TOP SPONSOR 

EDITOR'S THOUGHTS

WHY NOVELISTS OUGHT TO WRITE MORE THAN NOVELS


Novelists dream of becoming full-time writers, when the truth is being able to support yourself with book-length fiction is quite difficult. I make more than I ever have with my novels, but I still freelance to make the writing income I desire. 

There is a reason that FundsforWriters posts Contests, Grants, Markets, and Publishers. I firmly believe that novelists can participate in all four categories. Even if you've found a publisher you adore, it behooves you to submit to the other options. 

Contests

1) Placing in a contest can open doors to a bigger platform. 
2) Placing in a contest can elevate your bio further and faster.
3) Placing in a contest can acquire you a publisher.
4) Placing in a contest can help you decipher how well your writing is progressing.

Grants

1) Winning a grant/residency can gain you financial reward.
2) Winning a grant/residency can introduce you to influencers for your work.
3) Winning a grant/residency can earn you an expense-paid trip and writing time. 
4) Winning a grant/residency can improve your resume when pitching elsewhere.
5) Winning a grant/residency can lead you to mentors for your work-in-progress.

Markets

1) Writing freelance can increase your income.
2) Writing freelance attracts more immediate income.
3) Writing freelance can introduce your books/work to a wider audience.
4) Writing freelance can elevate your bio further and faster. 
5) Writing freelance proves you are a serious writer. 
6) Writing freelance proves you are a diverse writer.

You may say you don't have the time. That is only a choice you can make. I adore having more immediate deadlines than those of my novels, which is two deadlines a year. I love writing for Chapin Neighbors Magazine and Writer's Digest blog on a monthly basis, and for SC Wildlife twice a year. I love seeing a market that piques my interest, and submitting something just to see if they bite. And the periodic checks are nice as well. 

If you wish to broaden your platform and spread your name faster than you would just writing book-length works, look at more immediate options like Contests, Grants, and Markets. I've had a lot of people read my freelance work then turn to my novels, grateful they "discovered" me. 

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SUPER SPONSOR 

HOPE'S APPEARANCES

 
SUCCESS QUOTE

SUccess Story

Hi Hope,

FundsforWriters was an instrumental resource in getting my book published. I was a decorator pre-Covid, and the idea to write my book was born after a debilitating breakup that coincided with the shut down, without any knowledge of the publishing industry whatsoever. The articles and advice presented in the FFW newsletter helped me navigate it, from the various publishing options to specific agents and publishers and how to query them.

My book, Quit Playing Yourself, is a 150-page full color art book that features a collection of original photographs of New Orleans streetscapes and street art paired with empowering quotes and life lessons focusing on inner work and interpersonal relationships. I am also currently working on my first novel, which is a completely different animal! FundsforWriters will once again be my go-to for agents and publishers, as well as writing contests to help hone my craft. 

https://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/quit-playing-yourself-by-holly-owen-a-unique-personal-growth-coffee-table-book-that-combines-multifaceted-advice-with-new-orleans-street-photography-has-been-released 

Thanks, and have a great weekend.

Holly Owen 
hollidayhousebooks.com 
chezhollidaydesign.com 

---

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

Featured article

How to Better Manage Your Time Off as a Working Writer

by Colleen M. Story

With the beautiful fall weather fast approaching and the holidays after that, you may be taking time off of your writing business. Try the following tips to make the shift easier to manage.

1. Plan Ahead of Time

Calendar in the days you will be gone and then work backward. What has to be done when to make your vacation work?

I'm always working at least a month ahead on all my projects in preparation for my next travel period. By scheduling extra time to manage the extra work, you lighten the burden of squeezing in deadlines right before you leave or right after you return. 

2. Think About Your Cash Flow

If you rely on your writing business for even part of your income, you understand that when you're not working, you're not making money. That means you need to check the financials and plan accordingly.

I'll admit to getting through a few vacations early in my career with a credit card and a prayer. In my opinion, as long as you're careful with your money most of the time, it's better to get away however you can than not to get away at all. Vacations are beneficial, including easing stress and boosting the immune system. Research also shows that the anticipation of time off can be just as beneficial health-wise than the actual time away.

Of course, you feel better knowing you can handle your time away without going into debt. Attempt to maintain a "vacation" fund into which you regularly contribute.

3. Find Ways to Make Your Trip a Business Trip

I'm a believer in avoiding work while on vacation, but the beauty of being a writer is that you can often find something to write about on your trip, which allows you to write off at least part of it on your taxes.

Maybe there's a special location you can feature in a travel magazine, a personal interest piece that fits an online magazine, or something you can do while you're away that qualifies as research for your novel. For instance, C. Hope Clark spends a full week at Edisto Beach, South Carolina, outlining and researching her Edisto Island mysteries, providing a signing or two at the local bookstore as well. 

