This is the part of Thanksgiving where I make everyone set down the turkey and the sweet potatoes for a second and go around the table and say what we’re thankful for. I guess this means I’ve officially become my mom.
What are you thankful for in the publishing/writing world?
I am very thankful for my amazing agent and editor for believing in me, my awesome and talented colleagues, my incredible clients, and of course YOU, for reading the blog and teaching me so much.
What about you?
This year I am grateful for having the time to finish NaNoWriMo and most grateful to my husband for supporting my crazy writing aspirations, and very, very, very grateful for this and all the other great publishing/writing blogs out there that have taught me so much more than I ever would have learned without them. Happy Thanksgiving, Nathan…and thank you….um, can I eat now?
Dear Nathan,
I'm thankful for my writing friends who never let me stop and feel sorry for myself when I have Writer's Block. They are the most amazing people ever and without them I would have run away to Russia several times over this year.
Love,
Margaret (16)
Sorry if this has already been said (I've read many but not all, and I'm short on time), but I'm curious about what it is you've learned from us.
It's obvious here that so many of us are thankful for the insight and knowledge you have provided us writers, and I'd love to know what you have learned as well. Thanks.
I am thankful for your blog and encouragement, my beta readers and one published author who is my mentor.
I confess I was going to have a grumble when I first started reading, but now I understand that it's Thanksgiving in the U.S., and what a great custom, I shall, too.
Umm, I'm thankful for…this blog and you, Nathan. I'm also thankful for all the stories I've been blessed with over the last 35 years,and which have been so much fun to write…except when I discover that someone else has published a similiar story. (I had to get that off my chest.)
I'm thankful for my son's girlfriend for sharing her practical skills, as I have none, and showing me how I can sell artwork online in the stores where she sells hers. That really is a blessing. I'm grateful for….oh, is that enough? 🙂
I'm thankful that I can write, that I want to write, and that writing is still fun, even when it's hard.
That there are so many people out there willing to share their knowledge – agents, editors, writers, publishers, distributors, booksellers, critics.
That there are so many great books out there that my Amazon wishlist looks like it was written by a spoilt child with a reading age of 25.
Oh, and I'm thankful for the bunch of friends I have in Dublin who are interested in setting up a writing group with me 🙂
Ask me again when I get past the messy scene I'm working on right now and this will be a much longer list!
Word verification: Cringeti – that feeling of pleasant embarrassment when you are forced to be nice about someone or something without reservation. Exactly what I'm feeling right now, actually.
In the publishing/writing world….
1. My first school teacher who encouraged me (aged 9) to read as much as I could manage, unlimited by age, criticism or others' expectations.
2. Those writers/editors/publishers who have given me their time for interviews from whom I have learned so much – above all that publishing is a business like any other, yet unlike any other and not to get too precious about writing, just get on with it.
3. The online mag's Editor who gave me a chance to get writing something real to share, and have the opportunity to speak and listen to those in #2.
4. My local library which helps me stay inspired and share a love of words (and pictures) with my children.
5. My local newsagent for stocking A5 lined notebooks, just for me.
***
And that's all aside from my family who support me, plus this community forum for expression, shared learnings and fun in a like-minded environment. Thank you one and all. And to Nathan for its creation. Happy Thanksgiving.
First of all, I am thankful that I am in United States. As preliminary that it may seem, not every country in the world encourages people to dream big and follow their dreams too. A writer, somewhere else on the globe, had to wait 12 years to get permission of the sensor agency for publishing her book; the book became obsolete at that time.
Then I’m thankful to my husband for I couldn’t sit and write if we weren’t supporting it in every way.
I am very thankful to you Nathan because the starting point of almost everything I learn about writing is this blog.
And I’m thankful to many writers that I have met in the meetings and libraries and over the phone, who have offered their time, their knowledge, and their support so generously. I guess that is another feature that’s specific to the United States.
I'm thankful for all the editors, agents and fellow authors who have given so much of their time to fostering the online writing community, and by extension, me.
As I look out my window at a beautiful sunrise, I'm thankful for sight. Without it I couldn't enjoy this wonderful world as I do. Without it I couldn't read – and I love to read. Without it I couldn't write because writing, for me, is a very intense, quiet, personal thing. Without my sight I wouldn't have the freedom to come and go as I please.
And hard on the heels of sight is my gratitude for the freedoms I enjoy in this country, the United States. I'm grateful for my ancestors who endured unimaginable privations while settling this land – from Massachusetts to Oregon – so that I could enjoy the luxuries and freedoms I enjoy today.
And I'm grateful for life so that I can enjoy the children and grandchildren that will gather around my table in a few hours. I am truly blessed.
I'm thankful for a wonderful family, four fabulous kids, four great pets, my wife who puts up with my flakiness, my wondeful agent Nathan, who apparently lives with the iphone attached to his ear given how quickly he responds to emails, Audrey LeFehr at Kensington for taking a chance on my story, and just being alive and well at 42. Now, if only I wasn't stuck working today, things would be dandy.
Laura, thanks — I'm definitely grateful for the support and empathy of my online buddies.
Happy turkey day, USians.
I'm thankful for all of the agents who have taken the time to read my queries (and even more thankful for the handful who have asked to see more, including you, Nathan!).
I'm thankful for the members of my writing group for their harshly critical feedback, because that which does not kill us makes our novels stronger.
