Tuesday Spotlight - Jeanette O'Hagan

Each Monday and Thursday, Christian Writers Downunder's faithful and talented blog team contribute blogposts to inspire and inform aspiring and established writers. In 2017 we will be adding Tuesday Spotlights - posts that spotlight both writers and organisations that contribute to the writing scene Downunder. Our first on December 27 was on Nola Passmore, writer, editor, academic and the previous coordinator of Christian Writers Downunder. The Second on 14 February was of Anusha Atukorala, encourager, prayer warrior, and inspirational writer and an invaluable member of the Admin team. Today's and the next one will continue highlight the CWD Administration team: Anusha Atukorala, Paula Vince and Jeanette O’Hagan.

Today's spotlight is on Jeanette O'Hagan with questions from Nola Passmore.

Nola Passmore and Jeanette O'Hagan

Nola: You’ve had a number of interesting jobs, including doctor and Bible college lecturer.  What inspired you to become a writer?

Jeanette: I’ve had a passion for creating stories since I was eight or nine and wrote a novel in my late teens, early twenties. It didn’t occur to me that I could be a writer, so I studied medicine, practiced as a General Practitioner, studied a Bachelor of Theology and began post-graduate studies in theology and was thrilled to lecture in ethics, world religions in a bible college. I loved it and had no time for creative writing. It was only when family commitments meant the door slammed shut on my lecturing that God reminded me of my passion for writing.

Nola: You’ve done a lot of courses and workshops on writing (e.g., a Masters degree in creative writing, a Margie Lawson immersion class, Year of the Edit with the Queensland Writers’ Centre, and more).  How have these classes/workshops helped you in your writing journey?

Jeanette: The different courses as well as networking through writers’ groups, conferences and workshops, have been invaluable in learning writing craft, and in understanding the writing journey and markets, and also, in learning how to research, learn and solve creative challenges. 

On a purely technical level, writing has been a hard craft to perfect. It’s been important to understand current stylistic trends and story requirements. It has been just as important to realize the ‘why’ behind the rules, to know when to bend them, and to know, not only the don’ts (don’t use adverbs, don’t use creative dialogue tags etc), but also to know what to do (how to show, how to add emotion and subtext) – which is what I appreciated about the Margie Lawson Immersion experience.

Nola: Your novella Heart of the Mountain was published last year and it’s been getting great reviews.  How did the idea for the story come about?

Jeanette: Well, Nola – remember when we had the brilliant idea to create and edit an anthology for the International Year of Light – Glimpses of Light? I thought about the theme - not just of light, but a glimpse. Which got me thinking about an underground realm where the lights were failing. I wanted to place it in my imaginary world – Nardva – which gave me a few other ideas about plot and characters. Trouble was, as hard as tried, I couldn’t keep the story to the 7000 word limit. So, I wrote another piece for the anthology – Ruhanna’s Flight – and then, revised and expanded Heart of the Mountain story into a short novella.

Nola: You’re the Queen of Multitasking.  As well as your novella, you’ve had a number of short stories and poems published in various anthologies.  You were the driving force behind the Glimpses of Light anthology, you organised the Omega Writers Book Fair in Brisbane, you coordinate Christian Writers Downunder, you’re working on a series of novels and a poetry anthology, you blog, you paint … Phew!  How do you keep all of those balls in the air and maintain a healthy work-life balance?  I’d love to know your secret.

Jeanette: Oh wow, now I’m blushing.  I’m not sure I do keep all the balls in the air – or maybe I catch them just before they hit the ground. I work well to deadlines. I like to-do lists. I’ve got bull-dog Curtis genes – once I commit to a task, I don’t like not finishing it (my sister-in-law suggests it’s ‘sticking to the rut’ genes). I pray a lot. I prioritise. I focus on my writing. I don’t watch T.V. Writing (and reading) is my hobby as well as my passion. I keep my family clean, clothed, fed and where they need to be (school, interviews) but I am not the best housekeeper. I probably should exercise more (though grocery shopping and gardening are exercise, right?). I pray a lot. I said that, but really, God’s grace and underpinning is everything.

