TOP SPONSOR 

EDITOR'S THOUGHTS

WHAT IS YOUR DEFINITION OF GOOD

“All great works of literature either dissolve a genre or invent one.” ~Walter Benjamin, Reality Hunger

Pure and simple often defines good writing. The average person just knows what they like, and usually they wish to be entertained or educated with something that's never entertained or educated them before. 

The writing world is full of tropes. You know them. They are the standards you expect in whatever genre you are reading. The crazed robot in scifi or the magical amulet in fantasy. The ignorant parents in children's stories or the lost-and-found love in romance. Most of the time, new writers grab a trope and try to write around it. Why? Because they want some sort of anchor from which to write . . . to keep from ignorantly drowning from not knowing that they are doing. Might not be a conscious thought, but it's most certainly subconscious. 

Good writing, in addition to learning how to put words together in excellent order and knowing one's grammar,  is in the uniqueness of it. What is unique?

1) Creating something so entirely original it's mind-boggling
2) Writing in such a style as to be intoxicating
3) Taking a trope that everyone knows and standing it on its ear, presenting it in a way that captures
4) Delivering a story that is high concept (easily presented in a straight-forward succinct premise)

The best writing is different in one of these ways. Rather than write for the sake of getting something published, study your peers, your predecessors, and the successful. Define what they did that made them stand apart. That's how you learn to stand apart. 

“Be brave enough to live life creatively. The creative place where no one else has ever been.” – Alan Alda

5969005 © Cenorman | Dreamstime.com
 

SUPER SPONSOR 

• How to Write an Opening That Pulls the Reader In by Wanda M. Morris
  In this session, we will delve into the elements that make a great opening to your story or novel.
• How to Keep Readers Engaged by Chris Mooney
  If you want to get an agent interested in your book, you've got to keep them interested, which is why the first few pages of your novel are critical.
• The Challenges and Advantages of Amateur Sleuths by Mia P. Manansala
  This session will answer these questions and more as we dissect amateur sleuths in popular fiction and learn how to make the most out of this common character trope through discussion and exercises.
• I Got This Idea...: How to Turn Ideas Into Stories by Rachel Howzell Hall
  In this session, you will learn ways to move your good idea from your head onto the page as a full-realized story.
• Creating Engaging Character Arcs in the Novel and Novel Series by C. Hope Clark
  In this session, award-winning author C. Hope Clark will share effective strategies for creating compelling character arcs in the novel as well as in a series of novels.
• Point of View: Special Issues for the Mystery and Thriller Writer by Hallie Ephron
  In this session we'll discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different viewpoints

HOPE'S APPEARANCES

 
SUCCESS QUOTE

SUccess Story

Dear Hope, 

This email is long overdue. I had been working on my memoir, "Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant" for several years without much luck before I stumbled upon your mailing list.

Hoping to find representation, I always jumped to the listing for agents. I researched every entry, reaching out to almost ninety agents in my total search. Luckily, one of the ones you had listed, Folio, expressed interest. After trading several correspondences with them, they eventually signed me. We worked together on my proposal for fourteen months and it finally went out on submission last month. Cut to the chase, I had multiple offers from several of the Big 5 publishers, and in a highly-competitive auction, I was able to sell the book to Little, Brown and Company. I am so happy. Your listing was a big step in my journey.

On behalf of all the lurkers who continue to dream in front of our laptops, thank you so much for always giving us hope. 

Curtis Chin
Author, "Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant"
www.curtisfromdetroit.com


- - - 

If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to [email protected] 

 

Featured article

Case Study: Crowdfunding a Novel (Part 1 of 3)

By Dan Brotzel

1: Getting started 

In this series of three articles, I’m going to look at how I crowdfunded my novel, Work in Progress, through Unbound’s unique crowdfunding model.  

I wrote my book with two pals, Martin and Alex. It was originally called Kitten on a Fatberg, and it tells the story of a group of eccentrics, aspiring writers who form a critique group to offer feedback on each other’s work. 

We wrote the story in a spontaneous, open-ended way, and somehow it turned into something quite farcical. All the characters are larger than life in a comic sort of way, and there are lots of feuds, misunderstandings, romances, and petty rivalries. We hoped it might be as much fun to read as it was to write. 

