The Writers Network News, March 19, 2005 http://ezezine.com
March 19, 2005
The Writers Network News
“No Rules; Just Write!”
Editor: Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com)
Welcome to this free issue of The Writers Network News. I hope you love it and forward it to all your writing friends, but if you don’t love it, then follow the simple instructions at the bottom to remove your address from the mailing list.
In This Issue:
One: Kudos: Kathy Hamdy-Swink
Two: From the editor’s desk: more Print-on-Demand info and Bobbie’s newest book!
Three: Ask the Book Doctor: releases, punctuation, publisher’s praise, pricing, prologues, and more
Four: Subjects of interest to writers
Five: Jobs, contests, grants, agents and markets
Six: Writing Assignment: Set it and Forget it
Seven: Looking for Critique Circles
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Next Roswell meeting date: Friday, April 1, 2005
12:00 noon at Wok & Chops Chinese Restaurant
If you happen to be in Atlanta on the first Friday of the month, bring questions and business cards and network with us. See directions at the end of the e-zine.
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Writer’s quote of the day:
“Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” --Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
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One: Kudos
[Kudos: noun: praise or honor: praise, credit, or glory for an achievement]
“I wanted to give kudos to The Writer's Network (AGAIN!) I have been hired for a ten-week assignment as sports writer and photographer by responding to an ad in The Writers Network News. I am looking forward to this project and know it will help open more doors as I continue to build my writing résumé. This is the second time your network has helped me land work as a professional freelance writer. Thanks again, and kudos to you!” --Kathy Hamdy-Swink
Please send in your accomplishments for our kudos section!
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Two: From the editor’s desk: More Print-on-Demand Info and My Newest Book!
Dear Fellow Writers:
First, my happiest announcement: My newest book is now available in inexpensive e-book format! Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing includes dozens of clickable links. All my other books cost more, but e-publishing helped me keep the cost of this book down. It’s only $8.95 at http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html. I hope you’ll buy it today!
Readers often ask me about Print-On-Demand (POD) and how it might benefit them. Self publishing makes sense only to those who have a good outlet for sales, such as nonfiction writers who give presentations. Bookstores rarely handle self-published books, and when they do, they ask for a deep discount that destroys your profits. Regardless of those facts, I plan to use POD for my new book, to supplement the e-book version. Why?
1. Some people are reluctant to buy e-books. The printed version will be available for those who prefer to have the book in hand.
2. I can get the book to the market quickly and with little investment.
3. I have a specific market—writers.
4. I can sell the books wherever I give presentations or visit writers groups, which I do often.
5. I’ve already proved I can sell a book to a traditional publisher (Write In Style, available for $12.95, was purchased and released by Union Square Publishing). Now I want to make money. Traditional publishers keep up to ninety-five percent of the selling price for themselves. I wanted a higher percentage for myself while giving writers vital information.
6. I do not want to store a large quantity of books; I’ll print only a few at a time to carry to events where I make presentations.
7. I don’t want to spend my time packaging and mailing books. When customers buy the POD book online, the publisher prints it, mails it to the customer, and sends me the royalties once a month.
POD is not for everyone, though. Here’s what Booklocker.com has to say about Print On Demand: “If the primary way you want to sell your print book is through bookstores, we're not the right company for you. No POD company is. Most bookstores will not stock POD books because they want a fifty percent discount to do so. Given the cost structure of POD, it is not possible to offer such a deep discount.
“Let's assume your book is 150 pages, making its list price $12.95. Roughly fifty percent of that is going to the printer to cover production costs. Fifteen percent goes to us to pay for our overhead. Thirty-five percent is left over to pay the author or give any discounts to bookstores. If a bookstore orders from us, the author would make fifteen percent on that sale, because we would give the bookstore a twenty percent discount. We can make that discount to the bookstore bigger, but it would require raising the list price. Sometimes that is fine, but for most books it prices them out of the market (hard for you to charge $16.95, when all your competitors are charging $12.95).
“There is no economy-of-scale with POD publishing. It doesn't get cheaper the more copies you print. It is the same fixed costs no matter if you print one or 1,000 copies.
“Authors making the most money on our system are selling directly to the customer through Booklocker.com or their own sites.”
Please go to http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html and order my new e-book, “Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing.” For only $8.95, you’ll get questions and answers about writing books, magazine articles, and corporate communications as well as finding an agent, finding a publisher, correct manuscript format, grammar, punctuation, creative writing, legal issues and more.
Enjoy this newsletter and be sure to send your kudos, questions, comments, and leads to share with members of your network.
--Bobbie Christmas
Author of “Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing” and award-winning “Write In Style” (Union Square Publishing) and director of The Writers Network
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Three: Ask the Book Doctor: Releases, punctuation, publisher’s praise, pricing, prologues, and more
Q: I am writing a nonfiction book, and interviewing several people for the book. I have each interview subject sign a release that states the following:
1. They are aware that excerpts from the interview will be used in a book.
2. They will not be compensated for the interview.
3. That they will receive no proceeds from the book.
Additionally, I have each interview subject record how they would like to be identified in the book on the release form, (e.g. pseudonym, initials, etc.)
