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EDITOR'S THOUGHTS

When There's Too Much How-to Info

Most authors and writers, we're talking both in this piece, think that pitching is a 12-month, year-round activity when it is not. Whether talking contests, book publishers, or magazines, there is a bit of a science in the process, and if you want to improve your odds in this profession known for its high odds, it would behoove you to take note. 

BOOKS - Of course this advice is not 100 percent because the world is full of big, small, and mid-list publishers, each setting its own rules, but, general rules of thumb are these:

1) Pitch when you see a call for submissions. These are not common, but they happen, especially with small presses. If you are wishing to seek an agent to do this for you, then follow the same advice. Watch them on social media (they love Twitter) for when they say, "Hey, would love to read something involving......" That means they have markets in mind, and they feel the genre/topic is hot enough to quickly sell. You also want to feed them something they are in love with at that moment. That's assuming what you have to offer fills their void. But this is why you shop for publishers/agents that you feel fit you, and start following them. 

2) Avoid July, November, and December. Maybe even August. These people get sluggish around holidays as well as take vacations like everyone else. While not all follow this calendar, a great many do. 

3) Follow PublishersMarketplace.com and watch when new contracts with appear most often. Look at the history of the publisher/agent. While you might think it best to pitch during the down times, there is a reason there are those down times. They aren't as eager or hungry. 

CONTESTS - These have deadlines. Do not wait until the last minute. You never know if that influences the recipient on the other end. Also, applying early might give someone a chance to take their time reading yours, giving it a chance to stick in their minds. Toward the end of a deadline, contests get frantic behind the scenes. Your odds drop a little being one of those last minute submitters. Give judges every chance to think good of you.

MAGAZINE/JOURNALS - These have either deadlines or seasons. Pay attention to them, and like contests, be prompt and early in your submission. They might fall in love with your work early on and never give the others a chance. These publications have internal deadlines you don't even know about, and the sooner they can get ahead of them, the easier their lives are. 

Where did I get these rules of thumb? From personal experience and from conversations with third parties. No, they don't readily post these informal guidelines, but, trust me, they are there.

6508330 © Adonis1969 | Dreamstime.com
 

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SUCCESS QUOTE

SUccess Story

If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to hope@chopeclark.com 

 

Featured article

Keep Writing, Keep Submitting and Keep Earning!

By Dawn Colclasure 
 
Most writers want to know if there is a magic formula to getting published in any capacity, and most published writers will tell you that there isn't one. The only way to get published is to continuously send your work out there. The trick is to figure out the "continuous" part.
 
As a working writer, I have discovered one kind of formula for success. The best part is that it is free! This formula comes in three easy steps, and if you stick to them, you can improve your chances of seeing more of your work published.
 
All you need to do are these three things: keep writing, keep submitting and keep earning!
 
Keep Writing
 
You know the advice to "write every day." Try taking this credo one step further by writing everything you get ideas for. Besides articles, I also write short fiction. One day, I was inspired by an idea for a short story. I didn't know where to send it, but I wrote that story anyway. I later found somewhere to submit it.
 
How This Can Work For You
 
Writing variety can help you sell more work. How cool is it to be paid to write something you don't normally write? By diversifying your writing skills and learning how to write other types of material, you, too, can get more ideas for other kinds of work and achieve more sales. If you prefer, take a course in order to learn how to write something new here. 
 
Keep Submitting
 
In addition to writing every day, it's a good idea to submit every day. What? Submit your writing every day? Impossible! You don't have to submit your writing every single day, but you do need to keep submitting something. That something can be either work that is ready to submit, a query letter, book proposal, job proposal, pitch or a letter of introduction. Find the markets you can write for, look up clients, check out contest listings, read magazine writers guidelines and check out anthology calls. Just keep submitting or querying to see if anything strikes gold.

