Your submission has been sent.
The best way to get over rejection? Submit something else!
Today has been a write old day for sure, before lunch I wrote 4 poems for tonight’s performance in the Gallery 
at The KAF Re-Launch event, after lunch and a little rest I have written and submitted 5 Haikus for Cat Lovers.
Fingers crossed!
I have recently received another rejection for the Journey poems I submitted for Popshots Magazine, just 6 days ago.
Rejections are fine, they are part of everyone’s lives, especially artists. I started this blog last year to track my life as a writer, that includes ups and downs. We hear so much about writing successes without knowing about the years of trying or failures that came before. It is tempting to keep my rejection slips secret, but I don’t need to … I know that the material is rejected on all sorts of criteria and just because the work was wrong for publication this time, doesn’t mean it will always be wrong for somewhere else or that you can’t write new material for a publication who have already rejected you.
I have realised over the past few months that these journals do tend to publish already established artists, their names will help sell issue. I do believe that at some point success will be mine, I would love to work on my own pamphlet soon and will need some recent publication success to entice publishers to risk it! I may produce my own small collection towards the end of the year anyway. (Even if it is just for myself.)
So I am taking in the air down on Rejection Avenue and it smells as if there is possibility there.
NEXT STEPS;
‘It’s not you, it’s me’ actually might work on your mind-set…. it’s not your poetry it’s our publishing house!
You have not fallen down, so just blow the dust off your pen and try again. 
And a busy one at that. My work alarm was still set, so I was awake about an hour before I had planned. This did mean that I got an early start, which is probably a good thing as I have to write 3 poems about Art and get them printed off before 4pm for the KAF Creative Relaunch this evening.
Writing under pressure about a specific subject or particular commission is one of the hardest things to do.
Right now I have my giant mug of coffee and am seeking inspiration. I have devoured my Degas book and Duchamp and managed to write 5 unconnected lines… it’s a start…. this has taken half an hour. I am now online and looking for other poems about Art to read for ideas and inspiration. I plan to have my poems written by lunchtime, so I can speedily digest them and still allow for some editing time later before emailing them off and printing them before the 4pm deadline.
I’d cross my fingers but I need to type.
Last night I prepared my list of TO DO for today, I haven’t had the pleasure of a writing day for over 2 weeks and that day was an interview and a Stanza meeting, so it didn’t actually involve any writing time, the day before was spent performing at Poetry For Lunch so the last time I slipped into my writing skin was the 6th January! No wonder I was feeling so much like Eeyore!
I had lots of other things I hoped to get checked off today, I realise now some of which will have to wait until the weekend. I have been working all week so far and was out Wednesday performing at 42, the other free time I have mainly spent sleeping.
I missed a gig at the Bristol Pear last night which would have been exceptional. In the end, after work, I was far too tired. Getting home before 6 and finding myself asleep until 8 meant I missed the start anyway.
Writers’ Bloc’s much-loved, raucous performance night is back!
Our second Grizzly Pear headliner will be the wonderful poet, genius behind Hit the Ode, Apples and Snakes West Midlands co-ordinator and all round good guy, Bohdan Piasecki.
I seem to have missed all sorts of wonderful events this month, Pigeon Park Press Winter’s Stories is another one I missed due to double bookings. What I haven’t missed because of clashing dates (Poetry Jam, Word Up, Poetry Bites, The Ort, Pigeon Park) I have missed due to overwork, tiredness or actual sleeping! The gig list for January was epic and for those working in the field a great start to the new year after having most of December off…. but for most of us who have a day job too – just too much to go to! It hasn’t helped that I have spent the past fortnight (apart from today) working full time (and I have another full-ish week next week) my 2 day writing work balance plan has gone out the window – but then again I had 2 weeks in December with no work and no income, so the money will plug a hole and pay for some of Christmas, keep us in heating and food etc. etc.
February’s schedule looks a lot cleaner with less than 10 events planned so far AND a whole blissful week off AND my biggest gig highlight so far (4 months in) I am finally brave enough to ‘Hit the Ode’! Also we have Mr G’s birthday, Valentine’s Day and my younger brother’s birthday to celebrate too!
Tonight’s event is a re-launch party – KAF Creatives are rebranding and have organised an event complete with music, poetry and art. This is the 1st of 2 gallery based bookings.
P R O G R A M M E
Upstairs in Gallery
7.30 – Launch of Exhibition FALL IN LOVE WITH CREATIVITY
8.00 – 9.30 Spoken word and acoustic music
Downstairs
9.30 – 9.45 THE LAUNCH! with drumming
9.45 – Close – Live Music with Time of the Mouth & we Are Fenton
Looks to be a great evening!
I also have a submission deadline today for some Haiku poetry & photography. I will look to do that after my KAF set is complete. Nothing like a day OFF is there! 😉
In celebration of the Chinese New Year!
Originally posted on Photogiraffe Live Art:
“I left university with no idea what I was supposed to do as a career, and completely confused about how to make a living. I think my vision had been clouded by the idea that you have to get an academic degree in order to then get a 'proper'…
Tonight I have missed 2 events in the city which ideally I would have liked to attend – although with clashing times and venues I would have had to choose one or the other.
