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EDITOR'S THOUGHTS

PEOPLE DON'T CARE ABOUT MY SWEAT AND BLOOD

 I witnessed a pouty meltdown by an author the other day on Facebook. Someone bashed her book. And instead of walking away, being quiet, or ignoring the remark, she took the challenge and replied to the person, then she went to her peeps on FB and replayed the situation, ripe with vitriol and frustration. 

"People don't care about my sweat and blood," she said. 

"Oh, geez," was about all I could think as I watched her slit her own throat in front of hundreds of friends. 

Readers do not care about the sweat and blood....and they shouldn't. 

Think about the purchases in your life. Do you stop and wonder how many hours, days, week, or months it took to design and make it? I doubt it. You just want the end result, and even then, want it to matter in your world. How it came to be doesn't matter. How it makes your life better does.

Same goes for books, and the stories they contain. The reader wants a good experience and hopes to find a new favorite author. That's all they want. Sometimes they don't like the story and other times they do. You rolled the dice by putting your story out there for such judgement. 

So, your job isn't to make people care about how hard you work. Quite the contrary. They want to feel you are gifted. The story should read easy and admirably smooth, like it was super easy to be written, or that the author has tons of natural talent. That sensation puts the author on a pedestal, so to speak. The author is doing something seamlessly that the reader cannot. 

Your job is to write a good book. If you don't win some readers, so be it. There are so many others to win over out there in the reader sea. They don't have to understand the sweat and blood. Frankly, hours invested in something isn't the measure of how good it is. How it improves someone's quality of life is.

5938196 © Christopher Nuzzaco | Dreamstime.com

SUPER SPONSOR 

GUTSY GREAT NOVELIST PAGE ONE PRIZE
https://gutsygreatnovelist.com/page-one-prize/

$20 ENTRY FEE. Submissions open June 14 – July 14. The Gutsy Great Novelist Page One Prize is awarded for an outstanding opening page of an unpublished novel. First prize is $1,000; 2nd is $500; and 3rd is $250. The prize is open internationally to anyone over 18 writing a novel in English in any genre for adult or YA readers.



 

HOPE'S APPEARANCES

 
SUCCESS QUOTE

SUccess Story

Featured article

Successful Travel Stories: 9 Questions to Ask Before You Pitch

By Roy Stevenson

You spend hours researching your topic. Then you spend time writing a query letter and finding potential magazines to pitch. How can you write successful travel stories that will have a better sell factor to magazine editors? Use this screening technique to examine story feasibility and turn ideas into successful travel stories that get published. I use "Nine Questions Test" all the time, which helps explain why I sell 90% of all stories I pitch. 

1.  Is Your Story Angle Unique?

Say you want to pitch a travel story about Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. If you do an internet search of “travel articles Universal Studios Adventure Island” you'll find hundreds of articles on this topic. It’s been beaten to death. Likewise trying to sell stories about standard cruises on popular cruise lines unless it has a huge celebrity factor, an unusual theme, or interesting port of call. Uncover fascinating and unique aspects about your destinations you don’t find in a typical online search.  

2.  Does Your Story Idea Pass "The Wikipedia Test"?

Ask yourself, "Does my proposed story have information that Wikipedia does not have?"  If your answer is “yes,” then you probably have a saleable travel story idea. 

3.  Are You Pitching to Non-travel Genres?

I’ve written for 200+ publications, the majority of which have not been travel magazines. Some of the non-travel genre magazines that have published my travel stories include gardening, gold prospecting, ham radios, four-wheel drive vehicles, classic cars, art and sculpture, wine tasting, beer brewing, hiking, kayaking, and living history re-enactments.

I’ve managed to place my travel stories in non-travel magazines like American Cowboy, Beer Connoisseur, Pacific Horticulture, Popular Communications, Renaissance, and Walking New Zealand. Non-travel magazines have proven to be a gold mine for my travel stories.  

