Author: Jacinta Lou

I still haven’t released my manuscript. I’m reflecting on what is holding me back. Fear of failure? Fear of success? There is no down side to sending it. The process is,

Research publishers who publish children’s picture books. ✅

Do they accept unsolicited manuscripts?✅

Do they publish your style of book, will it fit their list?✅

Do they welcome first time authors? ✅

Do they come through the email and stand in your living room scoffing at your ridiculous attempt❌❌❌

Never ever ever. In fact, unless they decide to offer a contract, you will never hear from them again! Simply put their estimated time frame into the diary and send to someone else when it expires.

So WHY can’t I just press send🙄 I think I need a deadline.

How do you get yourself to do something when procrastination takes hold.

I think wanting to write and wanting to be a writer are two different things. Let me try to explain my thoughts. Not easy when you live in my head. For me, writing happens all the time. I might feel a poem coming on and find something to write it on. I use writing to clarify my thoughts. I might even submit a half baked story from time to time, but I never saw myself as a writer; just someone who writes. So what changed?

For me it was a combination of getting older and the pandemic. The realisation I might run out of time to become a writer!

So I enrolled in some courses with the Australian Writing Centre, joined some writing groups and took myself, and learning the craft, seriously.

If course now I’m full of, what if I’m not good enough? What if I stink as a writer? And there are real voices in my head telling me to quit before I embarrass myself.

But to those voices I say, so what. What do I have to lose. 🙂