Guest Bloggers

Guest Blogger Katya Cengal talks about Getting Published

In a way, getting published, whether in article form or book form, is about finding the right fit. When you submit a piece you are looking for the perfect partner. In that sense it can be compared to modern dating or job placement. Both parties are looking for something — it is the match maker, recruiter or agent’s job to make sure everyone gets what they want. If you don’t have an agent, you must take on the role of match maker yourself, courting various editors and selling them on your story. Several months ago I found out about a woman in San Francisco turning old Muni buses into mobile showers for the homeless. It seemed like a brilliant idea and a perfect fit for a women’s magazine. I wrote a pitch highlighting the female innovation angle. My contact there loved it. Unfortunately, the editors above her did not. So I stored the story away and went about working on other pieces. I didn’t give up on it though. I knew it was a great story, it just hadn’t found the right home. I waited a while and then revised the pitch to fit a more general audience instead of a female focused audience and pitched it to Newsweek. They loved the idea and the result is The Great Unwashed. It took months for that short piece to get printed, but I am glad I didn’t give up on it. Sometimes in writing you just have to have patience that the right fit will come along eventually and step forward when it does. Just like in so many of life’s other searches.

Katya Cengel has written for National Geographic, Newsweek, Salon, Esquire and Sports Illustrated   among other publications. Her University of Nebraska book “Bluegrass Baseball: A Year in the Minor League Life” was rated one of the top ten non-fiction books of 2012 by Shelf Awareness and was also a finalist for the 2013 Kentucky Literary Award.

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One comment

  1. Kathy Myers

    Katya’s forum lecture was a delight. She honestly shared her creative process from start to finish—from a glimmer of an idea, to publication of her “Bluegrass Baseball”. The information about the different specialties of university presses was helpful. I googled “University Presses” and found a complete list with links to their websites. And I can’t tell you how grateful I am to hear that I don’t need an MFA from Oxford or Iowa to make it as a writer. I’m sure any editor will be dazzled by my A in English 4a from the J.C. Although perhaps I will go back for the 4b and 4c sections. I did envy the advanced students with their berets and moist poetry.

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