4.  Does Your Destination Have Multiple Story Potential? 

Before you take a trip, research the destination and identify multiple story ideas.  With multiple writing assignments about one destination you'll earn more money and have a more fulfilling trip. 

5.  Does Your Story Have Resale Potential?

Closely allied with writing in multiple genres is your capacity to resell across genres. The most lucrative and successful travel stories can cross-transfer from one subject to the next. For example, I’ve sold an article about skin care from overexposure to the sun more than one dozen times. It has sold to gardening, running, triathlon, yachting, tennis, kayaking, travel, and several other genre publications. I still sell it today.

6.  Does Your Story Focus On One Place or Attraction?

Novice writers consistently squeeze too many themes or places into one story pitch. Unless your proposed story is a general roundup about the attractions at a destination, your focus should be as fine as a laser beam. 

Editors will not touch a pitch that jumps around like a pinball machine. This lack of focus tells the editor that you have not established a storyline clearly in your head. If you have a lot of story ideas about a place, you're better off selling multiple story ideas to multiple genres.  See # 3 & 4 above.

7.  Does Your Story Focus On The Positive Aspects Of A Destination?

Travel writers are not critics. The mission is simply to tell a story about a place, and how it resonates with us. We describe what we like and what visitors will enjoy seeing there. It’s not our job to come across as spoiled kids, complaining about “the crowds in Paris” or our “personal moments of self-discovery.”  Successful travel stories are positive, not negative. Nobody wants to visit downer places.

8.  Do You Have High-Resolution Photos To Accompany Your Story?

Most editors appreciate writers who can produce a gallery of high-res images to illustrate their article. This saves them time and money. Many editors won’t buy your article unless you can also provide travel photographs. 

9.  Is Your Story About A Safe Destination?  

I sell 90% of the stories I pitch versus other successful travel writers who sell 25% - 40%. I go with the safe bets. I write about destinations that are well received and safe, countries like Germany, for example. It’s just been ranked first in the Anholt-Gfk Nation Brands Index (NBI) that measures the brand image of 50 nations worldwide. Conversely, I ignore places that tourists shy from because of recent natural disasters or geopolitical hot spots. 

Creating successful travel stories means tempering your enthusiasm with a sound business decision. Vacations are supposed to be “feel good” experiences that liberate us from the drudgery of our miserable 9-to-5 existence. Once a place becomes tainted by natural or man-made disasters, it’s difficult to lure tourists back, making the stories difficult to sell. 

Checking your proposed story idea against this checklist may take you some extra time, but it will skyrocket your chances of seeing your article published—and re-published!

BIO - Roy Stevenson is a professional freelance travel writer and photographer based in Seattle, Washington. With more than 1,000 articles published in 200 regional, national, and international magazines, specialty magazines, custom publications, newspapers, trade journals, in-flights, on-boards, and online travel magazines and blogs, Roy is one of the most prolific travel writers in North America.  
To view Roy Stevenson’s travel articles please go to www.Roy-Stevenson.com and www.PitchTravelWrite.com He also produces a free weekly newsletter for aspiring travel writers: http://www.pitchtravelwrite.com/pitchtravelwrite-ezine.html
 

COmpetitions

ELIZABETH NUNEZ CARIBBEAN-AMERICAN WRITER'S SHORT FICTION PRIZE
https://www.bklyncbeanlitfest.com/about-bclf-short-fiction-story
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 1, 2023. The BCLF Short Fiction Story Contest is an annual writing competition geared towards unearthing and encouraging the distinctive voice and story of the Caribbean-descended writer and expanding the creative writing landscape of Caribbean literature. Open to unpublished writers of Caribbean heritage. Self-published writers may apply. This prize seeks to unearth hidden storytellers in the United States and Canada. A separate category is open exclusively to Caribbean writers of all levels who reside and work in the Caribbean or are on temporary assignment overseas. Word count: 3,000 words or less. Winners receive a prize of $1,750, publication on the Brooklyn Caribbean Literary Festival (BCLF) website, and an invitation to participate in a BCLF podcast episode. 

