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MOVING FORWARD

A lot of writers say they are stuck right now. The truth is that writing never happens in a straight line and never always on an ever-improving climb toward success. There are valleys, cliffs, and deep, deep chasms of doubt and lost ground when we fail. 

The key is to recognize the drops for what they are:

1) Temporary
2) Educational
3) Opportunity

Just like you watch for the one- and two-star reviews, you keep a side-eye open for the blind-siding rejection and screw-up. Regardless of how hard you try, the road to success is one darn curvy trek. Even with headlights on, you don't always see what comes at you until you've hit it. 

But just like you cannot excel all the time, your bad doesn't last forever either.

The most successful sit in the middle of the bad, study how they got there, analyze how not to get there again, and deduce what next decision will not only take them out of the wreckage but catapult them into something innovative and positive.

We cannot get mired down in a problem and only see the problem. We can train ourselves to see a problem as opportunity. We learn more from our missteps than some how-to book. Hands-on is the best teacher. Once you've shed a few tears over the wrongness of it all, sit back and decide how this is a way to climb out and shine brighter. There isn't a successful person out there who hasn't fallen and gotten back up stronger.

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SUccess Story

Hope - 

Thank you so much for the list of assistance to writers during the COVID crisis. As a disabled author and consultant  to other authors via  my writing service, www.saugustcreative.com, I was able to gain a grant from Pen for $500. I am honored to be affiliated with you, Hope. Your support to other writers is above and beyond. 

Continued  success,
Stefanie August
[email protected] 

(FundsforWriters readers - receive a discount of 50 percent on service 
if you mention you found me through the FundsforWriters newsletter)

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Send us your success story, telling us how FundsforWriters made a difference, opened a door, helped you get someplace you wanted to be. 

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Featured article

The Journey of Editing Autobiography and Memoir

By Alex J. Coyne

Are you an editor of fiction who would like to venture into editing autobiography and memoir? When I took my first autobiographical editing job in June last year, I soon recognized a whole different ball game - and a fresh learning curve.

Autobiography… Or Memoir?

An autobiography recounts the whole story from beginning to end (“Long Walk to Freedom” or “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”), whilst a memoir tells of a certain section, time or series of events (“My Booky Wook” or “My Squirrel Days”).

It's Not Quick

Some editing jobs are cut-and-dried in a few weeks, but a developmental autobiographical or memoir edit can take months. Prepare for this or prepare to let the client know as soon as possible about any apparent change in delivery date.

It's the Lack of Mistakes

Spelling errors are easy to edit, but clients with flawless spelling are harder to edit. You assume they won't make spelling errors, and you can miss them. Look carefully and don’t assume.

Meet Your New Friend: Style Sheets

Start keeping (1) style & punctuation sheets, (2) a sheet for every change made, and (3) a chapter sheet. Save every single version of the manuscript as a separate file per day, backup electronically, and use your style sheets for consistency.

Asking and Subtracting

For both autobiographies and memoirs, killing darlings might delete an important event from their life story. Always ask before adding or subtracting chunks of story. The client might have a counter argument better than your idea.

There's Ghostwriting, Too

Developmental editing involves ghostwriting by filling in story gaps, adding situations and in-betweener scenes, and clarifying what was vague.

Write ghostwritten sections separately before inserting into the main manuscript and send these to your client for feedback first. Or send a separate version of the manuscript, at least the chapter, so they can see how your insertion affects the body of work.

Check, Check, and Check in Again

Never run into a 3,000-word re-direction before obtaining the client's go-ahead. If they're not happy with the result, you’ve lost hours that could’ve been saved via a call to your client. Connect with them about the idea and possibly a sample, but a major rewrite might waste yours and their time.

Let's Get Together

Not on the same page with the client about something? Get together for a meeting - whether real or virtually-aided - and discuss (1) what changes the client would like, (2) how you can make these changes look good on paper. It might take a few meetings, but there's always viable middle ground for most editorial disagreements or snags.

Devote Your Time

How much time per week or day will this edit take from your schedule? Set strict working times or your other work will quickly fall behind.

Keep Correspondence

Keep all client correspondence, not just for contract or clarity of direction, but also to tell you everything about how your client uses their words, structures their sentences, and chooses their verbs and nouns. Analyze what they send you and use it for ghostwriting and structuring.

