The Writers Network News, December 2009 Issue http://ezezine.com
December 2009 Issue
The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2009, Bobbie Christmas
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission; however,
you may forward the newsletter in its entirety to anyone who may be
interested in subscribing.
Newsletter Sponsor
Zebra Communications: We make manuscripts more marketable. We are a
top-rated Better Business Bureau Accredited Business.
Zebra Communications
230 Deerchase Drive, Suite B
Woodstock, GA 30188
770/924-0528
http://zebraeditor.com/
Bobbie’s Blog: http://bobbiechristmas.blogspot.com/.
New! Be Bobbie’s friend on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/bobbie.christmas
----------------------------------------------
Welcome to this issue of The Writers Network News
In This Issue
One: Kudos to Fiona Ingram and Barbara Deming
Two: From the editor’s desk – Holiday Blues? Think Green!
Three: Ask the Book Doctor – About Poetry Contests, Story Ideas, and
Setting Rates for Editing
Four: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Aggravate/
Irritate
Five: Letters from Members
Six: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Seven: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents, and Markets
Eight: Creative Writing Assignment – Until…
Nine: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
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To view current and past issues of The Writers Network News, go to
http://tinyurl.com/c4otf6.
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[Note: Some links may include “tiny url” with the help of
www.tinyurl.com, which takes long Web addresses and converts them to
short ones.]
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Writer’s quote of the day
"Most barriers to success are man-made. And most often, you’re the man
who made them." —Frank Tyger
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One: Kudos* to Fiona Ingram and Barbara Deming
My children's book, The Secret of the Sacred Scarab, was named a
finalist in the Children's Fiction section of the USA National Best
Books 2009 Awards. This is my second honor this year in a major book
competition. My first was earlier this year when the book was named a
finalist in the Juvenile Fiction section of the 2009 New Generation
Indie Book Awards. Why am I so proud? I live in South Africa and am
published in the USA, doing all my marketing long distance! --Fiona
Ingram
---
Pink Poodle Pie (Other Tales of How Women Get Even) by Barbara Deming
is now on Amazon.com. As the title suggests, these are tales of women
seeking revenge on those guys who "done 'em wrong.”
*Kudos: praise or honor, glory for an achievement (Like “praise,”
“kudos” is a singular noun and takes a singular verb.)
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Two: From the editor’s desk — Holiday Blues? Think Green!
Dear Fellow Writers:
Adults usually find themselves overwhelmed by the season’s added
obligations, events, and duties, on top of our already overcrowded
schedules. When can a serious writer find time to write amid all the
chaos?
Aha! I threw you a curve. Serious writers don’t “find” time to write.
They write because they must, because writing is their passion, their
mission, their vocation, their connection to the world. They make time
to write; they don’t find it.
In years past the holiday season overwhelmed me. About five years ago,
though, I declared my independence from gifts. All of my friends and
family members are old enough that if we want something, we can get it
ourselves. If we don’t want something, we don’t want to get it as a
gift. With the end of gift giving, I saved days of time and hundreds of
dollars, and no one complained; in fact several of my relatives thanked
me for relieving them of the chore.
Up until last year, I also wrote a holiday newsletter, complete with
photos, and sent it to all my friends, colleagues, and clients. I spent
days writing, printing, folding, stuffing, stamping, addressing, and
mailing hundreds of holiday newsletters. After a year full of sad and
even traumatic losses in 2008, though, I could not think of an upbeat
thing to say in my holiday newsletter. I kept postponing the task until
I finally said, “I’ll do it next year.”
This year I am seriously thinking of skipping the newsletter process
intentionally. No need to postpone writing, printing, folding,
stuffing, stamping, and mailing my newsletter. Instead, I give myself
permission to stop! I will regain many hours of time, without any
guilt. Maybe I’ll point to the environment and say I’m saving trees.
Yes, I’ll have a green holiday, and without all those added chores, I
will have time to write and still enjoy the holiday.
Consider this fair warning: This may be the only holiday greeting you
get from me, and it’s digital, environmentally friendly, time-saving,
and yet still heartfelt. Now I’ve got to get back to my writing,
because I’m a writer, and I make time to write.
