I've been blogging about new manuscripts, tips for revitalizing submission opportunities and my thoughts on the print vs. e-book argument plus what self-publishing means to me.
You can check it all out on:
Hello Write Queen lovers! I've been blogging about new manuscripts, tips for revitalizing submission opportunities and my thoughts on the print vs. e-book argument plus what self-publishing means to me. You can check it all out on: Or just click on the book tab!
There is nothing like the feeling of a book in your hands.
If it's new, it's the feeling of anticipation running through your veins. If it's used or borrowed, it’s the acquisition of someone else’s secret, waiting to become yours. A dog-eared favorite feels like you are holding hands with an old friend. And if it’s your own, it’s a feeling of highest accomplishment a writer can achieve (except maybe certain awards, but we don’t write for those). It all boils down to that gush of emotion that comes from just the feeling of the pages beneath your fingers. With that being said, let me pitch my feelings towards eBooks and eReaders. It’s less personal, but it’s instant. You can’t feel the contours of the pages; you cannot feel a physical connection - but you can become absorbed immediately. If a writer has done his or her job, the words have put you under a spell. You stop paying attention to the lack of paper underneath your skin and get pulled into the story. The fact that you can access millions of books at once; being able to carry your whole library in the palm of your hand is the epitome of having the whole world in your hands. With both perspectives on the table, I want to talk about my current struggle: wanting to publish my chapbook in print and in digital format. There are not many small presses willing to do both. Most presses will give you a limited run on your book if it's in print (saddle stitch is not easy to reproduce at a whim - and on little to no budget). The presses that are willing to go the digital route will only make it available digitally. The ones that do both are either highly competitive, will only publish a full collection, or have requirements that do not match with my body of work. While I am in the constant pursuit of finding presses that will meet this desire to be traditionally modern, I have been toying with the idea of self publication. I know that there are plenty of options in the Print On Demand world that will fulfill this request with ease. The only problem? Credibility and expertise. When you are published under a press, it gives you a boost. It says someone believes in my talent, my work, and is willing to vouch for both. It gives you an audience who is willing to check you out because their press says that you rock. A press is also a resource for learning and being involved in book design, promotion, and selling. They have a model that works for them and if you find that you believe in their mission, admire their set of authors, and your work fits their bill - your chapbook or book has a chance to barrel its way into the literary world. With self publishing, you are left to your own devices. Everything is your responsibility and you have to take the time to learn. I do believe that with self publishing, it gives you an opportunity to turn yourself into something that goes beyond the title of author. Suddenly you are a book designer, a publisher, promoter and sales man. If you learn how to do it well, you will earn credibility that will outshine with negative connotation that comes with self publishing. If you don’t do it well, your book is in danger of falling in the cracks. There will be no one to back you up. Fear is never an option when you desire to publish this much however. Those who self publish are willing to take the chance. Does that mean that you will self publish Christina? Not yet. While I am a modern day writer who is into all that is new in book publishing, I have some traditional whims floating in my heart. I want to be able to hold my first chapbook and see the imprint of a press that took the time to believe in me. If I see that I am not getting anywhere with pursuing presses, then I will work on going the self publishing route. For now... Let's keep on trying! Please feel free to let me know your thoughts on this matter. The comment section is always open! Hello Write Queen readers and Late Night Feelings enthusiasts!
As I am patiently, but anxiously waiting for word on my Late Night Feelings chapbook submissions, I am currently editing two more chapbooks. Sweltering Sugar The first one I am editing is called Sweltering Sugar. It is filled with haiku, tanka, and other short form poetry. While editing Late Night Feelings, I found that I had a lot of haiku and shorter poems that I really enjoy, but did not fit the Late Night Feeling bill. I am a fan of writing haiku and short poems, especially during less inspiring times. Engaging in the practice of haiku as a modern (I say this loosely) day poet, makes me want to put together a collection that is fitting to that. To write short works that doesn't fit the whole "haiku as nature poems" bill is a personal project that I was not aware of doing, but has now spawned into several pieces. While most won't probably enjoy this collection, I really want to put this out. The title Sweltering Sugar came about from an obsession with the word sweltering and what these shorter pieces remind me of - sweet, tiny pieces of sugar, bubbling on the edge of your tongue - sweltering in the heat of desire, wonder, and fulfillment of language. I sat with the title for a while, even trying to come up with alternatives, but came up blank, solidifying the choice. The title of the book is the only thing that I am sure of. What troubles me is length and format. As to date, I have over 160 haiku and short form poems, which makes staying with the typical chapbook length of 16 to 32 pieces challenging. When you have three line poems that only take up an inch of space, you also start wondering about format. I find that there are almost no resources for how to format a haiku chapbook/book. I don't know how many pieces can be on a page or different styles I can use for a layout. I swear that when I discover these secrets, that I will make a guide for other haiku writers. I think it's about time we have updated guidelines that fit with modern day haiku and short-form poetry, especially to be shared. Home Sweet Home While I try to figure how to format the haiku chapbook, I've been editing another manuscript called Home Sweet Home. This manuscript has poems that reflect on home, family and self-image. I realized that I had a whole set of poems that talked about a different kind of love and struggle: the battle of self and family. I find that the poem selection for Home Sweet Home coincides with the time I first decided to embrace my life as a poet. Though there a couple of current pieces, the majority of Home Sweet Home are humble beginnings into the craft with my life used as the test subject. Another guiding force comes from being particularly moved by past encouragement from the first professor that critiqued my writing. From daddy issues to moving, he endorsed these poems finding their way into the world. That has always stuck with me and after finally deciding to be brave and talk about my family and self-image, I go into this shaky territory remembering his support. The End...I promise! Whew - this has been a long entry, but I wanted to share my new projects with you. It doesn't end with Late Night Feelings. We're just getting started. If anyone has any suggestions, especially with formatting a haiku chapbook, please feel free to leave a comment! Over a year of this journey and I am still discovering new opportunities. This morning (honestly since yesterday afternoon, but most of my progress happened this morning.), I was googling to find out more information on the art of a mini-chapbook.
