VOLUME 25, ISSUE 45 | november 14, 2025 |
SCAMS ARE SLICKER THESE DAYS The requests for marketing your book to book clubs, conferences, etc. are getting slicker. This week, someone wrote me supposedly from a Carolina book club on Meetup. I looked it up. There is indeed a club. This person wanted to make my book available to
all their membership to be read one month in 2026. I get real life requests like this all the time that are legit. The wording on this one was a bit slick, though, and something niggled my mind to double check. I told them they sounded like all the recent scams going around for things just like this. They said they hadn't thought about it, but she guessed it did
look like that. She was sorry. We agreed to her listing the book, but I told her I wanted nothing that carried a payment. She said perfectly understandable. In the third email, she said what they could do via the book club, but then she offered a second option that carried a cost. I wrote back. "There is the bait and switch I've been waiting for." I have not heard back from her. People are rarely going to reach out to you like this. I get emails from real book clubs, but they are obvious. We set a date, I sometimes send marketing material, and we are good. I usually show up and entertain them. All is good. But if you cannot clearly identify such requests as legit, or if you feel your leg being tugged, move on. Yes, it's flattering for people to want your book. But have you ever
thought how they chose your book out of the millions out there? And for goodness sake, don't send them money. Writers are noted for being a desperate lot for attention. Don't be one of those. |
SERIOUS SYMBIOSIS
Several times this week, someone has told me what they write, how long they've been writing, and how much they love writing. They've finished a first draft, edited it once or twice, then deemed it ready for publication. They ask me where they can send their writing, as if that were
just an afterthought, and that I kept a list of markets who always take work exactly like they write. It's like just being able to write complete sentences makes you a professional writer. To be marketable, you have to define who you write for, and you need to stand heads and shoulders above others. That doesn't mean just to readers. You also have to cater to who will print
your work. Where are they? Who are the good ones? Who are the approachable ones? How do you pitch to them? There is a symbiotic relationship required with taking writing seriously. You have to please yourself, hit a sweet spot with readers, and impress a publisher. Let's say you skip the publisher aspect and self-publish. That's fine if you've done tons of homework on the success of traditional authors. You read tons of books. You
study websites. You study publishers and what they deem marketable. Because you want everyone not to be able to tell the difference between indie publishing and traditional. But if you choose self-publishing, do you want the reader to know you self-published? No. You only want to be noted for writing well and putting a book in reach of the reader. That means you have to match what traditional does, what it looks like, how it
sells books. You think nobody will notice, but they will. Don't cut corners. Pour yourself into your product as if you had that three-legged stool to be accountable to: a publisher, a reader, and yourself. Don't make excuses about why you can never be as good as someone else. You are already shortchanging yourself, and readers can tell.
CALL FOR ENTRIES: 2026 Next Generation Short Story Awards The Next Generation Short Story Awards is a not-for-profit awards program open to authors writing original unpublished short stories in English. - Submissions accepted: Short stories and poems (5,000 words or less)
- Categories: 30+
- Deadline: February 26, 2026
- Winners' Prizes: Winners in each category receive $75 cash prizes, gold medals, digital stickers, social media coverage, literary exposure, story publication in an Anthology of Winners, and a complimentary copy of the Anthology of Winners. Three Grand Prize Winners will be selected
from all entries and awarded $500 for 1st Prize, $300 for 2nd Prize and $200 for 3rd Prize and will be invited to attend the Next Generation Indie Book Awards gala ceremony.
- Finalists' Benefits: Finalists in each category are given digital stickers, literary exposure, and author's name and title of story mentioned in
the Anthology of Winners. A copy of the Anthology of Winners is available to purchase at half price and silver medals are available to order.
