Week Four on the Submission Trail FAIL

     I've been having a hard time coming to terms with this blog post. I have to admit it, not only to myself, but to everyone that reads this article that I didn't do any research regarding becoming published this past week. I checked out award winning Picture Books from the library with the mindset of figuring out how the books were written and how to improve my own writing. Not to say this kind of research is useless, but I'm falling back into my old habit of avoiding attempting publication.
      I do understand that I can be productive still with the books that I checked out from the library, but last week my mindset was wrong and therefore I didn't do any research in regards to publication. This week will be different.  I still have the books I checked out. This week my job is to read the books, looking to see if I can find stories that are similar to my own or ones that I connect to in general, and do more research on the Publishing Houses that have published those books.
     On a side note, I did do some work at WIFYR the week before last regarding publishing. I got a lot of great information. Here are a few options for research that I didn't know about before that may be helpful for other people as well:
Agent Query Connect:  This site has forums set up to help authors query, network, and help one another. This seems like a really great resource for people looking to get published, like myself.
Twitter: It is best to follow agents to see what they're selling, looking for, what really bugs them, and to keep an eye out for pitch parties. I personally don't tweet much, but I would like to do more. Here are a few common twitter handles to follow if you're looking to get published:
#pitmad (Middle Grade, Young Adult, Adult)
#divpit (Diversity pitches)
#pbpitch (PB pitches)
#SOAP18 (General pitching hashtag)
#MSWL (Manuscript Wish List)
#askanagent (Ask an agent questions)
#askkidlit (Ask children's literature questions)
#amwriting (Common thread among authors)
NOTE: Careful, you may become lost on these hashtags and lose writing time. Make sure you're searching with purpose and not just for creative avoidance.
Publisher's Weekly:This link is specifically geared toward children's literature, though they have other sub topics if you're looking at other genres. You can sign up for their free newsletters to see what is currently happening in the marketplace. It's great, up-to-date, information.
     I'm not going to be doing much this week when it comes to publishing. I think all of my limited free time will be writing time this week because of the holiday and our family vacation. Though I think I will hit a few of those hashtags and see if I can glean some good information! Good luck to you this week!!