VOLUME 25, ISSUE 29 | july 18, 2025 |
TAKE OWNERSHIP The most common questions asked of FFW: - Can you send me a list of grants so I can pay to publish my book?
- I have a great idea and a book half finished. Can you send me a list of grants that will help me research and
finish (i.e., not have to work the day job)?
- I have six (or pick a number) books written. Now I need a grant to publish them.
- I cannot afford to hire an editor. Can you grant me the money?
Do you know what they do not ask for? How much money they need. The only time I see a dollar request is when they have chosen a vanity press. The others aren't sure what they want. They haven't even shopped options. Which tells me they have not done their homework and don't know what they are doing. This is not a message of insults. It's an educational message. You cannot ask for money without having a business plan. You cannot ask for money without researching what the options are out there. You should not ask for money without researching the person/group you are asking to see what they have
to offer you and if you qualify. In other words, don't just hold out your hand and ask for money. Research. How much does editing cost and where have you looked? Why have you chosen self-publishing or vanity publishing? Why haven't you considered traditional publishing? Maybe you get some money. . . how is that going to further you along in your business plan? How
exactly is this going to make you successful? Nobody gives money without knowing that the person they are giving it to has their act together and a plan in place. Having the money for any of the above reasons does not show you know what you are doing. A grant provider is going to want to know you have a mission, a game plan, and a solid dream of success. How (exactly) will this money make you climb the ladder? Take your work seriously. Take grant requests seriously. That money had to come from somewhere. How are you going to prove to whoever provides it that you successfully used it, made them proud, and gave them a case study to advertise as a success story for them? It isn't just about you. It's about the person who gives the money, too. |
Each Edisto Island Mystery is a stand alone, but reading them in order does make for a deeper and better read. By request, here is the order in which they were published. Book 13 is due out this fall. THE PRETENSE
Once up on a time, it was an extreme privilege to go to college. In some eras, it was an honor to graduate high school. Learning material was not as readily available, so those with access to it took advantage, delved
into the material, and absorbed as much as they could so they could apply it to their lives and find success. Simple. Today, your smart phone gives you access to just about anything any college student has access to. The main difference between how smart you are and how smart they are is how much material you absorb and how hard you apply yourself. But now people use AI in an
attempt to appear smart. With such tools at the ready to everyone, anyone can pretend to be smart so that sort of lessens the value, doesn't it? We used to learn the theories and apply them to problems, solve the problems, and have a working knowledge to better solve the next problem. If AI calculates or creates for you, you don't learn how to do anything but how to use AI. I've read the justifications that the public doesn't
know the difference in AI fiction and human fiction (i.e., creative writing). They only want a good story, not caring where it is from. The individuals touting this are attempting to justify their shortcutting. Some say AI gives them better ideas to draw from and elaborate with. Once upon a time that was called doing research. And to copy someone's work in that research was called plagiarism and theft. Maybe it's just my wishful thinking, but I believe readers still like knowing that a story came from a human being and their brain. There's still a bit of romanticism in reading a book, in sharing the internal imaginings of an author rich with ideas. Not a machine. Not an app. Not a program. Just a quick view into the human mind of a creative being. In my opinion, a book needs to express whether
AI was used. Let the readers decide whether that matters. I believe some people will be surprised at what sells and what doesn't.
