Literary Reflections is pleased to present our featured writing prompt response from December. We asked, "Have you ever received a coveted acceptance letter or honor for your writing? What about a painful rejection? How did it impact you and those around you?"
Cara Holman wrote:
"Two years ago, hopes high, I posted off a query letter accompanied by a sample of poetry to a local publisher. Then I sat back to wait. And wait. And wait. Waiting seems to be the name of the game in publishing, and I am not naturally a patient person. When three months elapsed with no response, I gently prodded. In my family, asking a second time is just barely okay. But, asking a third time falls in the realm of "bugging" and is strictly verboten. I admit it. I prodded them three times.
The first time they couldn't locate my query letter. The second time I was informed that they didn't read over the summer. The third time, they had just changed editors, and they were sure (even if I wasn't) that they would get to my proposal soon. It was almost with a sense of relief that I eventually received a garden-variety rejection letter. I promptly shredded it.
When my next three submissions met a similar fate, I was, to say the least, a bit discouraged. Could it be that my mom and my fellow writing group members were wrong about my talents? Did they like my writings only because they liked me? Why was it so all-important to me to have my writings in print?
I'm still asking those questions. With roughly a quarter of my submissions eventually finding their way into print, I know I should feel grateful. And I do. It is the rejections that nag at me. Accompanying one rejection was the mystifying comment: "You're a good writer. Your story just isn't compelling..." I've been told not to take it personally, but as I write highly personal nonfiction, that's a tall order. Worse yet are the non-responses. When I use up my self-imposed quota of three friendly reminders, I consider those submissions defunct. No news it seems is not necessarily good news.
I know why I keep writing. I love everything about the writing process, from the initial inspiration, to watching my words flow onto the page. There is supreme satisfaction in capturing precisely what I set out to express, even if it does take a few iterations. I am still puzzling over what makes me brave the inevitable rejection in my quest to find an audience wider than my friends and family.
I think the answer is complex. Writing offers me a reprieve from the demands of everyday life. It enables me to channel my oft underused creative energies and to synthesize something truly my own. I have a compelling need to be a person in my own right, and not simply Douglas' mom or Sylva's daughter. When a perfect stranger selects a work of mine for publication, I know it is being chosen strictly on its own merits. The image of an unknown kindred spirit relishing my words simply enchants me. It is the desire to achieve this elusive sense of connectedness that makes me keep coming back for more."
Cara Holman may be reached at: cara(dot)holman(at)gmail(dot)com.
Read the mommy track'd review of Mama PhD:edited by LM's Senior Editor, Caroline Grant and Me and My House columnist Elrena Evans.
"Mama PhD offers a series of lively personal essays from women who share varied experiences of being both mothers and academics, from struggling to keep down morning sickness while lecturing to a room full of students, to writing a dissertation while caring for a child with special needs, to negotiating viable maternity and family leave policies. Honest, funny, frustrated, provocative, and, yes, in love with their work, these writers don’t claim that their experience in the academy is more difficult than any other working mother’s. In fact, their suggestions for making the academy more congenial and their argument that doing so will improve its racial and social diversity, make good models for every workplace."
As the Association for Research on Mothering (ARM) has done in the past, we are planning 2-3 panels on topics of mothering/motherhood for the National Women's Studies Association (NWSA) 2009 Conference, "DIFFICULT DIALOGUES" November 12-15, 2009 Atlanta, GA.
If you are interested in presenting on one these panels, or have a panel you'd like to submit, please send your 250 word abstract and 50 word bio by February 1, 2009 to arm@yorku.ca NWSA website: http://www.nwsa.org
**One must be a member of ARM and NWSA to participate in any of the above panels please....
http://www.yorku.ca/arm/armmembership.html
Former LM Degrees of Freedom columnist, Jennifer Eyre White writes about her wishes for her family this holiday season on her blog, Having Three Kids. Read more...
For my youngest child, four-year-old Kirby, I hope that Santa somehow manages to bring you what you most want for Christmas, which apparently is a “Bazookelele,” which I can only imagine is some unholy melding of weaponry and small stringed instrument. Which would suit you perfectly, my darling.
MISCARRIAGE ANTHOLOGY
Catalyst Book Press is seeking literary essays telling personal stories of miscarriage, in particular emotional and spiritual ramifications of miscarriage or the transformations that occurred in people’s lives as a result of undergoing or observing a miscarriage. We are looking for essays that reflect a diversity of experiences and outcomes. Authors of accepted essays will receive $50 for their stories and one copy of the publication.
Submissions can be sent by August 15, 2009 to editor Jay Gibson at jaygibson@catalystbookpress.com or care of Catalyst Book Press, 709 Masson Ave. Apt. A, San Bruno CA 94066. If you wish your manuscript returned, please include an SASE.
BIRTH PARENT ANTHOLOGY
Catalyst Book Press is seeking literary essays telling personal stories of adoption, open adoption, birth parent connections, the adoption triad, and unification with children after closed adoption for an anthology for and about birth parents. Authors of accepted essays will receive $50 for their stories and one copy of the publication.
