I am happy to announce my first blog guest– published author, poet and artist, Linda Sienkiewicz!
I asked Linda a few questions about becoming a writer, finding an agent, and blogging.
How long did it take you to find an agent? Describe that process.
I got my first agent through a friend, but that manuscript never sold, and the agent and I parted ways. I decided I needed to learn more about writing fiction before I put myself through that disappointment again. Five years later, I wrote my second novel, The Real Story. After extensive research, I started with a list of thirty agents, sent letters out in batches of ten, and kept track of all responses. I kept adding to my list as the rejections came in. All the details are here: http://bit.ly/cGjuMJ. It took 83 queries over a seven-month period before I found my agent. Five agents were reading it when I got an offer of representation from two agents. It can be discouraging, but determination and good writing will pay off.
What was the first story you ever wrote?
The first that I’d actually call a story was a piece of hot fan fiction. Writing fan fiction was such fun because you already had all your characters defined for you and the setting. My story featured Hando from the Aussie film “Romper Stomper.” I thought it was a decent story, so I changed the characters and setting, and it ended up being published in two journals. After that, I was hooked on storytelling. It took me years of learning and crafting, though, before I wrote my novel, The Real Story, about a self-destructive young woman who must face the fact that her father is a rapist before she finds the courage to leave her junkie husband and learn to love.
You also write poetry. Tell us about the first of your poems to be published.
I look back at my early writing with amused fondness. My work was basically cathartic, and has changed much since then, but I started getting poems published in 1994. My approach was to submit to the newer, smaller literary journals and university presses, and then work my way up. In 1996, I was one of eleven authors to work with an editor on a collaborative anthology, “Almost Touching,” which involved a year of writing and editing. It was a great way to learn craft.
When you started your blog, did you have a certain theme in mind, or did it evolve over time?
Initially, I set up a WordPress blog just to have a free website where I could post my bio and books. I wrote about my agent hunt on Facebook, and found that many people were interested, so I began blogging about that. My goal is to communicate with others about writing and the creative process in general. I’m an artist, too.
Tell us how you maintain your sanity while you are waiting to hear from your agent.
When the waiting gets hard, I remind myself of a writer friend who was rejected by 60+ publishers before her book finally sold. My agent, Chelsea Gilmore of Maria Carvainis Agency, is very encouraging, and it seems that whenever I begin to wonder what’s going on, she’ll email me an update. Besides working on new writing, I stay distracted with a side business making purses out of book covers and vintage record album covers. It helps to keep busy. http://rokkihandbags.com
What advice do you have for new writers who would like to be published some day?
Keep writing. Don’t lose faith in yourself. Attend workshops and conferences, and talk to other writers. Most importantly, you have to read.
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Linda’s poetry has been published in numerous literary reviews such as Prairie Schooner, Clackamas Literary Review, Rattle, Permafrost, Spoon River Poetry Review, Main Street Rag, Slipstream and others. Her short stories have appeared in the Cleis Press anthology Frenzy, A Twist of Noir, and other online and print journals. Among her awards is a 1997 poetry chapbook from Heartland, a Pushcart Prize nomination, and a recent 2nd place in prose from the Metro Detroit Writers. This summer, March Street Press published her fourth poetry chapbook, Security. Linda has an MFA from the University of Southern Maine.
http://lksienkiewicz.wordpress.com/