Unbound is an international publisher based in the UK with a different model. It accepts authors from the UK, US and around the world. It’s been covered quite widely in the media in the UK, and I’ve always liked the sound of it. Soon I was on the Unbound site, and looking at how to submit our manuscript. 

Unbound bills itself as “publishing for the 21st century.” As far as I know, it’s the world’s only book publisher to use crowdfunding to raise funds for the publishing process. It’s published over 250 titles, with a community of over 300,000 people pledging more than £11million. Authors include Monty Python’s Terry Jones, Raymond Briggs, Alice Jolly, and YouTuber Stuart Ashen.

Here's how it works. You submit online, and if your book is accepted, you’re set an amount to raise in pre-orders for your book. This puts the onus on you, the author, to raise the money, but once the target is hit, the book has covered its costs and demonstrated a market exists for it. There is no advance to work off, and on additional sales you get paid on a 50:50 profit-share basis rather than the traditional small royalty per cover price. 

The online submission process was very straightforward. You answer some questions about yourself and how you might promote the book (they like it if you’re active in social media), then upload the manuscript, either complete or sample chapters.

Within a week, I had a response. Commissioning editor Beth said she loved the book and wanted to proceed. She explained a bit more about the process and was very positive and encouraging. 

We knew Unbound was reputable, and we jumped at the chance to sign up. Unbound publishes an eclectic list, with some big names and well-known titles, and we were proud to be part of that. 

Beth invited us in for a workshop on fundraising and social media. We were advised to work through our list of possible buyers slowly, and not to use the language of charity or fundraising. After all, we were selling advance copies of a book, not begging for donations. 

We worked on promotional material for the Unbound website, and drafted a pitch email to send to potential buyers. The amount to raise was not small (somewhere in the mid five figures in dollars), but we were confident that with three of us we would be able to soar over the line. Most books take months or years to close; a few rare ones (usually by well-known names) can hit their target within days. We had dreams of taking the book world by storm!

Little did we know.
- - - 

Parts 2 and 3 to appear online and in the next two weeks' newsletters. Read Part 1 of this 3-Part piece at FundsforWriters.com.

Read more of Dan Brotzel’s articles on writing fiction and content at https://danielbrotzel.medium.com/

 

COmpetitions

BRIDPORT PRIZE FOR POETRY
https://bridportprize.org.uk/the-competition/poetry/
£10 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 31, 2022. All we ask is that you please keep poems to 42 lines, max. You can, of course, write less. In addition to the prize money, our top three winning poems are automatically entered into the Forward Prize For Poetry’s competition, with the chance to win a further £1000. First prize: £5,000. One of the largest poetry prizes, the winning poem also features in our anthology. Second prize: £1,000. Third prize: £500. Highly Commended 10 x £100. 



BRIDPORT PRIZE FOR SHORT STORY
https://bridportprize.org.uk/the-competition/short-story/
All the winning and highly commended pieces are entered into the Sunday Times Audible competition, top prize £30,000. UK based writers are entered into the BBC short story competition. That’s not all, literary agent A.M. Heath reads all the shortlist and considers representation. First prize: £5,000. One of the largest short story prizes, the winning story features in our anthology. Second prize: £1,000. Third prize: £500. Highly Commended 10 x £100. 



BRIDPORT PRIZE FOR FLASH FICTION
https://bridportprize.org.uk/the-competition/flash-fiction/
Take us somewhere fast then let your story marinate in the reader’s mind. Make every one of your 250 words count. There is no minimum number of words, just like there is no limit to your imagination. First prize: £1,000. One of the most generous flash fiction prizes, the winning story also features in our anthology. Second prize: £500. Third prize: £250. Highly Commended 5 x £100.



GRINDSTONE LITERARY NOVEL PRIZE
https://www.grindstoneliterary.com/novel-prize
£16 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 1, 2022. Authors may submit finished or part-finished manuscripts providing they are not currently represented by an agent. Entrants are asked to submit the first 5,000 words of their finished or part-finished manuscripts, accompanied by a brief synopsis, via our integrated submission platform. Manuscripts must have a finished, or projected-finished length of at least 50,000 words. Winner: £1,000. Runner Up: £500. 4x Shortlist: £125. Longlist sent to affiliated agents. 