Is there anything else that I should include on the release form?
A: This is a legal issue, so I cannot answer in absolutes. Short of having an attorney approve the form, you might check a Web site or store to find standard release forms to see if you missed anything. I have two layperson suggestions, though.
You sent a summary, not the release, so the actual form may already include what I’m about to say. Because the purpose of the form is to protect you and give you latitude to use the information, I would not use the word “will” under number one, but “may.” I also would add other options, so the wording would be more like this: “excerpts may be used in a book, article, promotional literature or other printed or electronic matter.”
Q: I have written a novel that could be described as conversational style. There are large blocks of text in which one of my characters is telling the story of her life to someone. I am having a little trouble finding information that explains how to use punctuation marks in this type of writing. Any suggestions?
A: Without seeing the manuscript, I’ll take a stab at the answer.
Monologues (long dialogue without anyone interrupting) are discouraged in contemporary literature, because readers today prefer to see a story unfold with action as well as dialogue. You may want to intersperse action with the dialogue, and you will more clearly know when to start and stop the quotation marks.
Even though readers today don’t want to be told a story and they want to watch it happen, monologues do have a place, and they also have punctuation guidelines.
Here’s the key: When a character speaks for more than a paragraph, do not end the paragraph with end-quotation marks. Leave it open. Open the next paragraph with quotation, marks, however. At the end of the monologue, close it with quotation marks. Here’s a brief example:
John shifted his weight to his left leg. “One night my father came home stinking of whiskey. He yelled at us and woke us from a deep sleep. We didn’t know what he was going to do next.
“To our surprise, he made us all get up, Ruth, Susan, Samuel, and me, and he danced with every one of us in the living room." John shook his head. "That night turned out to be one of my best memories of my old man.”
Q: I've been submitting my manuscript to several publishers and agents. Although I've had only rejections so far, some of them are very much “near misses.” One publisher gave lots of praise for the submission but said they didn't accept unagented mss, one agent said he “saw the talent,” but said he'd had problems placing similar proposals recently. Do these niceties mean anything, or are they just letting me down gently?
A: Most agents and publishers have little time to let people down gently. Most rejections are sent by preprinted letters, or in the worst case, rubber-stamped rejection notices. Agents and publishers have nothing to gain by taking extra time to write a nice note. When you get a personal comment of any kind, it is rare, and when that comment is complimentary, frame it! You have the rarest form of rejection letter, and it means you are getting close. Keep revising and submitting your work. Keep creating more. Ponder the point that similar proposals have been difficult to place. Think how you might revise your proposal or your entire book to make it more marketable. Look at bestseller lists to see what’s selling. Keep going, and take pride in the “good” rejections.
Q: Italics: I know foreign words and book titles should be italicized. Should I italicize or underline?
A: When we had only typewriters, we knew the answer. To indicate italics on a typewriter, we typed the words, backed up, and underlined the words to indicate italics. With computers, we can choose between using italics or underlines. I’ve even seen manuscripts in which the same word was both underlined and italicized, which is unacceptable. The choice between underlining and italicizing today depends on what you write. In a business letter, by all means use italics. In a book manuscript, however, use underlines. That’s correct form for a manuscript, and underlines are easier to read than italics. No one is going to reject a manuscript based on this one format issue alone, but whether you italicize or underline, be consistent throughout the manuscript. Don’t underline one word and italicize another.
Q: How did you decide on the price for your e-book? What is the price? Is it in PDF format?
A: Oh, how I love questions that allow me to promote my own work! First, I chose $8.95 for the price of “Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing” based on professional advice from the owner of www.booklocker.com, who solicited my book after seeing a draft. She said $8.95 is the magic number, the price people are willing to spend. Anything less, and the value is perceived as less, and the book sells fewer copies. Anything higher, and the price goes outside the budget for some, and people buy fewer copies. I decided to go with the magic number. Why buck a trend? It’s a win-win number. I sell more copies and reach more people; readers get a good price; I get to fulfill my mission of helping writers, while I make a little money, as well.
Professionally produced books tend to be in PDF, as mine is. Portable Document Format “cements” a file in place, so no one can change it and so the format looks exactly as planned, no matter what platform the reader uses (PC, Mac, or Linux). These traits protect copyrighted literature and ensure the e-book looks the way it was designed to look. In addition, PDF has other valuable traits. It allows the writer to create clickable links in the book, as well as bookmarks for each chapter or subject, so readers can go directly to the entry point they want, and they can click links to go to helpful Websites. Those qualities make an e-book even more valuable than a printed book. In addition, PDF allows the file to download quicker than a Microsoft Word or Publisher file. As you may know, Adobe Acrobat Reader comes on most computers nowadays, and if not, it’s a free download, and that’s all that’s needed to read a PDF file.
