© 2010 Marylane Wade Koch
In the midst of change and uncertainty in our culture, some ideas remain timeless and sure. For example, people still love a good story. No, people need a good story to counter the dismal broadcasts by media news and the inevitable troubles of daily living. Consumers spend hundreds of millions of dollars each week at the box office to view new movies. Readers search the New York Times Best Seller list for the most popular books. The world wants to hear, see, and read stories. Someone has to write these stories. That someone could be you.
The Write Life (TWL) newsletter launched after Tracy and I began presenting workshops on writing stories for the successful Chicken Soup for the Soul series. This anthology market offers close to 200 titles published in more than 40 different languages with sales of over 112 million books. They seek positive life experience stories that encourage and inspire their readers. These personal stories require no research, can be written in a reasonable time frame, and can be submitted online. Upon publication, some publishers pay with checks while others provide complimentary copies of the book; Chicken Soup offers both. The callouts from Chicken Soup and other anthologies are passed to TWL readers as possible markets for their work.
As you celebrate the New Year, take time to review your writing accomplishments of 2009 and your goals for 2010. Do you have an uplifting or humorous story to tell? Has anyone ever suggested you write about your experiences? Think about defining moments in your life. We all have traveled different journeys and experienced trials as well as joy. Someone could be waiting to read your story to help him through a difficult time. Another may need a laugh or an escape from the daily routine.
Consider writing your story and submitting it for publication this year. For ideas, visit the Chicken Soup website (http://www.chickensoup.com/form.asp?cid=possible_books) to review possible book topics. Read books and articles on writing inspirational stories. Attend a workshop or take an online class to provide the motivation and skills needed to submit and get published. Your story could be the one that makes a difference in someone’s life and shines the light of hope in the midst of pain and despair.
What the world needs now is a good story. Why not write yours now?
Marylane Wade Koch has over 30 years of experience in writing, editing, speaking, coaching, and consulting. Koch has authored numerous articles and several healthcare books. She is a contributor to publishers such as Elsevier-Mosby, Harcourt Health Sciences, Delmar/Thompson-Cengage, F.A.Davis, Jones and Bartlett, and Salem Press. She is a contributor to the Chicken Soup anthology series. Koch serves as President of Byhalia Christian Writers and conference faculty for American Christian Writers. She is a member of the American Medical Writers Association and the Mississippi Writers Guild. She serves as adjunct faculty at the University Of Memphis.