Nola: Tell us about your current work in progress.

Jeanette: I’m currently working on another YA fantasy novella, Blood Crystal, a sequel to Heart of the Mountain – which continues the story of Retza, Delvina and Zadeki about twenty days after HOM finishes with new challenges for the people under the mountain.  I finished a first draft last year but am now revising it and adding some scenes with view of publishing it in a few months’ time. 

I’m also want to get the first few books of my Akrad’s legacy series ready for publication this year. I have put a lot of work (several revisions) into Akrad’s Children and need to get the first drafts of Rasel’s Song and Mannok’s Betrayal into shape. The books follow the fortunes of four young people following a devastating civil war and an uneasy peace —the orphans Dinnis and Ista, the young Tamrin prince Mannok, and Rasel, a mysterious young woman of the forest folk.

I have a few other short story ideas and anthologies I wouldn’t mind working up. We’ll see.

Nola: You’ve done a fantastic job of coordinating CWD in the last year.  What are your hopes and dreams for CWD in 2017 and beyond?

Jeanette: Thank you. If I have, it’s because of the work of previous coordinators like yourself and Lee, and also the wonderful admin team, Anusha and Paula. I love how responsive and helpful the CWD members are to each other's questions and triumphs, and also the faithfulness and creativity of our blog team on the blogsite Christian Writers Downunder. 

Omega Writers 2016 Book Fair

My hopes and dreams are that we continue to be a supportive, accepting and interactive group that honours Christ in our words and deeds. I have ideas of revamping the look and some of the features of the blogsite – some of which I’ve done (adding an about page, some rearrangements in format) and of introducing Tuesday Spotlights.  I like idea of spontaneous interactions – like the Friday Fun  posts — on the CWD Facebook page. I’m glad we have an ongoing cooperation between other groups, as affiliate of Omega Writers (OW), and the Cross-Posts (on Genres in 2017) with our sister group Australasian Christian Writers (ACW) as well as connections with Faith Writers.  I have some ideas brewing on additional pages to the blogsite and maybe events in which we could support each other as writers.  

Thanks Nola for some challenging and interesting questions.  Next Tuesday Spotlight, we’ll be asking another member of the Admin teams, Paula Vince, some curly ... er interesting and intelligent questions.

 Jeanette O’Hagan first started spinning tales in the world of Nardva at the age of nine.

She enjoys writing secondary world fiction, poetry, blogging and editing. Her Nardva stories span continents, time and cultures. They involve a mixture of courtly intrigue, adventure, romance and fantasy.

Recent publications include Heart of the Mountain: a short novella, The Herbalist's Daughter: a short story and Lakwi's Lament: a short story. Jeanette is also writing her Akrad’s Legacy Series—a Young Adult secondary world fantasy fiction with adventure, courtly intrigue and romantic elements.

Her other short stories and poems are published in a number of anthologies including Glimpses of Light, Another Time Another Place and Like a Girl.

 Jeanette has practised medicine, studied communication, history, theology and a Master of Arts (Writing). She loves reading, painting, travel, catching up for coffee with friends, pondering the meaning of life and communicating God’s great love. She lives in Brisbane with her husband and children.

Links

Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/JeanetteOHaganAuthorAndSpeaker/

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9833645.Jeanette_O_Hagan/

Amazon Central  https://www.amazon.com/Jeanette-OHagan/e/B00RBSE85C/

Twitter  https://twitter.com/JeanetteOHagan/

Instagram  https://www.instagram.com/bythelightof2moons/

Jenny's Thread http://jennysthread.com/tag/jeanette-ohagan/

Jeanette O'Hagan Writes http://jeanetteohagan.com/

Email sign-up:  http://eepurl.com/bbLJKT/

Five Facts for Every Author

by Charis Joy Jackson 

 

My dream holiday, as a writer, is finding a cabin in the middle of the wilderness where I can sit and write for days.