As long as you keep careful records (brochures, pictures, receipts, notes from the experience), it's legit, and it can help you rest a little easier about the expense.

4. Let Your Clients Know You'll Be Gone

Many writers worry about being "unavailable" to their editors, publishers, or clients, so they don't tell them about their travel plans. The most important benefit of alerting the right people to your plans is to keep you from getting caught up in "emergency" projects while you're away. Every writer has received a "can you please..." request while on vacation.

Resist. Let your people know you'll be gone, then stick to your guns. I've never lost a client or project by doing this. 

5. Disconnect and Discover Something New

Too many entrepreneurs stay attached to their work even while they're away. This is a horrible idea, as it robs you of all the benefits a vacation has to give.

Let the social media slide (no one will notice), and skip the email madness for a while.

Even more importantly, expose yourself to all things new. Creative people need novelty to stimulate their imaginations. Go see a different type of show, explore a new park or museum, try a fresh activity, or meet up with people you haven't seen in years. Travel to a new arena, or find the overlooked around your own home turf. 

Give yourself the gift of time off this year. Your business, clients, readers—and your inner writer—will thank you for it!

BIO: Colleen M. Story is a novelist, freelance writer, writing coach, and speaker with over 20 years in the creative writing industry. Her latest novel, The Beached Ones, released from CamCat Books on July 26, 2022. Her previous novel, Loreena's Gift, was a Foreword Reviews' INDIES Book of the Year Awards winner, among others.

Colleen has written three books to help writers succeed: Your Writing Matters, Writer Get Noticed and Overwhelmed Writer Rescue. You can find free chapters of these books at her author website (colleenmstory.com) or connect with her on Twitter (@colleen_m_story). 

 

COmpetitions

DISQUIET LITERARY PRIZE
https://disquietinternational.submittable.com/submit/234651/disquiet-literary-prize-2023
$15 ENTRY FEE. Deadline January 3, 2023. Multi-genre award for the best poetry, fiction, or nonfiction on any subject, by an author who has not yet published more than one book with a major publisher. Entries must be in English. Entries may not be previously published. Winners in each genre will be published. One grand prize winner will receive a full fellowship (airfare stipend, tuition, and housing included) to the 2023 DISQUIET International Program in Lisbon, Portugal (taking place June 25-July 7, 2023). Genre winners will receive a tuition waiver to DISQUIET 2023 in addition to publication. Winners who are unable to attend the progam in Lisbon may elect to receive a $1000 cash prize in lieu of the tuition waiver. One entry may include up to six poems (to a maximum of ten pages) or a single prose piece up to twenty-five double-spaced pages in length. Entries should be the work of a single author.

THE ANTHOLOGY SHORT STORY AWARD
https://anthology-magazine.com/awards-awards/awards/short-story-award/
ENTRY FEE €10 to €18. Deadlines December 31, 2022, April 30, 2023, and August 31, 2023. This short story award is open to original and previously unpublished short stories in the English language by a writer of any nationality, living anywhere in the world. There is no restriction on theme or style. Stories submitted must not exceed the maximum of 1,500 words. The winner will receive a €1,000 cash prize and the chance to see their work published in a future issue of Anthology. The winner will also receive a one-year subscription subscription to Anthology. Second place €250. Third place €150. 

THE TWO SYLVIAS PRESS 2022 WILDER SERIES POETRY BOOK PRIZE
https://twosylviaspress.com/wilder-series-poetry-book-prize.html
$24 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 31, 2022. The Wilder Series Book Prize is open to women over 50 years of age (established or emerging poets) and includes a $1,000 prize, publication by Two Sylvias Press, 20 copies of the winning book, and a vintage, art nouveau pendant. Women submitting manuscripts may be poets with one or more previously published chapbooks/books or poets without any prior chapbook/book publications. All manuscripts will be considered for publication. Length: 48-80 pages of poems. (Thanks www.winningwriters.com)

TADPOLE PRESS 100-WORD WRITING CONTEST
https://www.tadpolepress.com/100-word-writing-contest
$10 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2022. Submit 100 words or less per entry. Word limit includes the title and introduction, though these are not required. Any genre. No specific theme. All ages. All genders. All nationalities. All writers welcome. First place $1,000. Second place writing coaching package. Third place editing package. 

THE ALPINE FELLOWSHIP WRITING PRIZE
https://alpinefellowship.com/writing-prize
NO ENTRY FEE. Opens January 1, 2023. Awarded for the best piece of writing on the theme of the Alpine Fellowship 2023 - which will be announced soon. The winner will receive a £10,000 cash prize. A £3,000 cash prize will go to the second place, and £2,000 to the third place runner up. The winner and two runners up are invited to attend the symposium. Open to all nationalities and to anyone aged 18 and above. All genres permitted. A maximum of 2,500 words per entry. 