Breaking the Third Wall

Uncomfortable subject or unclear topic? When editing it's your job to clarify, and if you don't ask, you might not understand what they meant.

In Sickness and In Health

What happens if either you or the client gets sick or unforeseen circumstances hit? Always include a clause preparing for this so that both understand from day one.

Searching for Subject Matter 

If you're not familiar with the subject matter or experiences you're editing, reach past your client and interview others, collect resources, do research and dig. Overall, put yourself in their shoes or you can't work on their story with any real integrity.

About the Author:
Alex J. Coyne is a writer, proofreader, card player and daily columnist for Bridge Base Online Prime. Summon Alex for writing, editing and proofreading projects through his website. (https://alexcoyneofficial.com/)

 

COmpetitions

THE GOURNAY PRIZE
https://ohiostatepress.org/books/series/21st_century.html
$28 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 22, 2020. The Gournay Prize will select one book-length collection of essays each year to receive a cash prize of $1,000 and publication in the 21st Century Essays series on Mad Creek Books, an imprint of The Ohio State University Press. The award is open to all writers for first books of essays. Writers may have published books previously in other genres. The award is open to writers in English, whether or not they are citizens of the United States.



SMOKELONG QUARTERLY AWARDS FOR FLASH FICTION
https://smokelong.submittable.com/submit/157585/2020-smokelong-quarterly-award-for-flash-fiction
$15.50 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 24, 2020. The winner of the SmokeLong Quarterly Award for Flash Fiction (The Smokey) will receive $2000, automatic nomination for The Best Small Fictions, the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and publication in our 17th-anniversary contest Issue in June. A second prize of at least $200 and a third prize of at least $100 will be awarded. At least 11 runners-up will also be published in the June 2020 contest issue–and each of the finalists will receive at least $50. Under 1,000 words, excluding the title, per story.



COSMONAUTS AVENUE FICTION PRIZE
https://cosmonautsavenue.com/prizes/
$14 ENTRY FEE. Deadline May 25, 2020. Prize is $500 and publication. We accept (and encourage) entries from all ages and countries. Limit 4,000 words. We want work that elevates and amplifies underrepresented voices, work that shines a light somewhere we should be looking, but maybe aren’t, work that settles into our bones so we can carry it with us awhile. Send us your warm, your thoughtful, your unsettling, your funny and devastating, your necessary words.



V.S. PRITCHETT SHORT STORY PRIZE
https://theroyalsocietyofliterature.submittable.com/submit
£7.50 ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 3, 2020. The author of the winning entry will be awarded a prize of £1,000 and have their story published in Prospect online and in the RSL Review. The V.S. Pritchett Short Story Prize is administered by the Royal Society of Literature in association with Prospect magazine. Stories must be written in English and be between 2,000 and 4,000 words. Entrants must be resident in the UK, Republic of Ireland or Commonwealth. To apply for a free entry to this year’s prize, please email [email protected] using the subject ‘Free VSP Entry Application’ and in the body of the email include your name, postcode and up to 200 words on why you are eligible for free entry, along with supporting documentation as proof of financial eligibility. 



RSL GILES ST. AUBYN AWARD FOR NONFICTION
https://rsliterature.org/award/rsl-giles-st-aubyn-awards-for-non-fiction/
NO ENTRY FEE. Deadline July 31, 2020. This year, we are pleased to announce that three awards will be presented: one of £10,000, one of £5,000, and one of £2,500 – to provide financial support for talented new writers to complete their first book of nonfiction for a mainstream audience, especially by buying them time for writing or research. Winners will be announced at a reception in London in October 2020. The writer must be resident in the United Kingdom (UK) or Republic of Ireland (RoI).
 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

FORT UNION NATIONAL PARK RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/2021-apply-fort-union-natio
Deadline October 8, 2020. A month in the most beautiful part of Northern New Mexico! Fort Union National Monument, located in Mora County near Watrous, NM, was the hub of commerce, national defense, and migration at the final stretch of the Santa Fe Trail. The richly evocative traces of a post-civil war era adobe fort, it became a National Monument in 1954 under the Eisenhower administration. This location is close to historic Las Vegas, NM, the great plains, local sights like Wagon Mound and Montezuma Castle, as well as Wagon Mound, and only an hour and a half away from Santa Fe. 