Q: Should you tell the ending when writing a five-page synopsis?
A: First, the recommended length for a single-spaced synopsis of a novel is one to two pages, rather than five, although some publishers accept five. Next, yes, always tell the ending in a synopsis. Teasers—or summaries—don’t tell the ending, but they are good only for one-paragraph hooks in query letters or on book jackets. A teaser or summary might read this way:
What happens when a forty-seven-year-old nun falls in love with the new priest in her parish? What if the new priest is only thirty, but he returns her affection? What if the priest disappears without a trace and the nun is the only suspect? Can Marsha Canestraro, seventy years old, devout Catholic, and lifelong member of St. Francis Church in Woodlands, Vermont, uncover the truth, avoid church scandal, and uphold her beliefs, all that the same time?
A synopsis summarizes the plot from beginning to end. In contrast to the summary, it might start out this way:
Marsha Canestraro, seventy years old, devout Catholic, and lifelong member of St. Francis Church in Woodlands, Vermont, attends church on Sunday, March 5, only to discover the new priest has disappeared without a trace. She decides to find out for herself what became of the man she at first resented but was growing to admire.
The rest of the synopsis would tell the steps Marsha took and the information she uncovers, until the truth is revealed. I can’t write the whole synopsis here, because I made the story up just now, and if I knew anything at all about Catholicism, I might write the book myself. In fact I might have made technical errors and incorrect assumptions about Catholicism and its terminology, so I would have to undertake a great deal of research, to be sure my story was plausible and facts correct. Those drawbacks aside, let’s get back to the synopsis.
Publishers know a synopsis will not sound exciting or creative; they simply want to know the basis of the plot and the resolution, so they can judge the plausibility and marketability of the novel.
Q: How does a writer decide if a book should begin with a prologue?
A: A prologue fills readers in with back story, something that happened before the story in the novel takes place. The prologue has to be powerful and hook readers as strongly as the first chapter does, from the first sentence.
We discussed this question at The Writers Network meeting, and here are some of the thoughts we shared:
Some readers skip the prologue, so if the prologue has vital information, the reader may miss out on the basis for the plot.
One member noted that the prologue makes the writer have to hook the reader twice, a decided disadvantage.
Another member said that back story can easily be put into the first chapter as a flashback. I noted that in my novel in progress, I originally had a prologue, but after letting the book rest a while and going back to it, I saw that the prologue was unnecessary. I deleted it and started with Chapter One, and it made the story stronger.
The consensus was that the better choice is to avoid having a prologue.
Editor’s Notes: In our last issue, I addressed points to consider when naming characters. I said that “Chris” was not a name a Jewish parent would name a child, because it stood for Christian. A reader sent the following: “I'll probably not be the only one to point out that “Chris” is not short for Christian, but for “Christopher.”
Surprise! That reader was indeed the only one who wrote in, but I have to admit that “Chris” can stand for either Christopher or Christian. Either way, though, I stand by the statement that “Chris” is not a name a Jewish parent would choose for a child. If any readers can prove me wrong, please let me know. I, too, am always learning.
To the last e-zine question regarding how to stop someone with a vendetta from writing bad reviews of your book, Ellis Vidler, author of “Haunting Refrain” and “Death by Any Other Name” (both Silver Dagger Mysteries), adds: “If you can show that the person has malicious intent or consistently posts reviews that are unduly negative or personal in tone, Amazon will remove the review. On the other hand, if the bad review is outweighed by good reviews, the controversy might add interest.”
For 122 pages of “Ask the Book Doctor” questions and answers buy my BRAND NEW e-book for $8.95 at http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html. Hey, if you ever sent a question to the book doctor, your question and answer may appear in the book!
Do you have a question? Send it today to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
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Four: Subjects of interest to writers
Print-On-Demand Company Comparisons
Several writers have asked about POD companies, but I never had specific information with which to respond, until I found a site that compares most of the companies. It’s a fairly comprehensive list with enlightening comparisons. See http://www.booksandtales.com/pod/index.html
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PublishAmerica victim of hoax; allegedly proves itself to be a vanity press (excerpt from http://www.anvilpub.com/Southern_Review.htm)
To dispel statements of Frederick, Md.-based Publish America’s that it is a "traditional publisher" and claims it inspects submitted manuscripts for quality like a traditional publisher, a collection of Science Fiction Writers of America authors concocted a scheme to write a very poorly written book and submit it.
Over a holiday weekend, the 30-odd science fiction writers banged out a chapter or two apiece of "Atlanta Nights," a novel by "Travis Tea" about hot times in Atlanta high society. Each author was given only minimal information from which to write a chapter (with no idea of the chapter location in the book, time of year, background of the characters, or plot) and encouraged to write as poorly as possible.
The result, a truly awful book and serious contender for "absolute worst book ever written," was submitted for review to PublishAmerica to see if it "has what this book publisher is looking for." It did. PublishAmerica offered a contract.
