Friday, April 29, 2011

Zounds! Where Did That Story Go? - Personal Post

Some of you may be wondering why I pulled the story "Yielding". There were several reasons - all good. First of all, I'm sure you noticed that it was still a rather rough draft. As Laura pointed out (and I agree) there were clunky POV switches. Also, I noticed some grammatical problems and the dialogue was a bit contrived. The title was unsatisfactory, and the original ending I had in mind (paranormal) did not work. Since then, I have come up with a brand new ending which I think will do nicely. Laura also put me on to a contest I hadn't heard of, and I think this story might be a good fit.

As you know, many (if not most) literary journals, publications and contests do not accept previously published work, which usually includes blogs and personal websites. So I have chosen to pull 'Yielding", re-title it, re-work it, and submit it.

And thanks yet again to Laura for suggesting that I email a copy of the finished story to those who wish to read it. I'm guessing that it will take several weeks for me to finish the story; when I do, I will let you know and you can drop me a line. That will also give me the added benefit of several other critiques.

I can assure you that my blog will not become a repository of second-rate work and rejects; my primary goal is still to write the very best stories and poetry that I can, and to share them with readers all over the world - for the sheer pleasure of it. I hope you are enjoying it, and perhaps taking something from it.

Last, a bit of news. I had several haiku accepted for the June issue of the online journal Black Dahlia. And I submitted a story to the local newspaper for a column called I Know A Story (the link is to a previous story they published in 2010, I'm still waiting to hear about the current submission). Which makes a dozen or so rejections a little easier to swallow.

I'd tack on my thoughts about the A to Z Challenge but this post has gone longer than I intended, so I'll close with a heartfelt thanks to everyone who has followed me, commented, and offered support, kindness and critique. I would have given up long ago without you. I am blessed to have fallen in with such a wonderful crowd.

7 comments:

  1. Congrats on your success, I wish you all the best of luck.
    Yvonne.

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  2. Sometimes good things happen to those that wait. Congrats!

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  3. Thanks for the blog love. I always appreciate discovering new readers and their blogs. Congratulations on your acceptances and best of luck with your writing endeavors.

    http://rantersbox.blogspot.com/

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  4. Congrats on the great news. I did not get a chance to read the story so please e-mail it to me when it's completed. My e-mail address is on my blog.

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  5. Hi,

    I found you through the Weekend Creation Blog Hop. I write specualtive fiction and my blog is dedicated to writing and books.

    Nice to meet ya!

    -Nora
    http://norabpeevy.blogspot.com/

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  6. Congrats Li - great news and I can't wait to read the whole story!
    Lxxx

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  7. I am sooo glad I found your blog, or I think you found mine, either way, I'm glad we've connected. I thoroughly love reading your blog, your stories are deliciously twisted. I never quite know what to expect. I would love to read your revised story. I will definitely continue to visit your blog regularly. Have a wonderful and creative weekend.

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