Poetry

Read Psalms 136-140

Psalms 136:1 "O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever."

We might have hated poetry assignments when we were kids in school. We couldn’t think of anything to write and knew we wouldn’t get a good grade on our efforts.

But once we leave the classroom, we don’t need to be afraid of poetry anymore. We don’t need to stick to an assigned theme and we don’t need to be afraid to write yet another poem about springtime or the symbolism of storms or the ocean when we're writing for our own pleasure.

If we plan to market our poetry, they will have to be good, and there are plenty of markets for good poetry. There are many different forms of poetry, so if we get bored with our usual Haiku, we can challenge ourselves by trying a new style.

Song Writing

Read Psalms 131-135

Psalms 134:1 "Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord, which by night stand in the house of the Lord."

If we long to write a song, we can’t go wrong with using the Psalms to jump-start us. As we read through the Psalms, we’ll run into lots of them that we have learned, thanks to them already having been set to music.

We don’t have to stick strictly to the way the verse is worded. We can change the words, combine verses, anything to get going on the lyrics.

For the music, we can use variations of tunes that are in the public domain. We can even start with a familiar modern tune and change it up if we are having problems coming up with something original.

Psychology

Read Psalms 126-130

Psalms 129:2 "Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me."

Psychology has a few exclusive markets. We might write a book or an article for a magazine.

But since people have a fascination for why other people do what they do and even what made themselves the way they are, there are plenty of openings for the right kind of article in most any market. All we have to do is find the right slant for a unique idea.

Psychology is important in our fiction, too. It’s the basis for the backstory we create for our characters that drives them to act the way they do.

Outdoors

Read Psalms 123-125

Psalms 124:7 "Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped."

The outdoors has plenty of markets. There are some magazines dedicated to the outdoors, but the outdoors lends itself to a variety of subjects.

Whatever our interest or expertise, as long as it falls outdoors, it will find a place. Everything from gardening to nature to scenery to weather to buildings has somewhere it can be slanted and marketed to.

In our fiction, we need to be aware of what our characters interact with when they go outdoors. Historical fiction especially because certain forests are no longer around, while certain cities didn’t always exist.

Architecture

Read Psalms 120-122

Psalms 122:3 "Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together:"

For writers who have an interest or expertise in architecture there are a few specialty magazines that we can market our work to. We may find that we have to dig deep in our idea pool to use that knowledge for other markets.

But with the right slant, architecture is an interesting enough subject to find outlets for. Perhaps a travel market, a children's market, or other magazines and newspapers.

Our expertise can shine in our fiction. When we write description and details about our characters’ setting, the accuracy will set us apart.

Journal

Read Psalms 119

Psalms 119:105 "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

Diaries are not just for girls. And journals are not necessarily diaries.

Lots of folks from ship captains to scientists need to keep journals in order to track progress or to be referred to in case of disaster.

We can keep any kind of journal we want. It doesn’t have to be consistent—it can go from a recording of the day’s events to an idea list to an outpouring of emotion.

Fillers

Read Psalms 116-118

Psalms 117:1 "For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the Lord endureth for ever. Praise ye the Lord."

Fillers have their own market category. Magazines and newspapers both carry fillers.

A filler is a short paragraph or even one sentence that contains one thought or piece of information that interests the readers. The market will let us know what the word limits are.

Usually the most effective way to submit a filler is to send it along with the query letter. The market will state if that’s their preference and whether or not to send more than one at a time.