Do You Have a Story to Tell? Practical Tips to Launch a Writing Practice that Leads to Publication

One of the frequent questions I get as an author is, “How did you get started?” My first publication appeared in a medical software journal a couple decades ago. It reads dry and boring but gives the software a great review. (This hyperlink directs you to a better piece). The software magazine editor got exactly what they asked for, and I earned zero dollars for it. When I questioned the lack of consideration or payment for my time, the response was, “You’ve got to start somewhere.”

Since I left my job as a nurse and turned to writing full-time, friends and acquaintances often suggest clever and interesting plot ideas, with a question attached: “Could you write this for me?” My answer is always no. Ghostwriters do a fine job of translating stories, but I am not interested in ghostwriting. I already have a huge backlist of writing projects ahead of me.

In my opinion, you are the only one who knows what the characters in your short story think and do in contrast to their interior thoughts. With creative non-fiction, it’s you who has experienced the emotion at seeing a butterfly sip nectar or the joy you felt watching a double rainbow cross a clear sky. And only you can share the grief or pain you’ve experienced surrounding a poignant loss or a challenging diagnosis.

Many non-paying journals are happy to publish a variety of stories and essays, and they offer one way of sharing your work. Other venues compensate writers with hundreds of dollars for your efforts. Every publisher posts what are called “Writer’s Guidelines” which detail exactly the type of work they’re looking for, including word count, topics, and pay scale.

Here Are Some Tips to Get You Started

Write Your Story

Get the first draft down longhand on paper, on your phone, or in a document on your computer. You get extra points if you use a manual typewriter. I don’t use one, but I love looking at them. Don’t worry about any of the things you learned in English Composition class. You’ll have to rewrite it a few times at the least.

Then Read it To Yourself

Read your piece aloud and change the wording until you find it pleasing to your ear. Make sure it has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Correct any punctuation or sentence errors and cut words if necessary. And voila, you have a rough draft just for yourself to admire.

What Will Be the Nature of Your Work

Decide how you want to share this work. A private journal? A family collection for your grandchildren? Perhaps you’d like to get creative and use a service like Canva to illustrate the piece with photos or pictures. Multiple opportunities exist to reach a wider audience as well. Once you’re confident the story is polished, journals, magazines, websites, local newspapers, or contests abound. A special note for you: Editors are not looking for Artificial Intelligence (AI) generated stories, however, so steer clear of AI.

Take a Writing Class

Consider enrolling in a short story or a creative non-fiction class at your local community college or a library writing group and see what others think about your work. Listen to suggestions in ways it can grow. Sharing work makes you vulnerable but also turns you into a better writer. Everyone, even multipublished authors, experience shyness about others reading their compositions. It’s daunting but not everyone’s opinion is the correct one for your writing. Ultimately, you’re in charge of where and what form your creations take.

Read a Variety of Styles and Genres

Writers learn from reading others’ work. Find publications with similar stories to your own and create a wishlist of publication venues. Multiple resources pepper the internet. Two suggestions: try a website like Erika Dreyfus or Author’s Publish, run by writers who generously maintain such lists and share them freely.

It’s important to find a good match for your story. For example, if you’ve written a tale about fishing, you may want to look for a journal like Gray’s Sporting. Read a few issues of the journal or magazine and see if they compare in a similar format and tone to your own.

Academic journals, often associated with colleges and universities, abound. Some request particular themes or appeal to a specific demographic. For example, if writing about a life experience as an over sixty-year-old person, publications directed at similar aged readers will resonate (Why not try Sixty and Me?).

Follow Submission Instructions

Once you’ve identified your end point, follow directions from their submission instructions implicitly. Pay close attention to word limits and format. Each magazine makes their own rules and tells you what manner to reach them, like email or a submission service, to use. Keep in mind that many academic journals run solely on the engine of submission fees, charging from three to five dollars each.

That said, there are other media outlets that will consider your work free of charge. The steps in discovering them are time consuming but think of it as your due diligence. Keep a list of your favorites (I use an Excel spreadsheet) so you can refer to it in the future. A suggestion to streamline this process is to search for the name of the journal and “Writer’s Guidelines” and bookmark the page.

You Will Need Some Patience

After submission, there is generally a longer wait time than you expect. Some editors take weeks or months to respond while others respond within a day. Many will estimate on their website, though accuracy varies. It’s okay to submit to more than one publication too, termed a “simultaneous submission,” unless the instructions tell you specifically not to. If you agree to accept an offer, it is your responsibility to withdraw the manuscript from other publishers.

Rejections Will Come in Most Cases

You may get a terse note with a perfunctory rejection message, else you might receive a more thoughtful and kind refusal. Editors receive hundreds or thousands of manuscripts every month, and it is difficult to appease each writer’s feelings. Do your best to not take offense!

The rejection may come because they have accepted something similar and want more variety or because they seek a certain theme. And don’t let a rejection stop your determination to continue submitting to see your work in print or online. It takes time to develop the grace to accept that one’s writing might not be for everybody.

One of my stories was accepted in a prominent place after numerous rejections. I worked on the piece after the first wave of rejections came and solicited other writer and editor opinions on it too. Listening and applying changes that result from criticism is an important tool in the author’s toolbox.

Congratulations on an Acceptance!

What comes next? Your chest will lighten, you’ll fill with pride or gratitude, and your stomach may dip a little too. Enjoy all the feelings that arise. But wait, there’s more! Your article/essay/short story will likely be edited in a way to match the style of the magazine. The editor may change a line, cut a cute alliteration, or even switch character names on you.

Remember, you are the writer and you get to set your boundaries on how much your piece is altered. However, it does not mean you will win all the battles. The worst case is you cannot agree on edits and the piece is dropped. You can start the submission process over again. My best recommendation is to be open to professional edits if at all possible.

Rights Are Important

This is the legalese accompanying publication and who owns the piece after it’s published. In my opinion, the norm is that the publication is allowed the first right, or appearance in the journal, then, after a specific period of time, rights for further publication revert to the author. Basically, you let the publication borrow the writing for a designated time frame. If the case is different, talk to an experienced writer to really understand what the repercussions are. The legal guidelines can confuse even experienced writers.

Did You Write an Entire Book?

If you’ve written a full-length novel or memoir, a couple of hundred pages in length, please refer to this comprehensive article by author Kathy Arthurson. Kathy gives a thorough fleshing out of the publishing opportunities open to novelists and memoirists. By the way, congratulations on this accomplishment! Many people set out to write a book, but a small number are able to complete the task.

I hope this short list sends you in the right direction when considering your writerly hopes and dreams. Please let me know if any of the steps mentioned here are helpful and if you have others that I’ve skipped over. Remember, you’ve got to start somewhere!

Let’s Have a Discussion:

Have you written a short story that you’d like to share with the world? What about an essay describing a personal experience that others can learn from? Drop a line here with your questions and I’ll clarify anything I can. Happy to help!