Dear Fans of the Kangaroo, I have returned with a renewed sense of optimism. The last few days have involved the wrapping up of the semester and tonight will be the tying of the bow that is graduation. I'll have continued work over the summer for the reading series and for the academic journal that I edit, but all of this is manageable. What I'm looking at now is six weeks of what should be fairly steady writing time. I resolve to make the most of it as July will bring two brief excursions out of state with family and friends and August the return to school.
Today, I felt a settling into that summer pace, that realization that there is no need to rush, that much may be accomplished in the day that stretches out before me. So, I spent a good chunk of today with the book I'm still set on seeing published, In a World Made of Such Weather as This. Yep, I'm back to that long-winded title. It's what sticks to my heart. I spent a good bit of time yesterday reading it through and attempting to be critical of the order and presentation of the poems. I actually added back in four poems that I'd taken out a year ago, but the rest held together well. For what it's worth, this is the book as I see it.
Coming to the desk today, I did another read through and then began the task of reading submission guidelines and following them for five presses that are either in the midst of contests or reading periods. Of the five, three allowed me to submit online (wahoo!), one required the mailing of the complete manuscript, and one a query with a ten page sample. The last is the hardest of all, as it requires being able to capture the book in one or two sentences and to pick the ten poems that might stand out the most and also represent the arc of the book. While it is the hardest, it is also quite rewarding and helpful.
So, I send you off, beleaguered manuscript, into the fray once more. May you find your way to the top of the pile somewhere, somehow.
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| how today feels, weather-wise (click for link) |
6 comments:
Best wishes with your manuscript and your whole wonderful summer!
Thanks, K!
Hoping for the best with your manuscript! Have you considered sending it to Press 53? They publish some nice books and are excellent people to work with when publishing.
Thanks, T. They are on my list for research. I'll be looking into them and a few other this week. :) I appreciate the recommendation from someone I trust.
Hooray for persistence. Hoping for the best for your manuscript. And happy summer!
Thanks, M. Right back at you!
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