How This Can Work For You
 
Continuously putting yourself out there can help you get published. Submit queries (etc.) and see if anything bites. If you're a writer looking for long-term work, apply for writing jobs. The website ProBlogger lists many. Other websites offer market listings; FundsforWriters newsletter often lists several writing opportunities. If you want to be a content writer, apply at sites such as nDash. Search Twitter for tweets with the "pitch" or "writers" or "query" hashtags to locate markets open to queries. Follow accounts that post jobs for writers, such as @mediabistro and @writejobs. Finally, apply at job writing sites such as Upwork to send out proposals for writing gigs.

C. Hope Clark followed a regimen called Keep 13 in Play. Whether a nonfiction feature, an essay, a book manuscript, or a short story, she kept 13 queries outstanding. As one was accepted or rejected, she stopped and submitted more, to maintain that number 13. The cool thing is when she was rejected, she submitted a new piece to the market that rejected her while her name was fresh in their mind, and she submitted the old piece to a new market. Pick a number of your own. 
 
Keep Earning
 
Don't stop at diversifying your writing skills; diversify yourself as well. Go into business for yourself. In addition to freelancing, I'm also a ghostwriter. Some writers also work as editors or cover designers.
 
How This Can Work For You
 
Tap into your skills to boost your earnings. Ghostwriting, editing, and cover design are always in demand. Jobs for a proofreader, copywriter, indexer, and fact-checker exist as well. You can find opportunities for this kind of work at sites such as Upwork or Fiverr.  If you have the educational background or experience, consider monetizing this particular skill and teach online classes like at WOW-womenonwriting.com and SavvyAuthors.com.
 
There are a variety of markets, jobs and writing opportunities available. If you're willing to put in the effort, you can get more acceptances and earn more money with your work. Tap into your skills so that you can keep writing, keep pitching, and start earning!
 
***
 
Dawn Colclasure writes short fiction as well as novels. She also writes nonfiction books, such as BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents and 365 TIPS FOR WRITERS: Inspiration, Writing Prompts and Beat The Block Tips to Turbo Charge Your Creativity. Her articles, essays, poems, book reviews and short stories have been published in regional and national newspapers and magazines, as well as online and in anthologies. She is also a content writer, ghostwriter, and freelance writer. She lives and writes in Oregon with her husband and children. Her Web site is at https://www.dmcwriter.com/ and her Twitter is @dawncolclasure.
 

2721789 © Photosaurus | Dreamstime.com
 

COmpetitions

Registration Closes Oct. 1 for Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop

The Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop has a limited number of seats available for the Oct. 20-22 gathering. Registration deadline: Oct. 1 (or a sellout).

It’s a workshop for writers of all genres and all levels of writing experience. The classes are offered multiple times. Keynote speakers at meals will not only inspire and educate you but entertain you as well. Best of all, it offers time away for you to refuel.

The workshop will feature celebrated comedians and authors, including "Cathy" cartoonist Cathy Guisewite, "Saturday Night Live" legend Laraine Newman, New York Times bestselling authors W. Bruce Cameron and Adriana Trigiani, screenwriter Cathryn Michon, improviser and comedian Dion Flynn, and award-winning author Katrina Kittle.

The $499 fee includes all meals, keynote talks, choice of dozens of workshops, and a complimentary virtual package of the keynotes and Pitchapalooza. Discover more and register here. For the virtual option only, the registration fee is $79. From the comfort of your home (think: pajamas!) you can enjoy the keynote talks and Pitchapalooza, participate in a live chat with other writers joining virtually or tap back in later at your convenience.

Register here.

= = = = 


THE DREAM FOUNDRY EMERGING WRITERS CONTEST
https://dreamfoundry.org/writing-contest/
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline October 8, 2022. First Place: $1,000. Second Place: $500. Third Place: $200. This contest is for writers who are relatively new to paid or incoming-earning publication of speculative short fiction in English. To be eligible for this contest, all four rules must be true of you. You have published a total of less than 4,000 words of paid or income-earning speculative fiction in English. You have earned a total of less than USD 320 from those words. You have never been nominated for any award listed with The Dream Foundry as a major award in speculative fiction. You are not a previous winner of the Dream Foundry writing contest. Submit one complete and finalized story of up to 10,000 words via the submission manager.

