How do you prioritise your writing?

Has anyone suffered from the same problem I’m currently finding myself in? I spent 11 years living in a country where access to English books, magazines etc. was limited, let alone writing magazines, outlets, classes, courses, etc.  Now I find myself in reading/writing overload. So many magazines each month to read, so much stuff on the web, so many blogs to follow, so much to twitter. I find myself becoming completely inert. Which competition to enter? Which magazine to read? How do I file the great article in Writer’s Digest that I don’t need now but one day will?

I know that I shouldn’t complain about an embarrassment of riches, but seriously, I don’t know how to stay on top of everything. I hold down two jobs that can last anywhere between 10 to 15 hours a day and I never know which days I’m working or not. When I do I have no time to tweet, facebook, check out the latest literary goings on.

Even on the days I have “off” and I get to work on my novel and go to the supermarket, bank, post office, whatever, I still can’t possibly find the time to read all the great articles, blogs, tweets and references that should keep our writing community together.I could spend forever reading about writing and never actually writing.

So, writers- please tell me how you do it. Whether you have a full time job, a full time family or a full time Facebook obsession. How do you make sure that you stay abreast of what is going on in the writing world? How do you not feel guilty about not keeping up your blog and twitter account or more importantly not checking in on all the blogs and twitter accounts of writers whom you admire? How do you keep your writing goals on track without becoming isolated from the writing community around you?

I’d love to hear your tips and priorities!

Happy writing

Moriah College, my op-ed and Mrs Siderowitz

I just received my high school’s alumni newsletter and apparently, an op-ed I wrote in the Washington Post’s On Faith column on June 13 (which just happens to be my birthday) found it’s way back to my school in Australia. It was an article in response to the Holocaust Museum killing in Washington DC. It was reprinted from the Washington Post by my journalist friend Lisa Alcalay Klug on her site Tolerant Nation and you can read it here:

Since I wrote the piece, two things have changed. The first is, as a result of that op-ed I found out that the woman I was writing about – a teacher at my school (which was also our pre-school, kindergarten, primary (American translation – elementary) and high school -  is no longer alive. I was saddened to hear it.

Secondly, the company I was working for at the time  and whom I mention in the article was an online comparative religion Web site and I was excited to be working for such an organization. Unfortunately that job lasted only two months as they failed to pay us. I still haven’t received a dime from them – hence my dire financial circumstances at this time.

However, more importantly, I’m so thrilled that my school – Moriah College (full name Mount Moriah War Memorial College) – managed to somehow come across my article and put it in our alumni newsletter.

Here’s what the Moriah Newsletter had to say:

KELLY HARTOG (1982) REMINISCES ABOUT MORIAH DAYS
A very beautiful article has been forwarded to us written by ex collegian Kelly Hartog (Class of 1982) where she writes her memories at Moriah and of Mrs Siderowitz (Z’L) after hearing of a shooting incident at a Holocaust museum in the USA. It is a really beautiful read for those wanting to reminisce.

And this was followed by a note about a tribute to Mrs Siderowitz from the alumni association. I’m not going to make it back to Sydney, Australia for the tribute, but I will be there in spirit.

TRIBUTE TO ALIZA SIDEROWITZ (Z’L)
We all remember Mrs Siderowitz who taught us Yiddish and Hebrew at Moriah as well as being the Yiddish voice on radio 2EA for so many years. We have been invited to attend a tribute to celebrate Aliza’s amazing life, her love of Yiddish and Hebrew literature and poetry, her spirit and her many contributions to Jewish culture and continuity. This weill be held on Sunday 25th October 2-5pm at B’nai Brith 22 Yurong St East Sydney. For more details on how you can contribute to this special afternoon – please see the news section of our website.

My article is an op-ed about tolerance, compassion and understanding and our school’s motto was “To Learn, To Heed, To Act.” I’d like to think that all these decades later, this op-ed in honour of the great Aliza Siderowitz came about because of the lessons learned at Moriah College when I was just a little girl.

Literary submission guidelines: to follow or not?

When you go off to a foreign country to trek the wilds or hike a mountain in some remote, forsaken spot, people often hire a guide. That’s a guide (I believe) as in someone who makes it very clear the path you should take. She doesn’t suggest what might be best. She doesn’t cajole and coax and say “Well, I think it would be advisable if…” No. She knows what she’s talking about, she makes it clear what you should do and you follow. So I think the same should apply with guidelines. And specifically, submission guidelines for oh, let’s say, literary magazines.