Jazz up your brainstorming with Brainstorming Bingo! It's a free, hour-long workshop that will take you from a blank page to flowing ideas. You'll get a bingo card filled with prompts, plus a list of ways to jumpstart your
creativity. You'll leave this workshop excited to turn your new ideas into finished stories. -Sept 9, 2025 - Chapin Library, Chapin, SC - 1PM
Email: hope@chopeclark.com to schedule events, online or otherwise. “Life is like an onion. You peel it off one layer at a time, and sometimes you weep.” – Carl Sandburg
<<If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to hope@chopeclark.com >>
|
|
|
Authors and Alternative Social Media Platforms
By Alex J. Coyne Alternative social platforms like Threads, BlueSky, and MySpace are drawing users who want safer, more regulated online worlds. PEN International and Stephen King have switched. Should you? Here’s how authors can expand their reach to alternative social
media. Why Switch? I explored alternative social platforms when people became too curious about my personal life online. Other
users are switching to follow trends, friends, and influencers. Alternative social media accounts (like Threads or BlueSky) allow multi-platform reach to where people might look past your posts. If your content stays limited to Facebook, BlueSky users are unlikely to search for you across platforms. Create an account on several websites, and more readers can find you. A young-adult novel might promote better on YouTube and Discord over Facebook, where users
are older. An LGBTQI+ article might miss its audience on Twitter/X where many of the intended audience left X/Twitter due to hate speech. Know your audience, your genre, and the genre’s readership. What’s the Right Site? Follow your readership. Ask them for social media suggestions. Authors will notice where most of their readership or interests go. Search for your genres or interests on each social media website—attitudes
and differences stand out. Social media accounts can be hidden or deactivated (check DeleteMyAccount) if you’d like to take a break or choose another platform. No, you don’t need an account on every social media platform. It’s okay to
connect with your readers without being a high-tier, million-like influencer. Authors can use the same promotional techniques for different social media websites—the basics of good content and SEO will still count. However, just remember that each website reaches a different audience. BlueSky and MySpace BlueSky and MySpace are social media “alternatives,” while Meta and X are seen as fading giants with political or advertising bias. Actor Wil Wheaton switched to BlueSky when his Meta-posts weren’t
being seen by his “following” audience due to Meta’s algorithms. Once on BlueSky, users could more easily see status updates—without bias or restriction. MySpace is considered “old school” but still has approximately 6 million users. Meta
and X are becoming less popular—but of course, depending on your readership, you might be more likely to get your writing noticed by branching out to MySpace, Threads, or BlueSky. The editor of Great Bridge Links introduced me to BlueSky. That’s
when I realized authors can’t underrepresent themselves. The world has so many different social media platforms, circles, and interests these days that any of them gives you a farther reach. Joining all social media sites is impossible, though. Join the ones that best resonate with your audience or genre. Spend ten or twenty minutes reading the site. For example, can you find authors matching your genre here? Look at competing authors in your wheelhouse. Where are they
located? Threads and Meta If you’re moving away from X/Twitter for better freedom of speech, less catfishing in your inbox, or whatever reason, Threads is a Meta-powered alternative for shorter content. If you want to have a web presence on Threads, move over to their website and create an account. Even though Threads is part of Meta, users have to individually opt-in. TikTok and
YouTube Many authors also create video content. Writers can upload book trailers, filmed reviews, writing diaries, interviews with other authors, or bits of writing advice. An author’s personality can extend beyond their writing on paper, giving them a visual for followers to enjoy. TikTok (including the
subsection BookTok) and YouTube are social platforms designed for video. Recently, TikTok was banned and then promptly unbanned for United States users. Discord One more alternative platform is Discord, originally meant for gamers. Discord evolved into a platform that hosts private or
public “channels” for users and interests. For example, Discord has specific servers like The Writing Hub and The Writer’s Factory. Users with a Discord account can join channels, and interact with users (usually via text chat, webcam, or call). Discord isn’t a promotional social media site, where you count on an audience to see your posts. Instead, it’s meant for direct communication inside a channel—usually used for private needs or for
a select exclusive fan base. Try not to get too complacent in your social media choices. Your followers might be diversified in their social media entertainment and information gathering. You want to be there for them. About the Author: Alex J. Coyne is a journalist, author, and proofreader. He has written for a variety of publications and websites, with a radar calibrated for gothic, gonzo, and the weird. Sometimes, he co-writes with
others.