ARTHUR FLOWERS FLASH FICTION PRIZE
https://salthilljournal.net/arthur-flowers-ff-prize
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline October 9, 2022. In order to be eligible, you must identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or a Person of Color. You must not have published or been contracted to write a full-length book at the time of submission. Writers with chapbooks are eligible. International writers working in English are encouraged to submit. Please submit one unpublished story of no more than 1,000 words. The winner will receive a prize of $500 and publication in Salt Hill Issue 50. Two runners-up will each receive a prize of $50 and publication in Salt Hill Issue 50. 

BOOKSIE HALLOWEEN HORROR CONTEST
https://www.booksie.com/contest/halloween-horror-contest-30
$4.99 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 11, 2022. The spooky season is almost upon us. We're looking for your creepiest horror stories. The ones that make us lay awake in bed at night gnashing our teeth, wondering about the sound coming from under the bed. The story can be a maximum of 5,000 words. There is no minimum. One winner will receive $250, promotion across Booksie, a gold contest badge, a Booksie t-shirt. Two runners-up will receive $50 and a silver contest badge.

CHARLOTTE LIT ANNUAL LIT/SOUTH CONTEST
https://www.charlottelit.org/press/awards/
$15 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 1, 2022. Current and past residents from North Carolina and its border states — Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia — are invited to enter their work in three categories: poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Poetry: one to three poems, up to five pages. Fiction: up to 4,000 words. Nonfiction: up to 4,000 words. Prizes in each category: $1,500, $500, $250 and $50 plus publication. 

 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

 



Get the Free Pricing Guide specifically designed for freelance writers to charge what your work is truly worth and find out the inside scoop on what top freelance writers charge right now



= = = 

BAY RELIEF FUND
https://krfoundation.org/east-bay-relief-fund-for-individuals-in-the-arts-announces-additional-funding/
Deadline September 28, 2022. The Kenneth Rainin Foundation invites applications for the East Bay Relief Fund for Individuals in the Arts. The fund is in response to the ongoing economic crisis and ensuing financial needs of individuals that have resulted from the coronavirus pandemic—a federally recognized “qualified disaster.” Grants of up to $2,000 will be awarded to help the region’s artists, teaching artists, culture bearers, and nonprofit arts workers who comprise the various and diverse cultural communities of Alameda and Contra Costa counties in California. 

RHODE ISLAND FOUNDATION ARTS IN ACADEMICS GRANTS
https://rifoundation.org/grant/arts-in-academics
Deadline October 21, 2022. The fund supports educational projects that integrate art disciplines into other core academic subjects. Grants between $500 and $1,000 will be awarded to support efforts to create collaborations among artists and educators and promote the arts as an integral part of the learning process. Any K-12 public or charter schoolteacher, artist, or nonprofit organization is eligible to apply as long as the proposed project benefits Rhode Island’s public school children.

SOUTH ARTS MICRO ACCESSIBILITY GRANTS
https://tnartscommission.org/news/micro-accessibility-grants-from-south-arts/
Deadline May 15, 2023. South Arts is now offering Micro Accessibility Grants of up to $2,500 to complement existing efforts by arts organizations to include audiences and artists with disabilities. Accessibility micro-grants are available to support Nonprofit, 501c3, arts organizations located within the South Arts Service region states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. This funding program is open to a wide variety of organizations, including community cultural organizations, museums, performing arts presenters, theatre companies, visual arts and music organizations. 

