Volume 12, Issue 13
March 30, 2012


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FUNDS FOR WRITERS

Chosen for Writer's Digest Magazine
101 Best Websites for Writers
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005,
2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My yard is popping with azaleas, and these old-fashioned
Formosas are the prettiest to me. The bushes are as tall
as I am. It's practically summer here in South Carolina!

Editor: C. Hope Clark
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.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EDITOR'S THOUGHTS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Read newsletter online at: http://www.fundsforwriters.com/FFW.htm
Read past issues at: http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?fundsforwriters

=====

DILIGENCE

Okay, I'm going to take a deep breath before writing this one.
A DEEP, DEEP breath. Maybe three of them...or three hundred.

Do you remember all those years leading up to now . . . when
I talked about writing the novel? Years of work, edits, rewrites,
throwing it away, writing again. Now I love the book, love the
characters and what they grew into, and adore the voice I
groomed throughout all those setbacks and do-overs. I could
not be happier with Lowcountry Bribe.

Well, let me tell you something . . . selling a book is damn
hard work. Yes, I cursed. It's worth cursing about.

I felt like a mouse, running around in a maze, bumping into
walls, never finding the outlet, as I sought the best means
to sell Lowcountry Bribe. I've learned there isn't one way.
And I've learned that more people sell books, and write books,
than read books.

Yup, I said it. I've said it before, too. Many of us prefer to
write than read, and as a result, there are a lot of books to
be read and too few people to read them.

Back to the deep breaths.

Selling books is time consuming, costly, and a test of patience.
Some booksellers are willing to give a debut author a shot and
others show you the door. The media is flooded with book suggestions,
so they are numb about all the new releases hitting them in the face.
The process of trying to prove you have a marketable commodity is
a steady, chipping away process on this huge, raw, unshaped
piece of raw material. One book here. One reading there. Another
guest post, then another. Somewhere, deep inside that block,
is your success.

You look at the calendar and realize it's been six weeks, yet
you feel like time is slipping away from you as your book ages,
and as others are spit out from the master book machine to take
its place. As much as I'd like to fuss at someone else for this
situation . . . like many people do to Amazon, traditional
publishing, self-publishing, agents, fill-in-the-blank, I can't.

I chose to be in this business, and I put myself where I am now.
This is what I want to do. Publishing a book, like creating
any new commodity or service, takes time to spread via word-of-
mouth.

It's a struggle. Well, so was writing the book. Frankly, so was
establishing FundsforWriters. All of us have to endure the
obstacles of writing, publishing and promoting like its boot camp.
You think you'll never make it, but guess what happens when
you stick with it? You win.

Big cleansing breath. Ah, now I'm good.


Hope


AUTHOR SITE - http://www.chopeclark.com
THE BLOG - http://www.chopeclark.com/blog
TWITTER - http://twitter.com/hopeclark
FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/chopeclark
ABOUT.ME - http://about.me/hopeclark
GOODREADS - http://www.goodreads.com/hopeclark 

LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE wants you!

The Carolina Slade Mystery Series is live with its premier
book Lowcountry Bribe. Welcome to the world of Carolina Slade.

She's a simple government employee offered a bribe.
She follows the rules and tells the authorities.
Then all hell breaks loose because she did.

Learn more at http://www.chopeclark.com

Available at Independent Bookstores, Amazon, Bell Bridge Books,
Barnes & Noble, and Kobo.

Read it? Like it? Let others know with a review at the above
outlets or on your blog.


=====


GET TOTAL FUNDSFORWRITERS FOR FREE ???

TOTAL FundsforWriters is our largest newsletter - 75 markets,
contests, grants, publishers, agents and jobs for writers.
Just envision FundsforWriters, only five times larger.
Delivered biweekly to you by email. Only $15/year for 26 issues.

