Letter from the Editor – by Frank Larnerd

Currently I am reading through submissions for my newest anthology, “Strange Critters: Unusual Creatures of Appalachia.” A few of the submissions have been bad, some have been rather good, and some have been fantastic.

No matter where you’re submitting your stories, here are 10 things that will help you get your story out of the slush pile and into print.

10. Follow the Guidelines – Guidelines are important tools crafted by publishers and editors to insure that submissions have a unity in their theme, length, and content. Not following the guidelines is like telling the editor you know what’s better for the anthology than they do. Using odd formats and fonts only shows that you can’t be trusted follow simple instructions.

9. Be Careful when Submitting Trunk Stories – Sometimes you have a story – that with a few adjustments might be the perfect submission. Be careful that you are not sending out a story just because you have one, rather only send out something that really fits the required guidelines. Your story might be great, but if it doesn’t match the guidelines, you’re wasting your time and the editor’s.

8. Watch Your Mistakes – Proofread your story. A certain amount of mistakes is understandable, but don’t have so many that an editor stops reading your story and focuses on looking for errors.

7. Do Your Research – Don’t know the diet of east Florida pelicans? Use the internet! There is no reason not to have a passing knowledge for your writing subjects. Watch some documentaries, read some articles, or listen to some lectures. The little details you find during research will give your stories authenticity and credibility.

6. Write Outside the Box – Do something different. Imagine what kinds of stories the editor is receiving and find a way to break away from the normal submission mold. Consider using a different time period, tone, or characters from the standard submissions. The more that you can stand apart, the better off you’ll be.

5. Setting – Your setting should be another character in your story. Every place has a history and a uniqueness all its own. Find, or craft settings that spark the imagination and lure readers into waiting more.

4. Rewrite – Give your story the attention it deserves. Polish it and perfect it, until it gleams. Don’t settle with a first draft, take the time to make your story as good as it can possibly be.

3. Craft Connectedness – Resolve your story in a way that relates to the characters and their goals. Great stories come back on themselves like a serpent eating it’s own tale.

2. Have Characters – Characters have to have real lives, flaws and desires. Make your characters should be more than a name and an occupation. Give them backgrounds, personalities, and troubles… and they’ll supply you with plenty of story.

1. Build on Drama – Everyone of us has real problems: money, sickness, shame, fear. Give your characters real drama as part of the story. A vampire chasing someone through the woods is boring, but a vampire chasing someone searching for baby formula during a hurricane is much more interesting. Pile on real human drama and you’ll have a much more readable story.

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or check out my website at www.franklarnerd.com

Finding Your Own Voice

This Post by Gayle M. Irwin

I greatly enjoy music. Starting back in the ’60s and ’70s, pop and rock were tunes I relished, then in college I graduated to “new country”. Afterwards, I mixed classical and jazz. Now, I’ve settled into Christian contemporary and Celtic instrumental. I sang in choir both in college and at church, though I kept my tones low and simply followed those beside me. I may enjoy music, but I’m not good at it, unlike my husband, who sings tenor in his barbershop chorus and the church choir.

Music is also part of our television viewing. In decades past, we had variety shows and American Bandstand. These days, we have American Idol and The Voice, among many other reality-type shows, as well as the Grammys, Academy of Country Music and other awards shows. People revere music and other entertainers, sometimes to a scary fault. They copy hairstyles and clothing of those regarded as better than themselves, and oftentimes try to imitate mannerisms as well as looks. We can get caught up in the fantasy of being like someone else – yet, we’re all made differently, we are all individuals, and we all have our own gifts and talents.

As writers, we, too, can long to be like authors we admire. The success and creativity of people such as J.K. Rowling, Stephen King, Janet Daily, Dean Koontz, Sidney Sheldon, and numerous others inspire us, sometimes to the point of thinking we should copy their writing style. Yet, every writer has his/her own voice – individuality allows each of us to write the genre, the characters, the scenes, THE STORY we feel compelled to write.

I write about what I know: dogs. I am inspired by dogs, either dogs with whom I’ve shared my life or dogs with whom I’ve helped rescue. Nature speaks to me; I desire to write about that inspiration. I’ve written books about dogs, and I’ve written magazine articles about wildlife. I am working on another dog book as well as a book about bison; through these works, I hope to inspire children and families to more greatly appreciate the creatures and environments of our planet, teaching them what nature (dogs, wildlife, the environment) has taught me – particularly lessons in courage and perseverance.