Happy holidays!
By the way, now that Write In Style is officially out of print, it is
no longer available directly from Amazon. Several used-book dealers
offer used copies of Write In Style, now considered a rare book, for
anywhere from $52.99 to $95.94. You can still pay the original $12.95
price, though, if you order one of the few remaining new copies through
my Web site, www.zebraeditor.com. I have a limited quantity, so order
today!
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com )
Author of triple-award-winning Write In Style (Union Square
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 network.
If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get your
own copy. Simply go to www.zebraeditor.com, click on “Free Newsletter,”
and follow the prompts. I never share your address or send out spam.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Three: Ask the Book Doctor — About Poetry Contests, Story Ideas, and
Setting Rates for Editing
By Bobbie Christmas
Someone at my office inquired about the going rate for editors. His
daughter was offered a chance to edit proposals seven to fifteen pages
long. I did not know what to tell them to charge. Do you have any idea?
A: "The going rate" for editors won’t be the same rate as a person just
starting into the business, and if editors do not know what to charge,
they are definitely newcomers.
It’s unfair to start out charging an hourly rate, because inexperienced
but conscientious editors spend more hours completing a job than
experienced editors would spend. Under an hourly arrangement, clients
would pay more money for a novice than a professional.
When it comes to setting rates, only the editors themselves can decide
what they are willing to accept while they get their on-the-job
training, but read on for some ideas.
For a project as short as seven to fifteen pages, I suggest beginning
editors should charge a minimum of $25 for fifteen or fewer pages. If
that price seems low, remember that editing is not a “get rich” plan,
it’s simply another job, and if you don’t love it and enjoy delving
into all the details and continuing to learn during your entire career,
it’s best to find something else that you do love.
Once you land your first project, though, time yourself to see how long
it takes to finish the project, to get an average of how long it takes
you per page. From that starting point—also with the knowledge that you
will get faster as your skills improve—you can decide what your time is
worth. You can raise your rates gradually as you gain more experience.
Bobbie Christmas, book doctor, author of Write In Style (Union Square
Publishing), and owner of Zebra Communications, will answer your
questions, too. Send them to 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 newest column
is posted around the first of each month.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Four: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Aggravate/
Irritate
Aggravate and irritate: be sure not to confuse these two words.
Irritate: To rouse to impatience or anger; annoy. Examples: Loud sounds
irritate Grandpa. The clerk at the clothing store irritated me when she
could not figure out the prices.
Aggravate: To make worse or more troublesome. Examples: Scratching
aggravates a rash. A water leak aggravated the musty condition of the
basement.
If you think you have used either aggravate or irritate incorrectly in
your manuscript, use my trademarked Find and Refine Method to search
for and repair any misuses. To use the Find and Refine Method, pull
down the Edit menu in your software program and go to Find.
Type in “aggravate” and click Find Next. Go through the manuscript
checking each usage to be sure you have chosen the right spelling.
Next type in “irritate” and click Find Next to check to be sure that
word too is used correctly throughout the manuscript.
For more information on editing your own manuscript or finding
opportunities for improvement in your writing, buy my book doctor’s
desk reference manual, Purge Your Prose of Problems at
http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
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Five: Letters from Members
I really am enjoying your newsletter. Second, I purchased copies of
"Write in Style" for my critique gal/writing pals and they have each
let me know what a jewel your book is.
Thanks,
Barbara Deming
=======
Bobbie,
Both of my manuscripts greatly improved from my keeping on my desk not
only what I call your "Red Book" (Write in Style) but also Purge Your
Prose, which is a great reference.
Sincerely,
Gary Weibert
Tell me what you think of the newsletter, what you’re doing, or any
tidbit of information you want to share with other writers. E-mail me
at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Six: Subjects of interest to writers
Where is Bobbie Christmas speaking?
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Sisters in Crime
Smyrna Library
Smyrna, Georgia
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
===
Scribblers Writers Retreat
St. Simons Island, Georgia
May 2010
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Attention Writers in Metro Atlanta!
