VOLUME 25, ISSUE 49 | DECEMBER 12, 2025 |
HALF ASLEEP For a long time, I've learned to go to bed with a chapter running in my head. First, it helps me go to sleep. Secondly, it makes my mind work, and in the morning, especially if I go right into the shower, ideas bubble to the surface for what I need to do next. Or where I
need to go back and change events. Then I came across this article containing a study about the very thing I do. https://studyfinds.org/drowsiness-enhances-creativity That in between
time before you go to sleep, and the same in the morning before you wake is ripe for creativity. It's a matter of training yourself to use it. And if you read last week's missive from me, the study says to train yourself to record the information either on a notepad by the bad or having your phone handy, set to instantly record when you need it. Apparently Paul McCartney used this method for his work. "...as we hover between sleep and wakefulness, the conscious mind is barely active. For a brief period, our mental boundaries are permeable, and there is a chance creative insights and ideas will flow through from the subliminal mind. ...this is why creativity is often associated with relaxation and idleness." I love when I'm validated, but I love it more when my work effort works. Check it out. |
Ready to set your 2026 writing goals? Join Kate Meadows on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 9 a.m. MT for a dynamic writing workshop where we'll hammer out your writing goals for the new year. You'll walk away with greater clarity around your 2026 writing, and you'll receive a personalized 2026 writing road map!
In this workshop, you will: • Name 2 or 3 writing goals you want to accomplish in 2026 • Identify potential hurdles that stand between you and those goals • Brainstorm ways to overcome those hurdles • Walk away with a step-by-step plan for how to accomplish your writing goals for 2026 THE AI FORECAST
Recently Jane Friedman, guru of all things publishing in the US if not the world, spoke of AI in her email "The Bottom Line." Some books were disqualified from a national award in New Zealand because they discovered AI was used on the covers. A lot of people think this is appropriate. Others say that AI is nothing more than another artistic tool. Regardless, those authors didn't even know that AI was used on their covers, and disappointed can't begin to describe how
they felt. Jane spoke of AI as something between "the devil and the promised land," which I think is an excellent description. As for me, I believe using it in lieu of paying a human being is not right. What I want to make note of, however, is her forecast, which I see as totally spot on. "I fear we're headed toward greater class bifurcation, where those with the means can
pay for human attention and support and those without must rely on AI." Years ago self-published books screamed novice and all works considered good were traditionally published. The quality was indeed different until enough excellent writing sources built good enough marketing platforms to show that self-published works could be good and could earn a living. AI will have to go through the same growing pain. Those using it now are
unable to afford quality human assistance in terms of editors, artists, and specialists. Those unable to get quality experts choose to go the route of AI. The thing is, one can usually tell. Over time that may change, but until AI is made legit in some manner, I'll stand firm on preferring human originated art and writing. I like to know that what I'm reading and admiring was human-generated. I really don't give a rip about it if it's
machine driven. -Feb 10, 2026 - Book Club, Mt. Horeb Church, Lexington, SC - noon-2PM -Apr 15, 2026 - Book Club, Noon to 2 PM - Elgin, SC (members only)
Email: hope@chopeclark.com to schedule events, online or otherwise. “Originality consists in thinking for yourself, not in thinking differently from other people.” — James Fitzjames Stephen (1829–1894), “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”
<<If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to hope@chopeclark.com >> How to Fake It Till You Make It When Pitching Article/Content Ideas By Dan Brotzel Having worked as a features editor for numerous magazines, head of copy for a content agency and MS/slush reader for various
literary agents, I've looked at 1000s of pitches and submissions. One of the things that always stands out is what I call ‘quiet confidence’. The opposite also stands out, but for the wrong reasons when a writer tries too hard to impress or puts themselves down unnecessarily. Most of us may not feel very confident when we pitch; I know I don’t. But we don’t need
to let editors see that – we can fake it till we make it. Here’s how. Just cite a handful of references
A confident submission doesn't list every publication you’ve written for. Just mention two or three, with links to pieces the editor can look at for themselves.
