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TOP SPONSOR
FIRST PAGES PRIZE
SUBMISSIONS OPEN MARCH 1, 2023.
Prizes awarded in BOTH Fiction & Creative Nonfiction
Winners receive cash awards, developmental mentoring, & an agent consultation
Fiction Judge - Tash Aw / Creative Nonfiction Judge - Patricia Hampl
Open to un-agented writers worldwide, the First Pages Prize invites you to enter your first five pages (1250 words) of a longer work of fiction or creative nonfiction
For details visit WWW.FIRSTPAGESPRIZE.COM
EDITOR'S THOUGHTS
PITCHING A COLUMN FOR A NEWSPAPER
I've had two inquiries of late about how to pitch a column for a newspaper. Everyone wants to know the right way to approach an editor, and I offered several suggestions.
1) Offer a piece to the paper, stroking them that you felt this piece fit them exactly, and you wanted to contribute to your community in offering its contents. The next time, however, offer something just as good if not better, commenting that you'd like to entertain payment of a given amount. Be sure to give a brief bio that strongly shows your experience or expertise.
2) Become familiar with the editor. That might entail writing frequent letters to the editor that show promise, research, and quality style, without all the ranting and rancor most letters contain. Then suggest a series of articles, promising the same professionalism you demonstrated in your letters.
3) Study that paper hard. See what they like. Understand the readership. Propose a two- to three-part story that hits the sweet spot of the community. These newspapers are the heartbeat of their areas, town, city, region. Give them something they cannot refuse. Ask for a reasonable price for it, after assuring them you are the best person to be writing it.
4) Show how active you are in the community. The editor might already know you. If you are active, the editor will be more inclined to sit up and take notice, because you come with a following. I became involved in school board elections for a while, then joined the Chamber of Commerce and attended meetings, and I also frequent town or county council meetings, just for personal interest. My books are in the coffee shop. I promote my books in community newsletters. So when I offered to
write a column for a small magazine, they accepted.
Bottom line, show them one of more of the following:
1) QUALITY WRITING
2) EXPERTISE
3) EXPERIENCE
4) COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
5) RELIABILITY
Papers and magazines need content. You just have to convince them you can provide it and provide it well.
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SUPER SPONSOR
HOPE'S APPEARANCES
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- April 20, 2023 - Edisto Library - 4 PM - 1589 SC Highway 174, Trinity Episcopal Church, Edisto Island, SC - book club discussion with Hope
- May 1, 2023 - Night Harbor Book Club, Night Harbor S/D Rec Center, Chapin, SC - 7-9 PM
- June 3-10, 2023 - Writing Retreat on the Maine Coast - Special Guest - Sponsored by Joan Dempsey, author and teacher
- July 10, 2023 - Night Harbor Book Club, Night Harbor S/D Rec Center, Chapin, SC - 7-9 PM
- August 7, 2023 - Night Harbor Book Club, Night Harbor S/D Rec Center, Chapin, SC - 7-9 PM
- September 4, 2023 - Night Harbor Book Club, Night Harbor S/D Rec Center, Chapin, SC - 7-9 PM
- September 14, 2023 - Chapin Library, 129 Columbia, Ave, Chapin, SC - 1-3 PM - open to the public
Email: hope@chopeclark.com to schedule events, online or otherwise. There's starting to be life out there! |
SUCCESS QUOTE
"The one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and build and play and dance and live as only you can." – Neil Gaiman
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
How to Win at Losing Writing Contests
By Rachel Carrington
Winning a writing contest can be an affirmation that a writer is talented, but to those that write, enter, and lose, losing can be disheartening and make a writer question their ability and talent. Surprisingly, however, a losing entry can be a boost to your writing income, especially if you challenge yourself to enter contests that force you to write outside the box and look for publishing homes that are just as eclectic.
Many writers seek out the same type of competitions, suitable for the genres in which they’re most comfortable writing. But with no win, you’re left with yet another piece without a home. That’s why it’s a good idea to search for contests that ask for unique entries. You might struggle to write on an unfamiliar topic, but, in the end, you’ll have something new to submit to publishers/sites you never knew existed.