So at the end of last year, when I knew I was coming home for the holidays, the land considered the "Last Frontier", I thought I'd found the perfect place and I day-dreamed of days and days of writing.

But it hasn’t happened.

In fact, I've spent very little of my holiday writing. At first I felt guilty. Why was the idea of writing my novel so overwhelming? Why was I procrastinating? I love to write. I love my story, so what in the world was wrong?

And then the self-doubt started… If I'm not committed to writing every day, does that mean I'm not a writer? Has all the love and passion gone? Will I ever get my novel published? Am I really a writer? Or am I just a fake?

I needed a broader perspective - the cold hard facts and I knew I wasn’t the only one who wrestles with doubts so I made a short list of facts to hold on to in the “dry” moments.

Fact 1 - We need rest

When I came home for my holiday I was sick. I spent the first two and a half weeks lying on my blue fainting couch, barely taking in the tv shows and conversation going on around me. I couldn’t even form coherent sentences, let alone try to write from one of my characters povs.

Sometimes we need to rest from the work and creativity to replenish our supply. In my case, I literally needed to recuperate and get well, but sometimes it may mean taking a day off from my computer.

It’s good to give ourselves a break from the world of our characters, because it allows us to see things differently when we pick up the story again and maybe we’ll suddenly have solutions to story questions that our over tired brains couldn’t find before.

Fact 2 - Being an author doesn’t mean you just write

The truth is, even when I was feeling better I wasn't writing my novel, but I was spending a lot of time building my author platform. Taking part in a blog tour and promoting Glimpses of Light, an anthology recently published with one of my short stories.

There’s a tremendous amount of other things an author needs to do, so many ways we build our audience.

Writing blogs, updating our author pages on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Wordpress, website, etc. These platforms are not just busy work, but valid, important sites to keep updated so we can continue reaching new readers.

Fact 3 - Reading more, makes you a better story-teller

One thing I’ve been doing a lot on this holiday is reading. Re-reading old favourites I knew would wake the “something” in me that seemed lost. Reading new novels that were recommended to me, reading my own copy of Glimpses of Light and being blown away by all the talented story-tellers I get to share the pages with and even branching out to other genres I don’t normally have a desire to read.

The best writing resource for any budding author is to read more.

I remember someone telling me to read everything I could in the genre I wanted to write in - the good, the bad and the ugly. When I asked why I should read the bad, I was told, "Even the bad ones teach us what not to do."

Fact 4 - Spending time with God is the secret weapon of the creative

One of the reasons I haven’t been writing much is because I’m hanging out with God. Reading devotionals, journaling, spending time in worship and prayer.

I’ve discovered that after times of deep immersion with the ultimate Creator, my own creativity and love for story takes on a fresh new life. Every word becomes richer and more profound.

In order to grow in a specific thing, you must learn from those who know it better. Well, who's better to learn from, than the One who created my story and yours?

Fact 5 - Don’t become a critic, keep your wonder

I recently finished reading Frank Peretti’s Illusion and one of the themes that stood out to me was the importance of keeping your wonder. In the case of Peretti’s story it was keeping their wonder as magicians, but I think it can apply to any creative - especially the author.

I like what Robert Frost says on the subject. “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.”

In other words, be in awe of the stories and characters you dream up.

And more importantly, be in awe of the God who wants to see you make up these worlds of adventure, daring sword fights and great romances. It’s what He created you for and the more time we spend in self-doubt the less we live out the truth of what He put in us.

The other day my mom and I were walking to the car, we'd just finished doing some shopping. It was cold and the sky was blanketed with a thick mist, blocking the majestic mountains that surrounded us. I was just about to hop into the car and get away from the dreary weather when I glanced up.

The mist had broken in some places and revealed the hidden glory there. I snapped a picture on my phone and even though it wasn't the best photo, it soothed something within me. Reminding me that even the darkest days are filled with glory if only we take the time to look.

So, what about you? What are some facts you’ve found helpful to keep doubt away and hold on to the truth?