So, I say all this apropos of my Web site launching very soon – watch this space. I’m absolutely delighted that submissions are coming in from all over the world and from a variety of people. Out went the emails, yahoo group posts, the blog, the Twitter, the Facebook postings and people have heard and are submitting. Hooray!

I spent a lot of time laying out the clear submission guidelines. Basic guidelines. Only send in a Word Doc. Don’t send in body of email. Double-spaced, 12 point font. Two line bio on a separate page. Thank you to everyone who followed them. But to those who have sent me poems that yell (ie all caps in bold font) in the body of the email, or those who uploaded 25,000 word zip files, or those who decided that despite the fact that the site is for poetry and FICTION only sent me their life stories, their personal musings on everything from thumbs to divorce, I say:

• Did you not read the guidelines?
• Did you think I didn’t mean what I said?
• Could you just not be bothered?
• Did you think you were allowed to be the exception to the rule?
• Do you think guidelines are just a “jumping off” point and that even though your submissions don’t meet some, one, or any of the criteria it doesn’t matter?
• Do you think I wrote these for my own amusement?
• Are you testing me to see if I’m upholding my own standards?

As a writer, you need to do two things: write, and what’s the second one? Oh yes, read. And if you can’t read or follow guidelines, what does that say about you as a writer? If your reading and comprehension skills are sloppy then in all likelihood your writing will be too.

And you’ll probably be the type of tourist who heads out to the Kalahari desert and leaves your guide behind.

Right. I’m done venting. Good night to all.

I look forward to more submissions as per the guidelines!

Does anyone else have this problem? Why oh why don’t people follow the guidelines?

I’m being guilt-tripped by New York Magazine

I just received a scary yellow envelope in the mail, with big black words emblazoned across the top: PLEASE USE STAMPS INSIDE AND OPEN AT ONCE!

Fear not – it’s just from New York Magazine.

When I joined MediaBistro four years ago, every year I’d get sent a free copy of Wired each month. Three years ago that was switched to New York Magazine. No idea why. I understand that MediaBistro is based out of NY but plenty of us live beyond the Big Apple. Oh well. And so, every week I received New York Magazine for an entire year. I never caught up reading them, though. Too many. I have newspapers and other magazines to read too. What’s the point of learning the great shops, restaurants, theatre in New York if I’m rarely there… and I’m certainly not there every week!

Still, two years ago, MediaBistro finally had the foresight to allow you to “opt out” and actually receive a $10 cash back for refusing the mag. I took the moolah and thought I’d sent New York Mag back to the Tri-State area. Ha! No such luck. I have continued to receive the magazine for the past two years  — despite pushing the opt out button every year. And I continue to receive the “last chance” letters from NY Magazine.

I understand that newspaper and magazine subscriptions are falling, failing and flailing, but do they really need to keep me on their circulation list that badly? I’ve been cajoled, prodded and begged into renewing my membership for the last two years and I haven’t caved once. Today, I’m finally being guilt tripped. An excerpt from NY Mag letter:

URGENT: THIS IS ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY YOUR LAST CHANCE TO GUARANTEE NO BREAK IN SERVICE

Dear About To Be Former NEW YORK Subscriber,

…We’re worried. You see, you only have a few more issues left on your subscription — unless we hear from  you now.

Don’t you want to know the meals, bars, gyms, deals, spas, shops, bargains, and galleries…?

Um, in New York? Nope! That’s why I have Los Angeles Magazine.

And the final line…

P.S. Sadly, we won’t be able to replace the issues you’ll miss if you wait to reply.

And this is signed by a very attentive KEN SHELDON.

Poor Kenny, I feel bad for him. However, I’m taking bets. Whoever can tell me how long it takes before my subscription runs out FOR REAL, HONEST, wins a jar of jelly beans.

A very tall man looking for a very small child

Ah, the Interweb. The bane of my existence. Love it or loathe it, few of us can live without it, and I pretty much make my living on it. Writing, editing, researching, it’s all done on my MacBook, and thanks to brilliant techie geeks who somehow know how to get all this information to shoot across the universe. I’ve always been one of those people that doesn’t care how it works, as long as it does work.

