I’ll never forget my first published article, an essay for the now out of circulation Victoria Magazine. It was called Of Horses and Dreams and I received a check for a whopping $100 bucks. It might as well have been a million bucks for the way it made me feel. The piece represented so much—the combination of two passions, the resurrection of a once dead dream of being a *real* writer, and, less glamorous, hours of rewriting and numerous rejection letters.  Almost ten years later, I’m an editor working with writers and it feels surreal. Along a journey of numerous publications in regional and national magazines, newspapers, and books, I’ve learned some things about the publishing world. I’ve had editors ignore me, be rude, and reject me. A few became valuable mentors that helped hone my skills and writing “muscle.” While I’ve only been editor of the NWHS for a couple of months I’m enjoying being on the “other side” because I know how it feels to want to write and send out material that may be rejected or ignored.

This magazine is produced for a fairly close-knit community; we want to serve and encourage equestrians in the Northwest. We not only want you to read, we’d love to have your thoughts and, perhaps, an article on something you feel passionately about that could help your fellow riders. You won’t make a paycheck writing for us or win the Pulitzer Prize, but this publication could be an opportunity that opens doors for the serious, diligent writer. Recently I received an unhappy note from someone who felt unfairly treated because we didn’t jump at the chance to use their material. It is for this person, and others, that I dedicate this posting along with the sincere hope those individuals with patience, persistence, and a good attitude will continue to submit their work to the NWHS.

After reading our online guidelines, be aware that writing isn’t for wimps, the entitled, or the thin-skinned. “Freelance writers” are a dime a dozen and you are owed nothing in this business. Writing is like any other creative discipline, it takes a lot of practice and a teachable spirit to become good. Not unlike working with horses, actually.  Putting a horse in your pasture doesn’t make you a horseman any more than the knowledge of how to write a sentence makes you a writer. Working on your high school paper or producing a nice essay in college doesn’t mean an editor should drop everything to read your work.  It takes years of dedication and a huge dose of humility to become a true artist—of anything.

One of my favorite movies in the 1980’s was Flashdance. I must have been about 13 when the film came out and watched it several times, each time becoming more and more convinced I should become a dancer. After all, I’d squared danced in school. And if Jennifer Beals could do it, why not me? So enamored was I of the story that I took some community college dance classes around age 16. I quickly learned a couple things: I am a white girl of no rhythm and little coordination (except on horseback) and…it was darn hard! I think I made it through half the class before dropping out. I had leggings and a sweatshirt top that hung off my shoulder, but a dancer I was not. More than that, I simply didn’t have the desire it would take to learn the things that looked so easy in the movie.

I felt smug and strangely happy to learn that many of the shots of Jennifer Beals dancing were actually a double. A real dancer. She didn’t get a lot of fame, but she was the real deal and possessed a dancer’s body honed by hours on the floor and years of sacrifice. I could square dance (badly), but that was a world away from the abilities of the girl in the movie.

Many things in life that take serious commitment can look easy, such as riding a horse. You must begin with the fundamental ingredients of desire, passion, persistence, and the willingness to learn. Mix in a little raw talent and a good attitude and, one day, you may discover you have grown into an equestrian artist who makes it look easy. Writing is the same way. So, please, submit material to the NWHS in a similar spirit. We welcome articles and ideas and will review them with enthusiasm even if they do not make it into the publication. If your idea can’t be used for whatever reason, accept it graciously and practice being professional. You’ll need those skills if you want to be taken seriously in the future. In the publishing world hate mail and an attitude of entitlement never greased the hinges on the doors of opportunity.

That’s all for now, I’m off to buy a new pair of leggings…

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