Charis Joy Jackson is working as a missionary with Youth With a Mission (YWAM) a non-profit organization & is part of The Initiative Production Company. She loves creating stories & is currently writing a novel, which she hopes to create into a seven part series.

Here's to a life lived in awe & wonder.
Welcome to the adventure.
www.charisjoyjackson.com

Passing on the Baton

It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. 2 Cor 3:5 (NLT)

On Monday, Nola announced she was stepping down as coordinator of Christian Writers Downunder, though she will remain on as a member of the committee. She has passed this role (that she has fulfilled so admirably) on to me.  I have some big shoes to fill.

Reading through the responses from Monday’s blogpost, I know you all will join me in thanking Nola for her gentle, wise and Spirit-led leadership and her faithful and humble serving behind the scenes of CWD over the last couple of years. From arranging the blog calendar, sharing links to the blog twice-weekly, accepting new members, encouraging, commenting in the FB group, and negotiating the occasional tricky situation, Nola has acted with wisdom and grace. In recent times, she has co-opted first Anusha and then myself to share the load of these various responsibilities.  We would love her to continue in her role in CWD but God is calling her to focus on other things.

For myself, CWD has had a significant impact on me when I returned to writing a few years ago. Suddenly, I was part of a virtual but very real and active community of like-minded writers who were willing to share what they had learned, to encourage, pray and laugh together, even though we often came from different traditions and perspectives. While clearly valuing faith in Jesus and Christian values and worldview, there has been has also been a willingness to look outward, to consider how we might best engage creatively with the world. 

I’ve appreciated the opportunity to blog regularly on CWD blogsite, to connect and network, to discuss and group together for common goals (like the NaNo Camp July cabins & FB groups or the Glimpses of Light anthology). I like that CWD is primarily a support group for Australian and New Zealand Christians who are writers or associated with writing (as publishers, editors, illustrators). There are opportunities to promote or share one’s triumphs, but CWD isn’t primarily a promotional group where everyone is trying to sell their wares and no one is listening. 

All these are qualities that I hope we will be able to preserve and cultivate in the future.

CWD has more than doubled in size since I joined as a rookie member in 2012. It is perhaps inevitable with a large group, that some members are much more active than others. Maybe this is because not everyone is on FB as often, or maybe because some of you are shy and reticent to participate.  One thing I’ve found in life is that the more you put into something, the more you get out of it.

Let me encourage to be active in the group — join in on discussions, congratulate or pray for each other, read the CWD blogs (they’re good value) and comment on them, join the blog team, get behind the anthology, support each other’s works through sharing links, writing (fair and honest) reviews.  Another writer’s success doesn’t make ours less likely. By supporting each other, we become stronger together.

While I have a few small ideas percolating away, my main aim is to continue what has been started. I appreciate your prayers and support and would like to thank you all for being such a vibrant, encouraging and inspiring group.

Jeanette (Jenny) O’Hagan

7 January 2015

Jeanette O’Hagan enjoys writing fiction, poetry, blogging and editing. She is writing her Akrad’s Legacy Series—a Young Adult secondary world fantasy fiction with adventure, courtly intrigue and romantic elements. Her short stories and poems are published in a number of anthologies including Glimpses of Light, Another Time Another Place and Like a Girl.

Jeanette has practised medicine, studied communication, history, theology and, more recently, a Master’s in writing. She loves reading, painting, travel, catching up for coffee with friends, pondering the meaning of life and communicating God’s great love. She lives in Brisbane with her husband and children.

You can find her at her Facebook Page or at Goodreads or on Amazon or on her websites  JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes .

Let's Make it Happen

by Mazzy Adams

The early strains of my authorial inclinations arrived twenty-eight years ago, as song lyrics. Words to worship the living God rode the wings of melody straight into my spirit. Was that exciting, or what! Each new song shone with possibility. I scribbled them down, determined which chords supported the melodies, and typed up my treasures with their chords hovering happily above them: C, B^b, F^#, Am, C⁷dim etc. Dainty letters and symbols, aren’t they? And any musician worth their salt would have no trouble knowing what chords to play. But knowing when to play them? Or what tune to sing the words to? That was a problem. You see, although I could compose the tunes, and even understand the harmonies, I had never learned to play a musical instrument (beyond a wooden recorder), nor had I developed any fluency in writing musical notation. The music might have been within me, but my ability to communicate it to others was limited.