- Enter at: www.shortstoryawards.com
Take advantage of this exciting opportunity and have
your short story recognized as one of the top short stories written this year! -Nov 22, 2025 - Christmas Market - 8AM-2PM - ICRC Rec Ctr, Chapin, SC -Apr 15,
2026 - Book Club, Noon to 2 PM - Elgin, SC (members only)
Email: hope@chopeclark.com to schedule events, online or otherwise. “Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.” —Will Rogers
Hope - I wanted to thank you since I got a grant in 2010 (from the Firebird Foundation) that I read about in your newsletter. Actually, a friend of mine (who is an author) first sent me your email with that grant info (then I signed onto your mailing list). If I hadn't
gotten that grant, I may not have found the other grant, which was from the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC): https://www.arabculturefund.org/ So you have affected the trajectory of my life in a good way! I co-wrote a journal article based on that research and am working on a documentary film now
from the footage I took that year and the following year (with another grant). AFAC has a grant program now called "Creative and Critical writings (CCW)," so that could appeal to some of your readers.
My project is with some Jordanian Bedouins who wanted to document their culture before it fades out, and indeed, two of the people we interviewed/filmed have passed already. I retired from my regular
job recently and plan to spend more time now on this project.
So thanks for helping me! Best wishes, Kathleen Hood, Ph.D.
kathleenhood8@gmail.com <<If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to hope@chopeclark.com >> Making Money from Writing on Medium, Part 2:
Monetizing
By Dan Brotzel (See Part 1: The Basics) The main way of making money from Medium is to join the Medium Partner Program and start submitting to ‘publications’. It’s worth subscribing too. Anyone can read a limited amount of the content on Medium, but for unlimited access beyond the paywall, you have to be a member yourself. Subscribing is how Medium makes the money it can pass on to writers. (Medium is ad-free.) This costs $5 per month or $60 per year, so my first target every year is to cover that. Writers earn money by getting subscribers to engage with their articles. Medium provides detailed stats on all your stories, including views, reads, read ratio and claps (likes). These signals help your content get seen or translate directly into cash. Here’s Medium’s guide to stats. Technically you can earn money without becoming a Member. But by subscribing you get access to all the content, so you can see what works, and you can grow your base more effectively by clapping for and responding to other people’s content. Joining the MPP This is the main way to make money. You need to be 18+,
have a Medium account with 100+ followers and a Stripe account for payouts. Full details here.
My best ever month’s payout was December 2024 ($256.86) and my worst December 2019 ($0.15). Much depends on how active you are, and how much reach you get for any particular article. Balances over $10 are paid out every month.
Publications Publications help you reach bigger audiences. The Startup, which focuses on building businesses, has 770k followers, and Personal Growth – ‘Practical wisdom for life’ – has c500k. My best results have come via Human Parts, with 324k followers and a focus on personal stories. Check out top publications here. To
submit to a publication, use this in-depth list with direct links to submission guidelines. You’re usually asked to express your interest by email or commenting on a submission article. You may be asked for a draft link to an article. You’ll then be added as a writer. The draft thing is very important. If you accidentally publish it directly, even if you quickly unpublish it, some publications may not accept it because Medium frowns on duplication within the site. So instead of hitting the big green Publish button, select ‘Add to publication’ from the menu just to its left (look for the three dots). If you’ve been approved to submit, the publication’s name will now come up in your list of titles. Editors can send you private notes on pieces you submit, notifying acceptance or rejection, or requesting edits. Always check their style/formatting guidelines, which all differ slightly. The bigger the publication, the harder to get a piece accepted. But publications that welcome newer writers include Write A Catalyst, Illumination and New Writers Welcome. What to write about? Perennially popular topics include entrepreneurship, tech, wellbeing, mental health and life hacks. Vulnerability, authenticity, originality and expert insight all do well. Check out this piece on popular Medium topics and niches or this one on the 100 most popular tags. Once a piece is published, you can go back and
edit pieces any time, even post-publication, for example adding links to new articles or a CTA for your new book. You can share it on social media, email it to non-member friends (who won’t be able to read it behind the paywall) and reply to any responses it generates. It’s good form to respond to comments, and to comment on other people’s stories when you can. Piece not accepted? Simply submit it to another publication. Once it’s out there somewhere, it can go on earning for you. Evergreen topics can deliver strong SEO value too. Boosts and Top Writer Status The pieces that have done best for me have received the magic Boost, when Medium’s editors select a story they really like and promote
it further across the site and/or in email newsletters. More background here, and here’s Medium’s own list of publications that can help you get boosted. Another way to increase engagement – something I’ve still not managed – is to get named as a Top Writer in a particular category. This is a matter of strategic tagging and writing consistently engaging content in a specific area. More here. Writing on Medium is addictive. It’s always fun to check in and see the latest stats and responses, and plan the next submission. As well as a side hustle, Medium can be useful for writers in lots of other ways. I
use it as a resource for researching ideas and information. I can also group articles together as Lists eg Hermit-crab fictions or Copywriting
& content skills or Rejection and writing resilience and show them to editors who want to see examples of my work.