Submissions can be sent by August 15, 2009 to co-editors Ann and Amanda Angel, 15255 Turnberry Dr., Brookfield, WI 53005. For more information, please email Ann at alangel78@gmail.com. If you wish your manuscript returned, please include an SASE.
For more info:
The Progressive Women’s Voices program has become a cornerstone of The Women’s Media Center. In our first year of the program, we intensively media trained 33 women who have gone on to earn over 1000 media hits year to date. We are “changing the conversation” by making sure that there are plenty of qualified, authoritative, progressive women experts available to editors, reporters, producers, and bookers. For the women chosen to participate in our 2009 Progressive Women’s Voices program, we provide intense media training sessions in New York, with weekly follow-up briefings and continued training, as well as support and resources for media bookings. For more information
by Rebekah Spicuglia
Beginning December 1, 2008, mothers around the world have had access to the first global consortium of motherhood organizations. Marking ten years after the Association for Research on Mothering (ARM) was founded, mothers’ organizations in North America and around the world came together in October for the ARM annual Toronto conference on motherhood and emerged as an International Motherhood Network (IMN).
My husband, Marcarthur Baralla (Defendshee Production), and I filmed the conference and interviewed more than 30 women for a documentary—“The Motherhood Movement: You Say You Want a Revolution”—being produced for the Museum of Motherhood. Exploring the movement’s evolution over the last 50 years, the documentary will be a highlight of the museum, which was established online in 2003 and will soon be a physical museum located in Seneca Falls—home of the first U.S. women’s rights convention in 1848. The museum, founded by ARM and the Motherhood Foundation, is a long overdue project to honor the achievements of mothers . . .
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Fellow author Kelly Corrigan just released this very moving essay about women, friendship and loss on YouTube to celebrate the paperback version of her book The Middle Place.
Read, A Conversation with Kelly Corrigan in the Literary Mama Profiles.
Literary Reflections is pleased to present our featured writing prompt response from November. We asked, "Have you ever had an incident where your writing made you feel like a "bad" parent or person? Did you resolve the conflict? If so, how?"
Carol Ungar wrote:
Last week I was trying to rev up my career, pretending to be an ace reporter instead of a not always very good mom. So I dreamed up a story idea, pitched it, and got a neighborhood weekly to take the bait. A news story about the local elections. Man on the street point of view. The oldest journalism trick in the book.
Early one morning, after sending the kids to school, I smeared on some lipstick and eyeliner, switched my Birkenstocks to a pair of black suede loafers, and drove to the mall to "work," making pit stops at the tailors and dry cleaners to pick up my son's pants and coat. Remember I'm always a mom, first a mom. In between errands I interviewed the girl at the juice bar, the security guard, and a guy delivering a caseload of CDs -- scribbling their political wisdom into an old notebook that used to belong to one of the kids.
And then I wrote the story -- fast. This was deadline stuff, to be submitted before Election Day, which was coming up soon.
I bought myself time by sending the kids out for pizza, which got me through the first draft. Then I stole time for the rewrite by forgetting to pick them up, figuring that they'd make their own way home. Of course, I wasn't looking at the clock, just at the computer screen, and somehow the sky morphed from pale blue to periwinkle but the piece still seemed lopsided. So I cut and trimmed some more, and then reread my words out loud, and by that time the sky was a dark navy.
I could have rewritten indefinitely but it was late, so I hit the send key and went home. The house was empty. The kids were still gone. Missing. All three of them, three boys: the youngest seven, the middle one nine, the oldest eleven. Gone. I was starting to get scared and ratting on myself for losing my kids for this so called career, which hardly pays for anything and just eats up my time.
And of course I imagined all sorts of terrible things that could have happened to them, and then I whispered a prayer with a promise to be a better mom next time, not to just let my kids wander off into the night.
Then there they were, all three of them on their bikes, in a procession. Coming home.
The article never made it. Don't know why. But I've got the kids.
Carol Ungar can be reached at tzirelchana(at)yahoo(dot)com.
LM's Founding Co-Editor, Amy Hudock says,
I spoke at the Association for Research on Mothering Conference in October, and I met with other mother organizations to talk about creating a network. We thought, "If we join all of our readers, participants, and activists together, what a huge network of mothers this will be!" Thus, Literary Mama became one of the the founding members of a new International Mothers Network. Check it out, and sign up your mother organization!
B-Word/B*tch is a 12-year-old feminist nonprofit media organization that interrogates commercial culture via a magazine, a website, and assorted other media and outreach vehicles. Our founding editorial and creative director is transitioning to a broader organizational role, and so B-Word/B*tch is looking to hire a highly skilled full-time editor to join our tiny but hardworking staff. Someone with exceptional editing skills and a talent and love for analyzing media/pop culture from a perspective rooted in social/economic justice, someone who's passionate about both print
publishing and newer forms of media like online, audio, and video…
The editor's primary responsibilities will be acquiring and editing content for the magazine, but will also play a key role in generating content for our website, as well as fundraising, outreach, and organizational development. In other words, we're looking for a brilliant editor who understands the unique challenges facing nonprofit publishing organizations, and is committed to wearing multiple hats to keep the wheels turning (if you'll excuse our mixed metaphor).
