Countdown of readers’ favs of 2020 – day 2

 The countdown of readers’ favorite posts of 2020 continues, with numbers seven and eight:

Last look at WORDfest – the on to virtual future!

Writers—need a break from that “locked in” feeling? From old familiar faces? From long term commitments? I don’t have a cure for the pandemic, only for a change of writing pace, from long form to short form, with hints from master short story writer William Ledbetter. 

A Nebula Award-winning author of dozens of speculative fiction short stories and articles, Ledbetter discussed his guidelines for “Writing and Marketing Short Fiction” at this year’s virtual version of North Texas And if it sounds as if she’s talking only to authors planning to self-publish, she’s not. It’s even possible to relaunch a previously published book. And if by “platform” you think she means being on every possible social media outlet, she’s not. “Find two you love, including your blog. . . The way you (build platform) is by being authentic, (posting) about things that make me fall in love with you. You don’t have to sell your book.”

Writers do, however, “need to have goals so you can achieve them,” Raquel insisted, because you’ll be launching on that “complex beast” Amazon. “Your book launch depends on making this animal work for you, not against you.”

Make it work by researching categories, prices, and endorsers.     

Think of Amazon categories as genres, Raquel told her audience. Pick the most relevant ones, but rather than choosing “science fiction and fantasy,” which is too broad, get more specific with categories such as “technothriller.” Then research the competition. “It will be hard to outsell authors in categories they dominate,” and launching writers will strive to find categories in which their books have a chance to become bestsellers.

And about pricing—“it’s an art, not a science.” Check the most common prices for ebooks in the chosen category, remembering that prices can always be changed. Raquel’s suggestions are to launch at 99 cents the first week. “You want it to be a no-brainer for someone to buy that book.” Later pricing can go up to $2.99 to $3.99 for ebooks and as much as $12.99-$19.99 for paperbacks, depending on genre. (Note: for KDP, authors must change their royalty setting to be able to sell at 99 cents.)

To find endorsers, Raquel recommends cultivating book bloggers, as well as checking out book promotion sites, whose prices can vary from free to “very expensive.” Both tasks should be done prior to launch. Although she suggested several, writers may want to check out book bloggers and promotional sites as well as contests with possible prizes at the all-purpose Reedsy site. 

***

Ready for more reader favs? Here’s #7:

Recycling floods of words into multiple venues

Is anyone else feeling jealous at the sight of all the creative stuff our friends are making from unlikely sources during the pandemic? You know who I’m talking about. The ones who craft amazing whatzits from leftover yarn or cook from-scratch restaurant-worthy entrees out of stuff found in the back of their pantries, even post pictures of themselves impersonating famous paintings. 

Well, writers, here’s our turn at creative recycling. With crafts like mining our yet-to-be-published novels for short stories – 1,000 words are easier and quicker to sell than 100,000. Or writing fanfic from our own fiction by giving a minor character an expanded role, reimagining a scene from a different point of view, or taking that sea of back story we can’t quite find room for in the big book and giving it a story of its own. 

This isn’t a new idea for me, but it got new life recently while I was, as I posted last month, refurbishing some of my previously published short stories for Wattpad. When I dropped some of them in my critique group’s Dropbox, one sharp-eyed critique partner noticed that one employed an episode from a novel the group had recently critiqued. 

Why, she asked, would I turn a novel into a short story? 

The short answer was so that I could make a separate sale of the short story, which didn’t exactly replicate the novel chapter it was based on. And has, in fact, been sold twice, while the novel still languishes. I didn’t mention that a second short story (which has also sold twice) was the backstory of another character who ended up in that same novel

Or that still another unsold novel has generated other multi-published short stories.

Still, I had said enough to whet her interest. Where, she, a veteran of long form writing, asked, do you sell short stories?

The answer to that proved too lengthy for a Facebook post, so I’m expanding it here. I’ll also delve into the inspirational benefits to be gleaned from writing short stories that make us want to try our hands at longer works with those characters or settings.

First, let me whet the appetites of you, dear readers, with suggestions for where to sell those story whatzits I see churning in your brains.

When I was writing a lot more short stories than I currently am, my bible for publication venues was Duotrope’s Digest, with its listing of thousands of active markets for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. (It’s since added visual arts venues and literary agents to its mix.) In addition to listing markets and their contact information, Duotrope adds interviews with editors, word counts, numbers of acceptances, approximate response time, and your own personal spreadsheet of submissions.

