The Writers Network News, January 20, 2008 http://ezezine.com
January 20, 2008
The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2008, Bobbie Christmas
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission.
Disclaimer: Information in this newsletter is not to be construed as an
endorsement. Be sure to research all information and study every
stipulation before you accept assignments, spend money, or sell your
work.
Newsletter Sponsor
Zebra Communications
We help you write in style, so you increase your chances of success. We
write, edit, and evaluate fiction and nonfiction manuscripts, book
proposals, query letters, synopses, and articles.
Zebra Communications
230 Deerchase Drive, Suite B
Woodstock, GA 30188
770/924-0528
http://zebraeditor.com/
Bobbie’s Blog:
http://journals.aol.com/bzebra/BobbieChristmasBlogforWriters/
----------------------------------------------
Local Meeting Reminder and Venue Change Warning
The Writers Network meets next on Friday, February 1, at noon.
By the March meeting we hope to have a new venue, but on February 1, we
will still meet at the usual place, King Buffet. Watch this spot for a
future announcement, if and when we find an even better venue for our
meetings.
No dues; no fees
No rules; just write!
If you happen to be in metro Atlanta on the first Friday of the month,
bring questions and business cards and network with us for an hour or
so, starting at 12:00 noon.
We meet at King Buffet, 11060 Alpharetta Highway, Roswell, GA 30076.
See more detailed information at the end of the e-zine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Welcome to this issue of The Writers Network News.
In This Issue
One: Kudos to Bill Koenecke, Bobbi Kornblit, and Jill Jennings
Two: From the editor’s desk – Make Your Choice Today
Three: Ask the Book Doctor – About Viewpoints, Word Choices, and
Creating Anthologies
Four: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Get Used to It
Five: Letters from Members
Six: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Seven: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents, and Markets
Eight: Writing Assignment – Be Afraid
Nine: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
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To view past issues of The Writers Network News, go to:
http://home.ezezine.com/886_2/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writer’s quote of the day:
"There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading
them." --Joseph Brodsky, Nobel Prize winner for Literature in 1987 and
poet laureate of the United States from 1991 to 1992.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One: Kudos to Bill Koenecke, Bobbi Kornblit, and Jill Jennings
Bill Koenecke’s article titled “Retiring (Well) on a Teacher’s Salary”
was published in the winter 2007 issue of The New Teacher Advocate
magazine published by Kappa Delta Pi.
"Night Flight" by member Bobbi Kornblit was selected as the first-place
winner of the Cliffhanger Contest sponsored by the Woodlands Writers
Guild based in Texas. The award included a cash prize.
Jill Jennings won several prizes in the Georgia Poetry Society State
Contest. Of eighteen possible awards in six categories, the judges
selected Jill for four of them. Later it was brought to their attention
that the contest rules permit a maximum of one poem per category,
whereas two of her poems were selected in two categories )
Here are the awards she got to keep:
First Prize in the Educators' Award category for " P.S. 911."
Second prize in the Founders Award Category for "Heaven Has Fourteen
Windows"
Jill received cash prizes totaling $125 as well as copies of _Reach of
Song_, the GPS annual anthology. Jill says, "I never bothered to apply
to many contests until the past year, because I figured who can guess
what the judges want. After this, I encourage everyone to try. It's
great to get your work heard and published."
Congratulations to these folks. Your successes encourage others, so
please send in your accomplishments for our kudos section.
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Two: From the editor’s desk — Make Your Choice Today
Dear Fellow Writers:
Yeah, yeah, I know it’s the New Year, and every year my resolutions
remain the same: basically write more, eat less, laugh more, weep less.
This year I’m adding one more thing: beat myself up less. If you’ve
been following my columns, you know I berate myself for never getting
enough work done, no matter how much work I do. Despite admonishing
myself constantly, I manage to finish quite a high volume of editing
projects and still write an original word or 70,000 each year.
This is the year I release my guilt, my self immolation, my inner
critic, and I will plunge forth lighter, freer than ever. I will write
more, play more, and enjoy more of life. Life’s too short not to enjoy
it; besides, it’s all good material.
Every year I also swear I will submit more work for publication, and
every year I end the year promising next year I really and truly will
submit more work for publication. Remember the WWAOW offer in last
month’s newsletter in which members of The Writers Network could upload
their manuscripts and get a free copy of their book to see if they
liked the product? Have I tried it yet? Nope. Fortunately the offer is
good until the end of February.
