I usually ramble on for a few paragraphs before getting to the point, but today’s tip is fairly important, so I’m just going to come out and say it:
Stop what you’re doing right now and go check your Spam folder.
Back? Excellent. Did you find anything useful in there? Even if you didn’t, I highly suggest making a habit of checking your Spam folder at least once a week. Otherwise you’ll end up like me, and spend weeks wondering what happened to your very expensive contest entry when the answer was hidden in ye olde Spamme folder all along.
Story time!
Story #1: The missing acceptance letter
As you may remember, I recently entered the Independent Book Publisher (IPPY) Awards. I sent them $99 and a softcover book (+shipping), so it was a fairly significant monetary investment on my part. The website said they’d send a confirmation email as soon as they got their hands on the book. But I never received that email.
After raging a bit (you know how it goes), I sent them a friendly email asking if they’d gotten my book. No response! Grrrrr. I was just about ready to sharpen up my oversized wooden spoon and go on a rampage when I decided to check my Spam folder on a whim. Voila! Three emails from the IPPY folks, all buried in the Spam graveyard.
So this story has a happy ending — my book did get to the IPPY Awards, and it’s officially entered. Huzzah!
Story #2: The giveaway gaffe
A few weeks ago, I entered a contest on the lovely Lorraine Pearl’s blog for a chance to win an autographed model card from a romance cover model she got to do a guest post. I completely forgot about entering … until I checked my Spam folder in the wake of the aforementioned missing acceptance letter incident, and discovered that I had won the model card! Huzzah!
Except that was from three weeks ago, and I had never replied — gasp! I quickly fired off an email explaining the situation, and Lorraine’s getting it all sorted out.
… okay, I admit, I only had two stories. But you get the picture! Check your Spam folder! What if an agent’s desperately trying to sign you, and their emails are getting rerouted to the Spam folder without your knowledge? Doom! Ruin! Despair! Exclamation mark!
Unrelated media of the day:
I’m sure everyone and their mother has already heard this song, but I just recently discovered it, so, heck with it. I’m sharing it here. Let’s all rock out on the count of three. Ready? One … two … three!
Michelle Proulx - Author 
Sounds like you had a fun treasure hunt in that spam folder. Congrats to all your successes.
Haha thanks. Minor successes are still successes, right? 😀
Exactly. Every step counts.
Absolutely.
I can’t say that I’ve ever found anything as good as you did in my spam folder. But the spam queue for my blog can provide some entertaining fodder for posts. 🙂
Ooooh good point! I should go check that. I did a couple of months and found some real gems 😀
“Search and ye shall find”
Spam folder, you say? Hmm… Apparently my man-junk could be larger.
Yeah, my spam is just confusing. O.o
Lol. I don’t have any of those, but I have a ton from “Writing” societies who have just discovered a surefire way to write and publish a novel in under a week. Sounds legit.
If you have to ask, it’s probably a scam. Hm, wonder why it rhymes with spam?
If you have to ask it’s probably a scam. Hm. it rhymes with spam.
I did not see my reply until I replied a second time. This is scaring me. LOL.
P.S. The best writing advice I never implemented I received from Robert McKee. He even autographed his book “Story”. I should re-read a few chapters today, but I feel some procrastination episodes coming up.
I have a copy of that book, even wrote a little on my blog about scene and structure. In a nut shell, what did you find to be the best gem in his book?
I actually check that often. Lately Oprah and Ellen have been telling me I need to lose weight.
Goodness they’re nosey, aren’t they?
Hey, that’s a good tip. Congrats on your win, and your entry acceptance. Cheers! 🙂
Thanks 🙂 I’m not sure I deserve credit for my entry acceptance, though, lol — all I did was send them a book! If I WIN, on the other hand … then I expect you to heap the praise on! 😀
Well, as the saying goes, “You have to be in it to win it.” Many are too scared (or defeatist) to try. How about I say “Congratulations for going for it” instead? Good luck! When do you hear the results? And yes, I’ll heap the praise on. 😀
I’ll take it 😀 As for the results … Googling … here we go: Three to five medalists per category will be named on about April 30th; medals to be presented on May 29th during an awards ceremony in New York, on the eve of the BookExpo America convention.
OMG – that sounds huge! I hope you win! Good luck! 🙂
High expectations, you have? Great stuff. I believe you earned them.
Huzzah! “So this story has a happy ending — my book did get to the IPPY Awards, and it’s officially entered. Huzzah!” Thanks for starting MY day with a happy ending. And congratulations. Since you got me to check my spam mail, YOU are awesome and can do everything.
Hahaha 🙂 Find anything interesting in said Spam folder?
No, your spam trumped my spam, Michelle. Laughing out loud is the best way I know to jump start my day. Thanks.
It’s always handy to check the spam folder. I do it about once a week but all I find is that I’ve won a Nigerian lottery or someone is trying to sell me illegal medication 😀 I’m glad it worked out for you. Well done! 😀
Yeah, the Spam folder can be sketchy. I actually almost got tricked into downloading a virus when I found an email from “Canada Post”, saying they had tried to deliver a package yesterday and failed, so could I please click the link below to arrange for another drop off. Tricky devils!
You’ve got to be on your guard because they’ll get you any way they can…
I always check my spam, for the cheapest entertainment. I have noticed the little buggers getting more aggressive, though: OPEN ME NOW OR LOSE. Hmm, as enticing as the beckon is, I’m not supplicating. Ha. You are completely right, though, about the false-frustrated gems. I had several replies I was waiting for that I thought were ignoring me. In fact, because I hadn’t checked, I was the one that ended up eating crow. You’ve got to love spam, no?
Spam confuses me, especially the ones that look like legitimate messages, but are actually cunningly disguised viruses or scams. And I used to get around that by just not going into the Spam folder at all, but … now apparently important messages are going there too, lol. We can’t win!!!
Well I must say you’re one lucky lady. Whenever I go through my Spam folder I find myself being invited to “intimate” times and told that I had inherited a sum of 40 million dollars. 😦
I wonder what would happen if someone tried to collect that 40 million, and then when it turned out to be a scam, they turned out to be an amazing lawyer with connections in high places, and they sued the people who sent the scam email for millions and millions of dollars. That would be awesome.
…my answer: You have a vivid imagination.
You totally brought me to the beach! Love this!
Lol excellent. Mission accomplished.
Sorry about the late comment here – your post got lodged in my Spam folder. 🙂
Oh snap. Spam’s revenge is slow but deadly.