The Writers Network has occasional local meetings in the
Roswell-Alpharetta general area. If you’re interested in meeting with
other writers, send me an e-mail (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com) and ask to be
put on a list of local members to be notified if and when we plan a get
together.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writer Michael Crichton, who wrote Jurassic Park, Andromeda Strain,
Rising Sun, The Terminal Man, and many other novels, had the honor of
having more than a dozen of his books made into movies. He completed
Pirate Latitudes, a seventeenth-century pirate novel about a governor's
plot to loot a huge Spanish sailing ship, before his death from cancer
in March 2009, shortly after his sixty-sixth birthday. HarperCollins
will release the book November 24, with an initial print run of a
million copies.
New York Times journalist Charles McGrath wrote about Crichton: “Very
few readers who started a Crichton novel ever put it down."
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Purge Your Prose of Problems
A Book Doctor’s Desk Reference, Fourth Edition
Save thousands of dollars by editing your own book!
This proprietary desk reference book is not available in stores.
Written in easy-to-understand language, the information 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. Spiral binder lies flat for easy use. To order go to
http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
Save shipping costs PLUS instantly get Purge Your Prose of Problems as
an e-book with clickable links and bookmarks that zip you directly to
any subject. Go to http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Book Publicity 101: How to Build Book Buzz
Do you have got a book coming out that needs some buzz?
Has your publisher’s publicist left you without ongoing support?
Do you need to get the word out about a book you’ve self-published?
Do you need to pump up the promotion section of your book proposal?
Do you have limited resources for book promotion?
Sandra Beckwith, national award-winning publicist, author of two
publicity books, and “Book Publicity 101: How to Build Book Buzz”
online course instructor says, “I’m going to show you how to get the
outstanding publicity your book deserves – and I’ll do this for FREE.
I’ll even give you a FREE copy of my special report, Beyond the Press
Release: 10 Exciting Book Buzz Ideas That Will Take You to the Top,
too!” Sign up at http://www.buildbookbuzz.com/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now We Know Why She Resigned
Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue, hit the stands this month. She
received $1.25 million from publisher HarperCollins as a retainer
before she resigned as governor in July. If sales of the book are good,
she could profit even more. Palin complied with Alaska disclosure law
regarding the advance, but now, as a private citizen, her business
dealings and income are confidential.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Download Bobbie’s newest one-hour seminars in MP3 format from the Zebra
Communications Web site! Below are the newest seminars, ready to
download:
"Write In Style and You Write To Win, an Introduction"
Gail Richards of AuthorSmart presents this hour-long seminar (#1 in the
series) with Bobbie Christmas. Learn the secret of Bobbie's trademarked
Find and Refine Method to make your writing unique, direct, and tight.
This method allows you to be objective about your writing. After you
apply Bobbie's suggestions to your manuscript, it will win the
attention of your intended audience and more likely win the eye of an
agent or acquisitions editor. Instant download. $5.00
"Self-Editing Techniques You Can't Live Without"
Gail Richards of AuthorSmart presents this hour-long seminar (#2 in the
series) with Bobbie Christmas. After you have taken the first seminar,
take this one to learn even more ways to apply Bobbie's trademarked
Find and Refine Method to all your written materials. Learn the most
common flaws and errors Bobbie spots in manuscripts and learn how to
avoid making the same mistakes. Instant download. $5.00
"Tricks You Didn't Know Your Word Processor Could Do"
Gail Richards of AuthorSmart presents this hour-long seminar (#3 in the
series) with Bobbie Christmas. After the first two seminars, you're
ready to learn even more tips and tricks in Microsoft Word or Word
Perfect, tips that can save you hours of time and endless frustration
when you prepare your manuscript for submission to an agent, publisher,
or printer. Instant download. $5.00
SPECIAL! Purchase all three AuthorSmart seminars featuring Bobbie
Christmas and save 20%.
You'll get...
• "Write In Style and You Write To Win, an Introduction"
• "Self-Editing Techniques You Can't Live Without"
• "Tricks You Didn't Know Your Word Processor Could Do"
Instant download. $12.00
To buy and download these and other seminars go to
http://zebraeditor.com/seminars_on_cd.shtml.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From The Chicago Manual of Style Q & A this month:
Q. I have been under the impression that extensions on a date (st, nd,
rd, etc.) are proper when used simply with a month (January 15th) but
are not used in connection with a year (January 15, 2009). Please
advise if this is correct or provide instruction to the contrary.