I will update this thread about both on Friday when I have some much needed time off work to write etc.
Instead I have spent the evening catching up with writing tasks & preparing for my set tomorrow night.
Congratulations to Jo Bell (1st Prize), Dorothy Coventon (2nd), Simon Pomery (3rd) –and all the shortlisted poets.
You can read the winning entries on the Charles Causley Poetry Blog. You can also ‘follow’ and keep up to date with any competition news for 2014. Who knows maybe next year it could be you (or me!) 🙂
You can also listen to Jo Bell reading The Icicle Garden here on SoundCloud.
The Charles Causley Trust is delighted to announce the winners of the first ever Charles Causley Poetry Competition, in aid of the continuing project to renovate the late poet’s house in Launceston, Cornwall and supporting an on-going programme of Writing Residencies and Literature events.
The competition closed in November 2013, and offered a top prize of £3000 with runners up prizes of £500 and £100. Sir Andrew Motion judged the competition and presentation to the winners by Sir Andrew was held on 28th January 2014.
• 1st Prize of £3000 was awarded to Jo Bell for ‘The Icicle Garden’
• 2nd Prize of £500 was awarded to Dorothy Coventon for ‘The River Trevillet’
• 3rd Prize of £100 was awarded to Simon Pomery for ‘Love Poem to Black Pudding’
To read the winning poems click here
Shortlisting, Sir Andrew also highly commended the following poems:
• Once in Wapping’ by
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I used to love stock taking at work – back in the day… nowadays my stock taking feels completely different. It is still a fairly isolating and empowering experience when ‘taking stock’ of the wider picture. This evening the stock taking was an admin exercise.
I have used all writing time available (short supply today) making sure I am up to date with opportunities and writing. I haven’t had time to delve into emails or write new material. I have scheduled at least 4 hours tomorrow (as long as I can stay awake after work) in this time I will plan and rehearse Wednesday’s set, continue to learn material off by heart, write new poems, work towards other submissions, catch up with small stones and 52 challenges and later in the week (Friday) I plan to spend some time catching up with Blogs in my reader. I want to feel connected again.
At the moment life is a busy whirl of work and poetry – loving it this way, but have to take rest and relaxation over the internet or writing in the few hours I have to live in before bedtime! February isn’t as hectic – the New Year was intentionally planned to flurry – although having said that I took on an extra week of work!
Sometimes you write and others time you have to research opportunities for writing. Both take time, both need commitment.
I have been thinking about today’s deadline all week, thinking was as close as I got. I haven’t been on the laptop since Wednesday.
The theme was journeys, which has been covered in week 2 of Jo Bell’s 52 project, I only needed another 2 poems and I am sure I have written plenty over the year, but I actually set fingers to the keyboard and wrote and edited another 2 short poems today. I have submitted 3 poems and now wait with baited breath!
This week I had been booked for just 3 days work, I have planned to go to 4 performance events Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. In the end I was booked for the full week and decided that I had bitten off more than I could chew.
At the end of my first day of work, I knew I would be in bed before 10, and so I decided not to go to the open mic. Tuesday I had been booked for an 8 minute slot in Ludlow, Wednesday I had been booked for a 5 minute set and Friday was another open mic, which was several counties away, although for me just a half hours drive to a friends house for a lift. By the time I got to Friday I knew I had no energy left and let go off the idea of attending the open mic. I was asleep by 7.
It is really important to keep an eye on energy levels and how much is too much, being busy is good, but it is meant to be enjoyable.
I am aware that this month I have hammered many events to find out where I want to perform regularly. Focus is a conversation I had this week with a poetry friend.
Here is where I am …….. Here is where I want to be……………….. this is what I need to do to get there………
Does performing all these regional gigs help? Well, yes. For rehearsing performance quality, for connecting to people, finding audience, building a reputation, making contacts, enjoying myself, sharing my work, finding what fits/ suits me.
I didn’t think much about doing 2-3 events a week, I know already that my diary for February is not as brutal and that old saying about successful people never saying they wish they’d slept more….
However, it was pointed out that I may be over-doing it with work as well. I felt this a bit myself, that’s why 4 gigs became just 2. I plan to attend the one I missed in Burton later in the year, March is the next time I have availability.
I also needed to balance some ACTUAL writing this week and have managed 3 new poems since Thursday. I have also submitted 3 new poems for publication. It has been a busy week. There was a writer’s network meeting that I missed this afternoon and there is a story telling event in the city tomorrow night which I have also decided to miss.
Next week I have 4 days of work and 3 events, 42 on Wednesday night, where I will be sharing some darker poems. Friday night is a Creative Re-launch for KAF and I will be performing a set in the gallery. I need to write new material suitable for the event this week. Sunday afternoon is a relaxed affair at the Ort, where I will be sharing some of my poetry. I also have the action plan to complete for January with some more work for submission.
I can barely believe it is nearly the end of the month already.
Balance
awritersfountain 