I entered several contests last year and achieved one honorable mention, and that was on a piece that was way out of my comfort zone, but it opened the door to another type of writing I might never have tried. Since I started stretching my writing muscles, I’ve written about ancient Egypt, deceased literary characters, rejections for successful novels, imaginary friends, nightmares, and mechanical eyes, to name a few. And I was surprised to learn that there were plenty of markets for
these topics outside of the contests.
What helped me the most was searching for “themed calls for submissions,” but you can try adding more definitive words to your search like “science themed calls for submissions.” The guidelines for Parabola.com was one of the results for that. Literatium also popped up which provides a list of anthologies that seek unusual stories.
But what if you’re not sure about the theme or where your story could fit? You have two options: The first of which is search for “weird, themed submissions.” These are boundless on the Internet. When I did the search I came up with these thirteen places from Tell Tell Poetry and these five from International Writers Collective. This one includes Twin Pies Literary Magazine
which specifically looks for
“anything weird, absurd, sad, hysterical, manic, or whatever as long as it’s good.” That opens the door to a lot of possibilities as the definition of weird is abstract anyway.
Your second option is to change your piece to fit a theme. That sounds harder than it is. The piece I wrote about nightmares I changed slightly so that it would include the stars in a unique way, and that gave me the ability to submit the story to several literary magazines that focus on the cosmos.
A bizarre story I wrote for another competition included Ares (the God of War) and a middle-aged woman trying to get a job as an exotic dancer. I had no idea how to classify it so I didn’t bother. Instead, I submitted it to several magazines that had obscure guidelines like “send us your weird.” There is no limit to what you can find when you look outside the norm.
There’s a place for practically everything you write, and while the pay might not be astronomical, it could be enough so that you earn back your entry fee for the writing contest. You’ll also add another published credit to your list and open the door for future submissions to that publisher. And the big plus is: Getting your piece published will soothe the burn from the competition loss. After all, a win is a win.
BIO: As well as being a published author of fiction, Rachel is also a nonfiction writer and has written for the New York Times, Startrek.com, The Writer, and many others. She is also the site expert for Red Shirts Always Die, a site devoted to Star Trek. You can visit her on the web at www.rachelcarrington.com and on Instagram @rcarrington2004.
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COmpetitions
JAMES APPLEWHITE POETRY PRIZE
https://nclr.ecu.edu/submissions/applewhite-guidelines/
NO ENTRY FEE BUT MUST BE SUBSCRIBED. Deadline April 30, 2023. First prize is $250, publication in NCLR, and a Pushcart Prize nomination. Finalists will also be considered for publication in NCLR and NCLR Online, and poets will receive $25–$100. Open to any writer who fits the NCLR definition of a North Carolina writer: anyone who currently lives in North Carolina, has lived in North Carolina, or uses North Carolina as subject matter. We
have dropped the submission fee, but poets must be NCLR subscribers to submit. We do not have any line restrictions, though have rarely published a poem of longer than 3 pages of our layout.
MARGARET GIBSON POET LAUREATE POETRY AWARD
https://ctpoetry.net/margaret-gibson-poet-laureate-poetry-award.html
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline April 15, 2023. Submit up to three pages of previously unpublished poems, any form. First prize $300, second prize $200, third prize $100. Winning poems will be published in Connecticut River Review and posted on the Connecticut Poetry Society website. Winners receive a free, two-year membership in the Connecticut Poetry Society.
THE WRITER 500-WORD CONTEST
https://www.writermag.com/the-writer-contests/500-word-contest-2023/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 16, 2023. Enter your best writing in any genre – fiction OR nonfiction – that falls under 500 words for a chance to win the grand prize: $1,000 and publication in our magazine. We can provide detailed feedback with our add-on critique service, regardless of where your submission places in our contest. If interested, choose to add a critique at checkout. Second prize $500. Third prize
$250.
BRILLIANT FLASH FICTION
https://brilliantflashfiction.com/2023/01/01/lets-be-brilliant/
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline April 15, 2023. Word limit: 400 words, excluding title. Pays $200 first prize, $100 second prize, and $50 third prize. Pays $20 and publication on our website for shortlisted stories.