 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

 

JOHN LEWIS WRITING GRANTS
https://www.georgiawriters.org/john-lewis-writing-award
Deadline October 1. Georgia Writers' John Lewis Writing Grants are inspired by the late civil rights icon and his more than three decades of service as Georgia's 5th District representative. The John Lewis Writing Grants will be awarded annually in the categories of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. The purpose of the grants is to elevate, encourage, and inspire the voices of Black writers in Georgia. Winners in each genre will receive: a grant of $500, a scholarship to the next annual Red Clay Writers Conference, invitation to present a writing project in a future GW virtual program.



THRILLERFEST SCHOLARSHIP
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSebMGktaZzEEHC-UDkN26ASHDGZM_dtznqM0qSsDTd7WqcAVw/viewform
Deadline April 10, 2022. ITW is awarding one scholarship to a BIPOC Middle Grade author who is writing a Middle-Grade crime fiction manuscript that features a BIPOC sleuth. The submissions will be reviewed by a panel of esteemed judges.  We will be contacting the author who will be granted the scholarship and the author will receive a US $1000 stipend and a free pass to attend ThrillerFest XVII, which takes place May 31 - June 4, 2022 in NYC. The scholarship recipient's manuscript will also be reviewed by a top editor.



FILMED IN NC FUND
https://www.cucalorus.org/programs/filmedinnc/
Deadline June 23, 2022. The Filmed in NC Fund supports the production of indie film and video projects by artists who are permanent residents of North Carolina, or who are full-time students at colleges or universities in North Carolina living full-time in NC. It is intended to support the development and production of new and ongoing projects with total budgets under $250,000. Projects are supported with funds ranging from $500 to $3,000 per project.



CREATIVE CAPITAL - WILD FUTURES GRANTS
https://creative-capital.org/about-the-creative-capital-award/
Deadline April 1, 2022. Creative Capital is pleased to announce they are accepting Letters of Inquiry for “Wild Futures: Art, Culture, Impact” the one-time theme for their 2023/2024 grant cycle. Artists are invited to propose experimental, risk-taking projects in the performing arts, technology, literature, visual arts, and moving image, which push boundaries formally and thematically, and/or venture into wild, out-there, never-before-seen concepts and future universes real or imagined.


CHANGING CLIMATE RESIDENCY
https://sfai.org/residency/thematic-residencies/changing-climate
From January 10 to April 10, the Santa Fe Art Institute is accepting applications for our 2023 International Thematic Residency Program, Changing Climate, which addresses the most critical issue of our time. For the Changing Climate Open Call, SFAI seeks to support artistic exploration, creative activism, and community art actions related to global warming that inspire individual transformation and inform collective action. The Changing Climate Residency Program includes our July Family Residency. Applications from individuals and collaborations of two people are welcome. Our International Thematic Residency Program is open to all artistic disciplines (e.g., visual arts, writing, performance, new media, etc.) and other creative practices including, but not limited to, curation, design, architecture, and education. We strongly encourage applicants with interdisciplinary and non-traditional creative practices. Starting with the 2023 Changing Climate International Residency, SFAI seeks to better support regional BIPOC artists by providing a $500 stipend to up to 28 regional BIPOC artists who are selected for the residency program.


AL SMITH INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWSHIP
http://artscouncil.ky.gov/KAC/Showcasing/ASFguidelines.htm
Deadline March 30, 2022. The Al Smith Individual Artist Fellowship is a competitive $7,500 award given to working, professional Kentucky artists who have achieved a high level of excellence and creativity in their work and who have demonstrated significant achievement in their field. Fellowships are based upon the quality of the work samples submitted by the artist. Fellowship awards are unrestricted and may be used in any way to enhance the artist's career. Must be a professional, working visual artist, responsible for creating their own original work, not interpreting the work of others or creating under the guidance of an instructor or mentor. Applicants must be United States citizens, lawfully admitted to the U.S. for permanent residence or have permission from the Department of Homeland Security to work permanently in the U.S.