My blind dog, Sage, with whom I shared life for nearly 12 years, taught me many valuable lessons. I shared those lessons in book form and in person with children and families through speaking engagements and the works I developed: Sage’s Big Adventure; Sage Learns to Share; and Walking in Trust: Lessons Learned with My Blind Dog. Each of these works reflect true stories that incorporate respect, courage, faith, friendship, and endurance, among other character-building topics. My voice, my storytelling, helps the characters, which are real, to be even more real to those reading and listening to the stories. I desire to inspire, to encourage, to educate; that is my goal, and that is my voice.

Like those cast off the island in Survivor or whisked off the stage of American Idol, I may never “make it” like Ms. Rowling or Mr. King; however, by staying true to my own voice, I can accomplish my goal: to encourage and educate readers, and ultimately, to be a catalyst for compassion and respect for both humans and animals that share our world.

May you also be true to your unique voice and write the stories bubbling up within you, whether those stories are to entertain, to intrigue, to captivate, to inspire. Readers need writers, each unique in their work, speaking to hearts, minds, and souls. Find your own voice and share it with the world!

Gayle M. Irwin is the author of several dog books for children and adults, each using positive life lessons to encourage readers. Her own dogs serve as the characters in her stories. She is also a contributing writer to four editions of Chicken Soup for the Soul and has written articles for Creation Illustrated magazine. She is currently working on two more books geared toward children and families. Learn more at www.gaylemirwin.com.

Flawed Characters

This post is by Frank Larnerd

Last week, I was invited to speak at the Peer Publishing Panel at WVSU by Professor Cat Pleska. Cat teaches Writing for Publication as well as a plethora of English courses. Not only is Cat an amazing professor, but she’s also the former President of the West Virginia Writers Association and editor of “Fed from the Blade,” a collection of stories and poems by West Virginia writers.

I’m lucky that my story, “Garbageman Stan” is included in her anthology, but we’ll get to that in a second.

I joined my fellow students Betsy Rayvenn Allen and Aaron Morris on the panel. Betsy is a passionate storyteller whose work has appeared in the Kanawha Review and Chillers issue 1.  She has a wonderful ability to combine personal experience with dramatic themes to create some fine unsettling horror. Aaron is an amazing poet and writer whose creations have appeared in the Kanawha Review as well as numerous poetry publications. His incredible prose has an amazing ability to instantly draw you in to its literary landscapes and leave you pleading for more.

Both of them are multiple award winning writers. I’m lucky enough to call them both friends.

The three of us were asked to introduce ourselves and tell a little bit about publishing history. After that, Cat opened up the discussion to questions from the class.

We were asked some really interesting questions: What does it feel like to be published? How do you deal with rejections? Where do you find places to send your stories?

The one that really got me came from the back of the room.

“How do you make good characters?”

For me, good characters are complex characters. You and everyone you know is complex. We are all filled with rich history, epic struggles, and inner strengths. But, we are also all flawed.

No one is perfect and neither are your characters.

What would Captain Hook be without his missing hand? Would Richard III be as compelling without his deformities? Would Indiana Jones be as likeable without his fear of snakes?

Give your characters flaws; make them more human and the reader will find them more relatable. Adding flaws can provide your character with an interesting history and bring them come to life. It can also inspire you in new directions you might not have considered.

For my story, “Garbageman Stan,” I made sure to give my characters plenty of flaws. The title character suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder. For him, everything has a proper place; the problems come when he encounters things that have no order to them. Adding to Stan’s flaws, I made him an Iraq war vet with PTSD and crippled with grief over the unexpected loss of his mother.

All these flaws propelled my story along. They gave my character purpose and history, but more importantly they made the character.

Our flaws are part of us. They make us who we are. They might be ugly or unpleasant, but they make for great character.

Check out my flaws at www.franklarnerd.com

Read Stan’s adventure at http://www.woodlandpress.com/book/fiction/fed-from%E2%80%88the%E2%80%88blade

Or become my friend and see them first hand at www.facebook.com/flarnerd