NEW WRITERS FLASH FICTION COMPETITION
https://newwriters.org.uk/flash-fiction/
£6 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2022. First Place: £700. Second Place £200. Third Place: £100. The 10 shortlisted entries will be published on the NewWriters.org.uk website. Limit 300 words. 

SERVICESCAPE SHORT STORY AWARD
https://www.servicescape.com/short-story-award
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2022. All submitted entries must be original, unpublished works of short fiction or nonfiction, up to 5,000 words in length. The winner of the contest will be awarded $1,000.

FISH SHORT STORY PRIZE
https://www.fishpublishing.com/competition/short-story-contest/
€20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2022. Word limit 5,000. Top ten stories will be published in the FISH ANTHOLOGY 2023. First place €3,000 plus five-day Short Story Workshop at the West Cork Literary Festival. Second place is a week at Anam Cara Writers’ Retreat and €300. Third place is €300. Seven Honourable Mentions €200 each.

CAFE WRITERS POETRY COMPETITION
https://www.cafewriters.co.uk/home/poetry-competition/
£4 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 14, 2022. The maximum length for each poem is 40 lines excluding the title. The additional Norfolk Prize is awarded to a permanent Norfolk resident, for a poem not winning another prize. For poets on a low household income please send this as a separate entry on a separate email, to any other entries you might send. Attach the document of this poem to an email marked with your name and ‘Concession’ in the subject box. First place £1000, second place £300, third place £200, five Commended Prizes of £50, and Norfolk Prize £100. 
 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

 

SOUTH CAROLINA INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWSHIPS
https://www.southcarolinaarts.com/grant/fel/
Deadline November 15, 2022. These fellowships recognize and reward the artistic achievements of South Carolina’s exceptional individual artists. Fellowship awards are made through a highly competitive process and are based on artistic merit, achievements and commitment to discipline. The applicant must be a practicing individual artist (duos, collaborative works, and other ensembles are not eligible), working in one or more of the disciplines eligible for the application year. Up to five fellowships are awarded each year (maximum of one in each discipline), with artistic disciplines rotating from year to year. 

NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS
https://www.nefa.org/PublicArtLearningFund
Deadline December 19, 2022. The Public Art Learning Fund provides grants of $500 to $2,000 to support professional development opportunities for New England artists to strengthen their public art practices.

LIGHT BILL INCUBATOR MICROGRANT FOR BLACK AND/OR INDIFENOUS IDENTIFYING WRITERS
http://www.sundresspublications.com/submit#lightbill
Deadline October 31, 2022. Sundress Publications is open for submissions for grant applications from Black and/or Indigenous identifying writers with a chapbook in progress. The Light Bill Incubator Microgrant will award $500, a slot in Sundress’s reading series, a one-residency at the Sundress Academy for the Arts in Knoxville, TN, and the potential for digital publication to one Black and/or Indigenous writer with a chapbook in progress to support the completion of said project. Applicants may apply for any genre; however, the proposed project must be a chapbook-length project, meaning the planned final version will be fewer than 48 pages.

SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE FOR THE WINTER POETRY & PROSE GETAWAY
http://stockton.edu/wintergetaway 
Deadline November 15, 2022. Six scholarships are being offered for first-time participants of the 29th Annual WINTER POETRY & PROSE GETAWAY, January 13-16, 2023 in the Atlantic City, NJ area. Recipients may choose from workshops in novel writing, memoir, fiction, nonfiction, poetry, songwriting and more. In addition, the conference offers a literary bookstore, open mics, tutorials, sunrise yoga, dancing at the Getaway Disco and writerly camaraderie. 

  

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS

CHICKEN SOUP: ANGELS
http://www.chickensoup.com
We are looking for true personal stories about how an angel has touched your life — stories of true wonder and awe from people who have directly encountered or received help from angels. Miraculous, personal experience that will make our readers say "wow" or give them chills. If you have had a personal experience with an angel, please submit your story. Pays $200 and ten copies for up to 1,200 words. First person only.

WELLCOME COLLECTION
https://wellcomecollection.org/pages/Wvl00yAAAB8A3y8p
We publish stories about health and human experience written by a wide range of storytellers. We are always looking for new writers and image creators. We are particularly interested in hearing from contributors from ethnically minoritised communities, and disabled, d/Deaf and neurodivergent writers because we are committed to publishing stories that represent the wide diversity of experiences with health. We pay writers 50p per word and publish everything under a Creative Commons licence. 

OBJECTIVE JOURNALISM
https://objectivejournalism.org/pitch-us/
Our budget currently allows us to pay between $200 to $600 per piece, depending on the length and story type. Please keep pitches 200-600 words. The Objective is a nonprofit newsroom building collective and narrative power for communities that have been misrepresented or dismissed in order to change the way journalism is practiced in the U.S.