KENTUCKY EMERGING ARTIST GRANTS
http://artscouncil.ky.gov/KAC/Showcasing/EAguidelines.htm
Deadline March 30, 2022. The Emerging Artist Award is a competitive $1,000 award given to working, professional Kentucky artists who are in the early years of their career (typically the first 10 years of professional work) and who have achieved a high level of excellence and creativity in their work. Emerging Artist Awards are determined by the quality of work samples submitted by the artist. Emerging Artist Awards are unrestricted and may be used in any way to enhance the artist's career.



MACKINAC ISLAND ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
https://www.mackinacparks.com/plan/artist-in-residence-program/
The Mackinac State Historic Parks Artist-In-Residence Program is designed to promote and encourage the creation of artistic works inspired by the history, natural wonders, and beauty of Mackinac Island. The residencies are available to artists in all mediums, including writers, composers, sculptures, and visual artists including photographers, among others. The two- and three-week residencies are available beginning in early June and continuing through early October. The resident artist is housed in the newly-remodeled second floor of the Mackinac Island Visitor’s Center, formerly the 1915 Mackinac Island Coast Guard Station. Applications accepted in January of each year. 

  

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS

THE GUARDIAN
https://medium.com/@jessicaelisabethreed/how-to-pitch-to-me-2022-edition-f345b65c232a
(Jessica Reed) I’m now Head of Narrative and Associate Editor at The Guardian in the US, which means that I will mainly focus on deeply reported stories with a narrative arc, great characters, good dialogue, and that pesky thing called “good writing”. I also remain on the market for really good personal essays. I tend to prefer commissioning reporters who write about places and communities they know. I usually welcome pitches for stories ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 words. I pay most pieces between $0.60 and $1/word, depending on experience and expertise; length of reporting; access negotiations; time spent researching and investigating; etc.


THE WRITER'S CHRONICLE
https://www.awpwriter.org/magazine_media/submission_guidelines
A forum for the best writing on the craft and art of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, The Writer’s Chronicle serves a wide, diverse community of writers, students, teachers, and professionals. The editors look for articles that demonstrate an excellent working knowledge of literary issues and a generosity of spirit. Essays must embody erudition, curiosity, and discernment rather than self-involvement. Writers may refer to their own travails and successes if they do so modestly, and in small proportion to the other examples. Essays on the Craft of Writing: 2,500 to 5,000 words. Interviews: 3,000 to 5,000 words. Profiles and Appreciations: 2,000 to 5,000 words. Pays 18 cents/word.



CHICKEN SOUP: STORIES AND POEMS FOR HOLIDAYS
http://www.chickensoup.com
Deadline May 1, 2022. We are sending this request to you for holiday stories. And we mean the entire season — from Thanksgiving to Christmas to Hanukkah to Kwanzaa to Boxing Day to New Year's. We want stories about every one of them. All stories and poems need to be true — we do not publish fiction. Stories should be no longer than 1,200 words. Please write in the first person about something that happened to you or someone close to you. Payment is $200 and ten copies. 



CHICKEN SOUP: CATS AND DOGS
http://www.chickensoup.com
Deadline May 30, 2022. We are looking for true stories and poems about your cat or about your dog. First person only. Limit 1,200 words. Payment is $200 and ten copies. 



OREGON HUMANITIES
http://oregonhumanities.org/rll/contributor-guidelines/
Oregon Humanities publishes essays, photographs, films, audio recordings, data visualizations and infographics, and other media that explore the thoughts, perspectives, and experiences of Oregonians, especially those who have been ignored, generalized, or oppressed. Work is published on our website or in print in Oregon Humanities magazine. We exclusively publish work by Oregon-based creators. Payment ranges from $200 to $300 for shorter online pieces and $500 to $1,000 for personal essays and features; payment varies depending on the length and complexity of the piece, and whether it is an original, commissioned work or a reprint or adaptation of an existing piece. We will consider and offer a modest honorarium for previously published work, as well as book and other excerpts. 



FACTOR FOUR MAGAZINE
http://factorfourmag.com/submissionsinfo/
We publish flash fiction in the genres of speculative fiction, specifically science fiction, fantasy, supernatural, super hero, or any combination of these. Limit 1,000 words. We are okay with foul language and sexual activity within a story, provided it fits the story well.  We do not publish erotica. Fiction is paid at a rate of 11 U.S. cents per word. 