One entry per author. Open to writers worldwide, no age requirement. Only stories written in English will be accepted. All genres accepted (i.e., sci-fi, historic fiction, etc.).
BACOPA LITERARY REVIEW
https://writersallianceofgainesville.submittable.com/submit
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline April 16, 2023. Pays $200 first prize and one $100 honorable mention. Fiction (up to 2,500 words). Creative nonfiction (up to 2,500 words). Humor (up to 2,000 words). Formal poetry (one to three poems). Free verse poetry (one to two poems). Visual poetry (one poem). Submit to one category only.
HEY ALMA FICTION CONTEST
https://www.heyalma.com/announcing-hey-almas-first-ever-fiction-contest/
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 1, 2023. We’re looking for previously unpublished Jewish short stories (more on that in a bit) of any genre. Emerging and established writers are all welcome to submit. Stories should be 3,000 words or less, and must be previously unpublished. The winner will be published on Hey Alma this spring and awarded a $250 honorarium (and a Hey Alma sweatshirt for good measure). (Thanks
www.erikadreifus.com)
ASTRA INTERNATIONAL PICTURE BOOK WRITING CONTEST
https://www.readinglife.com/writingcontest
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline April 30, 2023. The Astra International Picture Book Writing Contest is a unique competition open to writers for children, both published and unpublished. The winners will have the opportunity to sign publishing contracts with the sponsors to publish the manuscripts in different languages. Two gold prizes of $5,000.
Eight honor prizes of $1,000. One Kodansha Award valued at $3,000. Manuscript must be text written for children age three (3) – eight (8). Illustrations are not accepted. Manuscript may be fiction, nonfiction or poetry. Japanese Manuscript must be no longer than 2,500 words and Manuscript in other languages must be no longer than 1,000 words. Manuscript may be submitted in any of the following languages: English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese or Chinese. (Thanks www.erikadreifus.com)
IF THERE'S ANYONE LEFT MICRO-FLASH FICTION CONTEST
https://www.iftheresanyoneleft.com/submission-guidelines
Deadline April 15, 2023. Limit 500 words. First prize $250. Second prize $100. Third prize $50. NO AI-GENERATED SUBMISSIONS (true always, just reiterating). We want science fiction and speculative fiction.
GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING
KILLER NASHVILLE SCHOLARSHIPS
https://www.killernashville.com/killer-nashville-scholarships
Killer Nashville offers several scholarships each year. Scholarship amounts vary depending upon need and the scholarship is awarded up to the full out-of-pocket costs to attend Killer Nashville conference. Funds will be awarded to authors who demonstrate need in an essay format. Applicants should submit their entries no later than July 14, 2023. Scholarship recipients will be asked to give a presentation at the Killer Nashville Awards Dinner.
WARNER BROTHERS DISCOVERY ACCESS WRITERS PROGRAM
https://www.warner-access.com/programs/warner-bros-discovery-access-writers-program
Deadline forthcoming. The Warner Bros. Discovery Access Writers Program has been expanded to a two-year program for entry-level narrative TV writers. The objective is to provide marginalized voices a pathway for entry into the television industry through instruction, mentorship and exposure. Participants learn about the television business from internal executives, attend master classes on storytelling and collaborative creative writing with showrunners, as well as other established
special guests.
MOONDANCER FELLOWSHIP
https://www.writerscolony.org/fellowships
Deadline May 22, 2023. Moondancer Fellowship for authors who express their passion for the natural world and concern for the environment through their writing. This fellowship is open to poets, fiction writers, playwrights, screenwriters, essayists, memoirists, and columnists. Prior publication is not a requirement. The successful applicant will demonstrate insight, honesty, literary merit, and the likelihood of publication or production. The fellowship winner will receive
a two-week residency at WCDH to focus completely on their writing. Each writer’s suite has a bedroom, private bathroom, separate writing space, and wireless internet. We provide uninterrupted writing time, a European-style gourmet dinner prepared five nights a week and served in our community dining room, the camaraderie of other professional writers when desired, and a community kitchen stocked with the basics for other meals.