|
THE PG WODEHOUSE SOCIETY (UK) ESSAY PRIZE
https://www.pgwodehousesociety.org.uk/essayprize
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 17, 2025. A prize of £750 will be awarded to the winner of the
competition. Word count of 3,000 to 6,000 words, excluding footnotes and bibliography. Comparative essays are acceptable, but the focus of the essay must be on Wodehouse. Entrants from all walks of life are encouraged to provide new and interesting perspectives on Wodehouse’s works. WOW! SUMMER FLASH FICTION CONTEST
https://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/contest.php
$10 ENTRY FEE. Deadline August 31, 2025. Guest Judge: Literary Agent Sharon Pelletier. Seeking flash fiction of any genre between 250 - 750 words. The mission of this contest is to inspire creativity, great writing, and provide well-rewarded recognition to contestants. Open internationally. Limit: 300 entries. 1st Place: $400, publication, interview, and $25 Amazon Gift
Certificate. 2nd Place: $300, publication, interview, and $25 Amazon Gift Certificate. 3rd Place: $200, publication, interview and $25 Amazon Gift Certificate. 7 Runners Up receive $25 Amazon Gift Cards, publication and interview. 10 Honorable mentions receive $20 Amazon Gift Card. THE BEDFORD SHORT STORY COMPETITION
https://bedfordwritingcompetition.co.uk/short-story-rules
£8.50 ENTRY FEE. Deadline October 31, 2025. Open internationally. Stories must not have been published, self-published, published on a website, broadcast, been placed first, second or third, or been awarded a prize in any other competition. Stories must be no more than 3000 words. English only. First prize £2000, second prize £300 and third prize £200. THE BEDFORD POETRY COMPETITION
https://bedfordwritingcompetition.co.uk//poetry-rules/
£8.50 ENTRY FEE. Deadline October 31, 2025. Open internationally. Poems must not have been published, self-published, published on a website, broadcast, been placed first, second
or third, or been awarded a prize in any other competition. English only. Poems must be no more than 40 lines. The Poetry Competition winners will receive, first prize £2000, second prize £300 and third prize £200. MSLEXIA WOMEN'S FICTION COMPETITION
https://mslexia.co.uk/competitions/short-story/womens-fiction-competition-2025-short-story/
£12 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 22, 2025. First prize £3,000. Three additional finalists will each receive £100. This competition is for unpublished complete short fiction of up to 3,000 words. The winning entry and three finalists will be published in the December 2025 edition of Mslexia. GRANTS / FELLOWSHIP / CROWDFUNDING ART 14
https://www.lastudio.org/art14-residency/residency
Rolling Deadline. We welcome all types of artists, writers, musicians, etc. of all skill levels, welcome creators to explore new
media and techniques, and encourage collaboration but do not require it. We also encourage residents to explore and engage with the local community. As many of our artists' stays are exploratory, we do not require artists to produce deliverables or final products as part of the residency, though many opt to participate in a small presentation to the L.a. Studio team, their fellow artists, and members of the local community at the end of their stay. The Borough of Patton, Pennsylvania, USA is an
old clayworks and timbering town located in the Appalachian Mountains, surrounded by hiking and biking trails and a 10-minute drive from Prince Gallitzin State Park. POV
https://filmfreeway.com/POVCallforEntries
Deadline July 31, 2025. POV accepts documentaries /
non-fiction films in the following categories:
* STANDARD: For completed films & fine cuts.
* SHORT: For films 40 minutes or less.