Well, if I beat myself up over missing that great opportunity, I’ll
break my New Year’s resolutions, so instead of groaning, I’ll stop
writing this column and get that book ready to submit.
How will you spend your time this year? You can spend it writing and
submitting or beating yourself up. It’s your choice. I’ve made mine.
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com )
Author of triple-award-winning _Write In Style_ (Union Square
Publishing, an imprint of Cardoza Publishing), owner of Zebra
Communications, and director of The Writers Network
P.S. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Let me hear from you
when you have questions, kudos, markets or any other information to
share with your writers network.
If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get your
own copy. Simply go to my Web site, www.zebraeditor.com, and click on
“Free Newsletter.” I never share your address or send out spam.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Three: Ask the Book Doctor — About Viewpoints, Word Choices, and
Creating Anthologies
Q: My story is written in the third person omniscient viewpoint, but
there are a few characters with dialogue that appear in the story only
a few times. Could you please explain briefly how viewpoint problems
can be avoided in this situation?
A: Point of view (or viewpoint) is the vantage point from which a story
or a piece of information is presented. POV simply refers to the person
or thing that observes the action or thinks about it. Dialogue itself
does not affect point of view, except in the case of internal dialogue.
Watch the narrative near the dialogue, though. Some writers trip up
when they tell what the speakers are thinking when they talk. The
following example slips into the viewpoint of the speaker of the
dialogue: “I’ll be leaving now,” John said, thinking he wasn’t wanted.
If the dialogue simply shows what John said (“I’ll be leaving now,”
John said.) and doesn’t go into the narrative of what he’s thinking,
the viewpoint is not compromised.
Q: What is the preferred usage, “His eyes lit up with excitement” or
“His eyes lighted up with excitement”?
A: Sometimes English gives you a choice, just as you can say, “He dived
into the pool” or “He dove into the pool.” Both “lit” and “lighted” are
past-tense forms of the verb “light,” but in my opinion, because of the
use of the word “up,” “lit” sounds better in the sample sentence: “His
eyes lit up with excitement.” If I were to use the alternate word, I
would say “His eyes lighted with excitement.”
Q: Has something happened to the word "than"? Has it been deleted from
the English language? See this example taken from a nationally
distributed newspaper: "A friend worked as a nurse caring for patients
in the hospice wing of a hospital. She didn't like the job at all and
often complained that the patients needed more compassion and nurturing
then the facility provided."
A: Not to worry; the word “than” has not been deleted from our
language. What has been deleted is the position of copy editor on many
periodicals. An eagle-eyed editor would have caught the error, but some
of the most otherwise astute writers do not know the difference between
“then” and “than.”
An excerpt from my book, Purge Your Prose of Problems, explains the
difference between the two words:
Than/Then
Be sure to use then and than correctly. They are not interchangeable.
Then: (Adverb)
1. At that time: Sandy was single then. If you’ll go Tuesday, I can go
with you then.
2. Next in time, space, or order; immediately afterward: Nancy danced
to the last song and then left for home.
3. In addition; moreover; besides: The flight was long, and then
there's the ground transportation time.
4. Used after but to qualify or balance a preceding statement: The
injury hurt, but then what injury doesn’t?
5. In that case; accordingly: If you must work there, then be careful
of falling objects.
6. As a consequence; therefore: The sale, then, is a done deal.
Then: (Noun)
1. That time or moment: School starts Tuesday; until then I’ll brush up
on last year’s subjects.
Then: (Adjective)
Being so at that time: The then president of the club vetoed the idea.
Than: (Conjunction)
1. Used to introduce the second element or clause of an unequal
comparison: I am a better editor than most.
Q: What resources do you recommend for writers who are seeking
anthology submissions?
A: Send your call for entries to every resource you can find, as long
as it’s free. Post it on www.craigslist.org; send it to every
organization for writers that you can find. Send it to every writing
publication you can dig up. Search the Web for newsletters and Web
sites for writers and send it there, too. The more submissions you get,
the more you have to choose from, a position you want to be in, so you
can use only the best in your anthology.