THE ADMINA TALVE-GOODMAN FELLOWSHIP
https://one-story.com/learn/fellowship/
This educational fellowship offers a year-long mentorship on the craft of fiction writing with One Story magazine. Our hope is to give a writer outside of the fold a significant boost in their career. Winner receives access to One Story online classes, admission to One Story’s Writing Circle, stipend ($2,000) and free admission to One Story’s week-long summer writers’ conference, which includes craft lectures, an intensive fiction workshop, and panels with literary agents and publishers. A full manuscript review and consultation with One Story Executive Editor Hannah Tinti (story collection or novel in progress up to 150 pages/35,000 words). This fellowship calls for an early-career writer of fiction who has not yet published a book and is not currently nor has ever been enrolled in an advanced degree program (such as an MA or MFA) in Creative Writing, English, or Literature, and has no plans to attend one in the 2023 calendar year. We are seeking writers whose work speaks to issues and experiences related to inhabiting bodies of difference. This means writing that centers, celebrates, or reclaims being marginalized through the lens of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, religion, illness, disability, trauma, migration, displacement, dispossession, or imprisonment. All applicants must be at least 21 years of age as of January 1, 2023. 

LIGHTHOUSE WORKS
https://www.thelighthouseworks.com/fellowship-program/
Deadline October 1, 2022. The program accepts artists working in a wide range of disciplines, but we are best able to accommodate visual artists and writers. Fellowships are six weeks in length, occur year round and provide fellows with housing, food, a studio or workspace, and a $1,750 stipend. Artistic excellence is the primary criteria for acceptance as a Lighthouse Works fellow. Lighthouse Works is a 501(c)3 nonprofit arts organization devoted to encouraging the development of artists through a fellowship program and to the enrichment of the year-round cultural and economic vitality of Fishers Island, New York.

MIDWEST JOURNALISM FUND
https://sentientmedia.org/announcing-new-midwest-journalism-fund/
Deadline September 26, 2022. There are over 127 million acres of agricultural land in the Midwest, landscape dominated by intensive industrial farming. Midwestern states also have some of the strictest ag-gag laws in the nation, which makes reporting on injustices related to industrial agriculture a challenge for new journalists. That's why Sentient Media is working to build a better support network for writers in the Midwest who are reporting on agriculture and the environment. The program culminates in a pitch competition, judged by journalists at Sentient Media and Vox, where the $10,000 fund will be distributed between the successful writers for new reporting. Throughout the program, the writers will be given the opportunity to meet with editors from Sentient Media's network, including Grist, to pitch and share ideas. Applications are open until September 26th, after which 50 journalists will be selected to join the program which starts October 3rd. 

MASSACHUSETTS CULTURAL COUNCIL RECOVERY GRANTS
https://massculturalcouncil.org/artists-art/cultural-sector-recovery-grants-for-individuals/
Deadline November 1, 2022. Mass Cultural Council’s Cultural Sector Recovery Grants for Individuals offers unrestricted grants of $5,000 to creatives and gig workers to support recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and set a path for growth. To apply for this grant, an applicant must be an artist or cultural practitioner active in any artistic discipline or cultural tradition; a teaching artist/scientist/humanist; or a cultural worker in the arts, humanities, or interpretive sciences in the state of Massachusetts.

  

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS

Have you been thinking about freelancing but don’t know where to start? Here’s the first step to strike out on your own.

My friend Dana Miranda at Healthy Rich is hosting a live, virtual class on Fri., Sep. 30, to show you how to make the transition to freelancing and design the life that’s just right for you.

BONUS: Register for the class before Sep. 30, and you’ll also get free access to Dana’s course “Land Your First Freelance Gig” AND be able to give free access to both courses to another aspiring freelancer!

= = = 

THE BMJ
https://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/editorial-staff
Seeking US-based medical/health/science freelance journalists. Query mlooi@bmj.com. Rates vary depending on story complexity but range is between £350-700. The BMJ can be many things to its diverse audiences: an international research journal, a member magazine, a think tank, an investigative campaigner, an educational resource, even a trusted and inspiring friend. 