MARYSTINA SANTIESTEVAN FIRST BOOK PRIZE
https://www.conduit.org/book-prizes
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 7, 2023. Awarded annually to a poet writing in English who has not yet published a full-length poetry book. Previously unpublished manuscripts of 48-90 pages should be submitted. The winning poet will receive $1,500, publication, and 30 author copies. 

LOVE BOOKS COMPETITION
https://www.marlboroughlitfest.org/2023-love-books-competition-entry-details
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline June 30, 2023. We want you to tell us why you love your favourite book, poem or play. Your response should be in the form of a piece of text of up to 750 words. Entrants should explain what they love about their chosen read, highlighting key areas of interest, and why they think others should try it. Age groups: 13-15 years, 16-19 years, 20+ years. Winner for each age group receives £300; the runner-up in each age group receives £100. 

ROBERT AND ADELE SCHIFF AWARDS
https://www.cincinnatireview.com/contests/robert-and-adele-schiff-awards/
$20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 15, 2023. One poem, one piece of fiction, and one piece of literary nonfiction will be chosen for publication in our prize issue, and winning authors will receive $1,000 each. All entries will be considered for publication in The Cincinnati Review. Writers may submit up to 8 pages of poetry, 40 pages of a single double-spaced piece of fiction, or 20 pages of a single double-spaced piece of literary nonfiction, per entry.

PETRICHOR PRIZE FOR FINELY CRAFTED FICTION
https://regalhousepublishing.com/the-petrichor-prize-for-finely-crafted-fiction/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 15, 2023. Winner receives $1000 and book publication by Regal House Publishing. Minimum of 100 pages, maximum of 350 pages. 

THE W.S. PORTER PRIZE FOR FINELY CRAFTED SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS
https://regalhousepublishing.com/the-w-s-porter-prize/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline December 1, 2023. The W.S. Porter Prize is awarded to recognize a masterfully written short story collection, while also honoring William Sydney Porter, a native born son of North Carolina and an accomplished short story writer who wrote under the pseudonym O. Henry. Winner receives book publication by Regal House Publishing in 2025/6 and $1000 prize. Minimum of 100 pages, maximum of 350 pages.
 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS

STYLIST
https://www.stylist.co.uk/life/writer-journalist-freelance-career-women-stories-how-to-pitch-an-article/217237
Seeking powerful first-person stories around the topic of mental health, for Stylist's Frame of Mind series. Pitch to Ellen C. Scott, Deputy Digital Editor at [email protected]. Find samples at https://www.stylist.co.uk/tag/processing

SCIENCE MAGAZINE
https://www.science.org/content/page/freelancer-guidelines
Submit pitches to Matthew Warren, European News Editor at [email protected]. Are you a freelance journalist with a hot scoop or juicy scandal, a compelling profile of a scientist, or an original take on a science policy issue? If so, bring it to the award-winning News department of Science, the flagship research journal from the world’s largest general science society. We have plenty of appetite for freelance contributions—everything from 140-word news briefs to 2500-word features to investigative projects. Our rates begin at $0.75 per word for online-only stories and $1.25 per word for print-only stories. For certain types of stories, we pay a flat rate negotiated in advance—a typical online Q&A, for example, is $500. We cover travel expenses if agreed upon in advance and pay for reporting by the hour under certain circumstances.

YOGA JOURNAL
https://www.yogajournal.com/freelance-contributor-and-writer-guidelines/
Our typical article runs 500 to 1000 words and could be focused on recent research, anatomy hacks, soulful first-person sharing, reporting on a recent happening or trend, or a larger feature that explores some aspect of the practice or industry of yoga. 