Is there a downside to all this bounty? Yes, of sorts. Since my initial writing days, Duotrope has added a subscription fee. Still, at $5 per month or $50 for 12 months (each with a beginning free trial) it’s still a good deal. In fact, although I dropped my subscription when I began writing more long form, I’m tempted to return.

However, for those who want to dabble in the publication waters, there are free options. One is The Submission Grinder. I’ve tried it and found it does almost everything Duotrope does, although as yet only for fiction and poetry, without charge.

I’ve also used another not-for-pay source of primarily genre publishing markets, Ralan.com.

Other free sources for short stories as well as longer works include the blog Publishing . . . And Other Forms of Insanity, which also has agent listings; New Pages; and Reedsy.

Still, the possibility of getting money from some of those words we’ve devoted so much time to isn’t the only reason for the mix-and-match use of short stories and novels. There’s also the possibility of faster gratification – publication in weeks instead of years. Plus, short story publications don’t require literary agents as gatekeepers. And most of them don’t require any more in the way of a query letter than the bare facts of the stories title, genre, and word count, and the writer’s own contact information.

And short stories on their own are ways to generate ideas for longer fiction. I’ve hatched the germ of at least a couple of novels, as well as valuable backstory for characters, from short stories written for the market or for writing conferences. Shorter forms are great for trying out ideas. An alt-history short (again, multi-published) turned into a more conventional historical. A fantasy story that flopped at a workshop got new life in a different genre.

And for anyone unsure of which point of view to use, short stories are exercises in possibility. After all, it’s only a few thousand words. . . 

Before proceeding, please note that crafting short stories from already-written or in-progress novels isn’t a simple matter of putting a chapter on a chopping block and cutting a few thousand words. Long form and short form writing are separate works of art. We will find ourselves writing new beginnings or endings, eliding middles, even reimagining our characters.

Think of this as you contemplate your friends’ other crafts on Instagram or Facebook. Maybe they ran out of their favorite yarn and had to improvise. Maybe they had only canned spinach for that quiche instead of fresh or frozen and dared not post the first results to Instagram. Practice, revise, rewrite. Don’t be afraid of any un-Instagram worthy writing results but prepare to turn floods of words into marvelous stories!. 

He only had to tell his audience to skip the synopsis— “it’s a short story!”—to catch the attention of this writer struggling with that most dreaded to-do for book length works. 

Then there was ability to engage with a completely new set of characters for each short story. And of course, the time element. Not that Ledbetter dashes out stories offhand—he sometimes spends as much as two weeks on one—but I mentally compared this to the months, sometimes years, lavished on novel writing. It didn’t hurt either to hear we can skip dealing with agents and submit our short stories directly to publishers.  

(Most agents, in fact, will not represent short story writers, although Ledbetter didn’t rebuff the agent who offered representation after reading his Nebula-winning short story, “The Long Fall Up.” It was an offer that later resulted in Ledbetter’s first novel publication, Level Five.)

Still, some of Ledbetter’s “musts” for short story publication carry over into long form fiction. “First, read the guidelines,” he warned.

“If the story doesn’t follow the guidelines or the writer hasn’t checked the spelling the slush reader and editor will say, ‘this isn’t for us.’ You want your story to be so good that they’ll read all the way to the end. . . Good enough isn’t good enough. Make sure it’s the best story you can possibly write.”

For writing that best story, first pages are critically important. With a short story, within the first two or three pages, you have to supply context. (By context, he means, why should the story begin where it does and why should the reader care.) And, have a great ending! “It’s a good idea to have something at the beginning that ties into the ending. It’s satisfying when a story comes full circle.”

On the other hand, “one of the things (editors) always say is, ‘read our magazine.’ The problem is writers may simply write clones of previously published stories with the serial numbers filed off.”

Write the story you want to write, Ledbetter said, then look for a publication that’s a match for it.

To find those publications, he suggests two major resources,  Duotrope’s Digest and  The Submission Grinder.

“These allow you to track your submissions and also provide information about other markets.” (Duotrope requires a subscription fee of $5/month or $50/year and also has a larger data base than The Submission Grinder, which is free.) 

“You can also search by genre, like if you’re writing a Western or a romance story, as well as providing information on contests and anthologies.” 

And as always, be persistent and patient. Not to mention thick-skinned. There will be rejections. 

***

Also, at WORDfest, it was a relief to hear from book guru Shayla Raquel that virtual book releases can be as satisfying as those in person.

Raquel’s must-haves for that perfect launch:

·       The best book you can possibly write

·       Professionally edited

·       With a professional cover

·       And professional formatting

·       A user-friendly, mobile-friendly website

·       Author platform (social media presence, community of influencers, email list, etc.)

