WHERE MY SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS COLLIDED WITH CONTESTS

By Shannon Taylor Vannatter

I tend to go backward about things in life. Here are just a few of my reverse tendencies:

Having our first baby at thirty-six, sixteen and a half years into our marriage.

Writing three books and submitting them before ever attending a conference.

Writing three books and submitting them before ever joining a writers’ group.
.That’s right, I decided to write a book, so I just did. Afterward, my local librarian steered me toward a market guide. From there, I learned how to write queries and proposals, well I thought I’d learned. My first proposal had dialogue in the synopsis and I’m certain it gave at least fifty-two editors a good laugh.

But, I got two rejection letters with handwritten notes saying I had a great plot, I just needed to attend conferences and learn to write. Learn to write? Why attend conferences when I can just write? So, I wrote two more books and actually got one Print on Demand published.

I thought I had made it. And in all honesty, I finally attended my first conference so I could be a big dog. A big published dog. And sure enough, I was a big dog. No one else at the conference was published, other than the speakers.

I was queen for a day and to top it off, the conference hosted several contests for essays and short stories. I won two first place awards. Oh, I’m telling you, I had arrived and was certain publishers would fight over my books.

After the book came out, reality sank in. Bookstores didn’t buy my 171 page, $21.95 paperback book. I had to pay $15.95 for each copy and since I’d just had a baby and quit my job to be a stay-at-home-mom, I couldn’t afford many copies. So, I sold a rousing 178 copies of my very badly written, unedited book. With those rousing numbers, the publisher rejected my sequel even though the book had a cliff-hanger ending.

About that time, my husband/preacher decided to do something shifty. He only does shifty things for me, mind you. He went to a bookstore, which of course did not carry my book and ordered it. The shifty part: he had no intention of buying it. Knowing the book would eventually be put on the shelf, he hoped eventually somebody would shell out big bucks to buy it.

But my book wasn’t even in their system. However, the clerk told him they had another title by that author. Huh?

This is how we found out that another Print on Demand company had published the first very badly written book I ever wrote. We got a lawyer, who mentioned plagiarism and big money. But I didn’t want big money, I just wanted the publisher to stop publishing my book and pay me the piddly royalties he owed me from the piddly three books he sold.

The lawyer sent the publisher a cease and desist letter: requesting he stop publishing my book and pay me my cut. It got really ugly with the publisher, who sent me a really nasty, un-Christian-like e-mail, swore he didn’t publish the book, and finally admitted, “It accidentally got loose in his system.” Huh?

I never did get my royalties, but the book is out of print, unless Amazon digs it up for the Kindle.

Finally, I decided all of this was getting me nowhere fast. Maybe joining a writers’ group, attending more conferences, and learning to write might not be such a bad idea.

Through local groups and conferences, I learned the basics and wracked up a lot more awards. The problem with local contests is: A lot of beginning writers enter these contests. You get no feedback. The judges don’t say, “This stinks, but it stinks less than the other entries, so you win.” I know this, because at this point, I’ve judged a few local contests. Don’t get me wrong, there were some good entries, but in one contest, I picked the least stinkiest entry.

Finally, in 2005, I discovered ACFW. The first time I attended the conference, I learned that I knew nothing about publishable writing. ACFW took me to the next level and I’ve attended every year since, but didn’t join until 2008. You know—that backward thing.

Once I finally joined, I also joined a critique group, which took me to the next level.

It was somewhere along that point when I began entering RWA National contests and ACFW’s Genesis. In all, I entered five contests and placed second in two RWA’s. One second place finalist even went to a big-time editor, who said I’d started the story in the wrong place.

The feedback I received from the judges in these contests was invaluable. And though I can’t say that a contest got me published, I can say the judge’s comments got me to the next level and publishers really started to take notice after my two second place wins.

A mere two years later, which seems like at least ten, I’m awaiting the publication of my first traditionally published book, White Roses. Much of the tweaking I did to get it publishable came from judge’s comments.

How many levels are there in writing? Beats me, I’m still learning. Just ask my very, incredibly, patient editor. My advice if you’re pre-pubbed: Don’t do what I did, unless you want to take nine years to get published.

Instead:
 Join at least one local writers’ group. Two or three if you can afford the time.
 Attend local conferences, as many as you can afford and enter the contests. Sometimes you can get your conference fee back in contest wins.
 Join ACFW or a large national group geared toward your genre or niche. If the national organization of your choice sets up critique groups, join one or shop for other writers who would like to form one.
 Attend ACFW or a large national conference geared toward your genre or niche. If you can’t afford it, look into buying the conference CD’s.
 Enter national contests with guaranteed feedback from the judges. Even better if the final judge is an editor you’re targeting.

Even if you do all these things, without wasting four years chasing your tail, like I did, it may still take nine years. Or longer. But take heart, if you keep learning, honing, and submitting, eventually editors will notice. With enough persistence + patience, you’ll learn that last nugget that will help you transform your writing to publishable.

I’m giving away a free copy of White Roses.

Leave a comment to get your name in the drawing.

A little bit about

White Roses

Pastor Grayson Sterling loves his wife. The problem is, Sara was killed by a hit-and-run driver two years ago. Grayson knows he needs to move on, that the continuing depth of his grief is not healthy for him or his young son. Desperate, he convinces his church to hire Mark Welch as associate pastor to relieve him of some of his load. When Adrea Welch arrives at his church with her brother, Grayson cannot deny his attraction to her.

For years, florist Adrea Welch has been artfully arranging white roses for Sara Sterling. Now those flowers are carried to the cemetery by a faithful, grieving husband. How can Adrea be so attracted to a man still devoted to his dead wife? When secrets from Adrea’s past collide with their budding relationship, both she and Grayson must learn to lean onGod’s abiding wisdom.

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