OUTSIDE MAGAZINE
https://www.outsideonline.com/magazine/contact-us/how-to-pitch-freelance-outside-magazine/
Outside publishes stories about adventure sports, gear, travel, fitness, health, culture, and the environment. We’re always on the lookout for reporting, essays, service pieces, and media reviews focused on the outdoor world. Rates typically start at 50 cents per word for online stories and go up from there, depending on the complexity of the reporting and your experience as a writer. Our features run anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000 words, though most land somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000. Various other departments from health to adventure to travel.

AMERICAN EDUCATOR
https://www.aft.org/article-submission-guidelines
American Educator is the professional journal of the American Federation of Teachers, covering research and ideas from early childhood through higher education. We are interested in a wide range of articles on curriculum and instruction; social and emotional development; the science of how students learn; the high school to college transition; history, civics, and democracy; diversifying the teaching profession and the professoriate; confronting bias in schools and on college campuses; supporting teacher professionalism and protecting academic freedom, among other educational topics and trends. We also welcome articles on international affairs and labor issues of interest to teachers and professors as AFT members. Articles may vary in length from 1,000 to 5,000 words, depending on the topic. Pay is roughly $300.

 

Publishers/agents

ATRIA BOOKS
https://www.atriabooks.biz/
Atria has published hundreds of bestsellers including commercial and literary fiction, mysteries and thrillers, narrative nonfiction, politics and popular culture, science, personal development, and spirituality. Atria is a place where great books come to light. Look for our books under these imprints: Atria Books, Atria Español, Black Privilege Publishing, Emily Bestler Books, One Signal Publishers, and Washington Square Press.

AND OTHER STORIES
https://www.andotherstories.org/about-us/
Right now only accepting submissions from translators. Only accepts via snail mail. And Other Stories publishes mainly contemporary writing, including many translations.

GALLEY BEGGAR
https://www.galleybeggar.co.uk/submissions
We publish adult literary fiction (novels and short story collections) and narrative non-fiction. We are not currently considering other genres (e.g., poetry, lifestyle, commercial fiction).

PRATHAM BOOKS
https://prathambooks.org/submissions/
At Pratham Books, we publish books that enrich the reading experience for a child. We select manuscripts based on several parameters. Selected stories may not have all of the following attributes, but we do look for scripts that match most of them: Original and engaging, Indian setting, Interesting plot and characters, Diverse, Fiction, creative non-fiction, nonfiction. If you don’t hear from us within two months, you may assume that your manuscript has not been selected.

MONTAG PRESS
https://www.montagpress.com/about
MONTAG PRESS presents the very best in experimental, weird, subversive, speculative, science, historical, and horror fiction, in either a narrative or dramatic structure, with a strong plot, well-developed characters, and engaging voices. MONTAG PRESS is a BAY AREA-based publisher of original fiction and drama. Montag Press publishes the highest quality stories and plays for paperback and e-book distribution. 

​TILBURY HOUSE
https://www.tilburyhouse.com/submissions
Tilbury House publishes a wide range of children’s books, including board books, beginning readers, picture books, and middle grade titles. We publish both fiction and nonfiction. We are committed to the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we welcome stories from diverse authors.

SIBYLLINE PRESS
https://sibyllinepress.com/submissions/
After reviewing the submissions, we’ll narrow down the list of prospective books for a given season. Then we will reach out to those authors with requests to complete our in-depth author questionnaire and to schedule a Zoom interview. We work intimately with our authors and want to ensure that we are a match. At this time, we also will send you a full description of our proprietary two-year launch program for your review, along with information on the financial investment that contributes to the marketing budget to effectively launch your book. If your book is selected, we’ll invite you to be our partner and take part in the two-year intensive publication program. If you accept, you will receive an author contract giving Sibylline the rights to publish your book (you retain copyright). Your book will be one of our six titles published in the following Fall or Spring seasons. Submissions are currently open for our Spring and Fall 2024 lists. If you are a woman 50 or older and your book is both ready and excellent, we want to see it.

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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 2000-2023, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326

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