BIO - Dan Brotzel’s latest novel is Thank You For The Days (Bloodhound Books). He also writes widely on Medium.
SHEPTON SNOWDROPS COMPETITION
https://www.sheptonsnowdrops.org.uk/competitions/2026-poetry-competition/
£4 ENTRY FEE PER POEM. Deadline January 4, 2026. There are
three age categories – under 12s, 12 to 17 and 18 plus, and prizes for 1st place for poetry in each age group. Prizes are: 18 & Over – £300, 12 to 17 – £100, and 11 & Under – £50. Your poem(s) must be no more than 30 lines long. Over 18s can submit up to five poems, under 18s one poem. You can write your poems in any format – haiku, sonnet, blank verse etc., but they must be relevant to the theme. THEME: IN THE GARDEN. JF
POWERS PRIZE FOR SHORT FICTION
https://dappledthings.submittable.com/submit/24212/j-f-powers-prize-for-short-fiction
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2025. First place: $700. Second place: $300. Up to eight honorable mentions: publication in the journal and a one-year subscription. The
word limit is 8,000 words. We’re looking for carefully crafted short stories with vivid characters who encounter grace in everyday settings—we want to see who, in the age we live in, might have one foot in this world and one in the next. INSPOT INAUGURAL SHORT STORY COMPETITION
https://inkspotpublishing.com/competition/2025-short-story-competition/
ENTRY FEE £10 for stories up to 2,500 words. £15 for stories up to 5,000 words. Deadline November 30, 2025. First Prize: £1000. Second Prize: £250. Third Prize: £100. The authors of the Top 12 stories will have an opportunity to feature on FictionJunkies.com, a website which publishes short stories of all genres online. The top three stories will be published on Inkspot
Publishing’s website. Open to anyone. SERVICESCAPE SHORT STORY AWARD
https://www.servicescape.com/short-story-award
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2025 EST. For this award, any genre or theme of short story is accepted. All applicants should submit their original
unpublished work of short fiction or nonfiction, 5,000 words or fewer, to be considered. Along with receiving an award for $1,000 USD, the winner will have his or her short story featured within our blog, which reaches thousands of readers per month. McGOVERN CENTER WRITING AWARDS IN FICTION
https://med.uth.edu/mcgovern/resources/mcgovern-center-writing-awards-in-fiction/
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 1, 2025. A nationwide open call for unpublished fiction that is medical or healthcare-related in theme or focus. There will be three distinct prizes awarded, as follows: McGovern Center Healthcare Provider Award in Fiction: open to any healthcare provider in the U.S., including residents and fellows. Applicants must
be 18 years or older; McGovern Center Student Award in Fiction: open to any student, undergraduate or graduate in the U.S. Applicants must be 18 years or older; McGovern Center Community Award in Fiction: open to anyone in the U.S., 18 years or older. Work must be medical or healthcare related in theme or focus, 5000 words or less. Winners will receive $500 and an opportunity to publish in the Journal of Medical Humanities.
