I had a conversation this week wherein I learned of a short story publisher who gets over 8,000 manuscripts sent to them each year. Their acceptance rate is about 0.3 to 0.4 percent, or about 24 to 30 manuscripts. At the present time we are well above that acceptance rate, but getting all the artwork, story scripting and audio production work done is not a simple task. We may need to slow down on our acceptance rate if we get too far behind.

You might not be surprised at the variety of manuscripts we receive for consideration on StoriesThatLift, but I am. We have some stories that arrive in great shape - essentially ready to be placed on the web. On the other hand, we get a few stories that are, shall we say, in need of considerable help. But, where does one reach for help in writing short stories? And what should one know about writing that will improve the audio story or MP3 file that gets created from the story?

The web is loaded with junk advice and some very good advice. My intent here is simply to point a writer to some sites that are helpful in writing compelling stories. One method of improving your story writing is to link up with other writers who take the time to offer advice and feedback on written materials. One such site is Absolute Write, http://www.absolutewrite.com/. Here you will find forums, markets, and even classes for writers. Many of those on the site are new to the whole writing scene, but there are plenty of veterans to offer advice and encouragement.
Another site is www.writing.com. On this site you will also find forums, classes, and markets discussed. You will also have an opportunity to review other writer’s work and submit your own writing for critique by others.

There are also local writer’s and storyteller’s groups that hold meetings, publish newsletters, and sponsor workshops. They are especially kind to new writers looking to break into the published writer’s and storytelling’s arena. The real advantage of joining and participating in the local groups is the face-to-face contacts and personal interactions that grow from the local groups. There are so many groups that I won’t attempt to list any specifically. These local groups will invariably include a seasoned writer who finds great pleasure in helping other writers succeed.

One very simple piece of advice is to locate and follow the submission guidelines. Our guidelines are located at http://www.storiesthatlift.com/STL-routines/submitstories.htm.

One other piece of advice that is as common as any other advice is to keep writing. If you get discouraged after a rejection or you judge your own work as not ready for prime time, don’t give up. Keep putting words together, seek advice, read other’s writings, and write, write, write. We hope to be seeking great stories for a long time.

tomq

We think the classic fairy tales are fantastic. But we wonder what ever happened to these colorful characters. We really want to know. So we have challenged writers to reveal to us their short stories that shed light on exactly what did happen after the fairy tale ends. We are looking for short stories 500 to 1,500 words in length to help us understand another interesting chapter in the lives of those classic fairy tale characters. Send us your rendition.