Volume 8, Issue 42
October 19, 2008

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FUNDS FOR WRITERS

Writer's Digest's 101 Best Websites for Writers
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008

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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.

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PAID SPONSOR OF THE WEEK
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IMAGINE BEING A SUCCESSFUL CHILDREN'S BOOK AUTHOR

If you think that's unlikely, think again. First-time children's
writers get published a lot more often than you realize. Once you
know how to avoid the common mistakes that other beginners make,
getting your children's book on bookstore shelves can be easier
and faster than you've ever imagined. Click here to learn more:

http://www.publishachildrensbook.com/kid/b8a
                 
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EDITOR'S THOUGHTS
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Read newsletter online at: http://www.fundsforwriters.com/FFW.htm
Read past issues at: http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?fundsforwriters

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POPSICLES

It's easy to be against something ...that you're afraid of.
It's easy to be afraid of something that you don't understand.

When you see people ranting online, usually they fall in line
with the above school of thought. They bash something they're
afraid of or something they do not understand. No, I'm not talking
politics, but it applies there, too.

We bash agents, but we don't know any. We criticize editors,
but we've never spoken in person to one. We fuss that contests
are rigged, so we do not enter. We don't query, because our
submission will only land in a shredder.

We chastise something because we heard this and heard that.
It's like the guy on the commercial talking to his girlfriend
with the popsicle. He frowns and says it contains sucrose.
The girlfriend asks what's wrong with it. He can't say. She
tells him the good points of the popsicle and offers him one.
He takes it and they laugh, happy with the world.

This world is seriously crammed full of people afraid to
take steps into unknown territory. Many don't want to walk
on unchartered ground, so they surmise that the experience
can only be bad.

Therefore, they...

1. Don't submit to high-paying magazines.
2. Don't query agents.
3. Don't pitch traditional publishers.
4. Don't market themselves.
5. Don't sell their writing.

And most of them complain about the publishing arena and
the strife of a freelance writer.

Listen. Until you've tasted and studied the ingredients of
that popsicle, how do you know it isn't good for you?

What's the worst that could happen if you strike out there
on your own and take chances?

1. You get rejected.
2. You don't sell your work.

Doesn't look so terrible, does it?

Now, go find a popsicle.

    Hope

http://www.hopeclark.blogspot.com

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7th ANNUAL FUNDSFORWRITERS ESSAY CONTEST
Sponsored by IdeaWeaver
www.ideaweaversoftware.com

FundsforWriters and its annual sponsor IdeaWeaver, creator
of writing and creativity software, announce the 7th Annual
FundsforWriters Essay Contest.

THEME: "The Best Advice I Ever Had."

As is the FundsforWriters trademark, applicants enter with
or without an entry fee, their choice. Prize monies range
from $10 to $200.  Limit 750 words. Deadline October 31,
2008.

www.fundsforwriters.com/annualcontest.htm
Questions to hope@fundsforwriters.com

Also sponsored by:

Shelley Lieber
4Ps to Publishing Success:
Get Your Manuscript Off Your Desk & Into Print
www.shelleylieber.com/work1.htm

and

Original Impulse - Cynthia Morris
Creativity & Life Coaching Resources for Writers
www.originalimpulse.com

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WRITER'S DIGEST TOP 101 BEST WRITING WEB SITES TAKING NOMINATIONS

Writer's Digest is now accepting nominations for next year's list.
Refer sites for 2009 by sending a nomination to:
writersdig@fwpubs.com  with "101 Websites" as the subject line.

Hope FundsforWriters has aided you in some way in 2008 to
prompt your nomination of us to this wonderful competition.
Much thanks for your consideration.   ~HOPE

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WORDS OF SUCCESS

Any subject can be made interesting, and therefore, any
subject can be made boring.

~Hilaire Belloc

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ARTICLE
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Write, Write Against The Dying Of The Light

By Patch Rose

What does my terminal cancer diagnosis have to do with
FundsforWriters, or your writing career?

