Progress Report(s)

1. The Writing Group: I am having a disappointing time of things trying to get this group going. I handed out flyers at that writing event last week, and the library is posting my notice in ten branches. I have yet to distribute copies to the local bookstores, but will do so after this week (this week is kind of spoken for, what with the Monday deadline). But only one person has responded. Now, she is very enthusiastic and seems like a good fit, but we need a critical mass of people if it's going to work. One of the comments I've heard is that people can't commit to twice a month (even the one who is interested said this). But all of the input I've had from those in writing groups seems to suggest that twice a month is the way to go. What would be even better would be to find an existing group.

2. Philosophy book manuscript: Publisher still has it and expects the reviews to come in sometime in November on the assumption that they are going to be late. Just following up made me nervous. I can enjoy the sense of accomplishment as long as the manuscript remains out of my hands.

3. Fourth Submission: Annotations are done. The revision is going slowly but I like what I've done with it so far. The main comment was that I needed to add scenes ("show, don't tell" of course). So I've added some scenes. And based on Bug's formula for how to spend your time, I've spent a lot of time re-reading the original draft, making notes in the margins, and planning what is going to be expanded into a scene. I had planned to submit something to the CBC Literary Awards but the deadline is tomorrow. It's the first year of replacing the travel writing competition with creative non-fiction, including memoir. We'll see how things are by the end of the day tomorrow. I've got a few meetings tomorrow with some time between for writing.

4. Ideas to pursue. I have had a number of ideas since that seminar I was at last week and the experience with Linda Hirshman's fee. First, I am going to look for markets where I am already an expert and so have some credibility. Today I received a nice looking magazine called Academic Matters, which is a "trade" magazine for Canadian academics writing about issues of general interest to other academics (e.g. academic freedom, which is this month's theme). It's got a circulation of 14,000 readers and it pays. So I've started keeping a file of potential markets (this is probably an obvious thing that most freelancers do, but I feel inspired by the fact that I've started one!). Second, I have been invited to speak at a "Feminism is for Everyone" themed Awareness Day. For free. But the exposure is a good thing. Third, at the publishing panel at the summer MFA residency there was an agent from an agency that specializes in non-fiction and likes to work with academics who are trying to write more accessible books. I am going to work on a package to send them indicating a couple of ideas that I have for more popular versions of some of what I work on in my research. Fourth, the people at last week's seminar mentioned using your research to produce more than one thing (again, seems obvious). So I have decided that I am going to write an essay based on what I come up with for the radio documentary. And I am going to submit it to a market that pays, even if they don't pay a lot. Fifth, I didn't know that Bug taught a course on freelance writing. I am going to pick her brain when I see her in January! Same goes for FC, who not only teaches writing but freelances for a living (or at least for a good part of her living).