I'm taking a breather with some things to focus on other things

Have two micro-reviews on some fabulous graphic novels coming up!

In the meantime, have been busy trying to set up a new desktop computer. It's been slow-going despite having all the tools (external drive and cables) that I need but this Florida summer humidity isn't helping things.

Plus, I've had to do some deep soul-searching to decide to make up more hours at my job while still maintaining my freelancing career. I've given up on the fellowship-hunting for now. Can't be putting out all that energy and not really getting any returns now, can I?

And in other news, can you believe it? Inktober is just around the corner and I'm already planning on what series I'll be illustrating... May do some comic or graphic novel pages just to see if I can do it within such a lean time and space? May just stick to ink and markers for now.

August just started and there was a blood moon in July I didn't get to see but you know what... "I see a bad moon a-risin'" (folks of a certain age will get the reference).

Until next time, Dear Readers. I haven't abandoned you or this blog. Still too many adventures in this writing and art-working life.

Writing Opportunities, galore! Just Take the Time!

What many of my readers may not know is that I have been working on several applications for work, grants, and opportunities with writing.

*The following is for the writers among the readers regardless of experience level. There may be terms and jargons used that are particular to the freelance writing world.*

**DISCLAIMER - Remember to often take what you read from columns, essays, and articles with a grain of salt but always exercise common sense and good judgement. Writing is a business after all. Also, what I've learned over the years is if more than one publication has said the same thing on the same matter, it's probably best to follow that instruction!**

For over three years, I've scoured and researched what's out there, either internationally, nationally, and state-side, and for almost two years, I've actively pursued these in order to jump-start projects, travel to different residencies/retreats, and interact with more writing communities outside my comfort zone. I even attended a fellowship workshop last year 2017.

I've taken more chances, more risks, and knocked on more doors than I have ever done in my entire adult life.

When I decided to begin this journey during my community college Creative Writing course, there were clear Do's/Don'ts.

Have also been given tons of advice over time, often from many well-meaning folks. Advice from writer magazines, online articles, and blogs. I've also attended workshops, conferences, seminars, and residencies, and there have been advice from those too.

I've seen on at least five applications (for the following: fellowships, grants, scholarships, residencies, workshops, retreats, contests, and seminars) what I'm seeing is a pattern.

**Certain items that would render many a writer into the ineligibility category:
1. Publication in a vanity press
2. Self-published
3. Book reviews
4. School publications (college/university)
5. Scholarly/Instructional writing

**Another DISCLAIMER remember that writing is personal for each individual, which means we can make our own choices.
However, there are CLEAR NO-NOs in Writing: Do Not Ever Pay to Publish Your Work. Not even in Self-publishing does one do that.
No upfront payment to an editor. No upfront payment for someone to publish one's work. No payments to edit. No payments to proofread. No payments to put someone's work into print.**

Anything new happens, I'll be sure to announce it here on In Pretty Print and my bibliography blog, The Angry Goblin (please check this for any info on my latest publications), and as always, my official website Tabber the Red is where it's at! 

Updated every few months while the blogs are updated every few weeks, the website is my be-all to finding out everything about me as an author and artist. 

Hyperlinks are above and remember, to SUBSCRIBE to this blog is FREE!

Take care, dear readers, and again, Happy 2018!

My life in print and online

Do you know what this is?

Except for online magazines, online journals, and stories made into podcasts, these are proof of my freelance life. Starting officially in 1998 is when I actively sought publication.

Between roughly 1999-2007
Most of my works appeared in fanzines (fan-made magazines), stab/side-stitched title PawPrints and comb/plastic-bound Fur Visions.


By 2007-2010
This was also the time I began getting illustrations published. My works began life with online publications such as Anthrozine, a small press that produced that lovely thick book you see in the image, and sold on a small-press bookseller as print and as an ebook!
Anthrodreams, a podcast publisher which became my first paid work. And though I continued with constant online work, some online publications became print anthologies with perfect binding.

In 2010-2013
So many opportunities to publish online! I tried my hand again with articles and essays. I was published in my first literary journal in American Athenaeum having seen print earlier with their online sister journal, 1Bookshelf. The print also sold as an ebook!

During 2012, I published, under a pen name Goblinrant, rather slowly, a series of articles about animation and comic book pop culture. I'm very proud of them but wished I was quicker to churn them out. Ah well.

2013-2015
Next were more publishing with online journals and my foray into guest blogging and publishing with my college alma mater. These were art pieces, essays, and a short story. I still tried to find more print publishers though I enjoyed online publishers because there is more dissemination. I also found another genre literary journal that unfortunately went belly up.

By 2015, I ended up in another literary magazine Prick of the Spindle which was the first time in years my work came in print again and sold in print and as an ebook. It was also my return to the short story form.

2016-2017
More genres in print. More guest-blogging. More trial and error with expanding my work. I had a short story in an online literary journal, a poem(!) and illustration featured in an official convention booklet, and again in a print literary journal, The Tishman Review with perfect binding and in large-magazine format size!

You can see the covers to all these books I mentioned (and an e-literary journal) on my biblio blog The Angry Goblin at WordPress!

This is subject to change

When doing freelance writing, there are so many rules. These standards are not etched in stone and may be subject to change, in case you didn't pick up why I used such as my post title.

Peruse my below list I gathered from search engine research but know that different publishers have different standards and guidelines. And remember! This Is Subject To Change.

Short story - 1,500 to 30,000 words
Novelette - 8,001 - 17,500 words
Novellas - 30,000 to 50,000 words
Novel - 55,000 - 300,000 words