Well, let me start with several quotes from writers.

"Storytelling is the pathway to salvation." Frank McCourt.

"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as
well make it dance." George Bernard Shaw.

"Obstacles can't stop you. Problems can't stop you. Most of
all, other people can't stop you. Only you can stop you."
Jeffrey Gitomer.

And this one, from my Estonian grandfather: "Many people who
have gold in the house are looking for copper outside."

Here's my gold: In November 2005, doctors discovered a malignant
tumor in my brain. It's formally known as Glioblastoma
Multiforme, or GBM. I call it, "My little buddy, Gilligan."

More notable humans than I with this the same affliction
include U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy and Tug McGraw, father of
country music star Tim McGraw. GBM patients, depending on the
tumor's size and placement in the brain, tend to live about a
year. Maybe less. That's what doctors told me back in 2005.

As I write this, I am a 35-month GBM survivor. At 31 months,
my doctors and I thought I had the cancer beat. At 32 months,
the tumor returned, bigger than normal.

So my fight goes on today. So too, fellow writer, continues
your fight: To overcome the ceaseless rejection letters, to
conquer the siren song of the television over your keyboard,
to withstand the criticism of editors and to fend off the
taunting of your own 'Gilligan;' the devil who whispers in
your ear that your writing just isn't good enough.

Resist, fellow scribblers. Only you can stop you. As Robert
Browning wrote: "A minute of success pays for years of failure."
Return. Conquer. Refuse to surrender. Most of all, use what
life gives you, even if what life gives you is the promise of
death.

You may blanch at the prospect of sharing such personal
information as a cancer diagnosis with the faceless crowd
behind a newspaper's subscription base, or worse, the
international golem that makes up the web. I offer one more
quote: "Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your
own mind." Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Rather than being a "downer" or an inappropriate topic of
discussion, my regular communications about my cancer journey
have introduced me to new readers and new writing markets.  My
fight with cancer birthed "One Year to Live? A Nobody's Guide
to Surviving Cancer." This twice-monthly cancer column in my
small town's paper became website content. That site:
http://www.patchrose.com, draws regular readers throughout
the U.S.A. and Europe.

My cancer columns have won "Best Column" awards three years
consecutively from the New Mexico Press Association. I've been
interviewed by BBC, NPR and featured twice on the front-page of
Albuquerque Journal. Finally, I've sold other writing pieces
born from my cancer journey, including this one.

In addition, I have found a rock-solid writing niche. In our
current state of economics, illness and healthcare hit readers
close to home. Further, cancer has become one of humanity's
remaining common grounds.

Everybody loves someone with cancer. Everybody wants that
someone to get well, to conquer, no matter who they are--man,
woman, conservative, or liberal. Fighting, surviving and
conquering cancer has become an urgent human desire, a human
challenge that rises above partisanships of any kind.

Rather than surrendering, I chose to believe that writing about
my cancer journey was my pathway to salvation. I chose to
believe that I could help others. I chose to make the skeleton
dance.

And to paraphrase Frost, that choice--to believe--has made all
the difference.

BIO
In November 2005, reporter and freelance writer Patch Rose
was diagnosed with a GBM brain tumor. Statistically, GBM
patients live about one year after diagnosis. So far, Patch
has beaten the odds, and a new recurrence of his cancer.
Patch writes a bi-weekly column on cancer for the Truth or
Consequences Herald, called "One Year to Live? A Nobody's
Guide to Surviving Cancer." Patch lives in the New Mexican
desert alongside his wife, cats and Chihuahuas.
"One Year to Live?" is based on Patch's true-life story.