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Let’s hope it's true…
Whether you believe in astrology or not, we can hope. Here’s what astrologer Susan Miller says about 2005:
“It's a fabulous year for creativity, because Jupiter and Neptune are working so well together.” She says it is a great year for “people in the arts, where it is so hard to make money.” She says it’s good “all year, but March and August are spectacular, and I write about it in my book.” Her site is www.astrologyzone.com, and her book is The Year Ahead 2005.
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“Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing” e-book at last available
“Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing” tells you everything you ever wanted to know about writing and submitting your work, but did not know who to ask. This 122-page e-book quickly answers all the questions you wish you could ask a writing and editing expert. It has bookmarks that allow you to go directly to your preferred subject and features many clickable links that take you to resources that give you additional information on how to write, edit, and sell your work, whether you write books, short stories, articles, reports, or anything else. To order and download, go to http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html
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Paramount buys rights to self-published book
Paramount Pictures has acquired the movie rights to Michael Stadther's treasure hunt book, "A Treasure's Trove: A Fairy Tale About Real Treasure for Parents and Children of All Ages." Stadther self-published the book in December 2004, and it has been on the New York Times paperback best-seller list.
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Hear Bobbie Christmas speak in and around Atlanta!
June 7, 2005
The Village Writers Group
For more info watch http://www.villagewritersgroup.org/pages/512418/index.htm
The Village Writers Group meets at 7:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month in the Toco Hills-Avis Williams branch of the Dekalb County library at 1282 McConnell Drive (off Clairmont Road just south of North Druid Hills Road) in Decatur, Georgia. The library phone number is 404-679-4404.
July 15-16, 2005
12th annual Harriette Austin Writers Conference
University of Georgia
Suite 570
2351 College Station Rd
Athens GA 30605
706-743-3810
The program is still being formed. For more information watch http://www.coe.uga.edu/hawc/
July 23, 2005
Atlanta Writers Club Presents
Write In Style: A Crash Course in Creative Writing - $65
Sandy Springs Library
Sandy Springs, Georgia
Only one percent of all books written get sold to traditional publishers. The odds of selling a short story or magazine article are better, but still dismal. Increase your chances of selling whatever you write by picking the brains of an editor with more than 30 years of book, magazine and newspaper experience. For the Atlanta Writers Club, Bobbie Christmas has condensed her six-week creative writing course into a one-day seminar, and you do not have to be a member of the Atlanta Writers Club to take the course. For more information contact George Weinstein: gjweinstein@yahoo.com or Bobbie Christmas: Bobbie@ZebraEditor.com.
August 20, 2005
Writers Boot Camp
The Knowledge Shop
Marietta, Georgia
A full day of workshops for writers. Details to be announced.
Contact me for more information as it develops.
Bobbie@ZebraEditor.com
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For a great list of resources for writers, see http://www.salutor.com/.
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New! Free Report #106: Editor/Proof Marks
Learn the marks that editors use to tell a writer or typesetter how to change a manuscript. This special report includes extra marks I use to help clients catch their “missed opportunities for improvement,” such as repetition and ambiguity. E-mail me at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com and ask for Free Report #106, Editor/Proof Marks. I’ll e-mail it to you as a virus-free, easy-to-download PDF file.
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Minding Her Own Business: The Self-Employed Woman’s Essential Guide to Taxes and Financial Records
If you’re serious about your writing, you will set it up as a business and deduct expenses, but you’d better do it right. My beautiful daughter-in-law, who is setting up her own business as we speak, sent me a link to a book that looks like it has all the tax and recordkeeping information small business owners need. Check it out at http://www.janztax.com/book_flyer/book_flyer.htm.
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Random House sues P. Diddy to recover advance
Random House is suing rap artist/clothing designer Sean "P. Diddy" Combs to recover the $300,000 advance against royalties it paid him for an autobiography that he never delivered, the publisher announced on Feb. 15. "Random House has seldom resorted to a legal course of action with its prospective authors who don't write the books we have contracted for, but Mr. Sean Combs has left us no choice," spokesman Tom Perry said.
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Quick and Simple magazine launches
This new women's weekly comes from Hearst Magazines. It intends to "cover real women and what's important to them in a positive, upbeat format." Susan Toepfer is editor.
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Secrets from “Write In Style” Revealed
The Find and Refine Method™ assists writers in being objective about their work. To learn much more about Bobbie Christmas’s trademarked method, see http://tinyurl.com/5vabr
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Quill national book awards launched
NBC Universal Television Stations and Reed Business International, which publishes Variety, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly, announced plans for a new national book award. The general public will select winners by voting online and in bookstores.
The Quill Awards will be presented in fifteen categories, including book of the year, rookie of the year, best book to film, and graphic novel of the year. Selections will begin in May, after a board of about 6,000 booksellers and librarians pick a slate of nominees. The ceremony will be televised on NBC in October.