Send proof of purchase of Lowcountry Bribe, ebook or paperback.
and receive a TOTAL subscription for free.
Email - hope@fundsforwriters.com
 
Or simply subscribe at www.fundsforwriters.com/total.htm


=====

NITTANY VALLEY WRITERS NETWORK (NVWN) PRESENTS C. HOPE CLARK

The Nittany Valley Writers Network (NVWN) will host C. Hope Clark
at Schlow Centre Region Library, 211 S. Allen Street, State College,
Pennsylvania on Saturday, April 28 from 10 am to 4 pm.

Hope will speak on four topics:

--The Story of Carolina Slade--A Mystery Becomes a Reality;
--Revisions--Polishing for Publication;
--Funding Streams for Your Freelance Career; and
--Platform and Other Tools for the Serious Writer, including a
discussion of The Shy Writer.

After the talks, she will hold a question and answer session and
a book signing. Seating is limited. Registration is $20 through
April 21, and $25 at the door if any spaces remain.

Contact Karen Dabney, NVWN workshop coordinator
Email: greywing228@verizon.net  or 814-861-1463
http://nvwn.wordpress.com




~~~~~~****~~~~~~

WORDS OF SUCCESS

"I have never felt like I was creating anything. For me,
writing is like walking through a desert and all at once,
poking up through the hardpan, I see the top of a chimney.
I know there's a house under there, and I'm pretty sure that
I can dig it up if I want. That's how I feel. It's like the
stories are already there. What they pay me for is the leap
of faith that says: 'If I sit down and do this, everything
will come out OK.'"

--Stephen King


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SUCCESS OF THE WEEK
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Instead of a success story this week, I'd like to mention
Kickstarter projects from writers needing your assistance.
Enjoy learning about these projects and consider aiding
them come to fruition:

Behind the Old Face
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/angiltarachrn/behind-the-old-face-the-current-climate-and-future

To the Stars Through Books and Coffee!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/814892425/to-the-stars-through-books-and-coffee

Knitting for Victory
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rohnstrong/knitting-for-victory-wwi-and-wwii

Help Create the Inaugural Print Issue of Belletrist Coterie!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/belletristcoterie/help-create-the-inaugural-print-issue-of-belletris

The Boggy-Fog Gnoo
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emlynellisaddison/the-boggy-fog-gnoo



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ARTICLE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Hating English to Editor-in-Chief

By Steve Spohn

I hated English class. In fact, I hated it so much that I skipped
my first 28 days of English my senior year of high school. The
maximum time you can miss is 29 days, one more and I wouldn't
graduate. From that point forward I never missed another English
class. I read every required piece of literature; I thought it
was a punishment worse than death. I graduated with 100% in
English that year, but I still hated it. What's the point in
reading a book when you can just wait to see the movie?

On a warm summer day years later, I went looking for some information
on playing video games with a disability. Having a form of muscular
dystrophy, my disease advanced to the point where I was no longer
able to play the way everyone else could. I found one site,
ablegamers.com--a nonprofit group that helps people with disabilities
get back into playing video games after traumatic injuries from war
or overcoming terminal illnesses--which gave exactly the kind of
information I was looking for.

It was quite a find, but there was a problem.

From experience, I knew one of the posts on the site was wrong.
So, I commented correcting the author. Later that day, I received
an e-mail from the site owner thanking me for my contribution with
a quote from a user who was to be able to play for the first time
using that information.

I was hooked and I didn't even know it.

The owner of the site approached me shortly after to ask if I
wanted to write for the site. He explained in great detail how I
could help people using my experience.

"But there's a problem," I said. "I'm not a writer."

After some persuasion, I reluctantly agreed to take my first shot
at writing an article. One word turned into a sentence, which
turned into a paragraph, and 10 paragraphs turned into my first
article.

It was published later the next day. The article, explaining a
new piece of technology that operates a computer using your brain,
received the fifth most hits an article ever received and a dozen
comments asking questions and thanking me.

I was hooked, only this time I knew it.

Four years, more than 1000 bylines, and several nationally
published articles later; I'm now the editor-in-chief of