* ROUGH CUT: For invited feature rough cuts ONLY. NICHOLAS DAHL VISITING ARTIST SCHOLARSHIP
https://paam.org/education/dahl-application/
Deadline July 31, 2025. Location Provincetown, MA. The scholarship will fund a one-week creative experience in Provincetown during the “off-season” (November-April), including lodging, a workshop at PAAM and associated materials, use of a PAAM studio, a PAAM Membership, and the opportunity to visit the Fine Arts Work Center, the National Seashore, and artist and writer studios. The scholarship is offered to
LGBTQIA+ individuals 30 years of age and under who demonstrate a passion for the arts in the form of writing, poetry, painting, theater, music or other artistic mediums. E2C RESIDENCY
https://www.escape2create.org/apply
Deadline July 31, 2025. Escape to Create (E2C) is a
volunteer managed non-profit organization that represents the unique character of a community deeply invested in the arts. Residencies are made possible through the generosity of Seaside homeowners, merchants, and donors. The white sandy beaches of Northwest Florida are the stunning backdrop to the picturesque walking community of Seaside. Two multi-disciplinary sessions are open to professional artists and scholars working in literary, music and theatre arts; visual, multi-media and
interdisciplinary arts; scholars of architecture, history, and environmental and cultural studies. Escape to Create has a special interest in supporting the work of emerging to mid-career artists and scholars. 100 VOICES OF FLORIDA
https://www.100vof.com/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 31,
2025. 100VOF is a grant initiative started by Floridian sisters who teamed up to bring more opportunities to Floridian filmmakers. Scripts only. Submit your short film or script and tell us how you’ll be using the $5000 prize funds. We want you to do what you do best - tell stories. Must be a writer, director, or producer with an authentic perspective who pursues their own creative voice and vision. Submit an application that includes viewing link to your short film (<20 minutes) or
PDF to your script (20 pages or less) and briefly describe your connection to Florida. AXS FILM FUND
https://www.axsfilmfund.org/
Deadline July 31, 2025. AXS Film Fund strives to support independent documentary filmmakers and nonfiction new media creators from diverse racial and ethnic
backgrounds living with disabilities in their endeavors to tell stories, make films, and create content. Each year we award up to five creators with grants of up to $10,000 each to assist them in completing their projects in any stage of production. We fund feature length documentary films (45+ minute runtime), and nonfiction new media projects, with a film/video component. Fiction projects and narrative fiction films based on a true story are not eligible.
TALK DEATH
https://talkdeath.com/write-for-us/
We want our Community to grow and are looking for greats reads on anything from bereavement, grief support, the funeral industry, death positivity and anything related to death. Your article should be at
least 800 words long. Related Fiction or creative non-fiction is also more than welcome. Include 1 related image, of good quality that has a width of 1333px max and is licensed under Creative Common with a link to the creator. Pays 20 cents/word for up to 1,200 words. MAKE A LIVING WRITING
https://makealivingwriting.com/guest-post-guidelines/
The site’s content focuses on helping writers find better-paying writing jobs, pitch more effectively, hone their craft, and even become an author. We currently pay $150 to $230 USD for guest posts (higher fees are for longer, in-depth pieces written on assignment only). We buy all rights to your post and ask that your post is original and not posted somewhere else at the same time. In general, we only accept guest post
proposals from current and former Freelance Writers Den members, and past writers for Make a Living Writing. Occasionally, we hold an open pitch time. If you’d like to pitch but you haven’t been through the Den then follow our Facebook Page. We post there when we’re open to pitches. REFINERY29
https://you.refinery29.com/submit-money-diary
Whether you’re saving up for a house, vacation, or you just want to be smarter with money, tracking your purchases is a great starting point. With Money Diaries, we’re asking YOU to share how you spend your hard-earned money over seven days. Record the time of day, amount spent, and a little blurb about what you bought for every purchase. The more detail you provide, the better understanding we get of your day-to-day which is
what makes a Money Diary fun to read. Please try to keep your Money Diary 3,000-5,000 words. Pay is £100/diary if selected. OFF ASSIGNMENT
https://www.offassignment.com/write-for-us
Off Assignment is a literary magazine with a penchant for journeys and a fascination with strangers. We’re
looking for writers who travel, poets who wander, essayists with a sense of place, reporters with swollen notebooks, and gourmands with street cart taste. Word count: 300–3000 depending on the column. We consider full drafts only, and pay $500 for “Letter to a Stranger,” “No Equivalent,” and “Under the Influence” essays. We pay $100 for “Witching Hour” essays. REDACTED
https://redacted.moksha.io/publication/redacted
Deadline July 31, 2025. Anonymous personal essays for print/digital anthology: 1000-3000 words. Pays $125. The Redacted weekly Substack column will feature anonymous personal essays about the author's experience with divorce as well as shorter form stories. A selection of longer form anonymous stories will be published as a print and digital
anthology in 2026. CITY OF LIGHT PUBLISHING
https://cityoflightpublishing.com/submission-guidelines/
We’re looking for books with a well-defined target market. Although we will consider a complete manuscript, we prefer to receive queries with
strong outlines and abstracts. However, if you are submitting a memoir, please submit the full manuscript. The City of Light has six unique, vibrant imprints. CrissCross AppleSauce publishes picture books that inspire and educate children of all ages. Cross Your Fingers is our middle grade and early reader imprint. Cross Your Heart publishes young adult books that explore the joys and perils that every young adult can relate to as they navigate their own coming-of-age story. New Idea Press
publishes innovative non-fiction books. Blacklight Press publishes innovative fiction books. Buffalo Heritage Press is committed to telling the stories of Buffalo, New York, one beautiful book at a time.