GRANTS / FELLOWSHIP / CROWDFUNDING ASSETS FOR ARTISTS (MASSACHUSETTS)
https://www.assetsforartists.org/blog/2026-northberkshire-capacity-building
Deadline December 15, 2025. Assets for Artists (A4A) provides professional development workshops, coaching, working capital grants, and creative community building for artists of all disciplines. We envision a world where artists
are paid fairly, valued for their artistic, social, and economic contributions, and given equitable access to resources to thrive. This special Capacity-Building Program for 10 North Berkshire artists, performers, or writers pairs an unrestricted micro-grant of $2,000 with professional development tools for artists to design and build their creative future. POETS & WRITERS GRANTS (NEW YORK)
https://www.pw.org/funding/funding_readingsworkshops
New York State and organizations that sponsor readings and workshops may apply for Mini-Grants, Reading Series Grants, and Festival Grants to pay writers for their participation. All grants are paid by P&W directly to the writer. Due to a mandate from our funders, grants for events outside of New York City (i.e. New
York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, and Richmond counties) are restricted to writers who are New York State residents. We consider applications from sponsoring or presenting organizations only; nonprofit status is not required. Writers may not apply without a sponsoring organization. However, we encourage writers to initiate events and let organizations know they can apply on their behalf. We make grants for writers' fees only, up to $3000. TEXAS COMMISSION FOR THE ARTS
https://www.arts.texas.gov/current-grants/
The Texas Commission on the Arts funds a wide variety of arts and cultural activities across the state. This is a list of all the grants approved by the Commission. These grant activities will occur sometime within fiscal year 2026 (Sept 1, 2025 through August 31, 2026).
You can search this list by the grantee organization name, by city, or by Texas region. CREATIVE WEST ARTIST FUND
https://creativewestgrants.gosmart.org/
Deadline November 30, 2025. The Creative West Artist Fund celebrates and supports the creative, emotional, and financial
well-being of artists and cultural practitioners across the 16 states and jurisdictions in the Creative West region. Grant Amount: $5,000 per artist or collaborative. Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Guam, Hawai‘i, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming. WE NEED DIVERSE BOOKS EMERGENCY GRANTS
https://www.diversebooks.org/programs/emergencygrants
WNDB provides emergency grants to diverse authors and illustrators, publishing workers, and educators who are experiencing dire financial need, whether due to loss of employment, natural disasters, medical emergencies, and more. We aim to bolster the communities we serve by giving grants between $250 and $1,000 each. To
be eligible for assistance, applicants must be part of one of these groups. Writers and/or illustrators, must be published. We define 'published' as having at least one published or forthcoming book from a traditional publisher, or having at least one short story published in a magazine, journal, or literary website. Publishing professionals must be employed or recently employed by a traditional publisher or literary agency. K-12 educators, must be employed or recently employed by a K-12
school. Applicants must demonstrate a financial need due to any loss of income. Applicants must reside in the United States.
THE OVAL UPDATE
https://theovalupdate.com/pitches/
We’re encouraging all interested athletes, coaches, track fans, and anybody else with something to say about the world of track and field to apply. We’re primarily interested in track and field topics
that have a global appeal. About 50% of our readers are in the United States, and about 75% are in North America. We’ll occasionally consider local stories if we think they’ll resonate emotionally with a broader audience. Most of our opinion pieces range from 600 to 1000 words, with approximately 700–800 words being the ideal length. Coaches Corner articles primarily target coaches and athletes and typically run around 1,000 words. Open to a limited number of interviews with athletes, coaches,
and other people involved in the sport. Typically, these articles are also around 1,000 words. Pays 10 cents/word. CAST OF WONDERS
https://www.castofwonders.org/submissions/
Cast of Wonders is a young adult speculative short fiction market, open to stories up to 6,000 words in length.
