FundsforWriters - June 20, 2014

Published: Fri, 06/20/14

Volume 14, Issue 25 | june 20, 2014

Message from the Editor
Had a great time at last Friday's booksigning at the Edisto Bookstore on Edisto Island, SC. That's the resident kitty, Emily Grace. She's helped me with four signings now. I signed alongside a retired State Law Enforcement Division forensics agent, and we talked true crime versus made-up crime. We're both lovers of the Lowcountry. We touted each others books to the patrons that day and totally made the event fun. Another booksigning will take place there this fall . . . with my newest release. Hope you can come.

Editor, FundsforWriters
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Newsletter: ISSN: 1533-1326
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WEBSITE - http://www.chopeclark.com
TWITTER - http://twitter.com/hopeclark
FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/chopeclark
ABOUT.ME - http://about.me/hopeclark
GOODREADS - http://www.goodreads.com/hopeclark
PINTEREST - http://www.pinterest.com/chopeclark
SOUNDCLOUD - https://soundcloud.com/hopeclark
iTUNES - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/c.-hope-clark/id885577265

SPONSOR OF THE WEEK

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ALSO - Our cover templates are out!

The template actually comes with 3 different files, one each for CreateSpace, Lightning Source/Spark, and a generic template for other printers. We've also packaged the template with 20 fonts to make using it even easier.

Editor's THOUGHTS

YOU NEED AN AUDIENCE

Some of you will frown reading that headline, because in every aspect of your writing life, to be considered successful, you need an audience. And we hate that part of our profession: Platform.

That doesn't mean you need 10,000 Twitter fans, 15,000 Facebook followers, 40,000 newsletter readers or 50,000 unique visitors to your blog, so don't get all bothered by big numbers. Think more along the lines of one hundred die-hard fans. One solid fan is worth ten via word-of-mouth. Devotion carries a lot of weight and a lot of noise.

If you think a hundred or a thousand is out of your reach, then ponder what and who you're writing for. If it's friends and family, then don't bother with all the hoopla of a publisher, Amazon, ISBNs or any professional needs of a book. Write your blog for loved ones only and quit looking at the statistics. Write for free in magazines that pay in copies.

Otherwise, you need a fan base. One thousand people who would walk through hell for you and drag others along with them. How do you do that?

1) Show up to work each and every day.

Fans don't want helter-skelter idols. They want the person to be there when THEY show up. If you skip days, you lose ground, and your fans will find someone more reliable. Post somewhere. Write something. Don't let the gears get rusty.

2) Produce each and every day.

Whatever you write, tap into it daily. If you are writing a long project, then work at social media, write short pieces, or freelance in periodicals. But write like you eat, brush your teeth, and change your underwear. Make it that ingrained in your mental and physical existence.

3) Respond without exception.

When a reader messages you on Facebook, sends a Tweet, emails or comments on your blog, respond. Put effort into the reply. Respect that person for taking the time. A well-worded reply can buy a fan for years, and if you're attentive enough, that fan will tell the story to dozens.

4) Avoid confrontation.

You are writing for these people. You have messages to deliver and stories to tell. Don't pick a fight. Let others have their opinions.

Be attentive to their needs, and they'll be attentive to yours.

Identify:

1) your genre
2) the age of your reader
3) the geography of your work
4) the time period of your work
5) the gender the book leans toward (it can be both, or one over another)
6) the leaders in your genre

Then find places online and in your community that connect somehow to one or more of these traits. Write guest blog posts. Participate in chats. Volunteer to help a cause. Offer to speak at libraries, bookstores and clubs. There are Twitter chats, Google+ interviews, Skype, your blog, professional groups with their forums, and more. Be seen. Be heard.

People don't just want books anymore. They want the author, too. Whether you like it or not, you have to become a brand and develop a face, because books are a dime a dozen. But don't waste your time scattering your book anywhere and everywhere. Strategically place it where you think your readership resides. Time is precious. Use it wisely.

-Hope Clark

The latest guest blog posts by Hope around the Web:

6-19-14 - Writers' Village - 15 Ways to Know You're Onto Something Good
6-16-14 - The Write Life - Make a Living as a Writer: A Simple Strategy That Works
6-15-14 - Freelance Writing 4 Beginners - Secrets to a Query Letter That Sells
6-15-14 - Squidoo - Palmetto Poison, A Carolina Slade Mystery
6-11-14 - Dreams Inspired Here - Where Water Flows, by C. Hope Clark
6-9-14 - Dish Magazine - All Booked Up - Review Palmetto Poison
6-8-14 - Dicy McCullough - The Easiest Way to Come Up With a Story, by C. Hope Clark
6-4-14 - Panda Chronicles - That Inner Voice, by C. Hope Clark

WORDS OF SUCCESS

"Pay no attention to the criticism of people who have never themselves written a notable work."