What is a mini-chapbook? It's what Bitten in the Wake of Dusk is - a one-page print out that can be folded to take form of a six to seven page book. I was researching more into this because I wanted to know a few things such as:
Well now that I have an idea for a new post (coming soon!), I wanted to share a little tip while googling this topic. I discovered new resources! Some writers may feel sometimes that they have ran out of resources from their typical hub of sites. I know that I have been feeling that way. As introduced in Day 292, I often feel like I am running out of places to submit my chapbook. I decided to not compromise my manuscript unless it was absolutely necessary (finding my ideal press would be my compromise). This means that my resources for submissions has shrunk greatly. Now I have been revitalized with new leads! While some of the sites I visited did not answer the questions I had about mini-chapbooks, they did make me aware of presses I have not heard of before. A few new ideas have also started brewing in my head and I have discovered new writers along the way. All positives that came through a somewhat disappointing google search. There were some disappointments in the discoveries I made as well. Some presses that I looked into are no longer actively seeking submissions while others have that depressing requirement of shorter manuscripts. Don't let the negatives you discover get you down! I found a handful of perfectly good opportunities and so will you when you start to google what peaks your curiosity. So today's lesson my loves is to find opportunity in everything you do. You may find something that will help your projects or cause inspiration. Enjoy your Saturday! Hello Write Queeners, I've decided that to keep blogging for at least once a month, I will write a monthly round up of my writing life. I will do it in the first week of every month, to give myself the opportunity to experience the previous month in its entirety (you never know what could happen at 11:58 PM on the last day of the month). During April, I participated in the 30 poems in 30 days challenge. I've been a part of the challenge for five years. I was disappointed in myself last year when I didn't finish the 2012 challenge. It became a challenge when my part time temp job became a full time temp job with the opportunity to become permanent. Sometimes survival comes before creativity, but that didn't mean that I forgave myself easily for not finishing. I was determined to finish this year. I saw opportunity in Instagram. Sometimes I didn't have time to write eloquent 40 line poems (did I even write a 40 line poem? ::ponders::). Instagram gave me the opportunity to jazz up smaller pieces, using original or found pictures and making a haiku a stronger image. Plus it gave me a new audience to introduce my writing to. I know that I gained new followers on Instagram, though I'm still trying to determine blog readership. It was really fun and I found that even when I was posting late, that a pile of poems were building up because I was incorporating images and taking the time to find the right image for each poem. Sometimes I found a image, but had no poem. It gave me the motivation to write more. In a seemingly visual society, I found that my writing was a little more appreciated when the majority of my work was image based. I may have to rethink my approach on writing! Overall it was a great challenge. In relation to the 30/30 challenge, I had a whirlwind publication opportunity! My Day Five poem has been published in an anthology called "Old Hollywood". The poem was a part of a contest by Lady Chaos Press, a fairly new press by the lovely Shannon Lynette. I submitted my poem five days before the contest ended, which was on April 5th. By April 24th, she was already announcing that the book was out! I must remember to ask her (or simply interview her on the blog - how about it Shannon?) what her secret is to putting together a book so fast is. The final update is about the writing group I am a part of. Hosted by Erica "Rivaflowz" Buddington, this monthly Write-In is a place for female writers of all genres to come together and talk about the thing we love the most: WRITING! Coupled with yummy food that either Erica has carefully picked out or cooked herself, a group of up to 15 women take the time to talk about what we have done in our writing lives during the past month. After that, for about 45 minutes, we retreat to various corners to write, using a prompt chosen for the meeting. After the 45 minutes, we go around and read our pieces, offering constructive criticism to improve the pieces and to rave about what we love about it. I'm often speechless because these ladies are amazing. Their input and encouragement to my work, even when I don't like the piece, puts things into perspective. Their own pieces make me want to throw my pen away because they have written masterpieces. I am blessed to be a part of this group. So that is my April Update! Thank you for being a part of the Write Journey.
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Christina D. RodriguezA Latinx poet and entrepreneur who blogs about poetry, music, writing, and life. Archives
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