BETCHES
https://betches.com/about/
Betches is a female-founded and led media and entertainment brand that provides a space for all women to get real about life—funny, honest, and unfiltered. Whether it's a podcast, meme, article, or hoodie, we'll have your group chat saying, "omg this is so us." You probably know us from being tagged in the comment section of our @betches Instagram, but we do a lot more than make memes. We are the multimedia destination that's made by and for millennials and Gen Z who don't take themselves too seriously. Pitch Samantha Rosen, Director for Digital Content and Strategy, at [email protected]. We're accepting travel pitches especially. Think: Social commentary, hot takes, city guides, etc. Just make it fun and funny. Rates start at $200 per article.

ZOMBIES NEED BRAINS, LLC
http://www.zombiesneedbrains.com/index.html
Deadline December 31, 2022. This year, we funded FOUR new anthologies. The open themes are Dragonesque, Game On!, Artifice and Craft: and Solar Flare. Length limit 7,500 words. Pays $.08/word. 

UNCANNY MAGAZINE
https://www.uncannymagazine.com/submissions/
Uncanny is looking for original, unpublished speculative fiction stories between 750 and 10,000 words. Payment is $.10 per word (including audio rights). Uncanny is looking for original, unpublished speculative poetry of any length. Payment is $40 per poem. Not open to novellas at this time. 

METASTELLAR
https://www.metastellar.com/write-for-us/flash-fiction-story-submission/
Stories must be under 1,200 words in length and fall under the genres of science fiction, fantasy or horror. Please submit only one story per cycle. Authors will be notified in mid-November about whether their stories have been accepted for publication. Stories will be published under a non-exclusive license, at a rate of eight cents per word. The author will retail all original copyrights.

SENTIENT MEDIA
https://sentientmedia.org
We want original reporting and well-researched analysis to help change the conversation around animal ag. Our rate starts at $200. Email me at [email protected]. Submit one paragraph explaining the story you want to write. This paragraph should tell us the big takeaway of your story and why it’s important to cover this angle now. Tell us what’s new that hasn’t been covered elsewhere. Send three to five bullet points of the points you want to make in this story. What are your sources: interviews, research, evidence — what backs up the main points of your piece. Stories can be related to science, climate, health or justice. They must be sensitive to animals' experiences and well-being. We run monthly themes.
 

Publishers/agents

SEVERN ROVER PUBLISHING
https://severnriverpublishing.com/submissions/
We are accepting submissions in the mystery, thriller, and historical fiction genres.
Our editorial team is looking for stories that have compelling characters, fast-paced plots, and unexpected turns. We are accepting submissions from agents, published authors, and debut authors. We encourage agents and authors to submit their backlist titles.

BENBELLA
https://benbellabooks.com/pitching-benbella/
BenBella Books is a publishing boutique that publishes around 40 books a year, is very selective in what it acquires, and works with great diligence to publish each book to its maximum potential. We are actively acquiring strong nonfiction manuscripts. We are not looking for fiction at this time.

ONEWORLD
https://oneworld-publications.com/about/book-proposals/
Seeking nonfiction only. With nonfiction, it is important that you tell us what makes you particularly qualified to write this book. Not all of our writers are academics, but they are all experts in their chosen field. Please download the non-fiction submission form and email completed forms to [email protected].

INNER TRADITIONS PUBLISHING
https://www.innertraditions.com/publish
THey have multiple imprints, specialising in nonfiction.

INNER TRADITIONS
Books on Eastern and Western philosophy, psychology, and metaphysics—particularly works that draw from the world's spiritual traditions.

BEAR & COMPANY
Books on ancient wisdom, new science, visionary fiction, Western thought, indigenous traditions, Maya studies, extraterrestrial consciousness, and complementary medicine.

BEAR CUB BOOKS
Books for kids that feed the growing mind, body and spirit.

DESTINY BOOKS
Books on popular occult topics with original, substantive content that the reader can readily apply to his or her own life.

HEALING ARTS PRESS
Books on alternative medicine and holistic health, including titles on natural foods, cooking, and self-help.

BINDU BOOKS
Books on spirituality and self-transformation especially for young adults.

PARK STREET PRESS
Books that enhance our understanding of the world in which we live and that improve our quality of life, including psychology, entheogens, environmental issues, gender studies, and New Science.

FINDHORN PRESS
Mind, Body, Spirit books and cards that make a positive, loving, and healing difference to our world – spirituality, holistic health and healing, self-help and nature.

SACRED PLANET BOOKS
Books on the themes of consciousness, cosmology, alternative medicine, dreams, climate, permaculture, alchemy, shamanic studies, oracles, astrology, crystals, hyperobjects, locutions, and subtle bodies.
 

FUNDSFORWRITERS CONTACT INFO

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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