After getting published

The short answer is yes.

If an editor sees you've already had work accepted for publication, s/he knows you've managed that first step up the ladder - which is more than many wannabe writers ever do.

But there's a longer answer that would take into account:

a) what had been published, and
b) the nature and reputation of the publication

There are places that will publish anything and everything they receive. Editors know them, and publication in such a place will actually count as a negative credit (if such a thing exists).

Basically yes. Your credits are your hash marks, be they small press non-paying or major slick mag sales. Being a runner up or a finalist in a contest is also appropriet. I do have a credit list page that is seperate from any of my queries or proposals.
Tri

Yup, some magazines even state that they prefer to work with established writers. Keep submitting, don't give up, and when a magazine does accept your piece, it is easier to get published again.

Having bad credit is sometimes worse than having no credit. I mean, if your credit is only PublishAmerica, probably not a good thing. But if you manage to get into a small but legit literary magazine or a small publication, it may be a good start.

Does it get easier? I can't say -- you're still competing with a lot of people with great writing ability. But it does help to have some credits under your belt.

Credits

Lel513 said:

I started sending out stories to various magazines a few months ago but still have yet to be accepted anywhere. My question is if and when I get that first story published, does it then become easier to get published in other places? Does having that credit on your cover letter, even if it's only one credit start to open up doors?

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First, not all credits are created equal, and some credits are just plain bad. Rather than impressing an editor, the wrong credits will make that editor wonder why you were silly enough to list them, and the impact will be negative.

Second, no one is going top publish you any faster because you have credits, and credits make it no easier to get published anywhere.

Credits are valuable, but in short story writing they are only valuable in the sense that your work will be read faster, and often by a higher editor. But no editor anywhere is going to publish a story of yours because you have previous sales.

The reason it sometimes seems easier for writers with credits to get published is simple: the writers has credits because he's reached the stage where his talent and skill have come together and he is now, at least part of the time, writing the kind of quality stories editors want.

Writers with credits get published more often than writers without credits purely and simply because writers with credits tend to write better stories than those without credits. If those without credits were writing stories as good as those with credits, they would have credits of their own.

It does not get easier because you have credits, it gets easier because you have talent, you've honed your skill, and you're now writing the kind of stories editors are willing to buy.

Short story credits can also be very valuable to those who wish to write a novel, and for the same reason. When an agent or editor sees good credits, it means an editor thought enough of your writing to pay hard money for it. So an agent or an editor will look at your writing faster, and it will probbaly be read by someone higher up the totem pole.

But the writing still has to sell itself. It never gets any easier, and the one and only way you will ever sell a short story or a novel is if that short story or that novel is good enough to make an editor believe people will pay money to read it.

Jamesaritchie said:

First, not all credits are created equal, and some credits are just plain bad. Rather than impressing an editor, the wrong credits will make that editor wonder why you were silly enough to list them, and the impact will be negative.

Second, no one is going top publish you any faster because you have credits, and credits make it no easier to get published anywhere.

Credits are valuable, but in short story writing they are only valuable in the sense that your work will be read faster, and often by a higher editor. But no editor anywhere is going to publish a story of yours because you have previous sales.

The reason it sometimes seems easier for writers with credits to get published is simple: the writers has credits because he's reached the stage where his talent and skill have come together and he is now, at least part of the time, writing the kind of quality stories editors want.

Writers with credits get published more often than writers without credits purely and simply because writers with credits tend to write better stories than those without credits. If those without credits were writing stories as good as those with credits, they would have credits of their own.

It does not get easier because you have credits, it gets easier because you have talent, you've honed your skill, and you're now writing the kind of stories editors are willing to buy.

Short story credits can also be very valuable to those who wish to write a novel, and for the same reason. When an agent or editor sees good credits, it means an editor thought enough of your writing to pay hard money for it. So an agent or an editor will look at your writing faster, and it will probbaly be read by someone higher up the totem pole.

But the writing still has to sell itself. It never gets any easier, and the one and only way you will ever sell a short story or a novel is if that short story or that novel is good enough to make an editor believe people will pay money to read it.

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Well put James.

Jamesaritchie said:

Writers with credits get published more often than writers without credits purely and simply because writers with credits tend to write better stories than those without credits. If those without credits were writing stories as good as those with credits, they would have credits of their own.

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Very well said.

I would also like to add that publishing credits are good for the WRITER because it means you are usually looking at markets and becoming used to writing what editors like to see.

Additionally, as you become more confident in your work your writing voice becomes stronger. That confidence comes out in your writing, whether it be on your cover letter (which also improves with experience) or in your work itself.

B.

Credits

I gotta get used to this format.


James got what's what here, IMHO.

Don't ever think that if you get a hit everything comes up roses. If it's a good pub the seeds of your work stand a better chance of blossoming. If it's a bad pub, prepare to do some weeding. I'm eclectic. I do poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and anything else that falls into the category of words. If you submit fiction to a good fiction editor he/she will judge the merits of your work. The problem lies in the screening process. If an intern gets it, God knows what's good to him/her. Even with my credits, most of my submittals were accepted without cover letters. Figure that out.

As for that last poster, when his/her "advice" word count is followed by a word count almost equal to his/her sales pitch, hit the off button and go read a book.

What can I say, I got a lot going on. Well that, and a little free advertising never hurt anyone.

Maybe I'm overcompensating for a small spell checker.

B.

Credits

jwschnarr said:

Very well said.

I would also like to add that publishing credits are good for the WRITER because it means you are usually looking at markets and becoming used to writing what editors like to see.

Additionally, as you become more confident in your work your writing voice becomes stronger. That confidence comes out in your writing, whether it be on your cover letter (which also improves with experience) or in your work itself.

B.

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Great points all.

This kind of goes along with what James said.

Two or three years ago, I sent a collection of short stories to a small publisher. The majority of them had been published in small to mid-sized genre magazines, most of them recognizable paying markets. I figured, hey, this should impress them, or at least give me some kind of advantage. But apparently not.

I can't remember exactly how the editor phrased it, but it was something along the lines of just because the stories had been published in those magazines didn't make it a buyable collection. Or something. So credits are great, but in the end it all comes down to someone's opinion of your writing.