On The Rolling Tides

Hello again + Thoughts on publishing + A major milestone

A picture from December’s trip since I took exactly zero pictures of the ocean this trip. That is an unheard of first for me, but I was determined to be in the moment this trip. I’d say I succeeded.

Hello again!

It has been a wonderful few weeks away, though I missed the community here on Substack. Over these last few weeks, I’ve been focusing on a writing challenge and enjoying a family vacation at the beach. There is something about stepping away from the usual routine that both discombobulates and invigorates me- Much like how the rolling tides can both tumble and refresh you.

Below, I’ll share some details of my writing progress, family fun, and exciting news. Please scroll to the bottom to participate in a poll about what you’d like to see more of here at The Splendid Mess.

Writing Challenge

I spent the first two weeks of this break focused on writing a children’s book. As many of you know, I participated in a round table event with an editor about a month ago. She quite politely shredded the manuscript I put forward. She loved the writing but suggested I rewrite the story with a completely different premise. Challenge accepted.

In a stroke of luck, she said she would accept submissions from the roundtable participants until the end of July. Knowing how many manuscripts must cross her desk each day, I was determined to have a brand new story (that she and I had brainstormed during the roundtable) in her inbox within two weeks of the roundtable.

As a master procrastinator, I thrive under a close deadline. Draft after draft was written, edited, and tweaked. When I had a manuscript I was happy with, I moved on to crafting the perfect query letter. Again, draft after draft was written, edited, and tweaked.

When everything was as polished as I was able/willing to make it, I drafted an email, attached files, and hovered over the send button. It’s funny how exhilarating and terrifying pressing a simple button can become. After a deep breath and a nervous laugh I clicked the button and off it went. I haven’t heard back from her yet, but it’s still early. The waiting game is in full swing.

5 Things I’ve Learned Through This Roundtable/Submission Process

1. You cannot take yourself too seriously. It closes you off to constructive criticism.

2. If you want to be a published writer, you need to realize that writing that way is a business. Be prepared to alter your text to sell. Sometimes these may be minor, easy changes. Other times, it will mean completely scrapping a story and starting over.

3. Learn to recycle stories. From one manuscript that I had to scrap I was able to glean 6 new storylines and 1 possible series. Just because the manuscript was destined for the trash does not mean that individual themes or ideas couldn’t be salvaged.

4. When seeking publication, consider the process like an ocean with tides rolling out and coming in. You send a story out, it gets rejected and comes back to you. You have two choices. You can walk away, or, you can send it back out on the next tide. My suggestion: Send it back out, pull up your beach chair, grab a notebook, and start writing more while you wait for the tides to change. Keep sending it out as many times as it takes. Eventually, a treasure will wash up.

5. Prepare yourself to face your inner critic. At some point in the whole writing/editing/submitting process, you will stand toe-to-toe with the most aggressive, vicious, and terrifying critic ever — yourself. On the one hand, it’s good to know that no one can say anything meaner to you than you’ve already said to yourself. On the other hand, this critic can shut you down. Hardcore. So, prepare yourself. Write a speech, pick a song to play, choose a writing prompt to follow, memorize an affirmation to repeat— pick something that will help you get through that moment because it will come. Personally, I prefer the speech.

Sand Dollars and Facing Fears

The ocean is my happy spot. It’s where I feel the most grounded and focused. My youngest daughter did not share my feelings. She was terrified of the ocean, but on this trip, something amazing happened— she conquered her fear.

On the last day of our trip, my in-laws took us out on a pontoon boat. Yes, pontoon boats can handle the ocean water. I didn’t know that either. We went for a long ride to a shallow cove and anchored. My husband got in the water, and I handed him our daughter who immediately started screaming. The water was choppy, but it was shallow. Then, she floated with Nana for a while on an innertube. I dug sand dollars out of the sand with my toes and showed her the little prickles around the sides. She decided she wanted Mama and held her close so she could enjoy the shade from my sunhat. We swayed in the waves, sang songs, and looked at more sand dollars (they were everywhere!).

Somewhere amongst these cuddles and new discoveries, she stopped crying and began enjoying. On the ride home, she stood at the bow of the boat and laughed at the spray and rocking of the waves. It was a complete transformation.

Fears are like that, though. They ebb and flow and roll just like tides. So jump on a metaphorical boat and test the waters, distract yourself with some metaphorical sand dollars, and overcome that fear. Who knows what treasure or new lands you may discover.

From fearful to fascinated.

A Major Milestone

While on vacation, I received an email notifying me that The Splendid Mess had reached a major milestone- We are now 100 subscribers strong! That is a 100% increase from 11 months ago. I am thrilled and humbled to know that 100 of you are out there reading this post. Thank you for being here and making this such a supportive and fun community. I can’t wait to see The Splendid Mess continue to grow and evolve throughout this next year. Please participate in the poll below to help me formulate some new ideas for this publication. Thank you again!

What have you been up to these past few weeks? What fears are you facing? What accomplishments are you celebrating? What are you working on? What are you contemplating?

I look forward to hearing from you. As always, if you’d rather, you can send me an email at amanda.clark@amandaclarkbooks.com.

---

If you enjoyed this post, please consider hitting the ❤️ button and sharing it with everyone you know. Your likes, shares and comments not only make my day, they also help more people discover The Splendid Mess. Thank you!