**Let me begin by saying that the “you” in this blog post is a generic ”you” and not directed at any specific person.**
When working on a continuity series, playing well with others and communication are a must. But there is another very, very important and often overlooked entity that must be remembered at all cost. The importance of
FOLLOWING THE DIRECTIONS!!!
I cannot stress how important it is to follow the directions and instructions given to you if you are involved in helping to create the world in which numerous people are playing. It helps the one putting the thing together (in this case that would be ME) tremendously and cuts down on the amount of work that person (that would be ME, again) has to do. There is nothing more infuriating than to have someone wait until the very last possible minute to get me some requested information and for it to be such a jumbled up mess that it makes my eyes cross just to look at it. My head is pounding. My eyes hurt, and what caused this? Someone (else) failing to follow rather simple directions.
However, this doesn’t just apply to a project like this. Oh no, this applies to submission guidelines and such as well. If you want to increase your chances of getting picked up by a publisher, follow their directions to the letter. Don’t intentionally ignore something just because you want to “stand out.” If you really want to stand out, follow each and every point on the list of guidelines. THAT will make you stand out far more than anything else, or rather, it will help you to stand out in a positive manner. You never want to stand out for negative reasons with a publisher because it could affect future submissions in a bad way.
Am I ranting? Just a little, because the failure to follow simple directions ends up creating a lot more work for me in the end, and that makes me cranky. It’s not like I don’t have enough things of my own to do, much less take the time to pull someone else’s weight and redo what they were supposed to have done.
Again, I will say, if you are unclear on anything, feel free to ask. Never hesitate to ask. I will not bite a person’s head off for asking a question. A publisher won’t frown upon you for asking for clarification on something. Asking questions shows that you are willing to take an extra step, to work to achieve certain goals and that you are willing to work with others. If you understand the directions and intentionally ignore them, then the consequences you face are of your own making.
Heather
