Standing up for myself

Our writing should be an expression of our unique selves.  We're always being told by editors and agents not to write for the market but to write what we love.

Part of finding our unique voice, the voice that will have them wanting to publish us, is standing up for ourselves.  We must have the courage to say what we believe in through the medium of our writing,

For me, that has always been championing independent, child-free, and generally sex-free women main characters who have more important things to do than worry if somebody likes them.  They have professional jobs, as I did, and they're good at those jobs.  More recently, I've started to write about the appalling way humans treat animals.  That's the basic premise of the Panthera books, to hold up a mirror to the worst humans can be.

So have the courage to say what you believe in your writing.  Stand up for yourself too.