NORTH CAROLINA LITERARY REVIEW PRIZES
https://nclr.ecu.edu/submissions/
JOHN EHLE PRIZE - We collaborated with Press 53 of Winston-Salem to create a $250 honorarium for the author of the best work on a neglected or forgotten writer selected for publication in our pages (essays on the work of John Ehle included). Eligible content may be for any section of the issue (feature, Flashbacks, or NC Miscellany) and can be literary criticism or an interview.
RANDALL KENAN PRIZE - UNC Chapel Hill Creative Writing Program has provided a $250 honorarium to the author of the best essay on or interview with a new (or relatively new) North Carolina writer, selected for publication in our pages.
PAUL GREEN PRIZE - The Paul Green Foundation will provide a $250 honorarium to the author of the best Paul Green–related content accepted for publication in the North Carolina Literary Review.
ASC FOUNDERS GRANTS
https://artsandscience.org/founders-grants/
Distinct from other funding opportunities ASC provides for creative individuals, this award is intended to celebrate the commitment of Charlotte-Mecklenburg creatives to the community they call home and are intended to award their vision. As such, the applicants are not required to submit a budget or specify how they would leverage the resources. This is first and foremost an award celebrating the creative individual’s vision. ASC welcomes applications from Mecklenburg County based
creative individuals who pursue their creative practice as their primary occupation. ASC will award up to five $50,000 Founders Grants.
UTAH ARTIST PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS - FOR UTAH CREATIVES
https://artsandmuseums.utah.gov/fellowship/
No cost. April 26, 2023 from 12:00 - 1:00 pm - "Safeguarding Your Artistic Practice" - May 3, 2023 from 12:00 - 2:00 pm - "Taxes for Artists, Freelancers and Creative Businesses"
THE OLD KNITTING FACTORY
https://oldknittingfactory.com/single-mother-retreats
Deadline April 30, 2023. Applications are now open for a free one-week stay in the Old Knitting Factory’s residency space, including a cash stipend to apply to childcare costs. The residency is open to single mothers and other twice-marginalized single parents from anywhere in the world. Come enjoy the beauty and peace of Connemara, and take some time to rest and honor yourself and your children. The resident will receive a €250 cash stipend toward childcare costs. Does not
include travel. Location Connemara, Ireland.
CINTAS FELLOWSHIPS
https://cintasfoundation.org/fellowships
Deadline May 1, 2023. Fellowships acknowledge creative accomplishments and encourage excellence in architecture & design, creative writing, music composition and the visual arts. Eligibility is limited to artists of Cuban citizenship or direct descent. The amount of the fellowship is $20,000 currently.
FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS
LONGREADS
https://longreads.com/submissions/
Longreads is dedicated to publishing and sharing the best longform nonfiction storytelling on the web.
Essays and columns typically run between 2,000 and 6,000 words. Pieces may be longer or broken up into a series depending on the length and subject matter. Personal essays should be submitted on spec, and we pay $500 per essay. We accept pitches for researched and reported essays, critical essays, and columns. Rates start at $500, with the fee varying depending on the level of reporting and research required, as well as the overall word count.
QUARTZ
https://qz.com/work/1146608/how-to-write-for-quartz-at-work
Quartz at Work is a guide to being a better manager, building your career, and navigating the modern workplace. Our staff of reporters works every day to report the most interesting stories and practices from workplaces around the world. Seeks pieces for these topics: careering, identity and inclusion, managing, productivity and creativity, the office, the purpose of companies, the lives of working parents, and leaders and leadership. Pitch Gabriella
Riccardi, Deputy Editor at griccardi@qz.com. Pay is 50 cents/word.
CHALKBEAT
https://www.chalkbeat.org/
Students, parents, and educators: If you want to share your story, please consider writing for Chalkbeat's First Person essay series. Pays $125 per essay. Send your pitch or piece to Gabrielle Birkner, Features Editor, at firstperson@chalkbeat.org.
