My Chances of Getting Published Are One In A Thousand, But I Choose To Focus On The One

My Chances of Getting Published Are One In A Thousand, But I Choose To Focus On The One

Hi folks! It’s been a whole month since I last posted on here. I apologize for the lack of blog posts, but I’ve been feeling a bit discouraged lately as a writer. I’ve gotten three rejections in a row for my SFF work as a newbie writer. On the bright side, I’ve managed to get…

Latonya P.

November 28, 2017

2–3 minutes

doctor who, pop culture, rejection, sci-fi, writing

Back in October, I happily celebrated Black Speculative Fiction month because I managed to tell my Imposter’s Syndrome to shut up and finish my first fantasy short fiction. As of right now, it hasn’t been accepted anywhere. Yet the fact that I managed to finish it after dealing with Imposter’s Syndrome for a year is a victory.

Besides being published in Scribes of Nyota and finishing my first fantasy short fiction, I also wrote my second speculative fiction poem. I wrote and finished it a couple of weeks after I finished my first piece of short fiction, so that is another victory. As with my story, I’ve been trying to get it published.

All in all, I’ve had more losses than victories. I’ve won two out of five rounds in this game of getting published, if you’re keeping score. Part of me feels discouraged, but a part of me really wants to keep writing and submitting. The writing part is especially important, as I have a nasty habit of procrastinating as a creative writer when something about the process bothers me.

In times like this, I rely on pop culture to inspire me, especially SFF in any shape or form. In this case, I’m reminded of the sci-fi series Doctor Who and a quote from my favorite Doctor, the 12th Doctor:

“Your chances of survival are about one in a thousand. So here’s what you do. You forget the thousand, and you concentrate on the one.”

Although it can feel like my chances of finishing a piece or getting a piece published is one in a thousand, I choose to focus on the one. If I didn’t, the words I haven’t written would be clogging up inside me and the words I haven’t submitted would be buzzing in my head like flies.

I choose to focus on one chance, because continually giving yourself a chance as a writer is better than giving up on yourself.

3 responses to “My Chances of Getting Published Are One In A Thousand, But I Choose To Focus On The One”

alicegristle

November 29, 2017 at 6:54 am

Yes! That’s totally it! I’m with you one hundred per cent. When you have a goal, you can’t consider the odds – all they’ll do is discourage you.

Also, this is one of my pet topics, one on which I’m currently doing informal research. What kinds of emotions hamper our writing? What do we do with the anxiety, fear, depression, hopelessness, and their kin, who pop up when we fail and fail again? And how do we deal with them, to be able to fail better in the future?

I’d be so chuffed if you could share with me a trick or two you have (or wish you had) in dealing with your emotional obstacles! In addition to seeking solace and inspiration in pop culture, of course – that’s a lovely method!

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1. Latonya P.
  
  November 29, 2017 at 10:15 pm
  
  Hi Alice, thank you for reading and commenting! Right now, my method for getting past emotional obstacles is reading. Sometimes, reading a good SFF story or an essay on the craft can encourage you to write again.
  
  Another method I have is listening to music that I feel might inspire me or relax me enough to write. In fact, I usually listen to music when I write to get the creative juices flowing.
  
  A method I’m still learning is cheering myself on as a writer. It can be hard to believe in yourself when you are just starting out.
  
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  1. alicegristle
    
    November 30, 2017 at 5:27 am
    
    Great methods! Encouraging self-talk is an excellent skill, and though it might take time to develop, I believe it’s worth it.
    
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