http://www.patchrose.com

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COMPETITIONS
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DESMOND ELLIOTT PRIZE
http://www.desmondelliottprize.org/pages/news/index.asp?NewsID=30
---
NO ENTRY FEE
Looking for a novel which has a compelling narrative, arresting
characters, and which is both vividly written and confidently
realized. Worth £10,000 to the winner the prize is designed to
support new writers and celebrate engaging new fiction. The prize
reflects the ethos of the charismatic and successful agent and
publisher, Desmond Elliott, whose professed duty was to have
confidence and faith in his new authors by offering them three-
book deals to ensure they were free of financial worries and so
could write happily and securely. Books will be considered from
all fiction genres. Deadline November 28, 2008. United Kingdom
publishers may enter up to two full-length novels per imprint
by authors whose permanent place of residence is in the UK, with
scheduled publication dates between April 2008 and April 2009.

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GLIMMER TRAIN - FAMILY MATTERS
http://www.glimmertrain.com/familymatters.html
---
$15 ENTRY FEE
This month's Family Matters competition closes on October 31.
We're looking for original, unpublished stories on family,
word count range: 500 - 12,000. First place wins $1,200 and
publication in Issue 74 of Glimmer Train Stories. Second-
and third-place winners receive $500/$300 (or, if chosen for
publication, $700).

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NIGHTBOAT BOOKS CONTEST
http://www.nightboat.org/Submit_To_Contest_bw.htm
---
$20 ENTRY FEE
The winning poet receives $1,000 and a standard royalty contract,
including 10 complimentary copies of the book. Deadline
November 15, 2008. 48 to 70 pages (suggested length), single-
spaced, paginated, no more than one poem per page, one side of
the page only.

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GRANTS
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ART VENTURE FREEDOM TO CREATE PRIZE
http://www.FreedomToCreatePrize.com
---
An inaugural international prize celebrating artists who have
used the arts as a medium to promote and protect human rights,
including the freedom of expression, empathy, equality, and
understanding. Three prize categories: Main Prize of $50,000 is
open to individuals or artistic groups in all creative fields
(prize is split into two components: $25,000 for the winner,
$25,000 for an organization nominated by the winner); Youth
Prize of $25,000 for artists under age 18; and Imprisoned Artist
Prize for an artist currently imprisoned for their artwork
($25,000 toward supporting their family, paying legal costs,
and supporting advocacy efforts).  Film and Performance are
among eligible art forms. Deadline: October 31, 2008.

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VALENTINE AND CLARK EMERGING ARTIST FELLOWSHIP
http://www.burnsfilmcenter.org/education/educationimages/Fellowshipdescrip08.pdf
---
Program is a three to six-month commitment, during which the
emerging artist will have the opportunity to strengthen his
or her artistic skills through time for personal work and
support from a network of mentors in the field. Artists in
film disciplines and of all skills, including animation,
documentary, video arts, narrative, screenwriting, sound design,
cinematography, etc. are encouraged to apply. Must be under
age 30 and a college graduate. Must demonstrate financial need.
Stipend of $6,500 to $8,500 will be awarded to the fellow
depending upon length of time committed. The fellow will also
serve as a lead or assistant instructor within one of the
school's programs for students 8-18 years of age. The fellow
is expected to commit an average of 30 hours a week, with
about 10 hours committed to teaching and instruction.
Deadline November 1, 2008.

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SPIRO ARTS
http://www.spiroarts.org/
---
Spiro Arts is an Artist-in-Residence community and workshop
center, located in the beautiful Silver Star Resort community
in Park City, UT. Situated on a historic mine site adjacent
to Park City Mountain Resort, the rustic architecture and
newly restored mine buildings provide a unique setting for
Spiro's multidisciplinary programs, while also serving as
headquarters for Park City's Sundance Film Festival.  Spiro
Arts hosts a diverse community of artists, writers and
researchers while offering residencies, summer workshops,
children's programs and a public lecture series. 2009
Residency Fellowships include housing, studio and a $600
stipend. Deadline January 2, 2009.