I'm thankful for the fantastic advice I got at the BackSpace conference a few weeks ago, and for the online info, especially this blog.
Happy Turkey Day, Y'all!
For this blog, which always makes me smile.
For the fantastic children's book authors. They make bedtime fun, enlightening, beautiful, whimsical, etc.
Polly Dunbar, Kevin Henkes, Jan Brett, Jane Yolen, and so many others.
For writers letting me experience other worlds. For agents, editors, and publishers for making it happen.
For Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City, IA.
Readers! Thankful for every person who picks up a new author they haven't heard of and gives their books a shot.
What are you thankful for in the publishing/writing world?
Each time I use my computer to write, edit, re-write, and research for writing, I am very very very thankful for the technology that makes writing easier than ever before.
Not only has MS Word revolutionized the writing process, the internet provides a wealth of knowledge about writing, connects writers with other writers, and takes us into a wonderful world of research in a "click."
In a more personal thankfulness, I am thankful for the talent and desire that has filled the gaps in my life. The writing journey itself is worth the effort regardless of whether or not I get published.
Laura, no, no this is all a big misunderstanding.
I'm not flinging oppression in the catapult from S.F. to Canada, I'm flinging oppossums.
I have no idea why Bryan keeps confusing the two. Maybe because I keep reminding him that they are undocumented opossums…
Marilyn, you always give me so much encouragement! Thank you. I love your wonderful comments and links. I feel like we share a value of honest intellectual exploration, and I'm grateful we can support each other in that here.
Jil – I feel the same!! Who would have thought I'd meet someone who lived near me from this blog, and we'd become friends! Happy Thanksgiving. 🙂
You know, there are alot of people on this blog. Some I know better than others….. But I love the whole diverse interesting commentary here (except the parts with math in it) and I truly value this whole gosh-darn community.
I am thankful that I can write. Published or not, it is something I love and will continue to do, whether or not it ever makes me a dime. 🙂
your sweet blog at the end of a rough day. thank you, nathan.
I'm thankful for the way that web boards and comments in guidelines are allowing editors to give more specific feedback to submitters and to answer questions that they might have. I recently made my first pro sale, and a lot of that was because the submission process allowed editorial feedback and resubmission of revisions. It's bittersweet, though, because that market is closing soon. But I hope it's a trend.
YOU–and all the down-to-earth help you give us in your blog.
Pencils and erasers; computers and printers. When one thinks of it, writing is probably the least expensive hobby/craft a person could have–paper, pencil and imagination.
And then, of course, there's God, family and friends. None of this necessarily in the order typed.
I'm thankful I have job security and can pursue my passion for writing without needing to earn a nickel from it, just as I love the game of golf but don't have to worry that a five foot putt stands between me and my next meal.
I sought out a career change that's been rewarding at least in satisfaction. I'm thankful for the writers, editors, agents, and their encouragement.
Thanks for asking this, Nathan.
I'm thankful for many things, including a spouse, a supportive family, puppies that snuggle with me while I write, and the movies in my mind. But as a writer, among the things I'm most grateful for are readers.
I wrote about that on Murderous Musings this week: https://murderousmusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/thankful-for-readers.html.
Thank you Nathan. That was a beautiful sentiment.
………..dhole
Oh, and I'm thanksful that my five children are all alive, healthy, and out there kicking anarchy butt.
……dhole
I am thankful for those who believe in me and have taught me to do the same.
I'm thankful for:
My job
My husband
My washer and dryer
The patience of the writing blogosphere
The fun of using the word "blogosphere"
🙂
I signed with Lippincott Massey and Mcquilkin a week before Thanksgiving.
I'm more thankful for the excitement and support my family gives me. I hear the horror stories about negative family members.
I am thankful for the rush that writing brings. I am thankful for all the readers out there who take time to read what we've written. I am thankful to all the writers who never gave up and published amazing books. I am thankful for all the editors, agents, and publishers for making it all possible.
I am thankful for The Next Big Writer, http://www.thenextbigwriter.com, and it's wonderful community of writers, without which I'd be completely lost and still think my first draft was good writing!!
Bless :)!
The power of the written word and the ability to twist it.
I am thankful that my sister's book is coming out next year, my writer's group, and all the support afore-mentioned sister gives my writing career.
I'm thankful to be pain free since about April, and in remission, and able and willing to keep on with the search for an agent. Some books need to be published, and oddly enough, I've written one of those. Normally, I'd move along, but this time I'm going to go the distance, assuming I live long enough. Proud of that. Thankful to have written such a book.
Wow. 50,000 new words in a novel!
Turkey, pie, and a beautiful family too!
I'm thankful for all the support from other writers, editors, agents, and for great forums like Absolute Write and Critique Circle.
And I'm thankful for a bunch of writers who convinced me to start a blog, and to finding this one of course.
A couple weeks ago, I received my first request by an agent to read my full manuscript. I am VERY thankful that my novel is out there somewhere in the running!
I'm thankful a wife who supports my many and varied interests. I'm thankful she has a degree in English. And for those who already know and are willing to share.
I'm thankful for the internet. Blogs like this one are interesting and help me feel connected as a writer.
I'm thankful that two of my novels have recently been published:
TEA LEAVES AND TAROT CARDS, adult romance published by Five Star/Gale in August in hardcover and December in large print, and
STACY'S SONG, a YA coming of age novel published by L&L Dreamspell in trade paperback and e-book formats this month.