-- Ezra Pound

The Carolina Slade Mystery Series
http://www.chopeclark.com/

On Palmetto Poison. Carolina Slade is the real deal - Southern charm, a steely determination, and a vulnerability she'll never admit to. Slade is at her absolute best in C. Hope Clark's Palmetto Poison so hold on for the ride! ~Lynn Chandler-Willis, best selling author and winner of the 2013 Minotaur Books/PWA Best First Private Eye Novel Competition

On Tidewater Murder: Terrific. Smart, knowing, clever...and completely original. A taut, high-tension page-turned--in a unique and fascinating setting. An absolute winner! ~Hank Phillippi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony and Macavity winning author

On Lowcountry Bribe: With a story that moves so fast you are sure to get a case of literary whiplash, LOWCOUNTRY BRIBE is almost impossible to put down. Written with grace and ferocity, I for one can hardly wait for a second helping of this unpredictably un-pretentious and hard-scrabble down-home gal. ~Rachel Gladstone, Dish Magazine

Purchase any of Hope's books and receive a one-year subscription to TOTAL FFW free. Send receipt to hope@fundsforwriters.com

Success Story

Hi Hope,

I've been a subscriber for a couple of years now and I've found the FundsforWriters Newsletter usually has something pertinent to me as I journey along the road to publication. I've had a few moderate successes along the way with trade journal articles, a poetry award and so forth. Your inspiration and information have certainly helped in my journey. But what I want to relay to other writers out there is my most recent experience with getting something into print. In December 2013 I responded to a call for a flash fiction contest with Driftless Review. It was a tight turn-around for me as I didn't have a workable story in progress but over the Christmas holidays I worked at it and submitted a couple of stories. One I thought was better than the other so I pinned my hopes on it as the one to get attention.

Well, just recently I received notice that neither of my stories made it as finalists for the award but the editors wanted to include one of my entries as an honorable mention. Of course, I was thrilled. And doubly so because the story they chose was, in my opinion, the weaker of the two.

I accepted their publication terms and my story, "The Neighbors" is now in the Spring 2014 edition of Driftless Review and I now have another publication success story. The moral of the story: keep submitting and don't be deterred by your own editorial criticisms. What may not be the best for you as author can be perfectly acceptable - indeed worthy of publication - by others.

Thanks Hope. Keep up the great work of helping us struggling writers find inspiration and the courage to carry on.

Sincerely,

Brian Wettlaufer
Franklin, WI

featured article

9 Tips from Writing a Query a Day:
How Seinfeld, Fleetwood Mac, and a Writer Inspired Me

By Kristine Meldrum Denholm

As a freelance writer, I dislike when editors don't respond to a query. That frustration hampers my marketing, deterring me from sending queries to major markets very often. My list of feature article ideas sat unused for a long time, longing for homes.

Until now. Last month I stumbled onto a writer's blog about making querying a numbers game where they suggested a class entitled "30 Queries in 30 Days." That same day I read Jerry Seinfeld's approach to productivity: Mark an x on the calendar every day you've finished your task, and never break the chain. (SEE: Mridu Khullar Relph - http://www.mridukhullar.com/ecourse-30-days-30-queries )

Soon I was cranking up Fleetwood Mac's song "The Chain" and establishing my calendar. As the band echoed "You must never break the chain," I looked at February. Can I write 28 queries or submissions in 28 days? Did I need a class or should I just buckle down?

I chose the latter. Here's what I learned from writing a query a day for a month:

Ideas breed more ideas.

Ever just brainstormed? The same creativity applies with queries. I started February with a list of 28 ideas, but ended with 40. As I would work with one query, I would think of another idea.

Build it, and they will come.

Surprise! I heard back from some national markets. If they said no, they said why. They consider professional queries. I have a journalism degree, worked at a CBS affiliate in college, and wrote for a federal agency's press office for a decade. As a freelancer, I've had articles and essays published in locals, regionals, trades, anthologies. With clips and a website, you build infrastructure -- voila, your last paragraph of a good query.

He's just not that into you.

When the editors don't respond? Face the fact your idea is not for them. They know their readers better. Or they've run something similar. Follow-up, then target the next market and revise.

Your email works!

Whenever I didn't get an answer from a sporadic query, I wondered if my email was working or was considered spam on the other end. However, once I regularly sent queries daily, using the premise it's a numbers game, I got more responses. (Though most haven't responded yet.)

The early bird doesn't always catch the worm.

Because you're rushing to tailor a query by day's end, you might hit "send" too early. Take the time to study the market. Usually, I read past issues, but one day I received an answer from a national magazine editor: they ran "my" idea in the past year. My bad.

Your paid subscriptions to freelance newsletters are worth it.

I checked MediaBistro, TOTAL FFW, ASJA, and Freelance Success archives. Checked Writer's Digest/Writer's Market and the magazine's masthead to get a editorial contact or email formula.

