Key with all this is to build relationships with editors. If they send you a personal rejection, you thank them and send them something else at once. If they thought enough of something you wrote, it means you are close to their tastes and eventually you will hit them.

Cheers
Dean

Brad: Thanks for the links.

GD: I write on a Mac, so I’m familiar with Courier.

- Jerry

Again, the rewriting myth is very deep and tough to fight, even when long term professional writer after writer tells you otherwise.

Cheers
Dean

If you cycle and fix stuff as you write every day as you go along, then skip this week and just spell check the book and give it to your first reader.

This sounds a lot like what Lawrence Block talks about in his book WRITING THE NOVEL: FROM PLOT TO PRINT. Unless memory has failed me, he starts his days by fixing stuff written in the previous day’s writing, then starts his session for the current day. He doesn’t like rewriting, as I recall, and wants “the end” to mean exactly that when he pulls the last page out of his typewriter.

In fact, when I think about it, just about everything I remember reading in Block’s book seems to dovetail with what you’re saying. I should reread his book (again — I’ve read it two or three times already) in light of what I’ve been learning here. I’ll bet it’ll make a huge difference.

But for right now one of my Big Dream goals is to write a book that someone can’t put down. I’m reading a book like that right now and it reminded me that I want to be able to write like that. Not sure if that is under the Big Dream category though. To do that goal I need to learn and to practice.

A second goal is to have a web site. Even though I could do that now, for me that is in the not under my control category because I decided it wouldn’t be worth it until I have at least two credits.

And as usual thanks for this series.

If you’re looking for tips on standard format for manuscripts, Vonda McIntyre and William Shunn have web pages up where you can see visual examples of what a printed manuscript — and many an electronic manuscript — are supposed to look like.

Click here to see Vonda’s.

Follow those directions, and I think you can’t go wrong.

If you use Windows and/or Microsoft Word, you might also consider Dark Courier, recommended by Robert J. Sawyer. Looks terrific on the page if you’re using a laser printer.

Click here to get Dark Courier, from HP.

But we writers are lucky. We can mail our practice sessions and no one cares. Worst an editor can do is say no. As for font, any font that is easy to read. Too small is a problem for us old editor’s eyes. About 250 words per page usually means your font is big enough to read.
Cheers, Dean

Loving the posts. They’re really making me re-think my 2010 writing goal. My goal is to write a million words of fiction. I’m an at-home dad, have plenty of free time to work hard, and also have the support of my wife. So all’s good on the home front.

Now here’s the thing. I’ve been messing around with writing for about 10 years now, and I’ve finally hit a point where I want to do this for real. As I told my wife, if I don’t give it my best shot, then I’ll never be at peace.

Now part of my million word goal was not worry about getting published–not to worry about sending stuff out. I just want to write, to develop the habit of writing, to see if I have the discipline it takes to even attempt to try to make a career out of it.

At the end of 2010, after getting in those million words, I would then focus on the business of getting stuff published.

But your posts have made me wonder if I’m going about it all wrong–have made me wonder if maybe my goal to write a million words is just a subversive attempt on my part to avoid the business side of writing.

Not sure if there’s a question in this…but any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks so much!
Jerry V.

PS — I do have a question, actually. Could you comment on the kind of FONT one should use for manuscripts? I followed your “Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing” columns and loved them, and I wonder if the concern for font falls under one of these “myths” of writing. Personally, I like to write in Courier. Easy to read, easy to edit.