ablegamers.com. I've been published in all the major gaming
magazines and multiple internationally received journals on the
topic of accessibility.

None of this would've been possible if I hadn't started writing
for a nonprofit foundation. I believe many authors overlook the
possibility of writing for free, but finding the right nonprofit
opens doors you can't imagine.

Getting a job writing for a nonprofit is as easy as searching the
Internet and e-mailing the editor of your favorite site. Most
nonprofits are begging for competent volunteer content writers.
This is an excellent way to display your talent by writing high-
quality articles on subjects you are extremely passionate about.
The experience you gain writing under an editor coupled with the
clips you receive from publishing articles goes a long way towards
getting your foot in the door of that paying gig you always wanted.

During my time as editor-in-chief, I've seen writers go on to be
paid editors at online magazines, featured columnists in print,
and one is now the editor-in-chief of a national gaming magazine.
Each of them started out with zero bylines and tons of passion.

BIO
Steve Spohn is the Editor-In-Chief of AbleGamers.com, and
author of many short stories and articles for various
publications. His novel, The Finder, is pending publication.
Find him on twitter at www.twitter.com/stevenspohn


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COMPETITIONS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


2012 ANDERBO SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK AWARD
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/anderselfpubbookaward2012.html
---
$20 ENTRY FEE
For a self-published book - fiction or nonfiction. One Winner
will receive $500 cash, announcement on the Anderbo web site.
and publication of a book-excerpt on anderbo.com. Initial
judging will be based on the first 40 pages (ONLY) of the self-
published book. Deadline October 15, 2012. Finalists in this
contest will be required to supply the entire book at a later date.

=====

THE NEW GUARD LITERARY REVIEW CONTESTS
http://www.newguardreview.com/
---
ENTRY FEE $15
Deadline June 18, 2012.

KNIGHTVILLE POETRY CONTEST: $1,000 for an exceptional work of
narrative and/or experimental poetry. Three poems per entry. Up
to 300 lines per poem.

MACHIGONNE FICTION CONTEST: $1,000 for an exceptional work of
literary and/or experimental fiction. Submit up to 7,500 words:
anything from flash to the long story. Novel excerpts are welcome
if the manuscript functions as a stand-alone story. We do not
publish illustrations.

=====

TRAVELING FOR FUN CONTEST
http://trendytraveler.com/travel-planner/traveling-fun-adventure-relaxation-blog-contest-rules
---
NO ENTRY FEE
Would you like to share your travel experiences from a fantastic
(or not so fantastic) trip or vacation you are currently on or
took in the past? Do you live in a popular (or not so popular)
travel destination and would like to share what makes your town
or city special with other travelers? Contest Winners will be
selected in 3 categories. At the end of the contest, CruiseTrust
staff will determine the winners of the CruiseTrust Vacations'
Traveling for Fun, Adventure and Relaxation Blogs Contest.
Deadline August 31, 2012. Contest is open to any individual age
18 or older as of March 2, 2012 who is a legal resident of the
United States or over the age of majority and a legal resident
of Canada.

First Place Winner in the category "Best Travel Blog" - $500.
First Place Winner in the category "My Favorite Trip or Vacation" - $250.
First Place Winner in the category "My Hometown / Destination
Business is a Great Travel Destination Because..." will receive $250.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GRANTS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


COMMUNITY OF WRITERS SQUAW VALLEY - NOTE SHORT DEADLINE
http://www.squawvalleywriters.org/index.html
---
Every summer for 43 years, the Community of Writers at Squaw
Valley has brought together poets, prose writers and screenwriters
for separate weeks of workshops, individual conferences, lectures,
panels, readings, and discussions of the craft and the business of
writing. Our goal is to assist writers to improve their craft and
thus move them closer to publication. Deadline April 2, 2012.
Financial aid is available for each of our writing workshops.
Requests for financial aid must be made in your application.
Please indicate the minimum amount of financial aid you would
need to get, in order to attend. Financial aid decisions are made
after admission decisions. If an applicant is accepted, but we don't
have enough aid for him or her, we will still issue an invitation
in the hopes that other means of support may be able to be found
by the applicant to attend.

=====

THE FLORENCE TYSON FUND