DEATH VALLEY RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/death-valley-2021-apply
Deadline November 13, 2020. A month-long January residency includes a $2,000 stipend. Artists will stay at the historic Stovepipe Wells Village, in a comfortable room, with all the amenities, including internet and use of the heated pool and other facilities, including the Badwater Saloon and Toll Road Restaurant, as well as the Stovepipe Wells General Store. Stovepipe Wells is close to the Mesquite Flats Dunes, and less than an hour away from Beatty, NV and the legendary ghost town of Rhyolite, NV.



HAWAI'I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/2021-winter-air-hawai-i-volca
Deadline September 4, 2020. A month-long residency includes a $2,000 stipend. Four residencies offered, close to some of the best beaches on the island of Hawaii. Residency includes the stipend, a studio, housing, events, publicity, and more. 



HALEAKALA NATIONAL PARK RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/2021-apply-haleakala-nation
Deadline November 14, 2020. The Haleakalā Residency (July 2021) is open to all artists, writers, photographers, musicians, poets, and performers in ANY art media worldwide. This Residency features a $2,000 stipend, housing inside the Park on the Island of Maui. A rare privilege! Free use of the Wilderness Cabins in the Park for seven nights maximum. Offers venue(s) for the artist's public presentation(s) and free access to park locations.



CHACO CULTURE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/2021-apply-chaco-culture-nhp
Deadline October 8, 2020. Residencies in April and October 2021. Includes a $1,000 stipend. Located in northwest New Mexico, close to the Four Corners, Iconic Shiprock, and Monument Valley.



DRY TORTUGAS RESIDENCY
https://www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org/2020-apply-dry-tortugas-natio
Deadline May 20, 2020. Includes a $2,000 stipend. Are you able to live alone with your artist partner on a beautiful island in seclusion for a month, having "packed in" all the food and supplies you will need? You will be living in a well-equipped shared house with plenty of living space, arriving by seaplane or boat. Residency is September 2020.

 

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS

FLASH FICTION MAGAZINE
https://flashfictionmagazine.com/submissions/
We pay $40 for stories selected to be in Flash Fiction Magazine anthologies. We will contact you if you are selected. We do not pay for stories published on our website. We accept fiction stories between 300–1,000 words. Read Flash Fiction Magazine books to see what stories we have previously paid for. You are allowed to submit once a month. During the first quarter of 2021, we will be voting on our favorite story of 2020. The award is $1,000.



50-WORD STORIES
https://fiftywordstories.com/submissions/
Each month, submissions will be open between days 1 and 15 of that month. Any stories received on days 16 to 31 of a month will be deleted but can be resubmitted the following month. You may only submit one story per month. From the stories received in those 15 days, the best stories will be selected to be published that same month. Only enough stories will be selected to publish two stories per weekday. Each month a “Story of the Month” is selected and receives a prize of $10 Canadian.



FIRESIDE MAGAZINE
https://firesidefiction.com/submissions
Fireside holds a submissions period for each upcoming issue of Fireside Quarterly. In 2020, Fireside will be open to submissions for short stories during the following periods: 

June 15, 2020 to June 19, 2020
Submissions period for the Spring 2021 Issue

August 23, 2020 to August 27, 2020
Submissions period for the Summer 2021 Issue

November 30, 2020 to December 4, 2020
Submissions period for the Autumn 2021 Issue

We accept short stories up to 3,000 words. Our budget allows us to pay for up to 7,000 words per month, which means we are always going to buy a larger quantity of shorter fiction than longer stories. Only one story per author — no multiple submissions. Payment of 12.5 cents per word.



THE DARK MAGAZINE
http://thedarkmagazine.com/submission-guidelines/
The Dark is an online magazine published monthly. We are seeking fiction 2,000 – 6,000 words in horror and dark fantasy. We pay six cents/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words on publication for first world rights; and one cent/word for reprint fiction up to 6,000 words on publication for nonexclusive reprint rights.



