Creative Non-Fiction

One of the tropes rife in the editorial world, regarding non-fiction, is “this should be an article instead of a book.” This is a very disappointing thing for an author to hear. After all, s/he spent years developing an idea into something long enough to be called a book, only to have it suggested s/he should cut it down.

I write fiction, and I love to do so. Once I’m in the world I’ve imagined, it is difficult for me to break away. In my day-job, however, I have written, and continue to write, creative non-fiction. I recently managed to get one of these pieces up to 60,000 words so that I could call it a book. A friend suggested maybe it should be an article instead.

This is the dilemma of the writer seeking publication. You have to meet the expectations of a publisher. Nobody knows the piece as well as the author, and it hurts to cut organs away—body parts that your mind organically grafted into the body of your work.

Creative non-fiction, it seems to me, is easier to sell than fiction. The common misperception is that anyone can dash off fiction. “Just make something up.” Good fiction, however, is just as hard as non-fiction. Probably harder. It’s definitely harder to publish.

This week I sent out a creative non-fiction piece to a journal. It will be weeks, perhaps months, before I hear back. I’ve done this before, and often with success. I’m still nervous, though. If it’s not enough for a book, maybe it won’t be enough for an article?

Writers, I’m told, must have thick skin. Many of us who write, however, do so because we feel deeply. Feeling deeply and thick skin aren’t natural corollaries. I’ve already accepted that I don’t know whether it’s a book or an article that I’m writing. Do I have to accept than it’s not publishable too?

Comments

Patterns

There’s a pattern I’m noticing. For fiction publishers. Even if you aim low you’ll find it a struggle. Part of the reason is the pattern. Lots of websites list publishers. The smaller, hungrier presses either eventually close or get to a place where they require an agent to get in. That’s the kiss of death. Although my stories have won prizes, and been nominated for prizes, I can’t get an agent interested. I’ve queried well over a hundred, so the agent route is one of diminishing returns. This too is a pattern. Back to the smaller presses. I check many lists. What I write, you see, is highly idiosyncratic. It’s literary but it’s weird. Publishers don’t know what to do with it. If a smaller press published stuff like this, I’d find it. The pattern includes writers who never get discovered. Ironically, a number of editors of fiction literary magazines (mostly online) tell me they enjoy my wor...

Creative Righting

Rejection of my writing is a rejection of my imaginative world. That’s why I was cheered by the acceptance of one of my stories this week. That makes number 31. I’ve been working on a lot of fiction lately, even as nonfiction book number 6 is going to press. The ideas are still there, and bizarre as ever, but publishing venues just aren’t welcoming. The other day I had lunch with a professor whose wife is also a professor. She just had her first novel published, and so he pointed me to her indie publisher. I went to their website to learn that they’re closed to submissions. I have to admit that my latest accepted story, “Creative Writing Club,” was probably given the green light because I know the editor. That seems like a pretty dicey way to get any notice, doesn’t it? You have to know the right people even in the low circulation world. My fiction is difficult to classify. It’s got speculative elements to it. ...

Maybe Okay

A couple pieces of encouraging news, perhaps, dear struggling writers. I had a couple short stories accepted for publication in recent weeks. As a fellow writer recently said, “You've got to keep trying. Somebody will like what you wrote.” That’s a bit of sunshine. And it’s likely true. But the stories: “The Crossing,” about two men in a boat trying to cross the Atlantic, was accepted by JayHenge Publishing. JayHenge is a small, but paying publisher. I was flattered when they wanted it for their Masque & Maelström: The Reluctant Exhumation of Edgar Allan Poe anthology. Being associated with Poe in any way feels good. The second story, “St. Spiders’ Day,” had been brewing in my mind for years—yes, this is a long game! A friend pointed me to The Creepy podcast. Since the story hadn’t been written, I followed their guidelines of what they wanted. It worked. I recently heard a successful wri...

K. Marvin Bruce

Search This Blog