So, when I found out that my D-Link router (that had served me faithfully for five years) wasn’t working and was no longer under warranty and I’d have to pay for advice to hook me back up to the world-wide spider web, I finally bit the bullet and attempted to hook up my Airport Express. Granted, I’d bought it about three months ago, but on the first try it wouldn’t work and I figured I’d just wait to try again.

Finally that day arrived (thank you D-Link non-free advice people), but still, despite my basic grasp of tech-dom I could not get the Airport Express to work. Now, I’m not a big swearer, but something about losing my link to the computerized world gets me in a terrible state and I find myself using and abusing all kinds of expletives (sorry Mum). I cursed the computer, Apple, Steve Jobs, my desk and anything within cursing range. And finally I called the Mac experts (God bless Apple Care – you should all invest).

And that’s when I met Russell (on the phone of course), and Russell went through all the motions  I went through and also couldn’t get it to work. This made me happy momentarily, because at least it meant I wasn’t being obtuse, if even Russell the mac guy couldn’t fix it. Of course, it meant I still had not Internet access, unless – heaven forfend! – I used an Ethernet cable. The horror of it!

And then, Russell suddenly said, “How far is your Airport Express base from your computer?” I said, “About a foot.” And he said, “Try moving your computer at least three or four feet away.” Which I did, and voila, it worked!

Then Russell, mac guru and apparently philosopher said gravely: “When setting this up, the base was just too close to the computer, so it couldn’t tell it was there. It’s like a very tall man looking around for a very small child and realizing that he’s standing at his feet but he’s looking all around instead of looking straight down.”

I’d like you all to know that my very tall man and my very short child are now happily reunited and we’re back to living in Mac harmony. Thank you for today’s philosophy lesson, Russell. May you and  your Mac/philosophy skills go far.

Writing about the pursuit of Justice – Bet Tzedek

My article on an amazing LA non-profit that provides free legal assistance to all who are needy (and these days we all are), is  now up on The Jerusalem Post.

Bet Tzedek is an extraordinary institution that has helped thousands of people over the years. Give it up for them!

Discovery of a creative writing Yahoo group

Thanks to my dear friend Yael Unterman, I have been introduced to CRWROPPS-B – aka – Creative Writers Opportunities List – a Yahoo Group that “posts calls for submissions and contest information for writers of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.”

I’m always excited when you can simply head to one place to discover a wealth of opportunities under one banner. While it’s great to be able be spoiled for choice when it comes to writing opportunities available on the Internet, sometimes it’s a relief to not have to trawl for hours and hours, no?

I have sent the Scribblers on the Roof info out into the Internet ether and hopefully the submissions will be coming in thick and fast very soon. Lots of positive feedback, so that’s exciting.

Watch this space…

Drumroll please… new Web site almost ready to launch

Dear All,

I’m excited to say that I’m about to launch my new Web site – Scribblers on the Roof!

Website is www.jscribes.com but you won’t be able to access it just yet.

Send submissions to submissions@jscribes.com or send your thoughts, views, ideas to editor@jscribes.com. Submission details are below – keep reading!

Scribblers on the Roof was born out of a need for a dedicated place for both established and emerging writers of fiction and poetry with Jewish themes to submit their work. While there are some wonderful Jewish publications that have small sections for for creative writing they are few and far between and they are not dedicated solely to the craft of poetry and prose.

There are also many many fine “non-Jewish” literary publications where writers can submit their work. However, sometimes a piece may contain certain references or even words in Hebrew or Yiddish that a non-Jewish audience may simply not understand.

Scribblers on the Roof is also dedicated to allowing Jewish writers to connect with one another, and support and encourage each other in their literary pursuits. We aim to bring together writers of Jewish poetry and fiction from around the globe, showcase their talents, provide resources for their work, as well as host competitions, and challenge writers to delve into their Jewish backgrounds.

Remember, you don’t have to be Jewish to submit, just have stories and poems that have Jewish themes and/or content.

Launch is in September 09. Please submit your work and be part of our official launch!

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES!

