Breaking Down the Mountain, Part 2 by AndrewJP

My first novel, Chimera’s Breath, is about 90% complete. For the last six years my driving ambition has been to get this one monolithic story finished, in the hope of eventually getting it published.
But recently, my perspective has changed a bit. I’ve decided that I want to take smaller steps towards that ultimate goal. I’ve decided that it would be better to try and get something smaller, like a short story, into print first. After all, there are a lot of great magazines out there who accept submissions from unknown writers such as myself.

So, over the past couple of months I’ve starting making tentative enquiries to editors, publishers and literary agents, hoping to build some lasting connections in the industry.

Some of them have been helpful, but for the most part it feels like I’m continually throwing myself up against a brick wall. Maybe I’m looking in the wrong places, or asking the wrong questions, but there seems to be an air of oppression surrounding this world of published fiction that I’m trying to break into. The help and support that I need in order to start a career hasn’t been readily forthcoming… which got me thinking…

I live in sunny North-West Tasmania, far removed from the cultural hotspots of Melbourne and Sydney. I’m not sure what the situation is like in those big cities, but here in this little industrial town, there is next to no ground-level support for young (or not so) aspiring writers.

The situation is summed up by something my year 12 Writer’s Workshop teacher said to me, all those years ago: ‘You can forget about making a living by writing. No one does that anymore.’ Well, great, I thought. This is coming from someone who is supposed to nurture, encourage and mentor young writers. Trying to prepare students for the difficulties of being accepted and published in an elitist industry is one thing, but this teacher displayed nothing but apathy and disdain… it’s a good thing I didn’t listen to much of what she said :)

So, my point is this: there just isn’t much help for writers who are starting out in this state/country, and I don’t understand why. When it comes to fiction, we have some of the best minds in the world. Redbubble is brilliant, and I love it to bits, but I really wish there was an organization here on the North-West coast that I could turn to for feedback and advice on all things writing. To my knowledge there aren’t even any writing groups or circles anywhere in the area, which is staggering. There must be other people in my position.

So, I’ve decided that my very first stepping stone will be to find those people. I don’t see myself as a leader by any means. But if no place exists where creative people can go to get the support that they need, then such a place will have to be created. I’m good at creating.
I’ll let you know how I go :)