PULP LITERATURE
http://pulpliterature.com/submissions/submission-guidelines/
We pay five to seven cents per word for short stories (to 7,000 words), three to five cents per word between 7,000 and 10,000 words, and two to three and a half cents per word for works over 10,000 words. Poetry and interior illustrations pay between $25 and $50. Stories under 5,000 words have the best chance of publication. We are looking for entertaining, accessible stories. We do appreciate clever and poetic turns of phrase, but first and foremost, we want a story that readers can sink into late at night before they go to bed. 

 

Publishers/agents

REGAL HOUSE PUBLISHING
https://www.regalhousepublishing.com/submissions/
We are currently seeking manuscripts within the genres of literary fiction, contemporary fiction, historical fiction, and memoirs. We only accept poetry submissions (from both debut and previously published poets) through our Terry J. Cox Poetry Award that opens for submissions in November of 2020. We only accept short story submissions via our W.S. Porter Prize, which opens for submissions September 2020.


 
CARNICELLI LITERARY AGENCY
https://www.carnicellilit.com/about-the-agency
In nonfiction, we represent history, current events and politics, sports, memoir, biography, health and wellness, and business. In fiction, we handle literary fiction, graphic novels, and political thrillers.



THE GERNERT COMPANY
https://www.thegernertco.com/home-page-the-agency
The Gernert Company is a literary agency with offices in New York and Los Angeles. Our client list is as broad as the market; we represent equal parts fiction (commercial and literary writers, both well-known and soon-to-be, whether writing for adults or younger readers) and nonfiction (biographers, memoirists, journalists, essayists, bloggers, and writers of trade and scholarly nonfiction in subjects ranging from sports and history to current events and science). We sell domestic, foreign, and subsidiary rights for our clients and partner with subagents in select foreign markets and the film/TV industry.



JILL GRINBERG LITERARY MANAGEMENT
https://jillgrinbergliterary.com/about/
We represent nonfiction and fiction across the entire age and audience spectrum: adult, children’s, teen, and books that cross audiences. We also represent and are personally drawn to a variety of formats – straight text, text with visuals, graphic fiction, and nonfiction. Whichever direction our authors move in, we are able to effectively represent their work and support them in the ways they require.



ZENO LITERARY AGENCY
http://zenoagency.com/about-us/
Zeno Agency Ltd is a London-based literary agency specialising in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror. We are also expanding into other genres, such as crime and thrillers, women’s fiction, and young adult fiction. Authors seeking representation should refer to our submission guidelines. We represent a top-drawer range of authors, both as primary agent and in association with a number of well-known agencies abroad. 



THE SOHO AGENCY
https://thesohoagency.co.uk/literary-submissions
We are looking for the best debut writers, as well as established authors, successfully self-published writers, and the most exciting and innovative creative talent out there, in both fiction and nonfiction. We work across a broad range of genres and categories (you can see the few things we don't represent below), but you can find out more about what each of our agents is looking for in our individual agent descriptions. We are passionate about great writing, and we operate dynamically across all areas of publishing – film, television, and other media, including speaking and live events. We are usually looking for writers and artists who would enjoy seeing their work in more than one medium. We actively look at the international potential of all authors and projects we take on, and we have a great track record in selling rights globally.



DAVID HIGHAM LITERARY AGENCY
https://www.davidhigham.co.uk/submissions/book-submission/
At David Higham Associates, we are always on the lookout for talented new writers. Please refer to the guidelines in the links online according to the nature of your work (‘Books’, ‘Children’s / YA’, or ‘Scripts’ for potential Film, TV and Theatre clients).



KATE NASH LITERARY AGENCY
https://katenashlit.co.uk/submissions/
We are always on the lookout for new writing talent, and great stories to share with the world. If you have written a book you’d like us to take a look at, fiction or nonfiction, please take a look at our submissions policy. 



THE AGENCY
https://theagency.co.uk/the-company/
We represent all manner of writers and directors working in drama across film, television and theatre, from those at the peak of their careers to those at the very beginning. That range is reflected in the company, too. The agents here are as varied in their taste as they are in age and experience. We work with other successful book agencies representing their media rights, and we ourselves have a bespoke children’s literary department. 
 

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FINE PRINT

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

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ISSN: 1533-1326

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