Send your questions to Book Doctor Bobbie Christmas for a personal
answer. Contact her at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. Read more “Ask the Book
Doctor” questions and answers at www.zebraeditor.com.
Would you like to read or save the Ask the Book Doctor column as a
clear PDF file? Now you can! See
http://zebraeditor.com/files/ask_the_book_doctor.pdf. The column will
be available at that address until about the twentieth of each month,
after which it will be replaced with a new one.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Four: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Get Used to It
Even the most astute writers get some words confused, so today I’ll
address a common oversight I often catch in books I edit. It refers to
the difference between these two words: use and used. Here are the
definitions:
Use: (verb) To put into service, employ, practice: Please use caution.
In a fire, do not use the elevator.
Used: (verb) When used in the past tense followed by “to,” indicates a
former state, habitual practice, or custom: Mail service used to be
faster. I used to love Shalimar perfume.
Can you be sure you use each of these words correctly? Stop, think, and
be sure.
Find use/used and other opportunities for improvement in your own work
by using my trademarked Find and Refine Method. With your file open on
your computer, pull down Edit, then Find, then type in the word you
want to find, and your computer will stop on each one and allow you to
ponder whether you can improve or delete that usage. For more
opportunities for improvement, read my textbook on creative writing:
_Write In Style_ (Union Square Publishing). Buy it in your local
bookstore or order it from Amazon.com by clicking here:
http://tinyurl.com/2ayh2m.
Time to Find and Refine
To take advantage of this month’s tip from Bobbie Christmas, type “use”
into the Find function in your word-processing software. Each time it
shows up on your computer, examine it and decide whether it is correct
or whether “used” would be the right choice. You’ll also recognize that
you have overused that word, if it shows up too many times.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Five: Letters from Members
I'm looking for a poetry critique group that could meet in the Canton,
Alpharetta, or Roswell (Georgia) area. Please have people contact me if
they are interested. --Austin Grigg austingrigg@gmail.com
I am thankful for your Writers Network News, which I have received
monthly for some time. I attended a seminar at your place some years
back that was very informative.
I am a Realtor and an owner of small strip shopping centers in Albany,
Georgia, but I have been studying and writing (three novels and a book
of Snippets) for more than a decade. My goal was to write something
good enough that it would be traditionally published. . . . . More than
a decade of rejections proved to me that some of us, as writers, are
only sincere dreamers. My years of effort served me well . . . as an
escape from my daily profession. --Lamarr Parr
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for the newsletter. My self-published book, _Best Ever
Quotations_, has now gone through ten printings. It has only been
distributed in my local (Toronto) area . With each printing I have
enhanced and improved it, both as to content and design. It has been a
runaway success, one small store selling an incredible 300 copies. I am
now looking for an honest, live-wire agent that could possibly help me
achieve continent-wide distribution. --B.G. Lewis
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I enjoy receiving your newsletter via e-mail. I’ve used some of your
tips and found your newsletter to be a good source of information.
–Bill Koenecke
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Six: Subjects of interest to writers
[Note from Bobbie: Some links in this newsletter may include the words
“tiny url,” because I simplify long addresses through www.tinyurl.com.
It takes long addresses and converts them to short ones that still
work.]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spring Book Show 2008 seminar
"How to Prepare Your Book for the Market:
Writing a Killer Proposal and Editing the Manuscript for Maximum
Marketability"
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Ga.
Seminar attendees receive free admission to the Spring Book Show -
normally $50 per person. The Spring Book Show is the largest bargain
book show in the nation.
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon - Patricia Fry, president, Small Publishers,
Artists and Writers Network (SPAWN), "How to Write a Killer Book
Proposal."
Patricia Fry has devised a unique method for writing a book proposal
that will get read. She will coach unpublished and published authors
alike in writing a killer book proposal, whether it is in preparation
for self-publishing a book, landing a traditional publisher or in order
to more effectively market and promote their published books. She is
the author of three definitive books on book proposal-writing, as well
as numerous articles on the subject. She regularly teaches an online
course on writing a book proposal and frequently presents workshops on
this subject. The post-publication book proposal is a new concept which
she will discuss as part of her curriculum. It has been extremely
well-received by those who have read her articles on the topic. The
main focus of her presentation will be the process of writing a
pre-publication book proposal as a tool to evaluate your project (think
Business Plan) and as a means to sell it to an appropriate publisher.
