Do You Want to Write 12 Picture Books in 12 Months? | Learn More!

Tuesday 12 x 12 - Marcy Pusey

Tuesday 12 x 12 – Marcy Pusey

12 X 12 Member Marcy PuseyI think we can all agree that no matter where are you in your writing career, The Writerly Road is full of ups and downs and maybe a few detours. Remembering why we started writing and why we continue to write is essential for getting through and climbing back up and out. Today Marcy walks us through her journey (with quotes! I LOVE quotes!). I hope you find it as encouraging as I do. Welcome, Marcy!

I hear over and over how many of us have been writing forever. Like, we came from the womb with pen in hand. I’m no different. I once turned a high school math project into a picture-book, complete with illustrations made of Anagrams.

Math Picture Book
Yep, that’s it. “Published” in a sticky-paged photo album.

“Your book is a total delight, my teacher wrote, “You surpassed my own expectations with your imaginative rhymes and crafty ‘figures.’ Everything is done with an eye for detail and surprises for the children!”

Teachers, friends, and my parents raved about my writing. Comments like:

“Your story was great! It was such an original idea, I wish I was that creative… you could write a novel, Marcy!” -HS classmate

or

“Marcy- this is awesome! It gave me the chills. Excellent use of voice. I really enjoyed it.”
-College Professor

With ego puffed and heart full of possibility, I entered the professional world of writing, where I could change the universe with words. Where I could shift culture for humanity’s betterment through a talented gift of language.

Then I heard things like:

“Unfortunately, it is just not the right project for me at this time.” -Every Agent / Editor

or

“While I appreciate what you were trying to accomplish, I found that the story fell a little flat in its execution… The story is sweet but there is something missing.” -Agent
I know I’m not alone. Our dreams flatten. Fifty plus rejections and a handful of years later, we flatten, too.

Were my teachers and classmates crazy? Was I crazy? Who am I to be a writer in a world full of so much actual talent? Why is this so hard? Why does it look so easy for ___________ (fill in the blank of friend / critique partner / neighbor who seems to publish everything immediately)?

I get discouraged, especially when I write because everyone told me I was good. I have to remember why I write.

It’s like breathing.

Flannery O’Conner says, “I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” Writing has been how I process the world. My world. My thoughts, my dreams, my hopes. Sometimes it’s in a journal, sometimes a blog post, sometimes a novel, a memoir, or a picture-book. I share what I’ve written with the hope that it will help someone else understand their world. That the kiddo next door, down the street, across the world, will know he/she is not alone in this big, scary place. That there’s hope. Laughter.

But the voices of rejection can be deafening and blinding.

In order to cling to my vision, to understand my world and help others understand theirs too, I need goals. Accountability. Community.

I found Tara Lazar’s Picture Book Idea Month which became my November norm. Then I found 12 x 12 when it was just beginning. It made perfect sense… I had all of those PiBoIdMo ideas, now to turn them into stories!

12 x 12 has given me focus. Goals. I have one month to write a story. One month to revise a story. One month to submit to an agent. I have a deadline. I like deadlines. Especially when I’ve paid money for them. Even though I’ve walked a few years of “this isn’t the right story for us,” I keep at it because there’s always next month. When I feel deflated, 12 x 12 gives me motivation to keep moving forward.

I’m currently revising a memoir. I’ve also written a YA novel- I don’t write YA but this story picked me to write it. And of course, I’ve written countless picture-books. I’m in the middle of a genre-identity crisis, but it’s good.

I’m learning to “just write” again. To get my head out of the market, out of the rejections, and out of the lies that say I’m not good enough.

And to Just. Keep. Writing.

Marcy Pusey is a passionate, deep-thinking writer, wife, and mommy living the serendipitous moments of God’s divine intentions. She’s a member of SCBWI and writes inspirationally from her blog at www.marcypusey.wordpress.com. Marcy and her husband and their four children live in the Black Forest of Germany. When she’s not writing, she’s planning her next adventure or reading about someone else’s. You can follow her on Twitter.

Share This Post:
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
LinkedIn
Recent Posts

16 Responses

  1. What an inspiring story! I can relate to it so well, being a writer myself! Yes, it is so important to keep remembering the why. We write because we want to share our experience, our knowledge, our lessons learned with others who are going through the same journey! So wonderful! Well done, Ms. Marcy!

  2. Glad to hear you’re back at it because the writing is the only thing that we have control over. Not how our writing is received. Isn’t it wonderful?

  3. Exactly. 12×12 is motivation for me, too, Marcy. Thanks for sharing your creative life and energies. And to remind us to keep on writing!

  4. Oh lovely. Such great quotes too. I live overseas currently as well. It’s hard to link up with people at such a distance, although I’m a lot closer to home than I have been in other places. Online communities are a life line for me. Good luck. Maybe we’ll run into each other some day.

  5. Thoroughly enjoyed reading this, especially as I received yet another rejection this week. I had the same rollercoaster of emotions which always ends on “why do I keep doing this?” And you’re so right in what you say.
    Thanks for sharing 🙂

  6. Keep writing. I feel like I’m in the same boat. I write because I have to. Writing gives me hope in this world

  7. Thank you Marcy. I have been in a funk for a few weeks and this really helped me see past the
    search for agents or editors that would not like what I write and the idea that it has to have diversity
    to sell. And now I am just going to write and get ready with ideas for November and PiBoIdMo.

  8. Dear Marcy,

    I am just catching up now with some of the autumn 12X12 posts and I have to say, I LOVED reading this. First of all, you ARE a TALENTED writer. The blog just flows and feels so personal and relevant to others at the same time, not something that is so easy to achieve. And your theme is one so many of us can relate to. I appreciate the openness and honesty and the cadence of your writing as well. Best to you!!!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to our Newsletter for Free Resources

Interested in Joining the 12x12 Challenge?

Financial Need Scholarship Guidelines

All applications will be accepted via email only between November 1, 2023 – November 30, 2023 at kelli@juliehedlund.com.

Subject line of the email:

  1. 12 x 12 Financial Need Scholarship
 

Please include the following in the body of the email:

  1. An autobiographical statement and career summary in 250 words or fewer.
  2. A short statement describing the nature of the financial need/circumstances in 250 words or fewer.
  3. A sample query letter for the manuscript you are submitting with your application.
  4. Pitches for two additional completed picture books.
 

 Attached to the email:

  1.  The full text of one picture book manuscript, attached as a Word document named as FIN_YourFirstName_YourLastName_Title_of_Manuscript.doc (or docx).