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Tips on Writing Your Book Proposal and Your Nonfiction Book
Yes, you can sell your nonfiction book to a publisher before you write it, if you write a killer book proposal, first. Before you write the proposal or sample chapters, though, Dr. Maisel has some wise points to ponder, as well and great tips on writing the proposal itself. See “7 Book Proposal Strategies” at: http://www.ewomenpublishingnetwork.com/publish_newsletter/0205_newsletter/maisel_2.htm
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Save $7! Rev Up Your Writing and Win Seminar on Tape Reduced!
Rev Up Your Writing and Win is a high-quality cassette recorded at the Harriette Austin Writers Conference in Athens, Georgia. The package includes all accompanying materials and handouts. Was $14.95 plus $4 shipping (total $18.95). Sale priced this week: $11.95, and we pay the shipping. To order, send a request and your check today. Zebra Communications, 230 Deerchase Drive, Woodstock, Georgia 30188. Credit cards accepted through PayPal.
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AUTHORS NEEDED FOR BOOK ‘EM 2005
The Book ‘Em Foundation, whose slogan is “Buy a Book and Stop a Crook,” has begun plans for the Second Annual Book ‘Em Event and is seeking authors who wish to participate in signings and readings. The event will be held Saturday and Sunday, October 22-23, 2005, in Waynesboro, Virginia.
The event highlights a partnership between law enforcement and the literary community to bring attention to the connection between high illiteracy rates and high crime rates. Proceeds from the sale of books at the event will be used in increasing literacy, reducing crime, and raising public awareness.
Authors will be provided with tables and chairs at no charge. Instead, The Book ‘Em Foundation is asking that at least 40% of the sale of each book be donated to The Book ‘Em Foundation, who will divide the proceeds between the Shenandoah Valley Reading Council, Friends of the Library of Augusta County, Staunton, and Waynesboro, and Central Shenandoah Crime Stoppers.
If an author is unable to attend but would like to contribute, we are accepting autographed books to be sold at the event. A list of donations and attending authors can be viewed at www.bookemfoundation.org.
The exposure could be invaluable to authors and their publishers, whether it is for a back listed book or a new release.
For additional information and to download a registration form, go to www.bookemfoundation.org; telephone Officer Mark Kearney of the Waynesboro Police Department at 540-942-6683 or email him at kearneymp@ci.waynesboro.va.us; or contact author p.m.terrell at patricia@pmterrell.com or call 804-778-7711.
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Budget now for a summer writing working under the Tuscan Sun
Linda Oatman High
www.lindaoatmanhigh.com
Tel. 717-445-8246
Linda Oatman High will be teaching a writing workshop in Cortona, Italy, July 2-9, 2005.http://hometown.aol.com/upcoevents/differentdrummerhomepage.html. Discounts for early registration and for groups. Food, room, tours included.
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Write In Style at Amazon.com discount price!
Write In Style: Using Your Word Processor and Other Techniques to Improve Your Writing teaches the Find and Refine Method ™ to locate words and phrases you can delete, upgrade or rewrite to power up your prose. Bobbie Christmas reveals secrets only a book doctor could know. First Place winner of the Royal Palm Award for education! Union Square Publishing, publisher; Simon and Schuster, distributor. Available in bookstores and Internet retailers. To order at Amazon.com DISCOUNT prices, go to http://zebraeditor.com/bookstore.shtml
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Chesapeake Bay Writers’ Retreat
Julie Gammack & The Chesapeake Bay Magazine
Concurrent small group sessions with attendees gathering for meals & keynote speakers. Queenstown (near Annapolis), Maryland. See the complete listing at: http://writing.shawguides.com/ChesapeakeBayWritersRetreatAspenInstituteWyeRiverConferenceCenter
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Write the Damn Book
Two professional coaches speak on book titles, outlines, marketing and more, Sonoma, San Francisco, Los Angeles, California. See the complete listing at:
http://writing.shawguides.com/WritetheDamnBook
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Prague Summer Program
Western Michigan University, in cooperation with Charles University, Prague. Morning workshops, three days a week, writing assignments, lectures. See the complete listing at: http://writing.shawguides.com/PragueSummerProgram
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Five: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents and Markets
Literary Lift-Off Magazine
Space Coast Writers Guild
P.O. Box 362143
Melbourne, FL 32936-2143
Debuted January 2005. All works must be original and not previously published. Welcomes fiction and nonfiction of 2,500 words or less. Poetry accepted. Please double space, with one-inch margins on all sides, use twelve-point New Times Roman. Include your name, address, phone number, and email address on a title page. Buys first serial rights only. Payment on publication. Payment not stated on the Web site. See http://www.scwg.org/_wsn/page4.html.
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We are looking for happy retirement stories involving people who have relocated for retirement. We need to know what their occupation and community involvement was in their old home and same for the new. We also need to know why they relocated and whether they made money on the relocation. In other words, did they sell their house and buy a new home for less money. Finally, what made them choose the new location? Contributors will receive full credit and a copy of the finished book. –Barbara Kimmel, info@nextdecade.com
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Atlanta Style & Design
Contact: Mary H. Love
mhlove@earthlink.net
This full-color, quarterly magazine is geared toward upscale readers with a zest for living—discriminating readers eager to discover new horizons in Atlanta and the world beyond.
