FundsforWriters - October 31, 2010
Published: Fri, 10/29/10
Volume 10, Issue 44
October 31, 2010
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FUNDS FOR WRITERS
Writer's Digest's 101 Best Websites for Writers
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
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Mailto: Hope@fundsforwriters.com
Website: http://www.fundsforwriters.com
Newsletter: 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.
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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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WHY YOU WRITE
I was going to write something philosophical about entering
contests, but Jill threw the article below in my lap at the
last minute, stealing my thunder. She wrote this piece when
someone stepped on her nerves, questioning her enjoyment of
writing contests. Then I realized the issue was larger than
contests.
Do you ever feel that everyone is telling you what to write,
how to write it, and why you write? Tell someone that you
are a writer. I'll bet you a week's pay that some of the
responses sound like this:
1. Can you make a living doing that?
2. I'd write if I had time.
3. Would you write my story for me?
4. Why aren't you published?
5. I tried to find your book in Barnes & Noble, but...
6. I never heard of you.
7. Oh, that's nice. (changing the subject)
After a while, the ignorance by the unschooled wears on your
nerves, like Jill mentioned to me. You feel you have a point
to prove. You let casual remarks from people who can't begin
to understand the profession distract you from your joy.
I'd also bet that half of the writers in the world right now,
will not be writing a year from now. FundsforWriters membership
grows at a respectable rate, but it's always two steps forward
and one step back. Each week I lose 100 members more or less.
But 150 sign up. When writers reply to my query as to why they
left, the majority of the time the reply resembles this:
1. No longer writing.
2. Taking a break from writing.
3. Don't have time to write.
4. Decided not to be a writer.
I'm happy for those people, assuming they tried their hand at
writing and decided it wasn't their thing. That's life. We
try recipes, cars, clothes, classes, hobbies and even dates
in an effort to cull what we don't like and find what we do.
But many of those writers left because they became disenchanted.
They read enough about what type of writer they should be, how
they should be writing, and why they ought to write, that they
quit. I've seen it happen over and over.
We read everywhere about how writers have to be diligent.
Until you've been diligent, weathered the naysayers, and come
out on the other side successful, you do not understand that
diligence means in the writing world. The understanding comes
in hindsight.
You write for your reasons. Don't let people tell you
to do otherwise, because being successful is more in the
enjoyment of your effort rather than the remarks of others.
Hope
FundsforWriters.com and Literary Database.com team up to
co-sponsor the 9th Annual FundsforWriters Essay Contest.
Theme: Writing that made a difference.
Both entry fee and no entry fee categories. First place
winner receives $300. Six awards given. Limit 750 words.
Deadline October 31, 2010. Winners announced December 1, 2010.
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TWEETEBOOKS
Our Tweetebook library contains 20+ niche markets. Romance
Publishers, Children's Markets, Outdoor Markets, Seniors Markets,
you name it! Purchase one or two to try them out - they're only
$1.99. Tweetebooks are like potato chips! You can't stop at one.
www.fundsforwriters.com/tweetebooks.htm
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THE BLOG - http://www.hopeclark.blogspot.com
TWITTER - http://twitter.com/hopeclark
CONSULT WITH HOPE - http://www.fundsforwriters.com/ConsultHope.htm
FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/chopeclark
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WORDS OF SUCCESS
"Experience is an author's most valuable asset;
experience is the thing that puts the muscle
and the breath and the warm blood into the
book he writes."
~ Mark Twain
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SUCCESS OF THE WEEK
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Dear Hope,
I'm thrilled to let you know that my historical novel, All
Different Kinds of Free, has been acquired by Bell Bridge Books
and will be published March 2011. It took many years to make
this dream a reality. The manuscript won a few awards along
the way. As a novel in progress, it was a semi-finalist in the
2004 Dana Awards and the 2005 William Faulkner-William Wisdom
Creative Writing Competition (under the working title Margaret
Morgan). Finally, the completed work was awarded the 2009
Freedom in Fiction Prize. I learned about all these competitions
through your newsletters and blog, Hope. Each bit of recognition
was added to my writing resume and my next pitch letter, and each
helped me wedge my foot just a little bit further into the
publishing door.