 
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FREELANCE MARKETS
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PASTE MAGAZINE
http://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/4214/writer_guidelines
---
Paste magazine is a monthly publication focusing on music,
film, books and other forms of arts and entertainment. We focus
on a variety of musical genres---rock, singer/songwriters, alt.
country, Americana, indie rock, world music, electronica and
whatever else we think will grab music-lovers seeking something
a little deeper. Paste strives to cover the best music in this
eclectic mix, devoting space to independent musicians alongside
more established artists. Cover stories - 3,000 to 4,500 words;
Features - 1,500 to 4,000 words; front of book pieces - 50 to
800 words; Film Reviews - 200-500 words; Book Reviews - 200-
500 words; CD reviews - 100 to 800 words. Pays about 25 cents/word.

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SAVANNAH MAGAZINE
http://www.savannahmagazine.com/info_pages/contact-us
http://forums.writersweekly.com/viewtopic.php?p=59443
---
We are always eager to receive suggestions for stories from
our readers.  Mail, e-mail or fax (912-525-0611) your ideas
or press releases to the attention of the editor.  We encourage
writers to submit queries and manuscripts for consideration.
Submissions should include samples of previously published
work and a brief description of the idea. Savannah Magazine
publishes articles about local people and events in and
around the Savannah area of interest to residents of the
city, Chatham County and the surrounding region. Pays up to
$350.

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ASIA-PACIFIC TROPICAL HOMES
http://www.trophomes.com/thecontributor.htm
---
There are three Departments in the front of the magazine,
each running up to 10 short pieces, each from 50 to 250
words, usually with one photo or illustration. The three
sections deal with people (Life & Style), property (Hot
Hot Property) and items for the home (Buy By Design).
Features should be a topic relevant to the whole region, or
several countries within it, and to gain a prominent position
in the magazine it should lend itself to beautiful photography.
We are open to hard-hitting environmental stories that tell
the truth about environmental situations in the region. Some
topics planned include the rape of Indonesia forests and the
near-extinction of the Javan and Sumatran rhinos. We are
looking for more strong topics, and can give authors long
lead times to allow good research. Features fees average
between US $200 to US $450 for stories of 1,200 to 2,000+
words.

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JOBS
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EDITOR
Location Fort Meade, MD
http://jobsearch.usajobs.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=76316523&aid=27015391-7108&WT.mc_n=MKT000125
---
Deadline October 28, 2008. Employing Agency: Office of the
Secretary of the Army. In this position you will serve as
Editor, for the U.S. Army Audit Agency (USAAA). You will
serve as an authority on written materials, as well as
principal advisor on editorial matters and writing policy.
In this capacity you will be responsible for final editorial
review on Agency reports, responsible for making sure complex
technical subject matter and abstract concepts and ideas are
presented in clear and unambiguous terms to reduce the
possibility of unfavorable command reaction, media attention,
and public reaction.

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WRITER-EDITOR
Location Fort Polk, LA
http://jobsearch.usajobs.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=76419404&aid=27015391-8108&WT.mc_n=MKT000125
---
Deadline October 22, 2008. Writes/edits news, sports, feature
and editorial articles. Proofs pages, working with contract
publisher's personnel to ensure design and layout meets editor's
policies. Assignment requires the development, analysis, and
selection of appropriate information and presentation of the
information in a form and at a level suitable for the intended
audience. Writes/edits news, sports, feature and editorial
articles which convey information involving objective and
factual data, or uncomplicated descriptions of operations
requiring basic principles, concepts and methodology of writing
or editing occupation. Civilian position with the Army.

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PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST
Location Korea
http://jobsearch.usajobs.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=76386524&aid=27015391-8108&WT.mc_n=MKT000125
---
Deadline October 21, 2008. Civilian position with the Army.
Conducts the U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan Command Information
Program. Acts as the editor of the Seoul section of the Morning
Calm Weekly newspaper and USAG-Yongsan web site. Plans,
coordinates, and implements command information programs to
support the USAG-Yongsan leadership and to give voice to
command issues. Produces print products of various types to
effectively disseminate command messages and meet audiences'
needs. Writes for command publications internal and external
to USAG-Yongsan.