Mind you, I wasn’t completely without options. I managed to produce music scores using computer programs, but the gap between my expertise and that needed to produce a finished article good enough to get those songs ‘out there’ seemed too wide to bridge on the budget I had. I leaned towards compromise; I told myself that even if nobody else ever heard or sang those songs, it was okay, because God heard them. He received my personal expressions of praise and worship every time I sang them, and at least He and I were blessed. And that was true. It also gave me an easy way out, especially once I heard a pastor suggest that, if our plans, or the operation of our gifts and talents, faced huge obstacles, or seemed to be thwarted by circumstances, we should probably ‘put those things on the shelf, and leave it to God to make them happen’. Hmm. Really?

All these years later, I am convinced that the pastor’s advice, albeit well-meaning, was dubious, if not downright flawed. Why? Because that kind of advice made it easy to give up, and easier to blame ‘God’s will’ for anything and everything that could’ve, should’ve, would’ve but didn’t happen. Thankfully, at about that time, the Holy Spirit highlighted some verses from Psalm 68 in the Amplified Bible (yes, he made it loud and clear) to me, including:

• Verse 11:       ‘The Lord gives the word [of power]; the women who bear and publish [the news] are a great host.’ Yes, that’s how it is, punctuation and emphasis included!
• Verse 19:       ‘Blessed be the Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even the God Who is our salvation! Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]! I did ‘Selah’. Then I wrote a song based on that verse as a consequence of my meditation.
• Verse 28:       ‘Your God has commanded your strength [your might in His service and impenetrable hardness to temptation]; O God, display Your might and strengthen what You have wrought for us! Was I tempted to give up? Yep. But just look at the order of that verse. First, God commands our strength. Then the psalmist implores God to strengthen what He has wrought for us. I figured, if it was good enough for King David …
• Verse 35:       ‘O God, awe-inspiring, profoundly impressive, and terrible are You out of Your holy places; the God of Israel Himself gives strength and fullness of might to His people. Blessed be God!’

I decided it was risky to shelve something difficult or challenging in the hope (or presumption) that, if God wanted to, He’d make it happen. I decided it was better to trust Him to strengthen me and help me make it happen. As a consequence, I’ve learned to maintain a very large ‘pending’ file, and check it regularly. Had my stubborn and tenacious streak not underpinned my decision to persevere, in spite of many obstacles, I may never have been surprised (and delighted) to hear a congregation singing one of my songs at a church I visited just a couple of years ago – some twenty-three years after I wrote the song. 

While none of my songs were ‘published’ in the traditional sense, over the years a number of them were heard, and sung, by a wider audience than just me and God. What’s more, writing those songs seeded my passion for writing poetry and lyric essays, which I have had traditionally published. In fact, two of my poems are being published today, in the Glimpses of Light anthology. I love the spirit behind the following comment from the anthology’s acknowledgement page:

‘Glimpses of Light began as an inkling of an idea last year … 

At first we put it in the ‘too hard basket’, but the idea just wouldn’t go away.’

Wouldn’t it? It might have, if our dedicated Editors, Jeanette O’Hagan and Nola L Passmore had shelved the idea before it got off the ground. But they didn’t. It might have, if the many authors who have contributed stories and poems had buried their creative talents at the back of a shelf and left them there. But they didn’t. It might have, without the encouragement and effort of everyone who helped to make this project happen. But encourage and help they did. It might have, if the enemy’s plans to prevent these ‘stories and poems of imagination and hope’ from reaching the hearts that will be inspired and healed by them had succeeded. They haven’t so far. (Let’s keep it that way by spreading the word far and wide.) And finally, it might have, if God had not answered our many prayers for wisdom, guidance, strength, and protection, time and again. But He did. And guess what? Glimpses of Light has HAPPENED!