Choose a title that the editor is likely to
have heard of, and a piece of writing you’re proud of. But stay relevant – if you’re pitching to write an insurance industry report, there’s no point linking to your chicklit novel or your travel guide to Buenos Aires. Respect the editor’s time
Keep your pitch short, crisp and to the point – a couple of hundred words max. The editor has thousands of things to read, and may simply
turn off looking at anything that feels too much like hard work.
You could, for example, include a general intro about yourself and why you’re pitching, with a few links and a brief summary of the idea you want to pitch. You could then go into the idea in more detail under a separate heading or even below your email signoff. Don’t beg it
A pitching message is a crisp business communication between professionals, not a piece of fan mail or a begging letter.
So there’s no need to pretend you know the editor more than you do: 'I realise you must get 100s of emails like this but...' And no need to butter them up: ‘I’m a massive fan of {your title] and love what you’ve done with the editorial direction…’ or ‘I read your piece on XYZ recently
and was completely blown away by the way you...' Make this about you, not them
Within reason, of course. But basically, your pitch is simply you saying: Hi there, we're in the same business, I've got an idea that might work for you, here's a few creds, what do you think? Don't act as if you have to prove you are a writer worth considering - just show that in your tone and
content.
Don’t overdo the chasing
Editors hate being chased, because they are very busy and have to prioritise all the time. If they decide they want your piece, you’ll know all about it soon enough.
Personally, I almost never chase, or only once after a very decent interval, and in a very low-key way. Sometimes the best way is not to mention the
idea at all but nudge the editor in another way, for example by commenting on one of their social media posts or even pitching another idea. It’s important, too, to make peace with the fact that you may never hear back on that particular idea from that title at all. An example Here’s the
sort of template I might use to pitch an idea: Hi Georgina I’m a journalist and copywriter with words in X, Y and Z. I’ve also created content for numerous brands, including A, B and C. I saw your callout for ideas about writing and running, and I wanted to pitch one on how moving from shorter runs to marathons helped me move from writing short stories
to completing full novels. See more details below. For reference, here’s a couple of links to recent pieces of mine: <links> Do let me know if I can tell you more. All the best Dan At all, just act as if you are a writer with an idea worth looking at, which of course
you are, even if you don’t always feel it. Dan Brotzel - Funny-sad author | www.danbrotzel.com
Sign up for occasional emails from me
Thank You For The Days
'I spent 365 Days Celebrating Fake Holidays - And It Changed Me'
THE SLICE POETRY CHAPBOOK CONTEST
https://forkapplepress.submittable.com/submit
$20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 31, 2025. Poetry chapbook submissions should be up to 35 pages of poems, in a
12-point font. The contest winner will receive an award of $500, 10 author copies, and 25% profits on book sales. HENSLEY PRESS SHORT STORY COMPETITION
https://www.henshawpress.co.uk/
£6 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 15, 2025. Henshaw is open to anyone over 16 years of age, short
stories of 2,000 words, on any subject. 1st Prize £200, 2nd Prize £100, 3rd Prize £50. WOLVES LIT FEST POETRY COMPETITION 2026
https://pandemonialists.co.uk/wolves-lit-fest-poetry-competition-2026
£4 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 31, 2025. The
competition this year will once again be an ‘open’ one, so send us poems on whatever subject you like. 1st prize for this competition is £400. 2nd prize, £150. There are three 3rd prizes of £25. There is an additional prize of £50 for the best poem sent in by someone living in a WV (this is not West Virginia) postcode. What we look for is to be taken into poems which create their own world and surprise us with their imagination. Poems must be in English, and no more than 40 lines long. THE WILLIAM CORY WICKWARE MEMORIAL PRIZE FOR FIRST POETRY CHAPBOOK
https://gnashingteethpublishing.com/submission-guidelines/the-william-cory-wickware-memorial-prize-for-first-poetry-chapbook/
The winner will
receive $500 and publication with Gnashing Teeth Publishing, along with a certificate of award. There are no page constraints for manuscripts of full-length books. Chapbooks should be between 30-80 pages. BOULEVARD SHORT FICTION CONTEST FOR EMERGING WRITERS
https://www.boulevardmagazine.org/short-fiction-contest
$18 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 31, 2025. $1,500 and publication in Boulevard awarded to the winning story by a writer who has not yet published a book of fiction, poetry, or creative non-fiction with a nationally distributed press. We accept works up to 8,000 words. GRANTS / FELLOWSHIP / CROWDFUNDING TRILLIUM ARTS RESIDENCIES