A little help from your friends.

When I emailed a writer-friend because she had written for a magazine I was querying, she warned me of issues there. Be helpful with other writers, and they'll reciprocate.

You'll experience "rejectance."

Another writer-friend coined this term about acceptance in a rejection. Some editors asked for more ideas from me. Another editor gave me the lowdown on recent changes there. Some explained exactly why they couldn't use it. Helpful rejections = rejectance!

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

I heard some no's. I was also asked to give away an article for free (no). When a door is closed, open a window; re-work it for another market. A February rejection is a March submission; think follow-up opportunities.

While I wish I could say I have 28 yesses in my inbox, I cannot. But as I await answers, I've beaten procrastination, released ideas, gained editorial contacts, generated leads, and felt productive marking an x on each day of my calendar. "Never break the chain..." or yada yada yada. Thanks, Jerry.

BIO
Kristine Meldrum Denholm is an award-winning freelance journalist whose work has appeared in Balanced Living Magazine, Police Magazine, Sasee Magazine, parenting magazines, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: A Dog's Life. Visit at www.KristineMeldrumDenholm.com .

competitions

A ROOM OF HER OWN FOUNDATION ORLANDO PRIZES
http://aroomofherownfoundation.org/awards/
$15 ENTRY FEE.
Four Orlando prizes of $1,000 each and publication in The Los Angeles Review are awarded twice yearly for a poem, a short story, a short short story, and an essay by women writers. Deadline July 31, 2014.

JOHN KENNETH GALBRAITH LITERARY AWARD
http://www.johnkennethgalbraithliteraryaward.ca/
$10 ENTRY FEE.
Accepting short stories of Canadian fiction in English from 3,000 to 3,500 words. The finalist receives a cash prize of $2,000 and a cast pewter medallion. Deadline August 5, 2014.

CONSTANCE ROKE CREATIVE NONFICTION CONTEST
http://www.malahatreview.ca/contests/creative_non-fiction_prize/info.html
ENTRY FEE $35 for Canadian entries, $40 for U.S. entries, and $45 elsewhere.
The Malahat Review, Canada's premier literary magazine, invites emerging and established writers from Canada, the United States, and elsewhere to enter. $1,000 awarded to the best work that embraces, but is not limited to, the personal essay, memoir, narrative nonfiction, social commentary, travel writing, historical accounts, and biography, all enhanced by such elements as description, dramatic scenes, dialogue, and characterization. All entries should be previously unpublished, and between 2,000-3,000 words in length. Deadline August 1, 2014 (postmark date).

BLUE EARTH FLASH FICTION C ONTEST
https://blueearthreview.submittable.com/submit/24696
$2 ENTRY FEE.
Submit a story 750 words or fewer. Enter a maximum of two stories. First place $500. Second place $250. Third place $100. Winners will be published. We also may publish other admirable submissions. Winners will be notified after the contest has closed.

FAIRY TALE REVIEW AWARDS IN POETRY AND PROSE
https://fairytalereview.submittable.com/submit
$10 ENTRY FEE.
Fairy Tale Review is thrilled to announce the debut of an annual contest, beginning this year with Prose & Poetry awards. We're interested in poems, stories, and essays with a fairy-tale feel -- mainstream to experimental, genre to literary, realist to fabulist. Both contests will award $1,000, and all submissions will be considered for publication in The Mauve Issue. Deadline July 15, 2014.

GRANTS

ARIZONA ARTIST RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANT
http://www.azarts.gov/grants/artists/
Deadline September 18, 2014. Artist Research and Development Grants are designed to support individual artists from all disciplines. The purpose of this grant is to support the advancement of artistic research, aid in the development of artistic work and recognize the contributions individual artists make to Arizona's communities.

KIMMEL HARDING NELSON CENTER FOR THE ARTS
http://www.khncenterforthearts.org/
Location Nebraska City, NE. Deadline September 1, 2014. Offering two to eight week residencies writers, visual artists and music composers. Housing, studio space and stipend are provided.

COLLEEN LEWIS OPEN ARCHIVE RESIDENCY - BARBADOS
http://tinyurl.com/omv623q
The Fresh Milk Art Platform, Barbados is pleased to announce an open call for the Colleen Lewis Open Archive Residency between September and November 2014. Applications from artists worldwide are welcomed. This residency aims to support visual artists, writers and creatives by offering a peaceful working space for a minimum of 4 weeks, and the opportunity to interface with the Colleen Lewis Reading Room (CLRR) as an archive with which to engage, respond and activate.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM
http://home.nps.gov/romo/supportyourpark/artist_in_residence.htm
Post marked application deadline for the 2014 season is November 15, 2014. All proposed residency projects must promote and celebrate Rocky Mountain National Park's upcoming centennial celebration in 2015. The Artist-In-Residence Program at Rocky Mountain National Park offers professional writers, composers, and visual and performing artists the opportunity to pursue their artistic discipline while being surrounded by the park's inspiring landscape. Selected artists stay in a historic cabin for two-week periods from June through September. No stipend is provided.