We want vivid, well-researched articles on trends in home design, fashion, food and wine, health/fitness, antiques/collectibles, the arts, travel and more. We also profile celebrities and opinion leaders, ideally with an Atlanta connection. Articles run up to 1,200 words for departments and up to 2,000 words for features.
One-page queries, accompanied by clips, are welcome. Summarize the subject, suggest a specific angle, and explain why the topic is consistent with the magazine’s mission. Do not send materials you want returned. We pay on publication and provide contributors with a complimentary copy of the magazine.
We are very interested in adding more design articles. Also, we are looking for good restaurant writers to cover food, ambience, chefs, etc., and arts and entertainment mavens. We also want someone with merchandising or advertising flair to produce and write copy for themed pictorials. (Warning: fluff need not apply). For complete guidelines, e-mail: mhlove@earthlink.net.
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I've written three books on the healing power of tears. I'd like stories of those who have experienced crying at orgasm, how they felt about it, and may have learned about love, or anything else from the experience. Or wonder what the experience means. --Dianea Kohl, dianeako@yahoo.com
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Dark Tales
11 Lower Chestnut Street
Worcester WR1 1PB
UK
http://www.darktales.co.uk/index.htm
guidelines at: http://www.darktales.co.uk/submissions.htm
Editor: Sean Jeffery
sean@darktales.co.uk (no e-mail queries)
Dark Tales, a UK quarterly, publishes science fiction, horror, and dark fantasy tales, a la Douglas Adams, Stephen King, Orson Scott Card, and Dean Koontz. Payment: £2.50 (US$4.80) per thousand words plus one complimentary copy. The magazine accepts stories of up to 3500 words. No multiple submissions. Allow eight weeks for a reply.
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Ghetto Drama Series looking for funny experiences (not necessarily related to ghettos)
gdrama@ghettodrama.com
Send your true humorous stories written in first person with dialogue and action (Show don’t tell). You can write someone else’s story in first person with as told to in the byline, you can also use a pseudonym just indicate that in your submission.
Your story should be 150 - 800 words. No fancy formatting with bold text or oversize headers. No graphics. If submitting multiple stories, each story must be submitted individually. If submitting by postal mail, send your story on a PC formatted disk, typed, double-spaced, one-inch margins, and twelve-point Times Roman font. In all submission, include first and last name, day and evening phone and fax, mailing address and country, e-mail address, and 35-word bio.
Upon acceptance you will receive $25.00 dollars and a free copy of the book upon publication.
Email submissions preferred, no attachment.
For questions or comments email gdrama@ghettodrama.com.
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Nadir Magazine - A magazine devoted to the worst of the worst!
admin@nadirmag.com
Tired of reading SF Weekly and the Guardian's "Best Of" issues? Find yourself enthralled by the prospect of a scathingly bad review of a movie? If so, send us your ideas, stories, art; anything that you think capable of garnering a collective thumbs down. Please note, though, the magazine is intended to be humorous, not merely mean-spirited--a joyous romp in the failings of our society. Articles slated for the first issue include: A malt liquor taste test, a review of the worst of "dictator literature," and a review of the worst of San Francisco's public restrooms.
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Real estate agent stories wanted
Work Like a Dog Books
www.WorkLikeaDogBooks.com
Network member TC McClenning, in her "spare" time from freelance writing and running a thriving PR/marketing consulting business, which focuses primarily on real estate and home building, has started a publishing company and is gathering true stories for a book tentatively called ALL IN A DAY'S WORK FOR REALTORS---HUMOROUS & HEARTWARMING STORIES. Think Chicken Soup meets Murphy's Law. The book is for Realtors, by Realtors
Other career areas may be a possibility in the future. See the web site for more details and complete submission guidelines.
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Feral Fiction
Martin Mundt
PO Box 180077
Chicago, Illinois, 60618
http://www.feralfiction.com
“Many good writers don't get into print often enough. FERALFICTION is an effort by two people to address that situation as best we can. “Vampire or Cthulhu-mythos stories will be a hard sell. Not that we won't buy them, but they'll have to be groundbreaking to get in.
“Other than those, there are precious few strictures on the writer. Of course, a story has to be good. Even YOU have to like it. The writing has to be good. We don't mind sex, violence, or any of those things our mothers warned us about, but we want those elements to be at the service of the characters and story.”
Pays five cents per word for horror, fantasy, science fiction and cross-over tales of up to 3,000 words. Above that, we'll see. We pay $1.00 per line for poetry.”
Full Guidelines: http://www.feralfiction.com/submit.htm
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Beach Holme Publishing
Suite 1010
409 Granville Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada V6C 1T2
(604) 733-4868
Fax: (604) 733-4860
bhp@beachholme.bc.ca
http://www.beachholme.bc.ca/
Michael Carroll, Publisher
“We are interested in literary short fiction, novels, poetry, historical and contemporary young adult fiction (ages 8-13), and literary memoirs and travel literature.”