https://www.trilliumartsnc.org/artist-residencies
Deadline January 5, 2026. The fee for a residency starts at $600. A limited number of work exchange scholarships
are available. No fee to apply. All 2026 residencies are one week of seven consecutive days in length. Private accommodations in a one-bedroom, ground floor suite. Individual artists who do not require a rehearsal studio (such as writers and photographers) are encouraged to apply for a one week residency. Location Blue Ridge Mountains, Mars Hill, NC. TARBELL FELLOWSHIP
https://www.tarbellcenter.org/fellowship
Deadline January 7, 2026. The Tarbell Fellowship is a one-year program for journalists interested in covering artificial intelligence. Fellows secure a nine-month placement at a major newsroom, participate in a 10-week course covering AI and journalism fundamentals, and attend a weeklong journalism summit in the San Francisco Bay Area. The
Tarbell Fellowship provides a stipend of $60,000 to $80,000 to support placements for early-career fellows, and $90,000 to $110,000 for Senior Fellows (with 5 or more years of experience in journalism or AI). The 2026 Tarbell Fellowship will run from June 8, 2026 to May 31, 2027. GRAND PLAN FELLOWSHIPS - UK
https://www.grandplanfund.co.uk/application-guidance
Grand Plan is for people of colour, aged over 18, living in the UK, looking to make a leap with their creative practice. In particular, we try to support projects and people that might not easily findfunding elsewhere. Our grants can cover: the cost of equipment, courses, your time, materials, travel, or whatever you / your project needs. We fund ideas where £1,000 covers the majority of
costs. We don’t want you to stretch £1,000 for a £10,000 project! We want to know that you have an understanding of what you can do with £1,000. THE IDA B. WELLS SOCIETY INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING FELLOWSHIP
https://idabwellssociety.org/the-ida-b-wells-society-investigative-reporting-fellowship-program/
A no-cost, intensive program designed to sharpen the investigative reporting skills of a select group of journalists under the guidance of some of the most accomplished reporters and editors in the industry, in 2025. The fellowship is intended for journalists not presently assigned to investigative teams. During training, participants will work on projects they have proposed for
publication in their respective newsrooms. SOUTHARTS CREATIVE PRACTIVE GRANTS
https://www.southarts.org/grants-opportunities/artist-creative-practice
South Arts offers Artist Creative Practice Grants (formerly Individual Artist Career Opportunity Grants) to
ensure that artists from our region can take advantage of a variety of career enhancing opportunities. The Artist Creative Practice Grant supports a variety of professional development opportunities including milestone activities in an artist's career that will likely lead to substantial career growth. Grants up to $3,000 are available for opportunities taking place between November 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026. Be a legal resident of the United States and the South Arts region (Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, or Tennessee). LEDE ENTERTAINMENT
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/leah-patterson-4121a818_vertical-screenwriters-wanted-lede-entertainment-activity-7397441108466655234-Y__f/
Lede Entertainment seeks freelance writers to develop and write elevated stories that will be shot in vertical format. We're looking for great characters, engaging relationships, and new takes on familiar tropes in the following genres: edgy rom-coms, mystery-thriller detective stories, Black Mirror-like sci-fi, horror comedies,
friendship comedies, romantic action thrillers or romantic supernatural fantasy dramas (think True Blood.) Please send short pitches and either an IMDB link or resume to info@ledeentertainment.com MIDNIGHT NETWORK
https://forum.midnight.network/t/midnight-content-bounty-program/626
Midnight Foundation is launching a Content Bounty Program to support community members who want to create educational content about building on Midnight. Whether you write tutorials, make videos, or build technical guides, there’s room for you here. Pays $300 to $1000. LATE CHECKOUT
https://www.latecheckouttime.com/
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VkBxIpyYkFrs6TyVkdIenmOpuwZy1wLhjW5qEaxZJhk/edit?tab=t.0
Late Checkout is a cheat sheet for jet setters and go-getters with a penchant for
all things food, drink and travel. Whether it's the biggest trends in bars and restaurants, curated city guides, design inspiration, shoppable packing lists, or noteworthy cultural moments, Late Checkout is here to make your life a little easier and a lot more enjoyable. Sleep in. We got you. At Late Checkout, we cover food, drink, and travel through a cultural lens, with a voice that’s fun, fresh, and Gen Z-approved.