Please keep up the good work you do, Hope, in letting your
readers know that writing dreams can come true with hard work
and perseverance.
Jessica McCann
Author of All Different Kinds of Free
Email: editor@jessicamccann.com
www.jessicamccann.com
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ARTICLE
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Writing contests - sometimes it's about more than prize money
By Jill Pertler
I enter a bi-monthly humor-writing contest on a regular basis.
There is a $10 entry fee. The top five entries win various amounts
of prize money. I have entered this contest four times. Four times
I have received accolades from the contest sponsors. My articles
have ranked as finalists or honorable mentions four out of four
times. Still, I have won zero (big fat goose egg) in prize money.
To a casual observer, it might seem that I am coming out on the
short end of this deal:
Humor contest - positive $40; Jill Pertler (negative) $40.
Why do I keep entering this contest? I have my reasons.
Expanding your writing options - in other words expanding your
ability to earn more money for your words - involves various
factors. It isn't solely about good writing. (If it were only
that simple.) This particular writing contest helps to foster
my career in a number of ways.
finalists and honorable mention entries on its website. Contest
entrants are directed to the site to read the winning articles.
I can post my article on my own website, but I'm willing to bet
a nickel that I get a lot more hits by having my piece grouped
together with a bunch of other really great humor pieces (on a
well-frequented, well-known website). Every reader gained is a
potential fan. I'll take all the exposure I can get.
increase name recognition. Self-promotion. Self-promotion.
Self-promotion.
contest allows previously published articles. Anything I submit
has already been published elsewhere (for pay). I am essentially
publishing a reprint, and we all know how difficult they can be
to place.
gives me access to dozens of other successful humor writers. I
have connected with a few and use those connections to build on
my network of online writing colleagues.
and honorable mention winner in a big international humor contest."
It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?
and reputable website. Sure it's an addition to the writing resume
- and a darn respectable one at that.
think what I write is funny. People tell me it's funny. But
having an international humor-writing contest recognize me as
funny? That's just a bit of a confidence booster, don't you think?
There are people who are adamantly against paying fees to enter
contests. They cannot and will not write for free. I agree with
them. I do not advocate writing for free. I do, however, support
the idea that fostering a writing career involves more than just
good writing. Sometimes a contest can provide non-monetary benefits
to my growing career. And when that happens, it does not feel like
I am writing for free. Not at all.
Contests you may want to check out:
HUMOR PRESS
Bi-monthly humor-writing contest with a $10 entry fee. Top five
entries receive monetary prizes ranging from $100 to $20. Top 30
(approximately) entries are published online.
http://www.humorpress.com/
FUNDSFORWRITERS
Annual essay contest that gives you the option of paying a $5 entry
fee or not (bigger prize money for those in the fee-paying category).
Entry fee prizes are $300, $100 and $50 for top three finishers.
Prizes in the non-entry fee category are $50, $30 and $20. www.fundsforwriters.com/annualcontest.htm
WRITER'S WEEKLY
Quarterly 24-hour short story contest. $5 entry fee. Top three
entries are published online and receive $300, $250 and $200 in
prize money. Lots of non-cash prizes and door prizes. List of
honorable mentions also published online. They provide general
feedback regarding all entries on common topics and themes to
give writers an insight on how original their ideas might have been. http://www.writersweekly.com/misc/contest.php
WOMEN ON WRITING
Quarterly flash fiction contest. $10 Entry fee. Provide option of
written critique on your entry for an extra $10. Top 10 entries
are published online. 15 honorable mention entries listed online.