GALAZY'S EDGE
https://www.galaxysedge.com/submissions/
We buy flash fiction, short stories and novelettes up to 10,000 words. Please note that more words do not necessarily mean a better story. We are a science fiction and fantasy magazine, so we would love to receive fiction from those categories as well as any sub-categories, such as space opera, steampunk, urban fantasy, africanfuturism, magical realism and so on. We do not publish straight horror stories, even if they do have a supernatural element, but if you have a dark fantasy story, or a dystopian science fiction piece, send it our way—we’d love to take a look. We pay seven cents per word for new fiction (with 2 paper contributor copies sent to US contributors).



SFWA BLOG
http://www.sfwa.org/blogs/sfwa-blog/
https://airtable.com/shr3HpNGBcn39XkAx
The SFWA Blog is open to pitches for original nonfiction articles on topics that might be of interest to new and/or established creators of science fiction and fantasy. SFWA welcomes pitches from both members and nonmembers. Ideal article length is between 500-800 words. Pay is $0.10/word on final draft wordcount. 



INDIEGRAF
https://indiegraf.com/indie-publisher/
Get the weekly newsletter that demystifies news entrepreneurship. Every week, we bring you practical tips, case studies and interviews with people who are taking the news into their own hands. Send queries to Joe Lanane, Publisher Success Manager at [email protected]. Rates are up to $300-$400 USD/CAD per published submission depending on amount of original reporting required; kill fees also provided when necessary.

 

Publishers/agents

HEADPRESS
https://headpress.com/about-us/
The book publishing arm of Headpress commenced in 1992 and continues to this day. Subject matter of Headpress books is wide-ranging and includes cult film, strange music, pulp literature, fanzines, conspiracy theories, sex and gender, occult and folklore, true crime, and pop culture in general. Located in the UK.



BARBARA BOVA LITERARY AGENCY
https://www.barbarabovaliteraryagency.com/submissions
We’re looking for quality fiction, nonfiction and theatre scripts. We don't accept poetry, screenplays, children's books or textbooks. 



HIGH SPOT LITERARY
https://www.highspotlit.com/submission-information
High Spot Literary is a full-service agency, co-founded by literary agents Vicki Marsdon and Nadine Rubin Nathan providing traditional literary agent services with a broader marketing and social media eye.  If you have a Nonfiction, Middle Grade or Crime manuscript, please contact [email protected]. Note: We do not represent erotica, poetry or visual coffee table books at this time. We consider very few short story or essay collections. 


CONTEXT LITERARY AGEMCY
https://www.contextlit.com/submissions
Tamar Rydzinski is looking for Middle-grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction of all types; adult commercial fiction (political espionage is not a good fit); adult narrative nonfiction. Crystal Orazu welcomes new writers of middle-grade and young adult fiction—in particular fantasy/paranormal and coming-of-age novels as well as adult fiction, psychological thriller, and memoirs. She especially encourages writing that centers the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ+, and non-neurotypical persons that bring joy, humor, and emphasize questioning and subverting the status-quo. Monica Rodriguez gravitates towards stories about identity, family relationships, and travel. She is looking to uplift underrepresented voices, including, (but not limited to) authors who identify as People of Color (BIPOC), disabled, neurodiverse, and LGBTQ+. In children’s literature, she is actively looking for PB, MG, YA & Graphic Novels. She is also open to adult and non-fiction submissions.



HANDSPUN LITERARY
http://handspunlit.com/about/
For fiction: please send a query letter, short synopsis (ideally five pages or less), and the first three chapters or 50 pages of the novel, whichever is more. For nonfiction: please send a query letter and proposal. Attachments are best; we prefer Word docs to PDFs. Usual query response time is four to eight weeks. Each of three agents has different desires, requests, and tastes.



BALA KIDS
https://www.shambhala.com/about-bala-kids/
Bala Kids is dedicated to encouraging the values of wisdom and compassion for children of all ages with books on Buddhism, meditation, yoga, mindfulness, and more. Specifically looking for picture books for children ages 0-8, in the categories of Buddhism, mindfulness, meditation, and yoga.

 

SPONSORS

FINE PRINT

Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint any editorials, contact [email protected] for permission. Please do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your publication is considered a valid right to publish.

C. Hope Clark
E-mail: [email protected]
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036
http://www.fundsforwriters.com

Copyright 2000-2022, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326

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