$150 for 200 words (We pay a flat fee of $150 for each assignment. The word
count requirement is 200 words, and writing more won’t increase the fee.) PRAIRIE FIRE
https://www.prairiefire.ca/rates-of-payment/
Prairie Fire magazine buys First North American Serial Rights Only. Rights are reassigned to the author upon publication. Payment is made following
publication and includes one (1) free contributor’s copy. Pays 10 cents/word for prose and $40 per poem. Short fiction, excerpts from longer works: maximum fee $250. ARTICLES, CREATIVE NON-FICTION, EDITORIALS, ESSAYS, MEMOIRS: Maximum fee $250. INTERVIEWS, PROFILES: Maximum fee subject: $75; interviewer: $125. OTHER PROSE: Correspondence, notes, plays, scripts, etc.: maximum fee $50. NOTE: Will start accepting submissions in March 2026. CHICKEN SOUP: HOLIDAY ISSUE
http://www.chickensoup.com
Deadline February 28, 2026. We are now collecting stories for our 2026 holiday book. Please submit your true stories about the entire November and December holiday season, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, and New Year's festivities too. Payment is $250
and 10 copies. Limit 1200 words written in first person. Must be true stories.
CAVE HOLLOW PRESS
https://www.cavehollowpress.com/sub
We are currently seeking full-length novels for publication. Specifically, we would like to see contemporary, literary, or mystery fiction. Send a 3-paragraph (or less) query letter with a synopsis
and the first 5 chapters or 50 pages (whichever is shorter) as an attachment to Gail Crump, Editor - gbcrump@cavehollowpress.com. GROUNDWOOD BOOKS
https://houseofanansi.com/pages/groundwood-submissions
Groundwood Books publishes award-winning books for children and young
adults — literary picture books, fiction, poetry, nonfiction and graphic novels from Canada and around the world. SECOND STORY PRESS
https://secondstorypress.ca/pages/submissions
Second Story Press is proud to be a Canadian feminist press, and to publish books that our entire team
believes in. Our list is a mix of fiction and nonfiction, with books for all ages from infants to adults. We look for manuscripts dealing with the many diverse and varied aspects of the lives of girls and women, and those that fall under the banner of social justice and children's empowerment. MYTHIC ROADS PRESS
https://www.mythicroadspress.com/submissions
Mythic Roads Press is a traditional royalty-based book publisher, currently accepting unpublished Canadian-authored full-length novel submissions (unagented or agented) in the fantasy, science fiction, and romance genres. WE NEED DIVERSE BOOKS
https://www.diversebooks.org/books
We Need Diverse Books is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that takes a holistic approach in improving literacy and building compassion by affecting change across the entire reading pipeline — turning diverse manuscripts into published books and then donating diverse titles to readers nationwide. 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
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