(or, please consider supporting me during the Clarion Write-a-Thon)
I’m late, and life has been extremely crazy over the past few weeks. Work has been intense, and I’m facing some serious situation changes over the next few months. I considered signing up for Write-a-Thon, then I forgot about it, then I remembered but thought there’s too much crap going on, there’s no way I can participate properly.
But then lots of my Clarion classmates started joining.
And I poked their author’s profiles and get inspired. And I opened up my word document and read some of my Clarion diary from last year and realized I had made a promise to myself – that I wouldn’t give writing up, no matter what. That I’d carve out the time for it despite everything. That I had to at least try to get my stories out there. Clarion changed my life utterly; it would be ridiculous for me not to even try to help them out.
So at the last minute, I joined the Clarion Write-a-Thon. My goal is to raise at least $250 for the Clarion foundation, which provides scholarships and funding for the program, so that each year, eighteen writers can go and develop their craft, get their butts kicked, learn from some of the best writers in the field, and develop lifelong friendships (cheesy yet true).
The thing about Clarion is: it works. Since graduating from the workshop, I have sold stories to Nightmare Magazine and Tor.com; an essay of mine appeared in the boundary-pushing magazine, Interfictions Online; I have received personalized rejections from magazines like Asimov’s, Strange Horizons, and The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction; and most of all, I have found the will to admit to myself that writing is something I need to do.
bigstonebear
Clan Clarion 2013, next to the big stone bear.
My goal is to write 25,000 words in the next four weeks. (Yes, I am two weeks behind.) That’s a lot, but I believe it's doable, and when I set a goal, I always do my best to achieve it. That word count will go to two short stories, and the remainder will be applied to the Novel I Promised to Write This Year. Your contributions will really encourage me to keep at this. I write for myself, yes, but I also write for my incredible supporters through the years, especially my family and friends.
Some perks I am offering as part of this fundraising campaign:
- Anyone who donates at least $15 will receive a PDF of my poetry chapbook, Some Graspable Universe, which collects some of my poems from 2010 – 2013.
- Anyone who donates $25 will receive a handmade card in addition to the poetry chapbook. Once I receive your donation, I will email you requesting your mailing address (you’ll receive it in September/October this year).
- Alternatively, with a donation of at least $25, I would be happy to read either a set of up to 10 poems or a short story (up to 8000 words), and offer personalized and detailed critique on it.
I don’t receive anything but your name when you donate, so please do email me or poke me on Facebook, and I will send you your reward!
Thinking about donating? Here is the link to my writer's page. I'll be updating my wordcount at least weekly, so that you can see how I progress! You can choose to support me, or any of my wonderful teammates in the Rocketship Spatulas (or any of the other awesome Write-a-thon-ers, really).
Still not convinced? You can read my personal essay on the Clarion experience. It doesn’t capture all of the magic, but hopefully it will convince you how much the experience meant to me, and how important it is that Clarion continues to be a shelter, a home, a place to grow and change and discover, for writers in subsequent years.
As the song I ganked my title from says: everybody is looking for something. The dreamers that attend Clarion can only travel so far with your help. Thank you!