SLEEPING BEAR DUNES ARTIST IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM
http://www.nps.gov/slbe/parkmgmt/artistinresidence.htm
The Artist-In-Residence program is open to professional American writers, composers and visual artists, including photographers, whose work can be influenced and enhanced by this superb Michigan scene. It provides resident artists the opportunity to capture the moods of Sleeping Bear Dunes in their particular medium. The program provides rent-free use of either a park house located in the vicinity of the village of Empire (no pets), or a campsite in one of the developed mainland campgrounds.

FREELANCE MARKETS

BBC WRITERS ROOM
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/opportunities/script-room-2013
The Script Room is a place where you can send your script to be assessed by our team of experienced readers. We read all scripts as a calling card of a writer's talent. This is not a free script-reading service, but a means by which the BBC seeks out the best new writing talent, offering writers without a track record, representation, or contacts the opportunity to have their work considered by the BBC. Shortlisted writers will go forward to access a range of development opportunities with BBC writersroom. Deadline July 7, 2014.

THE MAGAZINE
http://the-magazine.com/pitches
More prosaically, most features we publish hover in the 1500-2000-word range. We pay a flat rate for accepted work, paid within 30 days of publication. The rate varies from $250 to $800 for essays and reported work, with longer-form reporting paid at the higher end of the scale. For reported pieces, we pay additionally for photos, audio, and video, to be negotiated as part of the assignment. We can pay some modest expenses for reporting as well. The Magazine aims to publish articles "for curious people with a technical bent."

ADVENTURES IN POTTY TRAINING AND OTHER BATHROOM MISHAPS
http://www.monkeystarpress.com/p/call-for-submissions.html
Essay and nonfiction preferred 700 to 2,000 words. Also accepts poetry, lists, and flash. Swearing is acceptable and can be humorous, serious or sentimental. Deadline June 30, 2014. Average payment after publication is $125 per single 1,000-word essay.

THE LIFTED BROW MEDICINE ISSUE
http://theliftedbrow.com/post/85606897622/call-out-for-submissions-for-our-medicine-issue
Our fourth print issue of the year is themed 'Medicine'. We want all your words and visuals that have to do with health, caring, illness, etc. We're especially after two kinds of contributors for the Medicine Issue: excellent writers and artists tackling an issue related to medicine; and people who work in the medical industry. Deadline July 1, 2014. Payment (for the print magazine): $250/fiction or nonfiction feature story; $150/column or profile; $100 for poetry; and $50/flash fiction.

JOBS

WRITER-EDITOR
Location Woodlawn, MD (2 vacancies).
https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/372704300
Conducts editorial conferences to elicit ideas for a wide range of products (e.g., OASIS articles, Good Morning Social Security, blogs and other social media, public information materials). May make assignments to and give other writers general direction as to content and approach.

WRITER-EDITOR
Location Washington DC.
https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/371420800
OSC is a small, independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency. The agency operates as a secure channel for federal whistleblower disclosures of violations of law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; abuse of authority; and substantial and specific danger to public health and safety. A Masters degree in journalism or five or more years as a professional journalist, with an emphasis on investigative methods and long-form reporting; or five or more years of experience conducting administrative investigations regarding personnel matters, including drafting findings of fact and recommendations for action is desired.

publishers/agents

CUP OF TEA BOOKS
http://www.cupofteabooks.com/
Cup of Tea Books is an imprint of PageSpring Publishing dedicated to women's fiction. Our books invite you to curl up in your favorite chair and get lost in a great story. Some titles will make you smile, others will make you cry. All of them are meant to be savored, like a delicious cup of tea.

PEACHTREE PRESS
http://peachtree-online.com/index.php/about.html
Peachtree Publishers is an independently owned trade book publisher, specializing in quality children's books, from picture books to young adult fiction and nonfiction; consumer references in health, education, and parenting; and regional guide books about the American South, where the company is based. Our mission is to create books that captivate and educate young and old readers alike, with well-crafted words and pictures.

ORCA BOOK PUBLISHER
http://www.orcabook.com/
Founded in 1982, Orca Book Publishers is an independently owned Canadian children's book publisher. With over 500 titles in print and more than 65 new titles a year, Orca publishes award-winning, best-selling books in a number of genres.

THE OVERLOOK PRESS
http://www.overlookpress.com/about.html
The Overlook Press is an independent general-interest publisher, founded in 1971. The publishing program consists of approximately 100 new books per year, roughly divided between hardcovers and trade paperbacks. The list is eclectic, with areas of strength in fiction, history, biography, drama, design, and other visual media.