Top three win prize money ($250, $150 and $100). Top 25 win non-
monetary prizes, including Amazon gift certificates.
http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/contest.php
READING WRITER
Quarterly short fiction contest with the winner gaining $100
and publication online. No entry fee. Lots of finalists and
honorable mentions are mentioned online. Option of having your
entry critiqued by the owner of the site for a fee of a penny
per word. 1,000 words equals $10 (worth it).
http://www.readingwriters.com/contestcafe.htm
BIO
When not entering writing contests, Jill Pertler writes a
syndicated column, Slices of Life. It currently appears in
over 85 newspapers in nine states. Her book on the subject,
"The Do-It-Yourselfer's Guide to Self-Syndication" is now
available online through Booklocker.com, Barnes and Noble
and Amazon.com. Visit her website at:
http://marketing-by-design.home.mchsi.com/
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COMPETITIONS
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WILD WORDS
http://wcdr.ca/wcdr/?p=4822
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$20 ENTRY FEE
Wild Words, an open genre, open form prose competition. Open
genre means that fiction in all forms (literary, horror,
children's, etc.) and non-fiction (memoir, essays, creative
non-fiction, etc.) will compete head to head and word for
word. Open form gives writers full license to experiment.
November 30, 2010 deadline. No poetry.
$750 first place
$500 second place
$250 third place
Selected honourable mentions, plus first, second and third
prize winners, to be published in the anthology Wild Words
and receive $25 PLUS contributor's copy. Maximum: 1,200 words
in English.
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WILLIAM RICHEY SHORT FICTION CONTEST
http://www.yemasseejournalonline.org/fiction_contest.html
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$10 ENTRY FEE
$1,000 for the winner. Two $100 prizes will be awarded to
runners-up. 10 additional finalists will be listed on website.
All entries will be considered for publication. Deadline
November 15, 2010. You may submit an unpublished story or novel
excerpt of up to 10,000 words in length.
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CANADIAN SHORT SCREENPLAY COMPETITION
http://www.screenplay-contest.com/
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ENTRY FEE $25-$75
Short film scripts are now being accepted worldwide. The CSSC
celebrates excellence in short film screenwriting by producing
the winning entry, in addition to an industry leading $2,500
cash prize for 1st place. Limit 15 pages.
Submission deadlines:
Early-bird deadline | October 31, 2010
Half-time deadline | November 30, 2010
Final deadline | December 31, 2010
I-Missed-The-Deadline deadline | January 31, 2011
Grand prize:
This screenplay will be produced by Year of the Skunk Productions.
The "Grand Prize" title also comes with an option and purchase
agreement for CAD $2,500, an Electronic Publishing Agreement,
accreditation to attend the 2011 Yorkton Film Festival (including
complimentary shuttle ground transportation from Regina airport
to Yorkton and one (1) ticket to attend the Golden Sheaf Awards
gala event), an Apple iPad, Writer's Block crystal award and
additional prize package TBD and subject to availability from
competition sponsors.
Second prize:
"2nd Place" title awarded to the screenplay deemed to be the
1st runner-up to the Grand Prize by the competition judges.
The "2nd Place" title also comes with an option and purchase
agreement for CAD $1,000 prize, an Electronic Publishing
Agreement, accreditation to attend the 2011 Yorkton Film
Festival (including complimentary shuttle ground transportation
from Regina airport to Yorkton and one (1) ticket to attend the
Golden Sheaf Awards gala event) and additional prize package
TBD and subject to availability from competition sponsors.
Third prize:
"3rd Place" title awarded to the screenplay deemed to be the
2nd runner-up to the Grand Prize by the competition judges.
The "3rd Place" title also comes with an option and purchase
agreement for CAD $500 prize, an Electronic Publishing Agreement,
accreditation to attend the 2011 Yorkton Film Festival (including
complimentary shuttle ground transportation from Regina airport
to Yorkton and one (1) ticket to attend the Golden Sheaf Awards
gala event) and additional prize package TBD and subject to
availability from competition sponsors.
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GRANTS
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CALIFORNIA COUNCIL FOR THE HUMANITIES
http://calhum.org/guidelines/guidelines_csf.htm
---
This competitive grant program captures and shares compelling
stories from and about our state's diverse communities. For this
round, applicants are requested to submit proposals for story-
based projects that will encourage examination of the meaning
of democracy. Descriptions of previously funded projects can be
found on our website. In order to apply, please review the online
grant guidelines and attend an informational webinar. Applicants
may request up to $10,000. The application deadline is November
15, 2010.