TELL-TALE PUBLISHING
https://www.tell-talepublishing.com/guidelines.html
IMPRINTS
Dahlia:
Romance, Romantic Suspense, Gothic Suspense, Regency, Single Title Contemporary
Stargazer: Fantasy: Paranormal, High Adventure Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Steampunk
Nightshade: Horror
Casablanca: Mystery
Thistle: Middle School, Young Adult, New Adult
Déjà Vu: Republication from all genres HARLEQUIN PRESENTS (M&B Modern)
https://harlequin.submittable.com/submit/29561/harlequin-presents-mb-modern-50-000-words
These stories are all about passion and escape—glamorous international settings, captivating emotional drama and high-stakes seduction. Novel length 50,000 words. Tone should be contemporary but with a strong intensity, delivering an instant hit of powerful
emotion. Give classic themes a fresh 21st century twist - tease, surprise and delight. LOVE INSPIRED
https://harlequin.submittable.com/submit/29570/love-inspired-55-000-words
Contemporary inspirational romance novels. Strong contemporary romances with a
Christian worldview and wholesome values. Relationships that emphasize emotional intimacy rather than sexual desire. Word count of 55,000. Western settings and cowboy/rancher heroes continue to be very popular with our readers. Amish romances are still very appealing to Love Inspired readers. We are seeking new authors and stories set in Amish communities across the US.
Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint any editorials, contact hope@fundsforwriters.com for permission. Do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your publication is considered a valid right to publish out of ours.
C. Hope Clark
E-mail: hope@fundsforwriters.com
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036
http://www.fundsforwriters.com Copyright 2000-2025, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326 Our subscriber list is NOT made available to others. Use information listed at your own risk. FundsforWriters gives no warranty to completeness, accuracy, or fitness of the markets, contests, and grants although research is done to the best of our
ability. FundsforWriters finds open submission calls, contests, and markets from a wide variety of sources, including Erika Dreifus' Practicing Writer
newsletter, Erica Verrillo's blog, Authors Publish, Poets & Writers, Duotrope, Winning Writers, Write Jobs Plus, LinkedIn Jobs, Emily Stoddard, and other newsletters and online sites. Many announcements are submitted directly to FundsforWriters. All must be paying opportunities. Contests must pay a minimum of $200 first place. Submit potential listings to hope@chopeclark.com **Note that FundsforWriters.com places paid advertising in this newsletter. ALL ads are related to writers and the business of writing, screened by FundsforWriters to make sure the information is suitable for writers and their endeavors to improve their careers. While the mailing list is
not sold to third parties, other parties do advertise in the newsletter, to include the occasional solo ad. You will not receive this newsletter without your permission. It's physically impossible since recipients must opt-in, giving us permission to send the newsletter. If at any time you no longer wish to receive the newsletter, click the UNSUBSCRIBE link at the bottom of each newsletter. We want you to enjoy this newsletter at your pleasure, not be forced to read anything you do not wish to
receive. Direct any complaints, suggestions, and accolades to Hope Clark at hope@fundsforwriters.com. We are an anti-spam site. | |
|
|
|
