A SkillShare class by Roxane Gay

Start with your why

What are you trying to communicate to the reader? Without a sense of purpose, the reader is left wondering what they just read. Be specific about the purpose. Your target audience shouldn’t be “everyone”. Even if your experience is very specific, the audience will find ways to relate to it. Therefore, your individual experience is enough if written well.

For non-fiction essays, potential whys include increasing awareness, calling to action, changing perspective, inspiring stories. Give your reader subtle cues to your why by including examples from your own experience. People need to be told what to do.

You can also think about what you want to write by looking through a rhetorical lens. Ethos appeals to building trust and being honest. Logos appeals to laying out ideas logically and with purpose. Pathos appeals to emotions and trying to make your reader care about what you’re writing.

When writing, don’t state your reasons literally in the essay. You reveal your whys by deliberately and purposefully telling a story.

Revise your work

Revising is about seeing your work differently as well as trying to figure out what’s working and what’s not. Step away from your work, ideally a day or two in order to forget some of what you have written.

Read your work aloud; follow a set of questions to help guide you; and don’t over-revise: One or two revisions are usually good enough.

Publishing

We all start from the same place which is to say, we all start with no connections. Some may be lucky to have been born into a set of connections, but we all start from none.

Read a lot. Whose work do you admire? What publications does that writer publish in? You can start with those publications, but keep you expectations in check. Just because you like the work in a well-known magazine doesn’t mean you will have a good chance to get in that magazine. Start as small as you need to and build your reputation.

Databases or directories:

There are a couple things about publishing. You shouldn’t have to pay to submit work. Contests are a different, but, in general, you shouldn’t pay.

Look for submission guidelines. If they don’t have any, that typically means they don’t accept submissions. Most submissions will require a cover letter. It should simply and briefly introduce you, the writer, and the work you’re submitting. But don’t explain what your essay is about.

Rejection is a part of the process. Don’t take it personally. Keep submitting. Persevere. If you’ve submitted the same work and have gotten rejected multiple times, it may be a good time to revise; but only after trying a couple of times. Some editors will be generous enough to provide feedback. Take graciously since someone has put in time to read and critique your work. Then use your gut to take what you think will make your writing better.