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PUBLISHERS/AGENTS
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GLOBO LIBROS
http://www.globo-libros.com/
---
Globo Libros is a literary agency specializing in the
burgeoning Hispanic market.

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ROBERT ASTLE & ASSOCIATES LITERARY MANAGEMENT, INC.
http://www.astleliterary.com/
---
We are especially interested in receiving non-fiction
projects with a wide range of topics, including narrative
non-fiction, popular culture, arts and culture, theater and
performance, sports, travel, celebrity, biography, politics,
memoir, history, new media and multi-ethnic. We are actively
seeking writers of literary fiction and commercial fiction-
mysteries and suspense, thrillers, mainstream literary fiction,
historical fiction, women's fiction, humor and satire and
graphic novels. We will also seek writers in the genre of
young audiences: middle grade and teen.

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ELLIPSIS PRESS
http://www.ellipsispress.com/submission-guidelines/
---
Ellipsis Press is interested in novels that are structurally
innovative. We like novels that look normal but aren't (more
than those that look weird but are actually quite normal);
those that are successful at bypassing or evolving the
seemingly necessary but often tired elements of character
and/or plot; and those that respond in some way to the history
of the novel as genre and form. Writers who have studied the
traditional elements of the novel and experimented with them
to emotionally moving and/or extraordinary ends are invited
to submit for publication.

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SPONSORS
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LONG TALE PRESS
http://www.longtalepress.com
---
Long Tale Press was founded by three writers with the goal
of publishing great stories, well told. Our unique approach
is to have actual readers look at submissions and tell us
what they would buy. Writers get direct feedback during the
process, so you know where you stand and what it takes to
get through. For details, see our website.

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CAN YOU TAKE A SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPH?

If yes, you could make $2,000 a week taking snap shots in your
own backyard. on your family vacations. Or anywhere in the
world you care to travel. Here's everything you need to know
about this fun and lucrative business:

http://www.thephotographerslife.com/ph2/b8a

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New for Memoir Writers!

Download a Free eBook Begin Your Memoir Now.
Sign up for our newsletter.

Coming October 23--Free All-Day Telesummit for Memoir Writers.
Learn about building your brand, emotion & plot for memoirs,
success tips from agents, NY publishing vs self-publishing,
voice and theme in memoir. NAMW has CDs, ebooks, books, free
audios and teleseminars, online workshops, and many generous
membership benefits--ebooks, books, and monthly teleseminars
only for members.

www.namw.org   510-524-3898

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WRITING FOR THE HEALTH MARKET

Everything you need to write powerful and effective copy
for the huge and ever-growing $200-billion alternative
health market - plus immediate access to over 300 of the
industry's biggest mailers.

http://www.thewriterslife.com/hmp/b8a

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BECOME A TRAVEL WRITER

Imagine sliding out of bed and knowing your "work" for the day
is to scuba dive along the Great Barrier Reef...mountain climb
in the Andes...or Kayak around the remote islands of the San Juans...

http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/twr/b8a

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A POTENTIAL SIX FIGURE INCOME... WRITING

Imagine a job in which you set your own hours, and live where
you please: at the beach, in the mountains, in Paris. As a
copywriter, you can. Here's how to lean the secrets of this
writing market:

http://www.thewriterslife.com/awi/b8a1

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WORLDWIDE FREELANCE WRITER - Download a free list of writing
markets if you subscribe this week. Our database has almost 2,000
writing markets from USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Australia.

http://www.worldwidefreelance.com

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http://www.fundsforwriters.com/adrates.htm

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BUSINESS STUFF
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C. Hope Clark
E-mail: hope@fundsforwriters.com

140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036

http://www.fundsforwriters.com

Copyright 2000-2008, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326

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