The Joys of Publishing

No, that's not sarcastic. I get so much satisfaction from self-publishing. I've done a lot of it, giving chapbooks away to friends and family, but this summer marks the first time someone's paid me for my poetry. I have sold two, count 'em, TWO chapbooks at the local crafts & farmers market this summer! I'm over the moon. For some reason, getting payment for a chapbook makes me feel "published" more affirmatively than when I hand them out for free.

It also makes me want to take another stab at sending my work out for publication. Here are the problems with trying to get published in the commercial world: 1) there are a million other people trying to do exactly the same thing, and a limited market; 2) it's incredibly labor- and time-intensive to prepare the submittal; and 3) you end up having to spend a fair amount on postage, supplies, and readers' fees or samples of the magazine in question.

Really, what you're seeing here is one end of a perennial debate with myself. It takes a massive investment of resources to try to get published. But it's worth investing the resources. However, being a notorious procrastinator, plus busy with work and other activities, I rarely get past square 2 or 3. I've submitted a few things in my life, and besides the time I spent as a journalist, I'm getting published currently as a columnist in a regional pet magazine - but it's scarcely enough to call a resume. I crave national publication! :) The worst of it is that I know exactly what I need to do, I just haven't made the time to do it... yet.