Now, the music of hope fills the pages of an anthology. And our ability to pass it on to the world is only limited by … the good intentions we shelve and the actions we don’t take. Will you add your abilities to the mix now? Help us get this gem of good news and encouragement out to as many people as possible? Yes? Thank you so very much. May God strengthen you as you do, just as He has already strengthened what He has wrought for us. And may He give you the encouragement and strength you need to move your projects, your gems, off the shelf, out of the ‘too hard’ and/or ‘pending’ baskets and on to a world that is waiting to see them shine.

Need a little more persuasion? Perhaps the words from Jeremiah 50:2a (Amplified Version) may help to convince you, as they once did me: ‘Declare it among the nations and publish it and set up a signal [to spread the news] – publish and conceal it not; say, Babylon has been taken.’

   

Why, I’ll even give you some links, to make your task of acquiring and promoting the Glimpses of Light anthology easy. ;)

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0994398921?keywords=Glimpses+of+Light&qid=1450240465&ref_=sr_1_2&sr=8-2

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28116465-glimpses-of-light

Finally, why not re-establish a link with some of your own projects that have languished on the shelf, or in the too hard basket? At the very least, relocate them to a pending file, at least in your mind. Then trust God to strengthen you, to help you see them through. As they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained. What have you got to lose, other than a shelf full of clutter?

Mazzy Adams is an Australian wife, mother, grandmother, creative and academic writing tutor and published author with a passion for words, pictures and the positive potential in people 
Website: www.mazzyadams.com  
Email: maz@mazzyadams.com

Glimpses of Light Anthology

Christian Writers Downunder is excited to announce the cover reveal of the Glimpses of Light anthology.  

(The cover photo Scawfell Sunset is used with permission from Australian romantic suspense author Helene Young http://www.heleneyoung.com/)

Like most years, 2015 has been a year of contrasts with its fair share of victories, challenges and tragedies. And while it hasn’t received much fanfare – it has also been dubbed the International Year of Light.

Sometime last year, I spoke to Nola Passmore about the concept of producing an anthology to celebrate the Year of Light with profits going a charity like CBM Australia (formerly Christian Blind Mission). At first we put it in the ‘too hard basket’, but the idea just wouldn’t go away. So I was excited when Nola agreed to partner with me in conjunction with Christian Writers Downunder to produce the anthology.

At the beginning of the year (16 January) we invited contributions for the Glimpses of Light anthology to Christian Writers Downunder members. We were thrilled at the response. We have also appreciated our support team, including our back-up judges, editors and proof-readers – Jo-Anne Berthelsen, Lynne Stringer, Christina Aitken and Paula Vince. We’d also like to thank Helene Young for allowing us to use her gorgeous photo for the cover.

While we didn’t accept every submission, we were pleased with the creativity and quality of the entries and delighted that our contributors were prepared to work with us in two rounds of editing plus proofing.

The anthology includes short stories, poems, flash fiction and creative non-fiction on the theme of glimpses of light (light in dark places). I was delighted with the number of speculative fiction entries, Nola was relieved that not all the short stories were as long as many of the fantasy pieces and enjoyed the poetry and creative non-fiction (though she just may be convert to spec fic).

Glimpses of Light is in the process of being typeset and with one final round of proofing, should be available as a print book and e-book on (or before) the 17^th December.

