Some good news

I got this email yesterday:

"Dear Rachael Hanel,

"The editors at The Truth About The Fact: International Journal of Literary Nonfiction are pleased to accept Dad Digs Uncle Davey’s Grave for publication in the Spring 2009, Volume IV Number I issue. We received over 350 submissions from the international literary community, including impressive narratives about life in South Africa, India, China, Canada, Great Britain and the United States. Your work was one of only 35 pieces selected.


"We respect your commitment to your craft, and we are honored to have this wonderful piece published in our journal."

The interesting thing is that I had been hoping lately for a piece of good news. I have a lot of things out there -- essays and grant applications -- and I was wondering when I would start to hear something about them. I mentioned to David a few days ago that I was really craving some news, and like I always do when I feel this way, I prayed about it. This is NOT the first time that I've prayed for some good news about my writing and it was delivered. I'm still so amazed when that happens.

Author request

I got my first author request this week from a student. He had read my pirates book and wanted to know more about the subject. I was so happy that a student had reached out and found me via the Web. I was also glad to not be the "jerk" author who ignores those types of requests. I won't name names -- refer to blog entries of, oh, probably a year or more back. I can't let that subject go -- ha ha! I have a tendency to hold grudges. I am a Scorpio, after all.

How success happens

I have started Viktor Frankl's MAN'S SEARCH FOR MEANING. He was a Holocaust survivor/psychiatrist who pondered how people could survive such horrid conditions, and how they could survive even though it appeared they had no hope. I came across a great quote right away in the preface:

"Don't aim at success--the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one's dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success; you have to let it happen by not caring about it. I want you to listen to what your conscience commands you to do and go on to carry it to the best of you knowledge. Then you will live to see that in the long run--in the long run, I say!--success will follow you precisely because you had forgotten to think of it."

finished third draft

I do declare that I think I've finished a third draft of WE'LL BE THE LAST ONES TO LET YOU DOWN. I think it's still a little rough (especially toward the end) and slightly disjointed, but I'm hoping it will provide a solid foundation for the next rewrite. And I really hope and pray the next rewrite doesn't take two years!

This draft is 224 pages, about 70,000 words. I'm really happy about that, because all this time I've been plagued by the feeling that it wouldn't be long enough. I'm just not a "long" writer -- I blame my journalism background. But short pieces start to add up.

I'm going to let it sit for a bit, maybe do a little polishing here and there, and give it to my lovely friends who have agreed to read it!

Now I have to print it out. I'm sorry for the small tree I'm killing doing that!