Primary responsibilities:
- Oversee and acquire content for the magazine
- Edit articles and help shape the editorial tone and scope of the magazine
- Oversee the production calendar and process for the magazine
- Maintain and cultivate relationships with writers
- Assist in developing and expanding our new media efforts
- Acquire and write content for the website
- Design and implement editorial strategies that are consistent with
B-Word's mission-driven, nonprofit nature
- Do outreach to support the organization's marketing activities
- Hire and manage magazine interns
Minimum qualifications/requirements:
- At least three years features/developmental editing experience
- Strong understanding and awareness of feminism(s)
- Strong understanding of (and passion for!) new media
- Strong familiarity with past and present trends in media and pop culture
- Excellent grasp of grammar and spelling
- Stellar proofreading and copyediting abilities; familiarity with Chicago style
- Proficiency with Excel, Word, and InDesign
- Demonstrated experience with web writing/editing
- Experience with video and podcasting technology a major plus
Personality traits/skill sets that are essential in a small organization like ours:
- Clear and frequent communication
- Ability to collaborate and share decision-making in small groups
- Ability to think creatively when resources are tight
- Highly developed organizational, multi-tasking, prioritizing, and
delegating skills
- Strong initiative, drive, and self-direction; ability to work
independently
- A sense of humor a major plus!
B-Word/B*tch is based in Portland, Oregon, and we strongly believe that you need to be in Portland to do this job well. If you believe you can do it from somewhere other than Portland, we are open to hearing your strategies for effective communication and remote collaboration.
**B-Word/B*tch is committed to systemic social change, and aims to prioritize the voices and visions of people most affected by the injustices and oppression we work against. Women of color, trans people, people from poor and working class backgrounds, queer-identified folks, and others committed to anti-oppression, collective, grassroots media work are encouraged to apply.**
In the interest of transparency, you should know:
- Regrettably, the only way to our office is up a set of about 15 stairs. We are not wheelchair-accessible.
- We're unable to cover any moving expenses.
Please send a cover letter detailing salary requirements, your *editing experience*, any *experience working with nonprofits*, and your *particular interests related to feminism and pop culture*. Also please include one writing sample.
Closing date for applications: December 30, 2008
Anticipated start date: January 19, 2009
Please email a detailed cover letter (*answering all the questions
please!*), a resume, and three references to publishing@b-word.org. Please write "editor position" in the subject line. Or mail to: B-Word, Debbie Rasmussen, 4930 NE 29th Ave, Portland, OR 97211.
No phone calls, faxes, or drop-ins. No, no!
Belladonna* Announces: Advancing Feminist Poetics and Activism: A Gathering
CUNY Graduate Center, September 24-25, 2009
In celebration of its tenth year, Belladonna* will join with The CUNY Graduate Center's Women's Studies Certificate Program, Center for Research on Women and Society, Center for Humanities, English Department, and Poetics Group to present a conference aimed at advancing and broadcasting the life of Feminist Avant-Garde Poetics and Activism Today. The conference will take place at the CUNY Graduate Center on September 24 and 25, 2009.
Our goals for this conference are the following:
• To support the study of the Feminist Avant-Garde
• To encourage collaboration between radical feminist artists/thinkers/activists.
• To provide a space to think about relevant activism in these times, in this place.
We at Belladonna* are particularly interested in what's immediate, present, and happening now. We would like this call to encourage conversations and new designs for work between genres, into activist communities, and among academic and non-academic discourse. We are looking for evolving modes of knowing, acting, and resisting.
Papers and presentations might focus on (but are not limited to) the following topics:
Collaborations between poets and artists, poets and dancers, poetry theater, poets and scientists (or science), teachers and students, poets and community activists.
Critical consideration of women writers who for whatever reason have not yet received it—we welcome non-traditional and cross-genre approaches.
Race, gender, class: working within and across affinities.
AgitProp that incorporates poetic thinking and expression.
Calls for Action. Organizing sessions.
Send panel proposals and/or paper abstracts (350 words maximum, or send a dvd of performance/visual /sound work) to belladonnaseries@gmail.com by December 1, 2008.
Dear ARM Members and Friends,
We are delighted to report that the INTERNATIONAL MOTHERS NETWORK website will be launched this week.
We are inviting all mother organizations to join this first ever international motherhood consortium of motherhood organizations.
We would like to have your organization on the website when it is launched.
To that end we need by Wednesday, Dec 3rd at latest
the following information please:
1) Your organization name
2) Organization website address
3) Full contact information for your organization
And please also send us any events etc planned for 2009 and we will get them on our calendar..
Please send the requested information above to alefkowich@gmail.com and sharonmarks@rogers.com
Thank you so much,
Dr. Andrea O'Reilly,
Associate Professor,
School of Women's Studies,
Director: Association for Research on Mothering,
Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering, Demeter Press,
York University,
Toronto, Ont.,
M3J 1P3
416 736 2100;60366
aoreilly@yorku.ca
www.yorku.ca/arm