once earned out. Deadline December 31.

Cantabrigian is seeking literary fiction. Up to 8000 words. Pays between $20 and $50. Deadline December 31.

Chicken Soup for the Soul is seeking stories about angels. Up to 1200 words. Pays $200. Deadline December 31.

Spring Song Press is seeking steampunk stories for the anthology Steam and Lace. 1000 to 10,000 words. Pays $.01/word. Deadline January 1.

What are your insecurities? What is something cool that has happened to you as a writer? What are your submission stats for the month? Any of these links of interest? Anything to share?

May you find your Muse.

*Artwork by OCAL, clker.com
*Photos by me

A Writer's Space

Aaaaaah (that's a relieved sigh, not a scream...just to be clear).

Here I sit in my new office. I have two giant Rubbermaid tubs, full to overflowing, just waiting to be emptied, the contents organized in drawers or filed. Every time I need something, I have to dig through a tub. And I'm cool with that, because this is my office.

Aaaaaah. (Still not screaming)

I don't remember if I mentioned it on here, but hubby has been doing some construction around this joint. He ripped up hardwood floors, tore out a platform and the bottom of a set of stairs, hammering through walls.

I ripped up the carpeting and the carpet tack strips. Yeah, I know. I rock. ;) Phew.

After all that, he built some walls, laid some hardwood floors, built new stairs, painted, re-wired electricity, put in light fixtures/switches/outlets, so on and so forth.

I painted some. And then I grouted some tile. Oh yeah, he put the tile down and then sponged it off afterward. Cuz' he's awesome like that.

I was busy. What do you want?

And all of this adds up to me having a main floor office! So exciting! Before, my office was down in the depths of the basement, sharing space with a guest bed, rolling towers full of photos and scrap-booking materials, and a sewing area. I was crammed in one corner. Yes, it was still an office, and more than some have, so I wasn't actually complaining, but I also couldn't go down to my dungeon to write if my kids were upstairs in their rooms, or out back, or anywhere I couldn't see/hear them from the basement, which meant no time for my office in the summer. But now they can be anywhere! And I can hear them. I know what they're doing. And I can be writing while knowing what they're doing.

Woot!

We all need a space to create. For some, it's a huge office with a gorgeous view. For others, it's a closet converted to an office, or a guest room with a desk or table in it, or their lap on the sofa. Maybe it's a lawn chair out back, a stolen corner of their "day job" office, a restaurant or coffee shop.

But we all need a space to create in. No matter how tiny that space is. Even if we have to dig it out and force it into shape, it's still a space for creating. It frees us up to focus on our words, our artwork, our crocheting, our whatever-it-is-we're-creating.

I'd post some office pics for you, but I'll be paying Nutschell a visit in the coming months, so I'll have to wait to share it with you until then. Plus, it's not quite picture-worthy yet. Let me do a little more organizing.

In the meantime, I hope you ferret out a little bit of a space for yourself.

And create.

P.S. For those who wondered, and until I can reply to each of you individually, the funky spiked melon in my Wednesday post was a kiwano melon, or horned melon fruit. It really didn't taste half bad. The texture was just a bit gag-worthy for a noob. I got it at a King Soopers, so a regular chain supermarket.

P.P.S The Black Forest fire is being slowly, but surely, beaten into submission. Many have been allowed back to their homes (or the land their homes used to stand on). This fire officially exceeded Waldo Canyon for damage, though the loss of life was equal (2). It was horrific, but once again the community has come together, which is wonderful. There was another fire at the Royal Gorge Bridge. The animals lived, and the damage to the bridge, itself, was minimal, but the park surrounding it was fairly totaled. There are still other fires burning, as well, so our state is not yet free of the summer flames. We have been getting a bit of a rain each day, and I hope that continues through the rest of summer.

What's your creation space like? Do you have an office or is it purely about your lap? What's your view? Have you gone out to get one of those melons yet? Come on, you know you want to!

May you find your Muse.