* Scribblers on the Roof welcomes unsolicited submissions of original fiction and poetry only.
* All submissions must have identifiable Jewish themes or content.
* You may submit previously published work only if you have retained the rights to your piece. Please state where and when the piece was previously published and confirm that you have permission to publish on Scribblers on the Roof.
* Scribblers on the Roof accepts simultaneous submissions
* Fiction submissions may be anywhere from 500-5,000 words.
* Fiction submissions over 1,500 words deemed suitable for publication will be serialized over a period of weeks depending on the length of the story.
* Poetry submissions must be no more than 4 pages.
* Scribblers on the Roof only accepts electronic submissions
* Send submissions to submissions@jscribes.com
* All submissions must be in a Word Doc (.doc), double-spaced and in 12-point font.
* Please include your name, email address and word count, and a short, relevant biography (no more than two lines) on a separate page.
* If your piece is accepted for publication, you will be notified by email.

Freelance writing priorities meets social media

Help! I think I’m actually having a social media meltdown. Does this not happen to anyone else? I’m so busy trying to figure out how to tweet, facebook, blogg, digg, both this blog, and get going on the dry run of my website (name and address coming very very soon,) I feel like I’m drowning. Especially after seeing this lovely Youtube clip:

And, of course I’m doing Jane Boursaw’s course and we’re now onto the “Social Media” part, which I confess, aside from being under the weather with the beginnings of some kind of unpleasant bug,  I’ve been putting off doing. But now I’m working on it with gusto.

Is this the bane of a freelancer’s life? Constantly juggling so many project you don’t know which ones to work on when? Where, how, what to promote and why? Right now if I add everything up I’m currently working on:

• Two ongoing editing projects
• Three articles
• One blog
• One Website
• Three interviews to set up
• Prepping to teach a class
• Transcribing  three hours of notes from an interview
• Spending time doing the volunteer work I’m committed to
• Checking for new freelance jobs every day
• and… of course… finding time to blog, tweet, facebook etc. etc. and keep up with others in my profession who are doing the same thing.

And I’m an organised person. Truly. I have diaries, notes, papers, lists, etc. but I still get confused about what I’m working on when, what I want to work on, what I have to work on. I try to lay out my day to spend x amount of time on one thing  and y amount of time on another. But it rarely works. While it’s great to be able to chop and change when you get fed up with one thing or another, it can still be overwhelming. And I think social media puts me under even more pressure.

Now, if only I can find time to write more fiction and read my latest edition of Writer’s Digest Magazine.

Anyone else feeling the pressure?

Dog days

I confess to doing no work today. It has been such an emotional drain.

I took Bridget to the vet this morning for her surgery. She was in high spirits (although frustrated that I didn’t give her breakfast – she had to fast from midnight the night before), I on the other hand was a wreck and cried in the vet’s office. He was so sweet he told me he would telephone as soon as her surgery was over so that I could come and wait for her while she was still under. That way when she woke up I’d be the first person she saw.

I got the call at 12:15 p.m. – after trying to spend a couple of hours working in a cafe because I just didn’t want to be home in my house without Bridget. She came through the surgery fine. It took her about an hour to wake up fully before I could take her home, though. She has a huge set of stitches and her bum is all shaved. Poor baby. And she looked, well, stoned!

Vet said that he got the whole mass out and it looked to be contained and didn’t appear to have spread, but we won’t know anything for certain till the lab comes back with the biopsy results – hopefully Monday or Tuesday next week. I brought her home with pain meds and one of those god-awful plastic cones that she has to wear when I’m not supervising her.

She refused to drink for five hours and didn’t move, was clearly in pain. But when the pain killers kicked in, she finally got up and was wagging her tail, drank and ate and seemed to be herself, if not slow, stiff and groggy. She’s now lying on the floor with the silly cone because I’m off to bed shortly and don’t want to risk her going for her stitches. Vet says he will call tomorrow morning to see how she is doing.

I was supposed to go to the premiere of Legally Blonde – the musical tonight and review the show, but had to abandon that plan following Bridget’s surgery. There’s no way I’m leaving her side at all this whole weekend. My friend Sally and her boyfriend were going to take the tix and write the review but that fell through too after she was left dealing with the aftermath of being hit by a car (luckily she’s physically fine, just a little bruised). Wow.

I plan to catch up on the writing bent over the weekend. Dog surgery took over everything today though.