http://www.tysonfund.org/
---
The Mission of the Fund is to support therapists and clinical
programs that provide creative arts therapies--music, dance, drama,
art and poetry therapy--to people in the community who suffer from,
or are at risk for psychiatric problems, such as depression,
anxiety, or severe mental illnesses.

=====

THE ROYAL LITERARY FUND
http://www.societyofauthors.org/grants
---
The Society administers three charitable trusts, which award
occasional grants to professional authors who find themselves in
sudden and temporary financial difficulty.

The Francis Head Bequest grants to professional writers (writing
in the English language) who were born in England, Scotland, Wales
or Northern Ireland, and who are over the age of 35. It is aimed at
authors who by reason of illness or otherwise are in financial difficulty.

The John Masefield Memorial Trust provides grants to professional
British poets or their dependents who are faced with sudden
financial problems.

Margaret Rhondda Awards assist and support women journalists who
are in needy circumstances.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FREELANCE MARKETS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


CHILDREN'S ADVOCATE
http://www.4children.org/about/
---
Action Alliance for Children works to inform, educate, connect,
and inspire people who work with and on behalf of children throughout
California. We provide useful, reader-friendly information on current
issues, trends, and public policies that affect children and
families, for families, early care and education staff, people who
work with them, and advocates. Pays 25 cents/word.

=====

INTERNET@SCHOOLS
http://www.internetatschools.com/About/AboutUs
---
The guide to electronic tools and resources for school library
and media specialists for kindergarten through grade 12. Articles
1,500 words and pay up to $500.

=====

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL
http://www.slj.com/csp/cms/sites/SLJ/Info/submissions.csp
---
School Library Journal reviews new children's and young adult
general trade books, original paperbacks, and reference books
from established publishers. School Library Journal, is the
leading print magazine, and now SLJ.com serving librarians who
work with young people in schools and public libraries. The two
resources give librarians up-to-date information needed to integrate
libraries into the school curriculum, become leaders in the areas
of technology, reading, and information literacy, and create high-
quality collections for children and young adults. Pays $400.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOBS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


STAFF WRITER
Location Montgomery, AL
https://home.eease.com/recruit2/?id=1293641&t=1
---
The Intelligence Project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a
leading civil rights organization (see www.splcenter.org), is
seeking an experienced Senior Writer with proven research,
investigative, analytical and editing skills. This individual
will produce major articles focusing on extremism, terrorism
and hate groups for the Center's quarterly Intelligence Report
and will assist in editing the magazine and producing other
research and written materials for the Center. Strong journalistic
skills are essential and magazine writing experience is a plus.
This is a regular, full-time position that requires relocating
to Montgomery, Alabama.

=====

PAID JOURNALISM INTERNS
Location New York, NY (may consider virtual)
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/mnp3FjZB6pw4/
---
Remapping Debate -- http://www.remappingdebate.org -- is an
online domestic public policy NEWS journal. The heart of our
work is original reporting. We take seriously the idea that the
job of journalists is to question and to illuminate. Our Journalism
Interns must be people who want to use an "apprenticeship" year to
hone serious, high-quality journalism skills. People who think that
it is worthwhile to assist our reporters in developing the necessary
background to place stories into context. You must have excellent
research, writing, and analytical skills. Facility with data analysis
and visualization a plus. Pays $26,000.

=====

STAFF WRITER
Location Indianapolis, IN
http://www.ventureloop.com/ventureloop/jobdetail.php?r=f_sh&jobid=100446
---
The Angie's List Magazine department is looking for a staff writer
to join our team. We're a fun, hardworking group with a passion to
make our award-winning monthly magazines the best they can be.
We prefer an undergraduate degree in journalism or equivalent work
experience, knowledge of Macintosh, and at least three years of
magazine or newspaper experience.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PUBLISHERS/AGENTS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


TU BOOKS
http://www.leeandlow.com/p/tu_submissions.mhtml