“We publish young adult novels for children aged 8-13. Works should have a historical basis (though we do some contemporary YAs) and be set in Canada. Include ideas for teacher's guides or resources and appropriate topics for a classroom situation if applicable.”
Full Guidelines: http://www.beachholme.bc.ca/guidelines.htm
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Red Wheel/Weiser
Ms. Pat Bryce, Acquisitions Editor
368 Congress St.
Boston, MA 02210
http://www.redwheelweiser.com
Red Wheel/Weiser publishes three imprints: Red Wheel, Weiser Books, and Conari Press.
“Red Wheel publishes Spunky Self-Help, Self-Help/Inspiration, and Spirituality/Self-Help. Weiser Books are esoteric by nature. Categories include Magic, Wicca, Tarot, Astrology, and Qabalah.
“Conari Press topics include Spirituality, Personal Growth, Parenting, and Social Issues.
“Before submitting any materials to Red Wheel, Weiser Books, or Conari Press, please study our books in a bookstore, a library, a Red Wheel/Weiser or Conari Press catalog, and visit our Web sites at www.redwheelweiser.com and www.conari.com.”
Guidelines:
http://www.redwheelweiser.com/company/submissions.jsp
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Seeking Writers (Cars/SUV's/Radio...)
OnDaStreetsMag@aol.com
A magazine for the “A” that's all about cars, trucks & SUV's. Alternate names you may hear whips, rides...whatever name you may have for it. No! Not the Bentley or the GWagon. Those are typical vehicles of celebrities. The vehicles we are talking about are the day-to-day vehicles that individuals make into a masterpiece of their own for others to see and take notice of. Seeking writers whose writing abilities center on automobiles, audio equipment, rims, tires, etc. Serious inquiries only! Email interest to OnDaStreetsMag@aol.com
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Paterson Fiction Prize
Maria Maziotti Gillan, Executive Director, Poetry
Center
Passaic County Community College
One College Boulevard,
Paterson, NJ 07505-1179
http://www.pccc.cc.nj.us/poetry/Prize/index.html
Deadline: April 1, 2005
Prize: $1,000
Genre: Fiction novel, or collection
Open to fiction published in 2004
No word-length requirements
For a novel or collection of short fiction which, in the opinion of the judges, is the strongest work of fiction published in 2004. Each book submitted must be accompanied by an application form, which can be printed from the Web site.
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Writers/Stringers Wanted for Justice Magazine
“Justice is a soon-to-launch national general-interest magazine focusing on the true-life legal dramas of celebrities and regular people alike. We're looking for stringers across the country to pitch and write stories about compelling and unusual cases in their cities. Correspondents should have experience writing for national media outlets, and have a strong police/courts beat background.” Send resumes to jobs@justicemag.com. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Call for submissions: There’s Always a Story
Candace Evans, Editor
660 Preston Forest Center
PMB 441
Dallas, Texas 75230
info@theresalwaysastory.com
http://www.theresalwaysastory.com
Guidelines: http://www.theresalwaysastory.com/writers.html
We are seeking short stories that beg to be read aloud to upscale hotel and spa guests. You supply the words, we supply the perfect complement in voice.
A certain magic occurs when tone, inflection, and the melody of voice combine with well-written words. The story cradles and comforts, becoming a sublime pleasure and the antithesis of deadlines and decisions. Yoga for the mind, if you will. Many submissions are too graphic or disturbing for our clients' situation. Writers should think of themselves, and possibly their families, in a lovely hotel on holiday. We certainly disdain from censorship, but the fact remains that a hotel would not want their guests offended, frightened or challenged.
Stories must be a specific length and style, due to recording time and interpretation needs. We love stories with enough dialogue to establish character, but not so much as to require a reader's theatre presentation. We voice each story with only one actor, for a more personal and intimate read. Length: 2,500-3,000 words. Payment: $250. US authors please submit by mail.
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Let me know what you wish men understood about women. What are the cardinal rules for men to know about while dating and in marriage? Send your advice to Trina Boice, trinaboice@adelphia.net
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Calling All Trivia Writers
e-mail: job-60296887@craigslist.org
“Established trivia production company requires writer(s) with a ‘Generation Y’ sensibility to write up to 40 questions per week. Must be able to write intelligently on a variety of topics, including technology, entertainment, and other aspects of pop culture.” Pays $4/question. http://sandiego.craigslist.org/wri/60296887.html
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Successful Queries Wanted
Alyice Edrich, Editor
http://thedabblingmum.com
dabblingmum@yahoo.com
“Did you write a great query letter? Did it land a paying assignment? Did the editor love your finished article? “I am putting together a FREE e-book for my newsletter subscribers. I am in need of both the query letter and the finished article (as a reprint, of course). I can pay $15 for the combination, for the right to use in the e-book without further compensation.” If interested, please email both items to dabblingmum@yahoo.com with Query E-book in the subject.”