FIELDS AND STATIONS
http://fieldsandstations.com
Fields & Stations publishes good writing for curious travelers. The magazine is devoted to the magic of both the far-flung and the familiar, balancing the everyday and the remarkable. Fields & Stations focusses on little cultural objects (a shop; a cocktail; a sandwich) to tell big stories. Seeking currently road trip pieces. Pays €1500 for 3000 words plus images. Pitch fieldsandstations@gmail.com
IF THERE'S ANYONE LEFT
https://www.iftheresanyoneleft.com/submission-guidelines
Regular entries are science fiction and speculative fiction, no more than 1,000 words. Pays eight cents/word. This is for marginalized members of the sci-fi/spec community—this includes people of color, the LGBTQ2S+ community, members of marginalized genders, and disabled and neurodiverse people.
ORION'S BELT
https://www.orions-belt.net/submissions
We want stories that blur the line between “genre” fiction and literary fiction. We want stories that reach toward the stars while never forgetting the people on the ground. And we want it all in under 1,200 words. Pays eight cents/word.
Publishers/agents
= = =
CASTLE BRIDGE MEDIA
https://www.castlebridgemedia.com/submissions
Castle Bridge Media is an independent publisher of predominantly genre books, with particular interest in horror, science fiction, thriller, and fantasy. We also dabble in non-fiction titles as well. However, regardless of the genre, if the work is good, we will consider it. Novels should generally run between 80,000 and 120,000 words.
CITY LIGHTS PUBLISHERS
http://citylights.com/publishing/
City Lights has always been a champion of progressive thinking, fully committed to publishing works of both literary merit and social responsibility. With over 200 titles in print, we publish cutting-edge fiction, poetry, memoirs, literary translations and books on vital social and political issues.
TOTALLY BOUND PUBLISHING
https://totallyentwinedgroup.com/submissions/
Seeking the following genres/subgenres: Action and Adventure, Alternate Reality, Angels and Demons, Billionaire, Bollywood, Bondage and BDSM, Celebrities, Chick Lit, Comedy and Humour, Contemporary, Cowboys and Western, Crime and Mystery, Dark Romance, Enemies to Lovers, Fake Relationships, Fantasy and Fairytales, Friends to Lovers, Futuristic and Science Fiction, Gods and Goddesses, Historical, Horror, Mafia/Gangs, MC/Bikers, Men in Uniform, Ménage and Multiple Partners,
Multicultural, Older Woman/Younger Man, Omegaverse, Paranormal, Reverse Harem, Royals, Rubenesque, Science Fiction, Second Chance, Shapechangers and Morphers, Sports, Sweet Romance, Thrillers and Suspense, Timetravel, Vampires, Wereshifters.
PRIDE PUBLISHING
https://totallyentwinedgroup.com/submissions/
Seeking the following genres/subgenres: Action and Adventure, Alternate Reality, Angels and Demons, Asexual, Bisexual, Bondage and BDSM, Celebrities, Comedy and Humour, Contemporary, Cowboys and Western, Crime and Mystery, Enemies to Lovers, Erotic Romance, Erotica, Fake Relationships, Fantasy and Fairytales, Friends to Lovers, Futuristic and Science Fiction, Gay, Gods and Goddesses, Historical, Horror, Lesbian, Mafia/Gangs, MC/Bikers, Men in Uniform, Ménage and Multiple Partners,
Multicultural, Omegaverse, Paranormal, Romance, Royals, Second Chance, Shapechangers and Morphers, Sports, Thrillers and Suspense, Timetravel, Transgender, Vampires, Wereshifters.
FINCH BOOKS
https://totallyentwinedgroup.com/submissions/
Seeking the following genres/subgenres: Action and Adventure, Alternate Reality, Angels and Demons, Celebrities, Comedy and Humour, Contemporary, Crime and Mystery, Dystopian, Enemies to Lovers, Fake Relationships, Fantasy, Friends to Lovers, Futuristic and Science Fiction, GLBTQI, Gods and Goddesses, Historical, Horror, Mafia/Gangs, MC/Bikers, Multicultural, Paranormal, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Royals, Second Chance, Shapechangers and Morphers, Sports, Thrillers and Suspense,
Timetravel, Vampires, Wereshifters, Younger Readers.
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FUNDSFORWRITERS CONTACT INFO
FINE PRINT
Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint any editorials, contact hope@fundsforwriters.com for permission. Please do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your publication is considered a valid right to publish.
C. Hope Clark
E-mail: hope@fundsforwriters.com
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036
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Copyright 2000-2023, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326
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