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COLORADO ARTS RANCH
http://www.coloradoartranch.org/application.htm
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Colorado Art Ranch invites you to apply for a special residency
in Salida. Artists in residence (AIRs) will be given living and
working space for one month. AIRs will have the opportunity to
present their work or lead a workshop/breakout session related
to the Dwellings theme at the Artposium May 27-29, 2011. We
invite individuals whose work addresses the art and meaning of
home-architects, literary and visual artists, performing artists,
psychologists, interior designers-to apply for the one-month
residency. Deadline for applications is December 15, 2010.
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GREATER MILWAUKEE MARY L. NOHL FUND FELLOWSHIPS
http://lyndensculpturegarden.org/nohl/
The Bradley Family Foundation administers the Greater Milwaukee
Foundation's Mary L. Nohl Fund Fellowships for Individual Artists
program. The fellowship program provides unrestricted funds for
Established and Emerging artists to create new work or complete
work in progress. Open to practicing artists residing in the
four-county area. Forty-six fellowships have been awarded since
the program began in 2003.
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FREELANCE MARKETS
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RETRIEVER JOURNAL
http://www.retrieverjournal.com/contact.php
---
We are real retriever people ourselves. We produce this
great magazine from the bluebill and ruffed grouse country
of northern Michigan, not the concrete canyons of Los Angeles
or New York. This isn't just what we do for a living, it's
our life. The only full-color magazine in the world devoted
exclusively to sporting retrievers. Online click on the
"Explore An Issue" icon on the right to see RJ content.
Features are 1,500-2,200 words, paying $400 and up.
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GLOBE
http://www.globemagazine.com/survey/26
---
GLOBE will pay you for good stories and juicy tips about
people in the news. Just send a brief summary of your idea,
and PLEASE - no fake photos from the Internet! You must
include a valid e-mail address and contact information in
order to receive your payment. Articles run 500-1,000 words,
with photos. Pays $50-$1,500.
NOTE: Yes, this is a grocery store gossip magazine, but it
generously pays, so don't mark it off your list until you
seriously consider it.
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US AIRWAYS
http://www.usairwaysmag.com/pdfs/USAWwriterguide.pdf
---
US Airways Magazine is looking for writers who can deliver
smart, pithy copy. We like breezy. We like humor. We like a
friendly, light tone. We do not care for ponderous writing,
nor do we care for the smarmy, the condescending, or the
hipperthan-thou (but we do like hip). We prefer to receive
story submissions or inquiries via email (edit@usairwaysmag.com)
with "Pitch" or "Story Submission" in the subject line. We
prefer specific ideas or pitches based on a careful perusal
of our magazine (refer to our Web site at usairwaysmag.com
if you don't have access to a bound copy). Avoid sending
"shotgun pitches," a single email with multiple story
suggestions. Attached clips are preferred, along with a brief
note about who you are, what you write about, and where
you've been published. We'll pay from $100-$500 depending
on originality of idea, projected space in the magazine,
and amount of research used to create an original idea.
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JOBS
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WRITER-EDITOR - 2 VACANCIES
Location Atlanta, GA
http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=91594288&aid=27015391-221010&WT.mc_n=125
---
Deadline November 3, 2010. Agency: Centers for Disease Control
& Prevention. The purpose of this position is to support a
program area with editorial, writing, production management,
and consulting skills to review or produce technical manuscripts,
book chapters, abstracts, meeting reports, manuals, Internet
materials, programmatic presentations, training aids and other
health communication materials.
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TECHNICAL WRITER - 2 VACANCIES
Location Tacoma, WA / Fort Lewis, WA
http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=91593655&aid=27015391-221010&WT.mc_n=125
---
Deadline November 3, 2010. Serves as a technical writer, planning,
writing, coordinating, editing, and managing web-based and other
content for multiple projects pertaining to population health,
innovative technologies, web-based behavioral health applications,
telepsychology, and suicidality.
