A is for Argh! Tip #1: Read Instructions #atozchallenge

[jessicasteiner]

I'm doing the Blogging from A-Z Challenge and I've decided that to achieve this goal of blogging every day (except Sundays) for a month, I will do a bit of a theme - short and sweet writing tips.

Today's writing tip is extremely relevant to my life this past weekend.

When submitting completed work for publication, it's extremely important to read the submission instructions carefully! A small mistake (such as missing a deadline or failing to include a required piece of information) can instantly disqualify you from consideration.

I think the simplest reason for this is simply that people who read through submissions are extremely busy and get hundreds, sometimes thousands of submissions for any given publication spot. They are looking for easy ways to cull down the list of things they have to read. Failing to include something they request makes it easy to drop yours off the list. They're looking for the cream that rises to the top, not offering a lot of hand holding.

So don't ever do what I just did! When someone says that the deadline for submissions to their anthology is March 30, 2013 don't write down March 31, 2013 and wait for the last day to submit, only to realize that you missed it.

Don't be me, internet. Don't be me.

In related news, I have a homeless short story I'm going to be submitting around. Oh well.