---
TU BOOKS, an imprint of LEE & LOW BOOKS, publishes speculative
fiction for children and young adults featuring diverse characters
and settings. Our focus is on well-told, exciting, adventurous
fantasy, science fiction, and mystery novels featuring people of
color set in worlds inspired by non-Western folklore or culture.
We are looking specifically for stories for both middle grade
(ages 8-12) and young adult (ages 12-18) readers. (We are not
looking for picture books, chapter books, or short stories.)

=====

LEE & LOW BOOKS
http://www.leeandlow.com/p/wguide.mhtml
---
LEE & LOW BOOKS is a quality children's book publisher that
specializes in multicultural themes. Our goal is to meet the
need for books that address children of color by providing books
that all children can enjoy and which promote a greater understanding
of one another. We publish multicultural literature that is relevant
to young readers. Our focus is on fiction and nonfiction featuring
children/people of color, for readers ages 5 to 12. Of special
interest are realistic fiction, historical fiction, and nonfiction
with a distinct voice or unique approach. We do not publish folklore
and animal stories.

=====

SCHIFFER BOOKS
http://www.schifferbooks.com/newschiffer/proposal.php
---
Leans toward nonfiction that lend themselves to the visual.
Topics like architecture, landscape, art, body/mind/spirit,
children's books, vintage toys, antiques, hunting/fishing/
sports/games, living, military, aviation, nature, history,
artifacts, personal effects, regional books, resources for
artists/designers/architects, maritime books.

NOTE:
FFW reader Sylvia M. DeSantis just published
Watercharms: Ocean-Reiki Meditations through Schiffer,
and it's simply gorgeous.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SPONSORS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The 4th annual Self-Publisher's Online Conference (SPOC) is May 8-10, 2012.

SPOC 2012 is a virtual conference you can attend via phone/Skype/Web.
Our unique online conference site gives you easy access to the live
presentations and Q&A, built-in discussion forums, virtual Exhibit
Hall, handouts, and recordings.

SPOC offers 16 expert speakers, 15 presentations, and live Q&A calls
that are all focused on how you can successfully self publish
fiction and non-fiction books and ebooks. Sign up before May 1 for
low Early Bird rates.

Enter the coupon code FFW12 at checkout to save another 10%!
Learn more at http://www.SelfPublishersOnlineConference.com


=====

Your One Stop Shop for Reviews, Promotion, and Critiques

Honest Crits has one function - to support and help both published
and unpublished writers. If your book is unpublished, I provide a
detailed evaluation of content and structure or an edit that
clarifies meaning, checks for consistency, and polishes language.
If your book is published, I review all genres and promote the
review depending upon the Promotion Plan you select.

Please visit Honest Crits to learn more about my dedication to
helping writers succeed!

Contact: writergirllw@yahoo.com  | www.honestcrits.com  |www.readers-den.com

HIRE AN AWARD WINNING DESIGNER/AUTHOR TO DEVELOP YOUR WEBSITES

Shaila Abdullah has over a decade of experience designing
websites for authors. Being an author herself, she understands
the industry, and will provide you with a website that reflects
your unique style, genre, and personality.

Other design services such as book covers & interiors, marketing
materials, and email campaigns (newsletters, announcements, etc.)
also available.

E-mail Shaila: info@myhouseofdesign.com
View portfolio: http://myhouseofdesign.com

Testimonial from Carolyn Brent, author Why Wait?
http://www.caregiverstory.com :

"I thank Shaila for her expertise, knowledge, creativity, and
her ability to turn ordinary into extraordinary. Since working
with her, I now have a beautiful book that hit #1 one on Amazon,
a monthly newsletter that captures the attention of my valued
readers, and a beautiful website that has generated a tremendous
amount of interest in my subject matter with over 245,000 hits.
I am truly grateful to her for helping turn my dreams into reality."

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

=====



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


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BUSINESS STUFF
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint
any editorials, contact hope@fundsforwriters.com  for permission.
Please do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your
publication is considered a valid right to publish.



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

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

http://www.fundsforwriters.com

Copyright 2000-2012, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326


-----------------------------