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Real Weddings Magazine
Lauren Kramer, editor
laurenkramer@shaw.ca.
http://www.realweddings.ca
Real Weddings Magazine is looking for submissions of op-ed articles relevant to engaged couples. At 1,000-1,200 words in length, these would be first-person stories about some aspect of your wedding that stands out in memory and is story-worthy, something that would make our readers laugh, cry or identify.
What we’re not looking for is a recounting of your actual wedding, UNLESS there is a particularly story-worthy angle to it. Rather, this piece will focus on a tangent related to the wedding, something that made you pause and reflect, or brought home some significant meaning. $0.35/word
Please submit story ideas by e-mail only with the words “RW Op Ed” in the subject line.
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Phantom’s Core
Opeoluwa Falae
1234 New York Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA
This new newsletter, Phantom’s Core, says it offers bold and uncanny solutions quarterly. “To know the kind of materials we are buying from writers, request a free copy plus submission guidelines by sending five U.S. postage stamps or airmail reply coupons. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.”
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Tracks
Sub Rosa Communications LLC
304 Park Avenue South, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10010
Phone: (212) 219-4616
Fax: (212) 219-4697
Website and guidelines: http://www.tracksmusic.com
Perry van der Meer, Managing Editor
pvandermeer@tracksmusic.com
This is a magazine about popular music for readers over the age of 30. It "will stick to music as its topic rather than veering off into lifestyle stories or current events. A main goal is to discover new artists." Contact editor for assignments.
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Six: Writing Assignment: Set it and Forget it
Good surroundings set a story in time and place, but settings should not interfere with the story. For this assignment, write a piece that never stops the story from moving forward, while it still grounds the characters in a solid setting. How can you do such a thing? Use action and dialogue.
For example, I just returned from Italy (true!) and let’s say I want to write a short story that takes place there. I could start the story this way, which tells the setting in narrative:
The train station in Venice is at one end of the Grand Canal. There are water buses that show up every few minutes near the train station. The water is blue-green in the canals and is cleaner than it was twenty years ago.
To fulfill the requirements of this assignment, though, I would rewrite it this way:
Bobbie watched from the train window as land gave way to water that flowed beneath the tracks. The train came to a lurching stop. Don hopped off first and reached up for her bag. She descended the car steps, and the pair hurried through the lobby of the station. Outside they strode down a few steps, where water buses waited to take visitors almost anywhere in Venice for as little as three and a half Euros. Bobbie glanced at the blue-green water of the Grand Canal, turned to Don, and pointed. “Hey, it’s much cleaner than it was twenty years ago.”
Notice how the verbs changed from passive, static verbs with no action to active verbs. Instead of “is” and “are,” the second version features verbs such as “watched,” “hopped,” “hurried,” “glanced,” and “pointed,” to name a few.
The portion you write for this assignment can be the beginning, middle, or end of a short story or novel. This exercise teaches you how to create settings without resorting to inert narrative.
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Seven: Looking for Critique Circles
Do you want to join or form a critique circle in your area or online? In the body of an e-mail send me your name, general location, contact information, and your preferences (fiction, nonfiction, short stories, books, poetry, etc.). I’ll list your information here, to help you find or form a group that allows you to get feedback.
Remember to ask me for Free Report #101 on forming and maintaining a successful critique circle. Send your request to me at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
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Do YOU have news for The Writers Network News? Please send it in the body copy, not an attachment, to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
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Send a copy of this F-R-E-E newsletter to all your writing friends. Tell them to join The Writers Network F-R-E-E by visiting www.zebraeditor.com and clicking on “Free Writers Newsletter.” …………………………………………………………………………….
The Writers Network News--a free newsletter for writers everywhere.
"No Rules; Just Write!"
Newsletter Sponsor:
Zebra Communications: We help you write in style, so you write to win.
We write, edit, and evaluate manuscripts, book proposals, query letters, synopses, and articles. Call to ask about our services or visit www.zebraeditor.com.
Zebra Communications
230 Deerchase Drive, Suite B
Woodstock, GA 30188
770/924-0528
Bobbie Christmas Blog for Writers: http://journals.aol.com/bzebra/BobbieChristmasBlogforWriters/
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The Writers Network – No fees. No officers. “No Rules; Just Write!"
Directions to meetings:
Directions to monthly meetings held the first Friday of each month at Wok & Chops Chinese Restaurant, Roswell, Georgia.
The restaurant is in King’s Market on Holcomb Bridge, Roswell, Georgia, one block from Hwy. 400. If on 400, take Exit 7 toward Norcross (7A if going north, exit 7 and turn left, if going south). If on Holcomb Bridge already, turn into King’s Market by turning onto Market Boulevard beside SouthTrust Bank, turn left behind the bank, and you’ll see the restaurant in the hollow on the right. Restaurant phone: 770-552-8981.
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