Aeryn Rudel's Blog, page 21

A Week of Writing: 4/19/21 to 4/25/21

Another week of writing in the books. Here’s how I did.

Night Walk

My my flash fiction collection Night Walk & Other Dark Paths released last week, and so it gets top billing for this installment of my weekly writerly report (we’ll return to the usual format next week). You can pick up a copy of the anthology in print or eBook right here, but watch the rad book trailer the folks at The Molotov Cocktail put together for release day. (And if you do pick up a copy, help me out with a review when yo...

Night Walk Wednesday: Where They Belong

Welcome to another installment of Night Walk Wednesday, where I’ll talk about the submission journey of a story from my upcoming flash fiction anthology Night Walk & Other Dark Paths. This week’s story is “Where They Belong.”

How it Started

Yep. You guessed it. This story began as part of a one-hour flash fiction writing contest/exercise. As I’ve said, you’re gonna read that a lot in this series, and I implore you to give it a shot in your own writing group. It’s fun, and if you’re anything like...

A Week of Writing: 4/12/21 to 4/18/21

Another week of writing come and gone. Here’s how I did.

Words to Write By

This week’s quote comes from novelist Doris Lessing.

“There are no laws for the novel. There never have been, nor can there ever be.”

—Doris Lessing

If you’re writing a novel and you’re on social media (so, you know, everyone), you’re likely to read dozens of posts about how you absolutely, positively cannot do X or Y when you write a novel. You will then undoubtedly wonder about the successful novels you’ve read that do ...

The Rejection Streak: An Analysis

In the first quarter of 2021 (and a bit before), I endured 23 rejections in a row. One of the longest streaks of not for us’s and we’re gonna pass’s in my career. That streak has since ended, and I have two acceptances so far in April. Now that I have a little distance from the streak and a little success to soften the blow, I though I’d do a postmortem analysis and see what I can see. What I’m going to do is look at the 23 submission that made up the streak and compare them to the 23 submission...

Night Walk Wednesday: When the Lights Go On

Welcome to the next installment of Night Walk Wednesday, where I’ll talk about the submission journey of a story from my upcoming flash fiction anthology Night Walk & Other Dark Paths. This week’s story is “When the Lights Go On”.

How it Started

“When the Lights Go On” is another story written during a one-hour flash fiction exercise. It’s also an excellent example of why I do these frantic scribble-fests. They often lead me down unexpected paths and often some of my best work comes out of the...

A Week of Writing: 4/5/21 to 4/11/21

Two weeks into April. Here’s how I did.

Words to Write By

This week’s quote comes from Herman Wouk.

“I try to write a certain amount each day, five days a week. A rule sometimes broken is better than no rule.”

~ Herman Wouk

This has long been my approach, and though the amount I write per day can vary, I tend to stick to the five-days-a-week plan. For example, when I’m writing the first draft of a novel, I shoot for 2,000 words a day, which gives me a comfortably-sized book in about three month...

Night Walk Wednesday: Do Me a Favor

Welcome to the next installment of Night Walk Wednesday, where I talk about the submission journey of a story from my upcoming flash fiction anthology Night Walk & Other Dark Paths. This week’s story is the comedy/horror mashup “Do Me a Favor.”

How it Started

This section is going to get repetitive, but like most of my flash fiction pieces, “Do Me a Favor” started out in a one-hour writing exercise. I honestly don’t recall what the prompt was, but I do remember that when I finished, I knew I had...

A Week of Writing: 3/29/21 to 4/4/21

First week of April and I’ve got good writing news to report.

Words to Write By

This week’s quote is one I’ve used before, but I like it, so I’m gonna use it again.

“I would advise anyone who aspires to a writing career that before developing his talent he would be wise to develop a thick hide.”

—Harper Lee, WD

After enduring a three-month rejection streak, my hide is a bit thin but largely intact. The point here is that writing will test you. It’ll test your resolve, it’ll test your patience, ...

Submissions Statement: March 2021

And March is in the books. Here are the results.

March 2021 Report CardSubmissions Sent: 12Rejections: 8Acceptances: 0Publications: 0Further Consideration: 0

March was a good month in terms of the volume of submissions, but it marks the third month of 2021 without an acceptance. The good news is I received an acceptance this morning, so my April numbers won’t look so grim. I’m well on my way to 100 submissions for the year, and I ended March with 27, which worked out to an average of 9 pe...

Night Walk Wednesday: Things That Grow

Welcome to the next installment of Night Walk Wednesday, where I’ll talk about the submission journey of a story from my upcoming flash fiction anthology Night Walk & Other Dark Paths. The first story we’re going to discuss is “Things That Grow.”

How it Started

“Things That Grow”, like the vast majority of my flash fiction, began life in a one-hour writing competition/exercise. I’ve been doing these exercises with various writing groups for almost ten years, and in them, I’ve produced well over ...