WEBMD
https://www.patreon.com/posts/72052132
Currently looking for experienced freelance writers to contribute articles that are both accurate and general audience-accessible for its affiliated content. The goal of these articles is to offer consumers valuable and unique information about using and enrolling in Medicare. Pay ranges from $60-$180 for each 500-1,500 word article.

HELLOGIGGLES
https://hellogiggles.com/about-us/
Pitch Jene Luciana-Sena, News Editor at jene@jeneluciani.com. A site geared toward millennial women, we provide the latest breaking news and timely advice—and yes, our beloved personal essays—in beauty, fashion, lifestyle, love, and entertainment. Loves personal essays and anything trending or buzz worthy. Expect $200-250 per article. 

VEGETARIAN TIMES
https://www.patreon.com/posts/72000911
https://www.vegetariantimes.com
Pitch Brittany Martin, Editor at bmartin@outsideinc.com. Rates for different assignments vary. Vegetarian Times is a plant-based lifestyle authority that features recipes, cooking techniques, wellness information and news for vegans, vegetarians, and the veg-curious.

INSIDER
https://www.insider.com/
Seeks happy queer and trans stories for Insider. Rates vary depending on scope but average about $250 for 700ish words. Send pitches to Rosemary Donahue, Health and Parenting Editor at rdonahue@insider.com

THE COGNOSCENTI 
https://thecognoscenti.substack.com/
Seeks long-form, feature writing on culture, current affairs, and travel. Pitch James De Lise at james@fixency.media. Rate €500. No deadline and writers can be based anywhere. 

D MAGAZINE
https://www.dmagazine.com/info/masthead/
https://www.dmagazine.com/info/about-us/
Pitch food pitches to Nataly Keomoungkhoun, Online Dining Editor at nataly.keomoungkhoun@dmagazine.com. Pays up to $300. D Magazine provides readers with content and experiences aimed at enriching their interaction with Dallas. 

SOUTHWEST REVIEW
http://southwestreview.com/
SwR is looking for writers to review books. Things we dig: Indie presses, Latin American literary in translation, weird genre literary, books about movies, books about music, comics, and other cool shit that’s left of the dial. Email: swr@smu.edu. 

 

Publishers/agents

CODHILL PRESS
https://www.codhill.com/about-us/
Codhill Press is now accepting submissions. We read all submissions within ninety days, and will contact you if we’re interested in publishing. At present, Codhill continues to offer books that aid the “serious seeker.” At the same time, it has expanded its poetry list that now includes a chapbook series. Codhill publishes from four to six books a year. 

RED ADEPT PUBLISHING
https://redadeptpublishing.com/about-us/
Red Adept Publishing is an independent publisher of genre fiction. Since our first release in 2012, we have published over 100 novels, including four national bestsellers (NYT and USA Today). We love providing a home for new and established authors.

APRIL GLOAMING PUBLISHING
https://aprilgloaming.com/
April Gloaming Publishing is a nonprofit independent press based in Nashville, TN that aims to capture and better understand the Southern soul, Southern writing, and the Southern holler. We seek the formless and sublime, the chaotic and the devastating. April Gloaming celebrates the genre-benders, those rare works that bring the old and the new together into something entirely transcendent. 

ISLANDPORT PRESS
https://www.islandportpress.com/submissions
Islandport Press typically publishes 15 to 20 new titles per year, although we receive more than 500 unsolicited submissions annually. We accept and review unsolicited completed manuscripts, as well as agented submissions. We are unable to accept or review a project based on a query alone. Please review our catalog closely when considering whether to submit a book. We are a regional publisher. We publish books about the Northeast. Submissions should reflect a New England sensibility and primarily be set in and tell stories about this region, as well as characterize the culture and people.

 

FUNDSFORWRITERS CONTACT INFO

FINE PRINT

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C. Hope Clark
E-mail: hope@fundsforwriters.com
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036
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ISSN: 1533-1326

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