We’re dedicated to publishing fiction that reflects the entire spectrum of the human experience. We aim for a 12-17 age range: that means sophisticated, non-condescending stories with wide appeal, and without gratuitous or explicit sex, violence or pervasive obscene language. Think Percy Jackson or The Hunger Games. Stories are presented in audio format, which means our audience rarely skim past boring bits. We’re looking for fiction with strong pacing, well-defined characters, engaging
dialogue, and clear action. Seeks fantasy, scifi, and horror. We’re happy to read comedy, steampunk, age-appropriate paranormal romance, superheroes and many other genres. All that matters is adherence to our core concept and that critical spark of wonder. Short version: we pay $.08/word for original fiction of any length (yes, including flash!). FANTABULOSA
https://www.bona-books.com/submissions
Deadline November 30, 2025. Fantabulosa! will be a quarterly literary magazine, showcasing tales of the uncanny, the dangerous and the fantastical, from radical and unapologetic queer voices. With a mix of prose, poetry, non-fiction, and art, Fantabulosa! will seek to push the boundaries of bold, authentic, original, queer storytelling. We are
a UK-based organisation, so please account for GMT/BST and plan your time accordingly. Science fiction and fantasy stories between 500 and 6000 words. Science fiction and fantasy stories between 500 and 6000 words. Rates: 8 cents/word (USD). CAMPFIRE STORIES: THE OREGON COAST
https://www.campfirestoriesbook.com/call-for-submissions/oregon-coast
Deadline December 12, 2025. We’re seeking nature and place-based stories for our new Oregon Coast collection. Stories should capture the essence of the region, highlighting the distinctive natural features, flora, fauna, community, history, and experiences of the Oregon Coast. We seek nature-focused stories, through diverse forms of writing (e.g. essays, prose, poetry, ballads, short stories) that convey
an authentic sense of place. Stories should not exceed 2,000 words. Payment $100-$300. UNCHARTED MAGAZINE
https://uncharted.submittable.com/submit/
Looks for scifi, fantasy, thriller, mystery and humor. We pay our authors $200 for original fiction! Submitted stories should be between
1,000-5,000 words. We will also consider previously published fiction, as long as the writer retains the rights or second-publication rights can be obtained. We do not pay for reprints. TEXT PUBLISHING
https://www.textpublishing.com.au/manuscript-submissions
We are broadly interested in publishing fiction and non-fiction, including middle grade and young adult, and welcome submissions from writers in accordance with
the following guidelines. We are not considering poetry, play scripts, screenplays, picture books, activity or poster books, individual short stories, technical manuals, cookbooks, how-to guides, travel guides or educational textbooks. Submissions should be from citizens or residents of Australia and/or New Zealand. We can only consider one manuscript per person at a time. Junior-fiction and middle-grade manuscripts should be between 10,000 and 80,000 words. Adult and young-adult manuscripts
should be between 40,000 and 120,000 words. There is no word count requirement for graphic novels. DOUBLE DAGGER
https://doubledagger.ca/submissions/
We are a Toronto-based publisher of military and security-focused fiction and non-fiction works. We’re interested in material that sheds new
light on familiar topics, or that changes what we think we know about a topic. We are not restricted to signing only Canadian or Canada-based authors, and will happily consider works by writers who are farther afield. HARD CASE CRIME
http://www.hardcasecrime.com/about.shtml
Hard Case Crime
is dedicated to reviving the vigor and excitement, the suspense and thrills—the sheer entertainment—of the golden age of paperback crime novels, both by bringing back into print the best work of the pulp era and by introducing readers to new work by some of today's most powerful writers and artists. Determined detectives and dangerous women...fortune hunters and vengeance seekers...ingenious criminals and men on the run...Hard Case Crime novels offer everything you want from a great story, all
in handsome and affordable editions. OCEANIACOM PRESS GRAPHIC NOVELS
https://oceaniacom.com/submissions/
Oceaniacom Press Graphic Novel/Comic Division accepts submissions in various genres. Fiction: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Romance, Comedy, Thriller, Horror, Slice-of-Life, Fairy-Tale, Literary
Fiction, YA, LGBTQIA+, Anthologies, and more. Preferred Art Styles: Manga/Anime, Experimental, Cartoonish, Whimsical and Playful, Classic Storybook, Gothic, Minimalistic, Abstract, Pop Art, Modern and Stylized, Surrealism. What We’re Looking For: Our Graphic Novel/Comic Division is on the hunt for bold and imaginative storytellers. We’re passionate about discovering eccentric characters, out-of-the-box plots, and narratives that break the mold. We seek engaging and unique artwork that vividly
brings stories to life and uniquely expresses the voice of the creator. SHADOW ALLEY PRESS
https://shadowalleypress.com/about/
We love books and we are crazy-passionate about publishing the best adult Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Action-Adventure around. ULYSSES PRESS
https://ulyssespress.com/about-us/submissions/
Our publishing program seeks to move along the cultural cutting edge. We stay ahead of the competition by publishing books at the forefront of emerging trends and by finding unique angles on established topics unexplored by other publishers. When it comes to
finding new books, we are especially interested in titles that fill demonstrated niches in the trade book market. We seek books that take a specific and unique focus, a focus that can differentiate a book and make it stand out in a crowd. Keep in mind that we are a small press. Expect a wait of at least three months before receiving a reply.
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
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