In her session you'll learn
Why you must prepare a book proposal for a fiction or nonfiction book.
How to use a book proposal to help you more realistically evaluate your
publishing project.
Why a well crafted proposal is essential if you want to sell your
manuscript to a traditional publisher.
The parts of a book proposal and how to organize them.
What a platform is and why publishers insist that you discuss your
platform in queries and proposals.
What a post-publication book proposal is and how to use it to increase
book sales.
How to write a complete book proposal for your book project.
Enrollees please note: Instructor Patricia Fry will evaluate a complete
proposal from any enrolled student if the student sends it as a word
document attachment to plfry620@yahoo.com at least two weeks in advance
of the course.
12:00 noon - 1:00 p.m. - Lunch on Your Own
1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - Bobbie Christmas, book doctor and author of
books on writing and editing, "Editing Your Manuscript for Maximum
Marketability"
In her session, you'll learn
How to save time and be objective during revisions by using the Bobbie
Christmas Find and Refine Method.
How to make your manuscript more marketable, whether self-publishing or
submitting to agents or publishers.
The secret of style versus style, the two ways the term is applied and
how to make both ways work in your favor.
The difference between Chicago Style and business style, the style of
writing you probably learned in school.
What to delete to make your writing stylish and persuasive.
Her handouts will include a seminar brochure for note-taking and a
flier that offers at least fifteen free reports by e-mail.
Seating is limited! Sign up for this informative and entertaining
workshop now at http://www.anvilpub.net/spring_seminar_2.htm.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Since 1993, the number of books in print has more than doubled, from
1.1 million to over 2.5 million. (Source: R. R. Bowker, the official
U.S. agency for assigning ISBNs.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For Writers Network Members Only – offer good only until February 29,
2008
Get a Copy of Your Book Published at No Charge
Do you need any more motivation than this? Through February 29, 2008,
members of The Writers Network can get one copy of their book published
with WWAOW (pronounced Wow!), an independent U.S. publishing company.
Since 1939, WWAOW has set the standard for high-quality book
publishing. If you are sufficiently impressed with the quality of your
free book, simply order four more copies (average total price $60 USD),
and WWAOW will place your book for sale on its Web site. You earn
royalties with every copy sold. You keep your copyright; you set your
book price and determine your royalties. You’ve worked hard writing
your book, now The Writer’s Network and WWAOW can let your realize your
dream of having a book in your name. Log onto www.wwaow.com to upload
your book content.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Purge Your Prose of Problems: A Book Doctor’s Desk Reference—New,
Updated Fourth Edition is finally available as an e-book or printed.
Save thousands of dollars by editing your own book.
This one reference book covers all you need to know to plow through the
maze of the editing phase: grammar, punctuation, word choices, creative
writing, plot, pace, characterization, dialogue, Chicago Style,
formatting a manuscript, and much more. More than 500 subjects covered.
Printed form lies flat for easy use: $29.95 plus $4.99 shipping at
http://www.zebraeditor.com (click on Tools for Writers and scroll down)
or save almost $5.00 in shipping and get the e-book instantly with
clickable links and bookmarks that zip you directly to any subject. To
order the e-book, go to http://www.booklocker.com/books/2225.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Be careful where you write! See the story of a woman fired for writing
a romance novel at work. http://www.kcci.com/news/14918070/detail.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wordsmiths, avoid these words…a numbingly perfect storm of overused
post-9/11 jargon. See http://tinyurl.com/yoqqg6.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bobbie Christmas seminars on CD
“Write In Style and You Write to Win”
“Travel Writing for Fun and (a little) Profit”
“Write it and Reap: Make Money Selling Your Expertise”
“An Editor’s 10 Secrets to More Persuasive Writing”
“I’ve Finished My Book; What Should I Do Now?”
