Perceiving is Believing

Your personal perception of yourself and reality is ultimately determined by the beliefs you hold. Unfortunately, perceiving you are a reality TV star does not actually make you a reality TV star. Nevertheless, perception and your beliefs create and dictate your attitude, determining how you will
respond to the world.

You do not have to wait for your first thousand sales to consider yourself a writer or even an author. If you write, then you are a writer and if you plan to sell your work then start believing you are an author. It takes determination and dedication to write a great novel. Therefore, the way you behave and think needs to foster the determination and dedication needed to write and sale your work. Back to my initial argument, perceiving is believing and if you perceive yourself as an author then you are more likely to develop habits and behaviors that will help you start and finish your work.

Ownership

We often think of ownership as a possession over tangible items such as a car, house, pet, computer, etc.  Aside from intellectual property, we rarely view ownership of intangible items, for example, a writing career, the same. We know when we own the tangible, but when do you actually own your career or even your future? As a result, we may fail to ever fully take ownership of the intangible. This, in the end, is where you truly find happiness.

3 simple steps –

1.      Ownership - In order to direct the trajectory of your writing career, taking ownership is the first step. Tell yourself that you are the boss.

2.      Long-Term Plan – Write down where you want to be in one, three, five, and ten years. Do not be vague here and consider different aspects of your life. For example, in three years I want to be in a new house with a study, completed 250 edited pages of a new novel, see every one of my family members, attain a promotion, etc.

3.      Imagine - To bring your vision to life first consider your end-goal. Assume that you have reached it. Then work backwards. What steps did you take to achieving your goal? Make sure you write this down to see where your next step is. These steps may involve networking to learn more about a new field, going back to school, creating a website, or seeking out a promotion. Name as many of these big steps as you can and list them in a clear and organized fashion so you can start to cross them out.

When you take ownership of your writing, career, or life in general, you will stop drifting along waiting for your turn to own your life.

CAROUSEL JIGSAW PUZZLE

Climbed down sloped hillsides on the chain of man made locks toward the Pacific Ocean, dreaming of moments standing in the grocery store parking lot overlooking the surf. The structure is aged cedar; other dwellings are carved into the hillside in relief. Residents here retire inside the mountain. This single point along the highway is like a knuckle extended from a flat row of fingers, always windswept. I happen on this bend of highway with thoughts fractured; my hair is always tousled from exposure. Some words, in sequence, feel as though they’ve been rearranged from something else. I run a finger over my ear, waiting.

As the rains began, gusts kicking sideways, up from the crashing waters, I opted for the carousel jigsaw puzzle over a bottle of spirits. You opened and extended your jaw, removing from your row of neat, white teeth an expression of sublime confusion. The box sat face down on the sunroom table. It remained unopened. I was cross-legged, picking my pleas out of future communication, replacing it with commentary on salmon migrations. Will anyone know the feeling of unclipped fins on their legs again? This will be your response.

In the end, I took the puzzle, laying it on top of my things. As I climbed the mountains on my way back, I saw oceans over my shoulder. Returning seemed out of the question, the way two people speaking in a foreign tongue always sound like they are in disagreement. One has to look at their eyes, their hands and their body language. Words alone will not do. This will be my response. No matter what the order is, what we say to one another is strange. 

I tore open the box and emptied the carousel jigsaw puzzle into the middle of the road. A car swept from inland, sending the pieces scattering into the gloaming, into the brush. Even then though, I did not believe this was an adequate sacrifice.

To read more of Erick Mertz  work check out the 2013 issue of Gold Man Review.

Submissions for 2013

Submissions for 2013 are now open for Gold Man Review. 

Submission Guidelines

Gold Man Review is open for submissions from January through April. We do accept simultaneous submissions, but please let us know immediately if your work has been accepted elsewhere. Keep in mind that Gold Man Review only accepts submissions by email. All submissions to Gold Man Review must be original, unpublished work from writers, artists, and photographers residing in the State of Oregon. All submissions need to have a cover letter, telling us a little about the work you are submitting (including word count), along with your first and last name, pen name (if you have one), physical address, email address, phone number, and a brief biography. Submissions without an accompanying cover letter per our guidelines will not be considered. 

What We Are Looking For: First and foremost, we are looking for outstanding and exceptional work. With that being said, Gold Man Review is open to fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Art and photography is also accepted, but will only be published in e-book format. We are not looking for particular themes; however, we are looking for the unusual and random. Make us laugh. Make us cry. Make us see the extraordinary. Make us see the beautiful. That’s it. Fairly simple. Although we are open to all types of writing and art forms, we are not interested in material with gratuitous language, sex, or violence or material that seeks to harm, endanger, or threaten any person or persons. 

Fiction/Nonfiction: Submissions should be no longer than 5,000 words. Manuscripts should be in Times New Roman (12-point font) and double-spaced. Submissions should be attached as a Word document. Please no novel excerpts, unless they are stand alone as a complete story. 

Poetry: Submissions can be up to either three short poems or longer poems with a three-page maximum. Poetry submissions should be in Times New Roman (12-point font) and attached as a Word document.

Art/Photographs: Submissions can be up to three pieces of artwork/photography both in color and black and white. Files should be attached as .jpg (preferred), .gif, or .png extensions. Response Time: Please allow four months for a response. If you have not received a response within that time, then your work is undergoing further consideration.

If you have not heard back in six months, then send us an email requesting the status of your submission. 

We look forward to reviewing your work! 

 Click here to submit

Please visit us at www.goldmanreview.org to find out more about what we do.