The contributions are:

Ben-Shachar  Naomi Edwards (short story)
Faith of Birds Jeanette Grant-Thomson (creative non-fiction)
The Last Blood Moon Charis Joy Jackson (short story)
Night Turns to Day Jo Wanmer (poem)
Kaleidoscope Adele Jones (short story)
The Window Seat Ellen Carr (poem)
Ruhanna's Flight Jeanette O’Hagan (short story)
Risk Jo Wanmer (flash fiction)
The Follower Nola Passmore (short story)
Moon People Paula Vince (creative non-fiction)
My Light, My Love Robyn Campbell (short story)
A Light From Heaven Mazzy Adams (poem)
From Darkness Lynne Stringer (short story)
The Prayer Ellen Carr (poem)
Where Are You From? Mimi Emmanuel (flash fiction)
A Dream Realised Anusha Atukorala (short story)
God’s Woollen Blanket Josephine-Anne Griffiths (poem)
Edward: On Going Alone Catriona McKeown (short story)
Beating Around the Bushel Bush Nola Passmore (flash fiction)
The Puzzle Robyn Campbell (poem)
A Light to My Path Adam Collings (short story)
The Temple Pamela Hemskeerk (poem)
The Journey Mazzy Adams (poem)
Stone Bearer Kirsten Hart (short story)
Sight Sue Jeffrey (poem)
Revelation Jo-Anne Berthelsen (creative non-fiction)

Congratulations to all our contributors and a big thank you from Nola and myself to everyone who has worked towards making the anthology a reality. I can’t wait to hold Glimpses of Light in my hands and once again enjoy the stories and poems of inspiration and hope it contains. 

Jeanette O'Hagan

Jeanette (Jenny) and Nola at the recent Toowomba Writers Festival

Anthologising

by Jeanette O'Hagan

Image courtesy of John Kasawa at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

When I was in my early twenties, I sat down and wrote a novel – late at night, in lulls between seeing patients, on scraps of paper and notepads. It took perhaps a year to finish the first draft, longer to do the second and third. A friend (thank you Wendy) typed it up for me and I sent it out to a couple of publishers. I got a strong nibble but, naive as I was, I had no idea that didn't normally happen so quickly, so I quibbled. And then my writing got shoved in a drawer as a new career, ministry, marriage, family and more study took over my time and creative energies.

So when, at the beginning of 2012, I dusted of my writing dreams and enrolled in post-graduate studies in writing, I also dusted off my old manuscript and plunged straight back into writing novels and searching for publishers. Writing long fiction feels natural to me – if I’m not careful my shorts become novels and my novels become series.

Four and a half manuscripts on – and I’m still looking for that elusive publisher.

Which is why the last couple of months have been so exciting. No, not because of my books (though they still ignite my imagination).  I've had some success with a couple of shorts; a placing in Faith Writer’s flash fiction challenges, the acceptance of a 5000 word story in the Tied in Pink anthology (released last month) and the acceptance of one of my poems in another anthology. Just baby steps but exciting nonetheless.

It has been a steep learning curve as I’m not a natural short story writer. It took me three stories to get within the 5000 word limit for the Tied in Pink anthology. (On the plus side, I now have three stories not one.) 

Short stories can of course be submitted to competitions, magazines or even published as e-books, on their own or part of collections. Meredith Resce, for instance, has recently published a short novella Where’s There’s Smoke. Incidentally, she along with Anusha also have stories in the Tied in Pink anthology with a number of other writers from different walks of life and philosophies.

So what is an anthology and is it worth getting involved?

An anthology is a collection of works by different authors that share a common theme. The works might be poems, devotionals or inspirational true stories, essays or fiction (or some mix of these). The theme might be related to a genre, a subject, an idea or a target audience.

Anthologies may be commissioned by a publisher if they feel a certain theme is not well represented in the market. It may come about by the collaborative efforts of a group of authors or even from a single author inviting others to contribute.

Anthologies are a great way for different authors to showcase their writing style. They provide an opportunity for new writers to be noticed and for established writers to keep their name visible while working on their longer works.

Writing short stories require some different skills and strategies than long fiction – just because they are short doesn't mean they are easy to write. However, they usually can be written in a shorter time frame than a novel and can be more easily discarded if they don’t work out. They provide the opportunity to experiment with ideas, style or genre. It is easier (though still hard) to get a short story published than a full length novel.

As anthologies generally have a number of contributors, they provide an opportunity for fans of one author to discover they enjoy the work of others within the collection. For authors, this may mean new fans – for readers, the discovery of new authors to follow and enjoy. Also, hopefully all contributors will be involved in promotion of the anthology.