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EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Location Philadelphia, PA
http://www.idealist.org/en/job/403833-224
---
Via a web-based submission and peer review system, handles the
review process of manuscript submissions by quality checking
manuscripts, contacting Editors and reviewers, handling review
scheduling, and providing prompt follow-up with reviewers and/or
Editors on overdue manuscript reviews. Responds to queries from
authors seeking information regarding manuscripts undergoing review.
Employer American Association for Cancer Research, Inc.(AACR).
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PUBLISHERS/AGENTS
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THE TEXAS REVIEW PRESS
http://www.shsu.edu/~www_trp/
---
Texas Review Press is a member of the Texas A&M University Press
Consortium. The Press publishes fiction, poetry, and prose non-
fiction as well as a literary magazine, The Texas Review.
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EDGE PUBLISHING
http://www.edgewebsite.com/authors.html
---
We are currently seeking high-quality novel-length science
fiction and fantasy submissions of all types. We are not
interested in young adult, horror, erotica, religious fiction,
short stories, dark/gruesome fantasy, or poetry. Manuscripts
should be written in good taste and be aimed at an older (aged
20 and up), well-read, mature audience. We prefer novels of
between 75,000 and 100,000 words, although we occasionally
accept longer works. We work with new and established authors.
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ABERDEEN BAY
http://www.aberdeenbay.com/submission.aspx
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We publish mostly memoirs and mainstream fiction. We also
consider motivational and self-help books. We have an affinity
for manuscripts that inspire, inform, entertain or provoke
thought. Note that we do not publish science fiction, fantasy
or romance novels. We only publish manuscripts that are of high
professional quality. It is not necessary for a prospective
author to have an agent or any publishing history in order to
submit their manuscript to us.
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SPONSORS
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ALL FOR ENTRIES!
Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest. Entry fees: $5 per poem, $10 per story.
Writing Contest First Prize: $500. 2nd: $250. 3rd: $100.
Poetry Contest First Prize: $250. 2nd: $125. 3rd: $50.
Postmark deadline: December 31, 2010.
Visit http://www.dreamquestone.com/ for details and to enter!
=====
publication because you think it isn't good enough? What if there
were someone you could show it to -- someone who would be both
objective judge and supporter?
I'm Nancy Wick, a Seattle-based writer, editor and writing coach.
Send me your manuscript for a developmental edit that will help you
make the next draft better or a copyedit that will polish a finished
piece for submission. Let me be your partner in prose.
=====
AWARD-WINNING WRITER, PUBLISHER
WILL EDIT YOUR NOVEL, MEMOIR, POETRY
Have your writing edited by an award-winning, professional
writer, editor, and publisher, one who knows how to help
you prepare your writing for publication. Richard Krawiec
has published novels, biographies, text books, plays, and
a story and poetry collection. He won the 2009 Excellence
in Teaching Award from UNC Chapel Hill. His essays, feature
articles, and reviews have appeared in major newspapers and
magazines across the US. The NY Times, LA Times, Publishers
Weekly have reviewed his work. Awards include National
Endowment for the Arts and NC Arts Council grants, as well
as nominations for the National Book Award, Best American
Short Stories, and Pushcart Prize. He is founder of Jacar Press.
Contact rkwriter@gmail.com, www.rkeditor.com
For my first advertising for my fledging business I needed to
make strategic choices within a very limited budget. I chose
to advertise in two places: the Funds for Writers (FFW)
newsletter and a major writer's magazine (circulation of 100,000).
FFW far outperformed the magazine! From my first FFW ad I got an
immediate and enormous spike in traffic to my web site and within
24-hours had more than 100 people sign up on my website. And that
was just the first ad! Over the course of the six-week ad campaign
I saw a noticeable spike in traffic after each ad hit people's
inboxes and in total garnered at least 500 new sign-ups.
If you're thinking about advertising in FFW, do it!
Joan Dempsey, Founder & President
http://www.literaryliving.com
=====
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 2000-2010, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326
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