Hi everyone! I know it’s been a while. Thanks for bearing with me through infrequent blogs and newsletters.
Truth be told, ever since attending the Atlanta Writer’s Conference last November, I’ve been at a creative standstill. Those of you who receive my newsletter know that I got material requested from an editor at Tor Books—which still floors me to say. I rode that high for a week—still not completely sure if it was real—but now it’s been over five months with no word back, and I’m falling apart a little.
Still, I have good news to report. Last Thursday, I received my first-ever author credential and my first fiction publication!
Some time ago, I picked up an issue of F(r)iction’s literary magazine at a Barnes & Noble. It stood out to me because it was in full color—front to back! It was beautiful. Art and writing together? I was in heaven. It has always been a dream to be published in their literary magazine.
Last week, I decided to submit to their weekly Dually Noted series to the prompt, “God sends out a letter of resignation.” This is a weekly contest they do where they choose the best of the submissions they’ve received to post to their online blog. And boy, oh, boy when I saw that email last Thursday night…
It’s been so long since the conference (and subsequently, two other submissions to F(r)iction’s print magazine) that I was starting to lose hope. I felt like it—publication of any form but on my own—was never going to happen.
Getting the acceptance note for my piece “With Resignation” was unreal. It felt like there were hundreds of crystals shimmering under my skin, like chills but better. I had to read the email a few times before I believed it; I kept thinking maybe I missed a word somewhere that said they were rejecting it.
Some of you are familiar with my non-fiction articles that have been published in my local newspaper, The News Leader, but this is a whole new level for me. For one, this is my first fiction publication. Secondly, this was the first time where my writing had to speak for itself in its quality. It gave me a new sense of hope for my writing career.
After twelve years of writing and nine years of pursuing writing as a career, this was a turning point for me. It finally feels somewhat achievable. Someone who doesn’t know me has validated my writing—and that’s an incredible feeling! (Something only an artist can say, haha!)
Another reason this is so huge is because it’s what agents and editors look for in an author’s bio. In the writing world, you must have an author bio that includes the things that you’ve accomplished. F(r)iction Magazine has published authors like Jeff Vandermeer (Annihilation), Christopher Moore (Lamb—aka my favorite book), Holly Black (The Cruel Prince trilogy), and Rebecca Roanhorse (Black Sun, Tread of Angels). To be published by the same magazine that has published these names means a lot in the publishing world!
I can’t wait to rewrite my author bio!
So, without further ado, please check out my first-ever fiction publication and author cred here: https://frictionlit.org/with-resignation/