As I prepare to leave About.com after five+ years of writing and editing this site, I've been reflecting on all the things I've learned -- from writing articles and blog posts and, more importantly, from comments and messages contributed by all of you. For my last post, I wanted to share some of these lessons, the things that have come to seem most important about the writing life.

Humility: We all make mistakes, and it takes guts to let other people see them. Don't be afraid to join a writing group, take a class, or post work on the forum. I was consistently impressed with the people who shared work in the monthly challenges: they understood that getting feedback is more important than any temporary fear or discomfort. It's a necessary part of becoming a better writer.

Writing Is Hard: I'm not saying it's always hard, but if you strive for excellence, there will be times when it is. For instance, it's hard to revise a novel for the third or fourth (or fifth) time. It's hard to get up early on a cold morning to write, or to head to a cafe when coworkers are going out for drinks. It's hard to be rejected by magazines, journals, or agents. These things are hard for everyone.

It's Worth It: Moderating this site, I'm constantly reminded of why we do it: of the satisfaction in dreaming up new stories or characters; in hearing that something we wrote meant something to another person; in spending a quiet afternoon lost in a story. It's satisfying to feel that your life has a purpose. And it's an amazing way to connect with other people.

There Are So Many Supportive Writers Out There: You've all been so generous with your time and energy -- you've been the best part of a very good job. I've witnessed writers all over the world helping each other with advice or criticism, taking time to write comments in the blog or on the forum. On a personal level, I have hundreds of emails, printed out or saved on my hard drive, so I'll always remember the people I got to know through this site, or who took the time to reach out to me.

Thank all of you for some very stimulating years. Whoever replaces me is very lucky: they'll have the best readers in the world. Good luck to all of you on your writing. May you have all the satisfaction and rewards possible from this writing life of ours. I hope to continue seeing your names and your work as the years go on. Thank you for letting me be a part of it here!

What I've Learned About Writing originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Monday, January 31st, 2011 at 11:20:45.

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A Romanian writer named Mariana, who seeks a U.S. agent for her translated novel, wrote in with a question regarding journals and contests. Mariana has been applying to contests, but recently had an offer from a literary journal to publish one of her stories. She wonders if she should reject the offer, which offers pretty generous compensation, and apply to their contest instead. "This is not about money, but about finding an agent. And once published, the short story cannot be considered for a future contest," Mariana writes.

Because we've already explored the question of whether contests or regular journal submissions are generally better for writers, in this post I'm going to stick with Mariana's more specific question: what do agents pay more attention to? While it's true that agents may hear more about high-profile contests, agents do troll literary journals looking for new authors. If they're aware of a journal's prize, they probably also have a subscription to that journal. Several writers I know have been approached by agents after publishing stories in mid-sized literary journals, so I can say for a fact that this is one way to noticed. If the journal is paying what she told me they are, then it's a good journal, one agents are reading. While Mariana is right that a contest may bring an author more attention than a story publication, she has the publication offer in hand. Don't reject a firm offer for something that may or may not happen.

So in my opinion, if a reputable literary journal has offered her money for a story, she should accept it. It's an immediate opportunity to 1) get her work out there and 2) build a relationship with someone who obviously likes her work. The fact that they want to publish her story doesn't guarantee that she'll win the contest: The editor who likes her story may not be judging the contest, and even if they are, she may have lost their goodwill by rejecting their offer. My advice: publish the story now, add the publication credit to query letters, and then send another story to the contest.

Anyway, that's my opinion. Do you have firsthand experience with contests, journal submissions, or agents? What do you think Mariana should do?

Reader Question: Agents and Short Story Contests originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Thursday, January 27th, 2011 at 11:32:32.

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In my mind, this is the most important resolution, the bedrock for everything else, making it the perfect way to close our month on writing resolutions. After all, without carving out time to write, there's no novel to send to agents, or stories to submit to journals, or rough drafts to offer a writing community. But as we all know, finding time to write is easier said than done.

Last year, Teresa R. wrote in asking specifically about time management techniques, ways to make time to write. The most important time management skill for me is the ability to say "no," though it's something I have to continually work at. Sometimes I have a hard time separating out what I want to do and what I feel compelled to do. It makes it easy for people to take advantage of my time, so I've gotten good at knowing who my real friends are. So "yes" to the rare babysitting request from my best friend. "No" to coffee with the passive-aggressive frenemy. Instead, I haul my laptop to the coffee shop and work on my novel. (I keep the poem, "The Art of Disappearing" over my desk to remind myself that it's OK to say "no.")

Of course, it's not always so cut and dried. For that reason, I try to write first thing in the morning. It's a time when people don't generally ask you for favors, when the phone doesn't ring. It causes my paying work to extend a little later each day, and this means that I'm not always available for other things in the evening. I try to order my day around my writing; this way I don't have to think about making writing a priority: it's built into my life. Anyway, this is what I aim for.

Other people have suggested writing by hand to avoid the Web, or working in a place that doesn't have the Internet. Friends who write in the evenings turn off their phones while they work (could this be more important?). A poet I know negotiated with his employer to work longer every day and take Fridays off. A novelist friend worked out the same deal for Wednesday mornings.

