Comeback! Book Proposal, Poetry and More!

Hello everyone! LOTS of news.

I haven't been keeping up with the blog lately due to lots of college assignments, activities etc...But now that winter break has arrived, I plan to catch up with all my posts and tell you about my plans!

In case I did not post it earlier (or, at least, not through this medium), the book proposal for my novel, "Promises Made, Kept and Broken", was not accepted. It was a tough competition, and I knew that my novel wasn't the kind of book usually published by that company. Still, after a workshop I attended that allowed me to participate in the contest, I thought it would be a great opportunity. I am grateful for all I learned and all that is to come.

Meanwhile, at my university, I took my first ever Poetry Writing class and it was AMAZING. The professor, Jenny Browne, is a wonderful person and excellent instructor. She helped me out a lot with my writing and aspirations. She writes her own poetry too, so you should check it out sometime :)

For Jenny's class, I not only learned to write better poetry, but I also got the opportunity to meet other recognized authors!! My experiences range from breakfast tacos with Zadie Smith to insightful conversations with Lauren Berry, Alex Lemon and Erin Belieu over candy and poetry collections. (More on these experiences later ;) )

I also participated in two Open Mics sponsored by my school's literary magazine. There were some really great people there, lots of talent and good food. The responses have been very encouraging, and I am sure I will participate in more Open Mics in the semester to come! I also submitted to my school's literary magazine and hope to receive a very positive response.

Right now, most of my goals are centered around my poetry. I have started up magazine submissions again and hope for more success this time around. Then, hopefully, I will publish a poetry collection with my accepted submissions (either self- or regular, depending on the circumstances) sometime next year. As for my novel, I'll still be working on it, changing aspects of plot and prose. I don't have a set date for when I want it published, but know that I am thinking about it a lot, and plan to work on it more now that I am out for break.

Thanks again for your time and enthusiasm! I will send more updates soon on other exciting news :)

Courtney

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