In which I attempt to get paid for writing

For the very first time, I submitted a short essay to a website for publishing.

I chose to submit to Scary Mommy, because I've been following it on Facebook for a while and the posts make me laugh. The essays on Scary Mommy take a funny, honest look at parenthood without sugar-coating it. Since I'm a stay-at-home mom with two kids that I'm homeschooling, parenting is something I can write about. It's pretty much my full-time (albeit unpaid) job at this point. 

As I was writing for my blog, I came up with something that sort of fit in with the kind of stuff that Scary Mommy runs. I took a closer look at the website and realized that they pay $100 for published posts. $100! The process seemed easy enough, so I decided to go for it. I finished my little essay and submit it to the website. I was told that I would receive a response within a week and that they might not respond to me if they decided not to run my essay.

The waiting began. I figured it wouldn't be published and that I wouldn't hear anything back. I did start to fantasize a little about what I would do with an extra hundred bucks. As a stay-at-home mom, my lovely husband brings in all the money and we use most of it for stuff like the mortgage, bills, and food. Mostly food, if I'm being honest. If I could bring in some of my own money, to use for fun stuff...well, it sounded great! I smiled as a peeked at my Amazon wish list and imagined ordering myself a couple of books, guilt-free. After mentally spending my $100 in different ways for a few minutes, I came back to reality. I reasoned that I most likely would not be hearing back from them and the chance of getting my first essay published was pretty low. 

I was surprised when, a few days later, an email from Scary Mommy showed up in my inbox. My heart was racing as I went to open it.

Was it possible to use my words to get THESE?!

I was told it was a great post, but that it wasn't something they could use at the time. I was encouraged to keep writing and to try submitting again because they are always looking for funny stuff. 

Instead of being bummed by my rejection, I became pumped.

For the first time, I put myself out there as a writer. Sure, I didn't get published. But that doesn't mean I won't some day. I'd love to have something published on their site. It's hilarious. My kind of people, my kind of stories. I have plenty of wacky parenting experiences each day. The idea of being able to write about one, have it shared with thousands of followers, and heck, make MONEY from it...well, it's kind of the dream!

I'd love to work at this "office"- in bed with a cat on my lap.

Therefore I have made a new goal for myself- to have my writing published on Scary Mommy sometime in the next year. I'm going to give it my best. 

Your turn: Tell me about a time that you failed or were rejected. How did it affect you?

This is my first post for the 30 Day Challenge.