The Return of the Lost Daughter: Over to You

 

Natalie Nera

 

I have been honest about my self-doubt, struggles with rejections, the thoughts that are destructive in any walk of life but especially when you are a creative beast.

We have to be sensitive and wear our hearts on our sleeves when we write, we have to do our research, study hard, look at what other writers do but when it comes to the other side of the business, we have to toughen up. Forget sensitivity, emotions, cry on your pillow or on your friend’s shoulder because of yet another rejection. Cry because someone was harsh in their critique but then wipe your tears and keep going. There is a pile of manuscripts that have been accepted, look at the successes not failures to find your strength. And then, with a clear head look at your failures to improve your craft, how to do it better.

Sometimes it is about sending your manuscript to the wrong publication at the wrong time. Sometimes you go through hard times that don’t allow you headspace for a lot of writing. It is OK not to be OK. That is life.

Now, it is over to you. Natalie Crick and I will keep producing our blogs but will happily replace it with observations and experiences from other writers. Moreover, we are also open to accept essays, prose, and poems, all of which can be previously published provided there are no restrictions on re-printing it online (some magazines and competitions stipulate that you are not allowed to use your work elsewhere for a period of time, so please check).

Here are our guidelines:

• Send us a Word document to fragmentedvoices@gmail.com. On the subject line please write “Submission” followed by the type of submission, i.e. “Submission Poems”. The usual formatting applies: 12 Times New Roman, spacing 2 for prose, essays, and blogs; spacing 1 for poetry.
• Please include a brief biography, no more than 80 words. Do not forget your contact details.
• Blog entries: on aspects of writing or writer’s life (including poets, scriptwriters etc.). Around 800 words.
• Essays: creative essays or essays related to any interesting subject. Up to 3,000 words.
• Prose: short stories, flash fiction, microfiction, creative non-fiction. Up to 3,000 words.
• Poems: no more than 5 poems, up to 14 lines. Any topic.
• Illustrations. images and photos: send in a format that is printable online.
• Unfortunately, we are not able to pay for these submissions at the moment. This is not the rule for our book publications where the usual contract agreements will apply.

 

Many thanks. We look forward to hearing from you soon. Keep creating and keep smiling.