Take seminars in the comfort of your own home. Repeat as often as you
want. Invite your friends to join you. To order, go to
http://www.zebraeditor.com/tools.shtml and scroll down to see all the
seminars available on CD.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Free PR on Google
A great way to increase your Web site ranking is through Google News
(http://news.google.com/). A backdoor way to get your articles and
press releases listed on Google News is to log on to American Chronicle
(http://www.americanchronicle.com/) and to PRLeap
(http://www.prleap.com/) to submit articles and press releases that
mention your Web site and/or books. Many of the articles featured on
these sites are also available on Google News. This tip comes from
Jeniffer Thompson of Monkey C Media (http://www.monkeycmedia.com/), a
full-service design house offering Web site design and development,
print design, and multimedia services, and it appeared in Author’s
Gazette, edited by Special Projects Director John F. Harnish, Infinity
Publishing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
More PR information
Register and promote your book at no charge on this new Web site. Red
Room is the official home of the world’s greatest writers, according to
the Web site http://www.redroom.com/. “Through original,
author-generated content, we offer a trustworthy and creative social
network unlike any other. Here, you can connect with your favorite
authors, access current industry news, and comment on engaging
features. By fostering true community between authors and readers, Red
Room showcases esteemed writers and inspires the next generation.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your
Writing_ is a 122-page e-book by Bobbie Christmas that answers all the
questions you wish you could ask an editing expert. Electronic
bookmarks allow you to go directly to your preferred subject, and
clickable links take you to Internet resources for additional
information. Whether you write books, short stories, articles, reports,
or anything else, learn more about how to write, edit, and sell your
work, To order go to http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As sales decline, romance publishers turn to ethnic themes
Publishing houses across North America are creating new lines of
romances aimed at people of Asian and African descent, according to
Brian Miller, a Seattle journalist who follows the market for romance
novels. Sales of bodice-rippers have been declining and the publishers
have seen great opportunity in selling to a whole new group of romance
seekers. (Lifted from Southern Review of Books:
http://www.anvilpub.net/southern_review_of_books.htm)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Write In Style: Using Your Word Processor and Other Techniques to
Improve Your Writing_ by Bobbie Christmas 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, Best in Division (Georgia Author of the Year Awards), and
Finalist in USABookNews Best Books 2005. Union Square Publishing; Simon
and Schuster, distributor. Available in bookstores and Internet
retailers. To order at Amazon.com DISCOUNT prices, see
http://zebraeditor.com/bookstore.shtml.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Using incorrect grammar (in e-mail) can give the impression of
carelessness, suggest a lack of education, indicate poor social skills,
and even imply low intelligence. And people also make determinations
about our social status on the basis of how we choose and use our
words.” Read the whole article at http://tinyurl.com/2e9w73.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Airleaf Publishing (finally) shuts down
If you’re like most writers, you have been the recipient of printed
mailings and e-mails from a company called Airleaf Publishing, formerly
Bookman Publishing, claiming it would promote your book for a fee. Over
the years I finally succeeded in getting my name of the e-mal list, but
I still got letters by standard mail. It smelled fishy to me, and I
never participated, but the company folded in December, and
http://www.airleafvictims.com/ lists some of the grievances listed
against it. Apparently there’s a move toward a class action suit, and
if you’ve been scammed by the company, check into this Web site to see
if you can seek any financial relief.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Intuition Consultant and Author Darlene Pitts has released a new book,
Let’s Talk Intuition, 101 Powerful Insights to Transform Your Life
Today and Forever. The book reveals how the use of your intuition, a
natural spiritual gift, transforms your life in twenty-four areas,
including career, health, and personal relationships. Trust your
intuition and bring greater joy, love, inner peace, and success into
your life. Contact her at dpitts@inspirationandintuition.com or visit
her Web site at www.inspirationandintuition.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Free Tools for Writers from Bobbie Christmas and Zebra Communications
Order e-mailed reports on correct manuscript format, how to form and
run a critique circle, how to identify weak writing and repair it,
self-publishing vs. traditional publishing, and much more. Fifteen
reports are available, and the list keeps growing. Go to
http://zebraeditor.com and click on “Tools for Writers.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Seven: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents and Markets
Atlantis Magazine
Freelance writers’ resumes are being reviewed at Atlantis, written for
people living on or near the ocean in Florida. Compensation: 50 to 75
cents per word. Submit your resume and writing sample at
http://www.atlantismagazine.net/resume.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quickie Magazine is accepting submissions of romantic poetry and short
erotic romance of less than 8,000 words. We are looking for short, sexy
romps that leave the characters completely satisfied--or breathless for
more! We DON'T accept: rape, pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality,
mutilation, or anything severely degrading to the characters.
We buy quality short stories, not just sex scenes. $50 for short
stories and $20 for poetry. Paid on publication. We buy first rights
only. We welcome previously unpublished authors.
We do NOT accept online submissions.
Mail typed, double-spaced submissions, along with a Stamped
Self-Addressed Envelope if you want it returned, to:
Editor
P. O. Box 231
St. Francis, MN 55070
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sarasota Fiction Writers Annual Open Short Story Competition
FICTION ONLY!
The contest is open to everybody, including non-members. Professionally
judged by published authors!
Submit any type of short story - any genre, literary, mystery, romance,
SF, “slice of life,” whatever, is allowed; however, the story MUST be
fiction.
Submission Guidelines:
Word limit: 2,500
Include a title page with your name, address, word count, and e-mail
address. Story pages should include a header or footer with story title
and page numbers and be typed and double spaced.
$10 entry fee per story submission - checks payable to Sarasota Fiction
Writers.
Winner-take-all grand prize: $500! The winner will be announced at the
July 2, 2008, meeting and will be posted on the blog at
(www.sarasotafw.wordpress.com) and on myspace on July 3, 2008. Check
for more updates at www.myspace.com/sarasotafictionwriters
Entries should be postmarked between December 1, 2007 and March 31,
2008
Mail entries to:
Joanne Lally
15040 Faulkner Ave.
Port Charlotte, FL 33953
Contact for information: Joanne Lally: sfwnewsletter@hotmail.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chicken Soup wants stories about multiple births
Susan M. Heim, author of It's Twins! Parent-to-Parent Advice from
Infancy Through Adolescence and Oh, Baby! 7 Ways a Baby Will Change
Your Life the First Year, is collecting stories and poems for her next
book, Chicken Soup for the Soul of Twins. Submit your inspirational,
heart-warming, humorous, or tear-jerking story or poem about twins or
multiples (limit 300-1,200 words). If your story is published, you will
receive $200 upon publication ($50 for poems). Send to
chickensoup@twinstalk.com. Story guidelines at
http://www.chickensoup.com. Deadline: June 30, 2008.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Literary journal accepts poetry submissions
The Café Review
c/o Yes Books
589 Congress St
Portland, ME 04101
Poetry submissions to The Café Review, a quarterly poetry journal for
fifteen years, should not exceed three poems (any length) and should
arrive with a self-addressed, stamped envelope. All submissions should
be accompanied by one dollar ($1.00), our reading fee, which we put
directly back into the production of our publication.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2010 Abilene Book Award accepting entries
WordWright.biz and The West Texas Book and Music Festival proudly
announce the 2010 Abilene Book Award. The contest costs nothing to
enter, and you win a publishing contract with WordWright.biz. The
winning author will receive a $250 advance. For details see
http://www.wordwright.biz/html/abilene_book_award.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Get paid for your blog or Web site!
Although I won’t participate in this program, starving artists may earn
some money if they want. If you’re blogging or have a Web site that
gets at least 10,000 views a month, you can sell ads on your site and
earn $50 on up to as much as $6,000 a month. Check out
http://www.blogads.com/ and
https://www.google.com/adsense/login/en_US/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Science of Mind magazine
2600 W. Magnolia Blvd
Burbank, CA 91505
818-526-7757
Science of Mind magazine publishes several types of articles that
teach, inspire, motivate, and inform. Editorial content addresses the
concerns, interests, and problems of readers, offering thoughtful
perspectives on how they can experience greater self-acceptance,
empowerment, and meaningful living. Achieving wholeness through
applying Science of Mind principles is the primary focus. The basic
requirements of good, clear writing apply to all material used in the
magazine. For samples articles see
http://www.scienceofmind.com/site/magazine/index.html. For complete
submission guidelines see
http://www.scienceofmind.com/site/som_publishing.html#w.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your short stories in audio files at Sniplets
Sniplits says it is working furiously toward launching as a new
short-story publisher. “Our goal is to make Sniplits the single best
place to find wonderful, short tales for downloading to your MP3
player, cell phone or whatever. We're accepting and reviewing
manuscripts now, and we welcome the work of new as well as established
authors.”