·       At least three months to execute the launch

And if it sounds as if she’s talking only to authors planning to self-publish, she’s not. It’s even possible to relaunch a previously published book. And if by “platform” you think she means being on every possible social media outlet, she’s not. “Find two you love, including your blog. . . The way you (build platform) is by being authentic, (posting) about things that make me fall in love with you. You don’t have to sell your book.”

Writers do, however, “need to have goals so you can achieve them,” Raquel insisted, because you’ll be launching on that “complex beast” Amazon. “Your book launch depends on making this animal work for you, not against you.”

Make it work by researching categories, prices, and endorsers.     

Think of Amazon categories as genres, Raquel told her audience. Pick the most relevant ones, but rather than choosing “science fiction and fantasy,” which is too broad, get more specific with categories such as “technothriller.” Then research the competition. “It will be hard to outsell authors in categories they dominate,” and launching writers will strive to find categories in which their books have a chance to become bestsellers.

Image: Pixabay

And about pricing—“it’s an art, not a science.” Check the most common prices for ebooks in the chosen category, remembering that prices can always be changed. Raquel’s suggestions are to launch at 99 cents the first week. “You want it to be a no-brainer for someone to buy that book.” Later pricing can go up to $2.99 to $3.99 for ebooks and as much as $12.99-$19.99 for paperbacks, depending on genre. (Note: for KDP, authors must change their royalty setting to be able to sell at 99 cents.)

To find endorsers, Raquel recommends cultivating book bloggers, as well as checking out book promotion sites, whose prices can vary from free to “very expensive.” Both tasks should be done prior to launch. Although she suggested several, writers may want to check out book bloggers and promotional sites as well as contests with possible prizes at the all-purpose Reedsy site.

 ***

And here’s readers' fav #7:

Recycling floods of words into multiple venues

Is anyone else feeling jealous at the sight of all the creative stuff our friends are making from unlikely sources during the pandemic? You know who I’m talking about. The ones who craft amazing whatzits from leftover yarn or cook from-scratch restaurant-worthy entrees out of stuff found in the back of their pantries, even post pictures of themselves impersonating famous paintings. 

Well, writers, here’s our turn at creative recycling. With crafts like mining our yet-to-be-published novels for short stories – 1,000 words are easier and quicker to sell than 100,000. Or writing fanfic from our own fiction by giving a minor character an expanded role, reimagining a scene from a different point of view, or taking that sea of back story we can’t quite find room for in the big book and giving it a story of its own. 

This isn’t a new idea for me, but it got new life recently while I was, as I posted last month, refurbishing some of my previously published short stories for Wattpad. When I dropped some of them in my critique group’s Dropbox, one sharp-eyed critique partner noticed that one employed an episode from a novel the group had recently critiqued. 

Why, she asked, would I turn a novel into a short story? 

The short answer was so that I could make a separate sale of the short story, which didn’t exactly replicate the novel chapter it was based on. And has, in fact, been sold twice, while the novel still languishes. I didn’t mention that a second short story (which has also sold twice) was the backstory of another character who ended up in that same novel

Or that still another unsold novel has generated other multi-published short stories.

Still, I had said enough to whet her interest. Where, she, a veteran of long form writing, asked, do you sell short stories?

The answer to that proved too lengthy for a Facebook post, so I’m expanding it here. I’ll also delve into the inspirational benefits to be gleaned from writing short stories that make us want to try our hands at longer works with those characters or settings.

First, let me whet the appetites of you, dear readers, with suggestions for where to sell those story whatzits I see churning in your brains.

When I was writing a lot more short stories than I currently am, my bible for publication venues was Duotrope’s Digest, with its listing of thousands of active markets for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. (It’s since added visual arts venues and literary agents to its mix.) In addition to listing markets and their contact information, Duotrope adds interviews with editors, word counts, numbers of acceptances, approximate response time, and your own personal spreadsheet of submissions.

Is there a downside to all this bounty? Yes, of sorts. Since my initial writing days, Duotrope has added a subscription fee. Still, at $5 per month or $50 for 12 months (each with a beginning free trial) it’s still a good deal. In fact, although I dropped my subscription when I began writing more long form, I’m tempted to return.

However, for those who want to dabble in the publication waters, there are free options. One is The Submission Grinder. I’ve tried it and found it does almost everything Duotrope does, although as yet only for fiction and poetry, without charge.

I’ve also used another not-for-pay source of primarily genre publishing markets, Ralan.com.