A. Chicago style doesn't include the extensions in either case. When
the ordinal is called for, we spell it out: the fifth of the month.
That said, the style that you describe is common and not incorrect.
For more CMOS Q & A, see
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/CMS_FAQ/new/new_questions01.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing
answers many of the questions you wish you could ask an editing expert.
Whether you write books, short stories, articles, reports, or anything
else, learn more about how to write, edit, and sell your work.
Paperback: $14.95 plus $4.99 S & H (total: $19.94 US) E-book: $14.95
and no S & H. To order go to http://tinyurl.com/lexp7n.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Newspapers are Dead?
“The numbers are grim: over the past six months, circulation at the top
25 newspapers has declined by more than 10 percent. The Washington
Post's numbers fell by more than 6 percent, while the New York Times'
dropped by more than 7 percent, making it the third most-read paper
after the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. This isn't a sign that the
newspaper business is changing, Megan McArdle says. It's a sign that
it's over.”
For the rest of the article see
http://slatest.slate.com/id/2233656/?wpisrc=newsletter
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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. Available at
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml.
The bad news/good news—do not pay $93 for Write In Style!
When inventory got too low, the publisher of my book, Write In Style,
took the book out of print rather than invest in another edition in
this economy. I bought the last books available and am selling directly
through my Web site, something my contract with the publisher did not
allow me to do when the book was still in print. Because the book is
officially out of print now, it is considered a rare book, so several
Web sites that sell used copies are selling the book as a rare book and
charging between $52 and $93 for the book. I get absolutely nothing
when my book is resold as a used book, though, so that's bad news.
You still have a chance to buy it directly from me for $12.95 plus
shipping while supplies last, though, so that’s the good news. If you
are a writer or know a writer who can benefit from tips that make your
writing stand out as pristine, clear prose, order Write In Style today,
while supplies last. See
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Distress sale! Save Five Bucks! About two dozen copies of Write In
Style were damaged in my office flood. All are completely usable, but
the pages are a little wavy. Pristine copies are $12.95 plus $3.99 S&H,
but hurry and buy a slightly damaged copy for only $10.00 plus $2.00
S&H (total: $12.00 US). You’ll save almost $5.00! To order send me your
snail mail and e-mail addresses, a note asking for a legible but
slightly damaged copy of Write In Style, and a check for $12.00 made
out to Bobbie Christmas. I will even autograph the books. They may
become collector’s copies! Sorry, but this low offer is good only for
US customers. Mail everything to Bobbie Christmas, 230 Deerchase Drive,
Woodstock, Georgia 30188-4438.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Translate this, please!
A relative who shall remain nameless (to protect the guilty) sent me a
resume received from a person seeking a job as a receptionist. The
opening paragraph goes like this:
“Unparalleled work ethic instrumental to being a results oriented and
self starter individual with progressive experience as a servant of the
public, retail salesperson resulting in measurable accomplishments in
pursuit of the customer’s objectives. Contribute to flawless program
execution by understanding my obligations and delivering scheduled
level of effort and first time right services. Always striving to
ensure the highest quality services by maintaining a detail-oriented
approach to the task and seeking the review of my peers, while
achieving and maintaining less than 1 percent error or rework rate.
Known for situational leadership and coaching.”
That paragraph stood alone as funny because of all its jargon,
gibberish, errors, and gobbledygook, but the qualifications summary
concluded in such a way that I laughed out loud. It went as follows:
“Excellent briefing skills with the ability to convey ideas clearly and
concisely.”
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Free Tools for Writers from Bobbie Christmas and Zebra Communications
Order PDF reports on correct manuscript format, how to form and run a
critique circle, how to identify weak writing and repair it,
self-publishing versus traditional publishing, and much more. Sixteen
reports are available, and the list keeps growing. Go to
http://zebraeditor.com/free_reports.shtml. Newest report: How to choose
the correct editor for your manuscript. Surprise! It may not be me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Should you get an e-reader? Like it or not, read the statistics and
judge for yourself. The average price of an e-book this year is $8.30.