If your story is not accepted, you can submit it elsewhere (with or without changes).

Be strategic. Most of my stories tie in the fictional world of my novels and are connected in some way with each other. In this way, I hope they are a natural springboard into my novels. I also envisage including them in a collection which I could self-publish at a later date with new material.

It’s not all sunshine and oranges

Anthologies don’t always sell as well as novels.  Readers may not like anthologies because they aren't as immersive as a novel and have a certain element of pot luck about them (you may know and like one or two authors, but not all). Alternatively, you can think of them like a box of chocolates – perhaps you don’t like hard (or soft) centres but you are just as likely to be delighted as disappointed. And it’s easy to read a story in one sitting.

According to Literary Rejections, Chicken Soup for the Soul received 140 rejections headed ‘Anthologies don’t sell’ before finally being accepted for publication and has gone on to be a best seller.

Still, you probably won’t make a fortune from an anthology even if you receive royalties.  With the Tied in Pink anthology, all time and skills were donated and the profits are going to breast cancer research. As an author it is still a viable way of getting your name known and attracting new fans.

An anthology includes a range of authors and stories. With a secular anthology, this will include many with different values and philosophies. The guidelines will give some indication of what might be considered acceptable – but interpretations may vary. The Tied in Pink anthology included a few more risque stories than I or many of my friends would normally read or write which has meant that I have had to been more cautious about how I promote it (say in church circles). On the other hand, many of the stories are moving or fun to read.

As with publishing a novel, you need to beware of vanity publishers. Some publishers rely on the fact that the contributors are likely to buy multiple copies to give to friends and family. Multiply that by the number of contributors and they can make a profit at the expense of their authors.They don’t need to ensure the quality of the anthology and put little or no effort into promotion. For more info, check out this link.

Follow the guidelines. Make sure you know the submission requirements – the type of story, word limit, any exclusions, when and how to submit etc.

Be clear about what rights, royalties (or payment) and obligations (are you expected to buy copies etc). I prefer anthologies that ask for first (serial) rights and/or non-exclusive (or exclusive for a set time period – say 6-12 months after publication). This means that you can sell (or self-publish) your story as a reprint after the specified period. Look at whether digital, print, worldwide and/or audio are included.

Here is just a small sampling of anthologies you might consider submitting to:

Faith Writers challenges –  Breath of Fresh Air press plan to publish the top entries in a series of Mixed Blessings books.

Chicken Soup for the Soul is always looking for contributors. 

Like a Girl anthology is looking for submissions. This is a charity anthology, with profits going to boost education for girls through Plan Australia. Submissions deadline is July 12 2015, the 18th birthday of Malala Yousafzai.

Glimpses of Light Anthology - in conjunction with Christian Writers Downunder  

2015 is the International Year of Light. I've been considering the possibility Glimpses of Light anthology – with (fictional) stories and poems tying in with the theme or symbolism of light – with ALL profits going towards an accredited charity that helps people in developing countries (such as Christian Blind Mission, Tear Fund or World Vision). This anthology could be done in conjunction with Christian Writers Downunder – giving an opportunity for selected CWD writers to showcase their work. Details are yet to be worked out (title, charity, deadlines, guidelines, submission and selection process, publishing process etc).

There are a number of ways of participating   Please prayerfully consider your involvement. We would love you to join the Glimpses of Light Facebook group – either direct message Nola Passmore or myself (Jeanette O’Hagan) or click on this link and request to join.

So maybe in 2015 we can get anthologising :)

Jeanette has practiced medicine, studied communication, history and theology and has taught theology.  She is currently caring for her children, enjoying post-graduate studies in writing at Swinburne University and writing her Akrad's fantasy fiction series.  You can read some of her short fiction here. She is about to have a short story published as part of the Tied in Pink anthology next month (profits from the anthology go towards Breast Cancer research) . 

She is actively involved in a caring Christian community. 

You can find her at her Facebook Page or webistes  JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes .