Monday, April 2, 2007

Literary journals

I can't believe it's April already! Where did March go? I turned over my calendar yesterday and simply couldn't believe it's spring. It seems as if winter went by in a whoosh and soon, it will be 100 degrees and we'll be smack in the middle of a steamy summer.

Today's topic: literary journals. I've never submitted essays or personal experience pieces to journals before. I only write for magazines and really don't know much about the journal business. My writing teacher at school was encouraging us to submit the essays we wrote for class to journals that published nonfiction. I searched for journals and was surprised that there are thousands of journals and I've never heard of 90 percent of them. Am I missing a good market with journals? The categories are as vast as the titles and range from fiction to creative nonfiction to romance to horror. The short story journals certainly sound like a good place to try your hand at shorter fiction that could be expanded into a novel.

Has anyone submitted to a lit journal? Would you submit to one?

7 comments:

Unknown said...

Hey there! How'd your hectic weekend go? Mine pretty well, considering. And actually, lit journals sound very interesting. I'd never heard of a lot of them either and would probably consider it, if I had a nonfiction piece I felt I could tell. :)

Jessica Burkhart said...

Hola chica! The weekend went well and I got a LOT done. :) How's your new idea coming along?

Stephanie J said...

Heeeeey! Ok, so I'm no expert, seeing as I haven't had anything published before, BUT I do have input on the journals thing. I think you should submit to the journals! I worked as a copyeditor for a publishing company and my boss had worked for different journals at some point in her career. I get the feeling that they're great for getting your work out to other "professionals," not just general "readers." I think it helps build more professional relationships and it gets your name out there. I don't know how important that is to you. But again, it's not like I'm the expert!

Jessica Burkhart said...

Hey Steph! I can't wait for your blog to be back!! :) Oooh, that sounds good about the journals. It's cool that your boss has experience in that field. Who knows, maybe you'll be able to use that for your own advantage someday.

Kelly (Lynn) Parra said...

I never submitted to a LJ, not that I didn't consider it! But I've always written genre or commercial fiction and I had come across many literary mags that probably wouldn't have worked in my favor. But I say go for it! :) :)

Unknown said...

Hey there, Jess! The ideas are coming along well, though most are either in my head or as snippets of dialogue. But it's good! :) An email is coming your way soon...

Jessica Burkhart said...

Ella, I'll be looking for that e-mail! :) Did you see GH today? I heard rumors that the writers are setting it up for Alcazar to be killed, apparently TK quit. :/

Counting down to Saddlehill Academy!

  Hii, friends! I'm so very thrilled to remind everyone that NEXT MONTH (!!!) is the release of my first novel in eight years! Ahhhhh!!...

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