Other free sources for short stories as well as longer works include the blog Publishing . . . And Other Forms of Insanity, which also has agent listings; New Pages; and Reedsy.

Still, the possibility of getting money from some of those words we’ve devoted so much time to isn’t the only reason for the mix-and-match use of short stories and novels. There’s also the possibility of faster gratification – publication in weeks instead of years. Plus, short story publications don’t require literary agents as gatekeepers. And most of them don’t require any more in the way of a query letter than the bare facts of the stories title, genre, and word count, and the writer’s own contact information.

And short stories on their own are ways to generate ideas for longer fiction. I’ve hatched the germ of at least a couple of novels, as well as valuable backstory for characters, from short stories written for the market or for writing conferences. Shorter forms are great for trying out ideas. An alt-history short (again, multi-published) turned into a more conventional historical. A fantasy story that flopped at a workshop got new life in a different genre.

And for anyone unsure of which point of view to use, short stories are exercises in possibility. After all, it’s only a few thousand words. . . 

Before proceeding, please note that crafting short stories from already-written or in-progress novels isn’t a simple matter of putting a chapter on a chopping block and cutting a few thousand words. Long form and short form writing are separate works of art. We will find ourselves writing new beginnings or endings, eliding middles, even reimagining our characters.

Think of this as you contemplate your friends’ other crafts on Instagram or Facebook. Maybe they ran out of their favorite yarn and had to improvise. Maybe they had only canned spinach for that quiche instead of fresh or frozen and dared not post the first results to Instagram. Practice, revise, rewrite. Don’t be afraid of any un-Instagram worthy writing results but prepare to turn floods of words into marvelous stories!

Wordcraft – Building an audience through short stories

Second in an occasional series about literary publication and promotion

A couple of weeks ago I began this series with information about finding critique groups to help us write the best stories possible. (And as a former journalist, I include nonfiction in the term “stories.” Because writing is writing is writing. Right?)

Today I’m following up with information, both from this summer’s ArmadilloCon writing workshop and other sources, for getting those stories in front of an audience. This post will focus most heavily on publishing outlets for short pieces, with further information on book length works to follow.

Before anybody can say, but I don’t write short pieces, let me say, don’t diss the shorts. Consider that the Great American Novel (or any country’s great novel) can take years to write and years more to find a publisher, for those of us who don’t already have a Pulitzer or Nobel Prize backing us. While we’re honing that really long piece, we can start building an audience for it with shorter forms.

Consider also that a novel may grow from a piece of short fiction, a novel can grow. Or a book length work-in-progress can spawn characters and situations that don’t fit in the longer work but deserve their own place. We may even find we love the short pieces enough to write an entire collection of them.

I’ve written before about publishing sources for short fiction, but here’s a refresher of the biggest, all accessible online: Duotrope’s Digest, New Pages, Submissions Grinder and Ralan.

(By the way, please resist the urge to self-publish, especially on free sites, unless you’re an established writer who simply wants to maintain a presence between longer works. Publishing a work, even on our own websites or blogs, will usually count as a “first publication” and may limit our ability to find additional markets for the work. And while it’s nice to get our words out there, it’s even nicer to get them on a site that has some editing credibility. Nicer still if we can get paid for them.)

Duotrope is still my favorite source for short fiction publishers. Yes, it’s a pay-for site: $50 for a year’s subscription (or try a trial subscription free, or pay as you go for $5 per month). Its listings of more than 5,800 sites for fiction, nonfiction and poetry are hard to beat.

That said, other sources, including J.W. Alden’s, list free alternatives to Duotrope, especially for genre writers. Still, I haven’t found anything to compete with the way Duotrope handles its statistics: length, genre, topic, pay rate, response time, acceptance rate, and more.

Duotrope’s closest (free) contender is the Submissions Grinder, whose search engine strongly resembles Duotrope’s. I have used the Submissions Grinder and found that its listing of publishers has a significant, although not exclusive, overlap with Duotrope.

Of particular value to writers of genre fiction is Ralan, maintained by Ralan Conley, and aimed at writers of fantasy and science fiction. New this month is its listing of “under 1K, poetry, audio and twitter markets”.

For exclusively literary writers, try New Pages, whose classified pages also list writing workshops and conferences.

Whichever site we use will help us target the best possible publisher for our stories. And while we hope for publication in the most prestigious sites, we shouldn’t ignore the more modest publications. When I was starting to publish short stories, I blatantly searched for markets with the highest acceptance rates, but checked their websites to be sure I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be associated with them. There are many small, new publications eager for stories that nevertheless maintain high standards. And they’re not only sites to gain recognition, but places to learn and to make friends.