The average cost of a hardcover book is $14.55. According to the
Association of American Publishers (AAP), e-book sales grew at a
compound annual rate of 58 percent between 2002 and 2008, compared to a
1.6 percent compound growth rate for the overall book industry.
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Seven: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents and Markets
flashquake
http://www.flashquake.org/guidelines.html
flashquake is an independent, quarterly, Web-based publication that
focuses on works of flash fiction, flash nonfiction (memoirs, essays,
creative nonfiction, humor) and short poetry.
flashquake is a paying venue for literary writers, and we award
stipends to all chosen contributors in each category. We reserve the
right to withhold some or all of the stipends to be awarded depending
on the quality of the work submitted.
flashquake defines "flash" as prose (fiction or nonfiction) of less
than 1,000 words. We admire brevity and will receive shorter works
favorably. For poetry, our maximum limit is 35 lines per poem; prose
poetry must not exceed 300 words in length. We accept
Flash fiction
Flash nonfiction — (memoirs, essays, creative nonfiction)
Poetry — (free verse, prose poetry)
Submissions accepted December 1 to January 31 for the spring issue to
be published March 1
Contributor Notification Deadline - around February 15
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Carina Press accepting submissions for digital publishing line
Our mission is to connect readers with authors who write the stories
they want to read. We will be introducing the bestsellers of tomorrow.
Carina Press will feature books from talented authors in all genres of
romance, erotica, science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, women’s
fiction, and more. If the book of your heart fits into a niche that has
very little shelf space in a traditional bookstore, Carina Press is
eager to read and potentially publish your story.
Carina Press will consider shorter length stories between 15,000 to
50,000 words, genre novels between 50,000 to 100,000 words and longer,
and complex narratives of over 100,000 words. We expect to publish a
majority of romance and erotic romance but are also very interested in
women’s fiction, science fiction, fantasy, futuristic, mystery,
thrillers, horror, and previously released material for which the
author has either retained digital rights or had digital rights revert
to them.
See http://carinapress.com/submission-guidelines/ for full submission
guidelines.
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Write Witty Sayings
Since 1980, Ephemera has been producing Novelty Buttons, Magnets, and
Stickers. You'll find our stuff all over the place - cutting edge card
& gift shops, bookstores, music stores, gay & left-wing shops, porno
stores, coffee shops, etc. Some of our best designs end up on products
made by companies we license to for T-shirts, cards, books, towels,
mugs, calendars, etc.
We're looking for satirical slogans about pop culture, politics & the
president, job attitudes, women's & men's issues, coffee, booze, pot,
drugs, religion, food, aging, teens, gays & lesbians, sexual come-ons &
put-downs. But please don't limit yourself to these topics. Surprise
us!
We pay $50 per slogan for the exclusive right to use it on whatever
products we produce or license.
We want you to be realistic about the probabilities of selling your
slogans to us. We buy less than 1% of all the thousands of ideas
submitted to us.
See submission guidelines at
http://www.ephemera-inc.com/writers-guidelines.asp.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AGNI Magazine
Boston University
236 Bay State Road
Boston, MA 02215
Manuscripts should be addressed to the Fiction Editor, Poetry Editor,
or Nonfiction Editor
AGNI publishes poetry, short fiction, and essays. AGNI regularly
features emerging writers and “among readers around the world . . . is
known for publishing important new writers early in their careers, many
of them translated into English for the first time” (PEN American
Center). Most of what we publish is unsolicited.
The print magazine appears twice yearly, in spring and fall. The Web
site grows biweekly with postings of new online-only fiction, poetry,
essays, reviews, and interviews.
AGNI welcomes unsolicited manuscripts between September 1 and May 31.
We adhere strictly to postmark dates, and submissions mailed outside
that period will be returned unread, provided that sufficient return
postage is included. We do not consider previously published work,
which includes work published on any Web site. AGNI’s reporting time is
approximately two to four months.