We're looking for stories between fifty and 10,000 words
Literary
Mainstream
Mystery/suspense/thriller
Humor
Romance
Science fiction/fantasy
Action/adventure
Historical
Horror
Western
Young adult
Poetry
We don't want: Anything hateful, pornographic or excessively violent
We pay:
$30 to $150 paid on publication
Royalty potential
To submit your story:
E-mail your manuscript to: acquisitions@sniplits.com
Include your name, address, email and phone number in the header on
each page
Preferred fonts are Times New Roman, Arial, Courier. Double space; use
one-inch margins. Include a brief bio with writing credits. We'll read
your story and respond within four months. See:
http://www.sniplits.com/.
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Granta Books
12 Addison Avenue
London W11 4QR
Tel: 020 7605 1360
Fax: 020 7605 1361
info@granta.com
London-based Granta Books accepts unsolicited submissions direct from
authors, but says, “It's worth getting acquainted with the sort of
books we publish before you send us your script, so as not to waste
your time, or our time. If you take a look at our authors—all of whom
are listed on the Granta website—you'll see that we publish literary
fiction and non-fiction. We publish a small list of approximately forty
new titles a year, and we are weighted more towards nonfiction
publishing than fiction, with a ratio of about 70:30.” For titles, see
http://www.granta.com/new-titles?usca_p=t.
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Eight: Writing Assignment – Be Afraid
H.P. Lovecraft, born in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1890 and the
author of many chilling stories and books, including At the Mountains
of Madness: And Other Tales of Terror, said, “The oldest and strongest
emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear
is fear of the unknown.”
Taking a hint from Lovecraft, who based most of his horror stories on
his fear of modern science, think of some dreadful event or creation
that could turn your life into a horror story. Write that story. Show
the evolution from fear to reality and the results of the reality or
show the fear and then the reality as being not nearly as bad as the
fear. It’s your choice; you are the creator of your scary new world.
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Nine: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
Agent Query
Research agents by the genres they handle or by other means—at no
charge. See http://agentquery.com/search.aspx.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL) offers information on the
following:
Writing and Teaching Writing
Research
Grammar and Mechanics
Formatting and Style Guides
ESL (English as a Second Language)
Job Search and Professional Writing
Avoiding Plagiarism
Developing an Outline
And much more
See http://owl.english.purdue.edu/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Member Peggy Duncan, points readers to this blog that she says is
excellent for calling out dubious literary agents and publishers:
http://accrispin.blogspot.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Get interesting demographics for any zip code—great for getting a feel
for a setting or getting ideas for your next setting. See
http://zipskinny.com/zipcompare.php.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Submission guidelines for more than 300 magazines that accept short
stories. Bob Brown has compiled a quick and easy way for authors to
find the best magazine for their short story.
http://www.inventwrite.com/Guidelines.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tongue-in-cheek forms you can fill in as thank-you notes, grievances,
apologies, and other occasions. Enjoy.
http://bureauofcommunication.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. Deadline: The
15th of each month.
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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 “Newsletter.”
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The Writers Network News– a newsletter for writers everywhere.
"No Rules; Just Write!"
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The Writers Network–No fees. No officers. “No Rules; Just Write!"
Information about the meetings:
Because it's a buffet, come into the meeting room, set down whatever
you brought, and go get food, if you plan to eat. You are under no
obligation to eat if you attend the meeting, but if you do eat, you may
pay and tip as you leave.
While we eat, we have introductions. After the introductions are over,
we discuss questions and answers. After the introductions are completed
and at any time until we leave, you are welcome to get more food or
leave when you need to do so.
Directions to meetings:
Our monthly meetings are held at noon on the first Friday of each month
at King Buffet, 11060 Alpharetta Highway, Roswell, Georgia. 30076. The
restaurant not only gives us a private meeting room, but it also offers
a buffet with a variety of food, primarily Asian. By our March meeting
we may have a new venue, so keep reading the newsletter to stay up to
date.
King Buffet is on the left after you enter the Roswell Shopping Center,
on the same side of the strip mall as Patterson Furniture and High
Point Furniture. Roswell Shopping Center is on the left if going north
toward Alpharetta, a few blocks past the Mansell Road intersection and
across the street from Mattress King, a little way past Andretti's.
Once you are inside King Buffet, the meeting room is through an archway
on the left past the cashier.
Restaurant phone: 678-352-1606.
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