But there are so many practical ways to make better use of time. How do you save time? Share your favorite time management tip below.

Resolution: Make Time to Write originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Monday, January 24th, 2011 at 16:25:01.

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As self-publishing becomes easier and more acceptable -- and traditional publishing contracts become ever more elusive -- many people are choosing to circumvent the traditional publishing industry. However, with so many companies to choose from, it's actually harder these days to tell the difference between legit presses and opportunistic ones.

I've long felt that the best way to help writers who are considering print-on-demand or self-publishing is to provide stories from people who have done it. If you've self-published, or used a print-on-demand service, please review the company you used. What did you think of your experience? What would you do differently? And if you're considering going this route, see what other writers have to say about the companies they've used.

Contribute Self-Publishing Stories originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Tuesday, January 18th, 2011 at 04:43:36.

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Last January, we solicited advice from readers on writing a novel as part of our New Year's resolution series, and I want to return to it now, as it follows our last post nicely. My advice for potential novel-writers was to be sure to have a conflict, if not an entire plot. And to set aside time on a regular basis to write. This could be an hour in the morning before you go to work, or three hours in a cafe every Monday evening. Just choose a time and make it sacred. Then sit down during that time and write.

This is what's worked for me, but I'm just one person, and the process is different for everyone. One thing I do know is that anyone who's determined can get a first draft down in a year (heck, thousands do it every November). Have you successfully written a novel? What advice can you offer people who are writing one in 2011? Add your insights below.

Resolution: Write a Novel originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Friday, January 14th, 2011 at 06:22:58.

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Writer Shelly Goodman Wright contributed an excellent piece in the forum on how she finished a novel and then "built a platform" for it before submitting to agents. Because she provides such a good example of how to go about this process, I wanted to share some of her advice here.

To start, she completed a full draft of her novel. Then she found a writers' group in her area to help her revise it. Seven drafts later, she started her query letter: "I can feel the query letter begging to be finished as I tie up the second paragraph -- the three sentence synopsis.  Not quite ready, but the word play is alive and keeping me up at nights -- it's almost there.  So I push on to the third paragraph.  You know the one, the one with your lists of publications, awards, and other marvelous credentials. That's where I got stuck.  I'm a new novelist, I've got nothing."

But instead of giving up, or sending out her query letter without any credits, she decided to build a platform for her novel. Since then, she's had three shorter pieces accepted for publication. I suspect that third paragraph is finished, and the letter's out the door.

Do you have tips for getting your novel from first draft to an agent's hands? Please share below. And if you've recently finished a book, be sure to read the rest of her post, which includes more great advice.

Good luck, Shelly, and thanks for sharing!

How to Write, Edit, and Sell a Novel: Advice from the Forum originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 at 06:15:28.

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Do you know the difference between simultaneous submissions and multiple submissions? Are you confused about what exactly is meant by a "brief bio"? If one of your New Year's resolutions is to submit work to literary journals, the collection of articles in the link above will help your do so in an organized, professional way. An editor will take you more seriously if you observe a certain protocol, and it's easier to keep work in circulation if you have a system in place. But the most important thing is to get something out there: you never know what might happen.

Resolution: Submit Work to Journals originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Monday, January 10th, 2011 at 08:05:14.

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I'm extending the December challenge into January, to give more people a chance to reflect on the end of last year and submit responses. We've had a wonderful range of submissions already, including a scene involving a couple on their way to a Divali party, a company Christmas party in Madrid, and an American dinner party with a chilling end. Wherever you spent the holiday season, write up a scene and submit it!

Submissions to the Dec-Jan Challenge originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Saturday, January 8th, 2011 at 09:08:10.

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With the new year, readers have been sharing stories about how they've coped with writer's block -- defeating writer's block is always a popular New Year's resolution among writers, after all. One writer responded to writer's block by forcing herself to write a set number of pages at one sitting and then rewarding herself with a break or a small reward, like fresh flowers. Another writer said, "I go back to The Artist's Way and re-institute my artist dates." Still another said that she will reread works of her own that she feels really confident about. "That reminds me of my writing voice and brings me back into my own flow," she explains.

Fear, anxiety, a life change, the end of a project, the beginning of a project . . . almost anything, it seems, can cause writer's block. And just as there are multiple causes for it, there are myriad solutions. Sometimes its just a matter of trying different things until something works.

For more ideas on how to address writer's block, see how other readers treat writer's block. And if you have your own advice to contribute, please share!

Resolution: End Writer's Block originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Thursday, January 6th, 2011 at 10:30:35.

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"Winter Counts" remains one of my favorite exercises in general, and especially for this time of year, when we're not only making resolutions for the future, but reflecting back on years past. Columbia professor Alan Ziegler was inspired by a Sioux Indian record-keeping practice to create the exercise for his students, and he included it in his book The Writing Workshop Note Book (2008, Soft Skull Press).

Do you have an exercise that you particularly like? Share it in the comments. We'll post the best ones on the site.

Winter Counts: A Creative Writing Exercise originally appeared on About.com Fiction Writing on Tuesday, January 4th, 2011 at 04:33:35.

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