Reader Friday: Validation


Had lunch with a writer who says he is not going to self-publish because he doesn’t want to hurt his chances of getting a traditional contract. He said he wants the “validation” that comes from being accepted by a major publishing house.  

All writers look for some metric that tells them their writing matters to someone. So here’s today’s question: What form of validation do you seek? 


Reader Friday: Your Town


Los Angeles, give me some of you! Los Angeles come to me the way I came to you, my feet over your streets, you pretty town I loved you so much, you sad flower in the sand, you pretty town. 
Ask the Dust by John Fante (1939)

Describe your home town: where you grew up, or where you live now. How has it influenced you as a person and as a writer?