May submit online (not by e-mail) or by mail. Read full guidelines at
http://www.bu.edu/agni/submit.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stand
European Manuscripts should be sent to:
The Editors
Stand Magazine
School of English
Leeds University
Leeds LS2 9JT
England
North American submissions should be sent to:
David Latané
Stand Magazine
Department of English
Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA 23284-2005
USA
Stand is a quarterly literary magazine established in 1952. Jon Silkin
founded Stand as "an attempt to remedy the intellectual situation of
reader and poet" in response to our need for "something more human…for
art and a public which is prepared to be receptive" where the art in
Stand is "what is simple in expression and human in its context; for
the chances that the compound will be profound and worth reading are
reasonable."
Seeks fiction, fillers. Subjects: Mysteries, detective stories,
supernatural, terror, short stories, poetry.
Stand can consider only previously unpublished material, including that
sent in by literary agents. Manuscripts should be accompanied by a SASE
or, in the case of mss. sent from abroad to the editors at the address
in Leeds, by sufficient International Reply Coupons (IRC) to cover
return postage. (Note: These are often only available at larger post
offices in the USA.) Fiction submissions under 3,000 words are
preferred. Stand Magazine does not accept electronic submissions Stand
pays upon publication, in either Sterling or US dollars. For current
rates, contact the Editorial Office in Leeds.
For more information see
http://www.people.vcu.edu/~dlatane/stand-maga/index.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Does your child write? Essay Contest for First through Twelfth Grades
Olive Garden’s Pasta Tales contest gives young writers in first through
twelfth grade in the U.S. and Canada the opportunity to share their
stories in essays of 50 to 250 words. Pasta Tales entry forms and
complete rules are available at
www.olivegarden.com/company/community/pasta_tales.asp and at Olive
Garden restaurants.
The contest grand prize is a three-day trip to New York City including
dinner at the Olive Garden in Times Square and a $2,500 savings bond.
Winners also will be chosen in each grade category and will receive a
$500 savings bond and a family dinner at their local Olive Garden
restaurant.
Pasta Tales entries must include the writer’s name, complete address,
phone number with area code, grade, date of birth including year and a
statement that the work is their own. Entries must be submitted online
or postmarked by Dec. 11 and sent to Pasta Tales, PMB 2000, 6278 N.
Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33308-1916.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Open Road Integrated Media Seeks New Authors Willing to go Digital
First
Open Road Integrated Media
233 Spring St, 4th Floor
New York NY 10013
http://www.openroadmedia.com/
inquiries@openroadmedia.com
Jane Friedman, former HarperCollins president and CEO, and film
producer Jeffrey Sharp have formed Open Road Integrated Media, which
will focus on digital publishing.
In electronic form the company republishes old titles by big-name
authors, but it also seeks new authors willing to be published in
electronic format first. It does not accept unsolicited manuscripts, so
contact the company by snail mail or e-mail first with a strong query
letter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Eight: Creative Writing Assignment – Until…
Look at all the best stories, and you’ll find that most depend upon
situations and people that change. The magic word “until” is one word
that can indicate a change is about to happen.
For this assignment write a story that begins with a sentence that
includes the word “until.” Below are some examples of opening sentences
that include “until.” You can use one of these sentences, change it, or
create your own opening sentence.
Mother always cooked us a hot breakfast, until the day she lost her
job.
Sam loved hiking with his dog Sadie, until the incident with the bear.
Until I turned eighteen, I had to live with foster parents.
Melissa rode a bike to work for a year until she could afford to buy
the brand-new red Mustang convertible of her dreams.
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Nine: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
Another place to get a free book review written of your book:
www.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/free-book-reviews.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Create a video to promote your book, and it’s free! The newest
promotional tool is called a book trailer. It’s like a movie trailer,
but it promotes your book. You can add the video to your Web site or
create a DVD to hand out to prospective buyers. You may even want to
use this site to create a holiday message for your friends. See
http://www.onetruemedia.com/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Poetry Speaks
Read poetry, listen to poetry, record your own poetry, buy poetry, join
a community of poets; it’s all here: http://www.poetryspeaks.com/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tools for writers plus free reports, information, and answers for
writers like you: www.zebraeditor.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Strictly for laughs: Fake AP Stylebook:
http://twitter.com/FakeAPStylebook
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Keep up with Bobbie’s activities on Twitter:
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