Wordcraft -- Search the markets for historical fiction

I’m always looking for literary events in genres I love. And one of those genres is historical fiction. It’s not always easy to find. So I could hardly believe my eyes when three local book readings in two weeks featured works by writers of historical fiction. Make that, writers of bestselling historical fiction: Leila Meacham, Sue Monk Kidd, and Nancy Horan.

Chameleon that it is, historical fiction doesn’t get a shelf to itself in bookstores or libraries, lurking under appellations such as general fiction or general fiction, masked as mystery, romance, or young adult fiction. But just because historicals can be so transparent, it’s not always easy to find markets for them. As an experiment, I searched for--and found--historical short story publishers in Duotrope’s Digest using “historical” as a subgenre under each of its genre listings, general, action/adventure, erotica, fantasy, horror, mystery/crime, romance, science fiction, suspense/thrillers, and westerns.

Historical fantasy is almost too easy a search, with both historical and pseudo-historical subgenres like heroic fantasy, mythology and fairy tales, such as Fantasy Short Stories, http://fantasyshortstories.com/.

I thought historical science fiction would be impossible. But try expanding the search with the likes of alternate history such as the aptly titled Alt Hist, (which also publishes straight-forward historicals),
http://althistfiction.com/.

Don’t feel comfortable paying Duotrope’s $50 annual subscription price? Opt for a seven-day free trial,
http://duotrope.com/.

Or go totally free at a couple of alternative sites. The (Submission) Grinder offers many of the same search criteria as Duotrope at no charge (although it loves donations). Not as many markets as Duotrope, and I wasn’t able to link directly to publication websites as I was on Duotrope’s site. See
http://thegrinder.diabolicalpolots.com/.

Another free site, Ralan.com, doesn’t support searches by genre. Advertising itself as a site for speculative fiction and horror writers, it includes listings for more general publications as well, at
www.ralan.com/.

And while looking for historicals, don’t forget the Historical Novel Society. In addition to publishing short fiction in its magazine, it offers awards for both historical novels and outstanding short stories. Deadline for the 2014 short story contest is April 1, 2014. The entry fee is $15 ($5 for HNS members). For full rules, see http://historicalnovelsociety.org/hns-short-story-award-2014/.

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If you love genre fiction, save the date of March 15 for a day of writing workshops and authors’ appearances at the Barnes and Noble bookstore, The Parks at Arlington, 3881 S. Cooper St., Arlington, Texas. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, see

www.prlog.org/12289011-bringing-authors-to-local-area.html.

Wordcraft -- Tracking the right agent for your work

My daughter and I were rummaging through a second-hand store, cherishing a couple of free hours, when I found one of the rabbit fur jackets she had longed for back in the days when she was a teenager.

“Remember this?” I asked. “All your friends had them but I wouldn’t get you one? Want me to buy it for you now?”

Giving me her best “you’ve got to be kidding” look, she said, “No, and I’m glad I didn’t have one then.”

Last month I defended Duotrope Digest’s new policy requiring subscribers to pay for searching its database of writing markets. (See “Much ado about Duotrope,” February 25, 2013.) This may have left the impression that I enjoy throwing away my hard-earned dollars and pounds on services other sites offer without fees.

As my daughter can attest, I am, in fact, a tightwad. To further prove my thriftiness, I’ll share one of my favorite free sites for writers -- QueryTracker.

Writing friend Jill Wilson pointed me toward QueryTracker when we were both in the novel writing program at Southern Methodist University, trying to find literary agents for our work. I had subscribed to Publisher’s Marketplace. PM does some great work, really, but charges I’m embarrassed to say how much for it.

Duotrope and its free alternatives are great at helping find publishers for short works. But although they list some publishers who accept book manuscripts without agents, many traditional houses refuse to look at unagented material. QueryTracker also lists  publishers. But its main function is to search for literary agents.

Yes, you can buy books listing agents. Or hope your library has one that it’s been updated recently. The most helpful are written by agents about their fellow agents. They can offer a lot of good information. But they’re not free.

QueryTracker will search for agents by the genres they represent and provides their contact information and preferred methods of contact, professional affiliations, websites and clients. It also lets you keep a spreadsheet of your queries, much as Duotrope’s submissions tracker does for short works. You can leave comments about an agent and save a copy of your query letter, all without paying a dime.

Want to target agents who represent your favorite authors? QueryTracker will tell you who agents whom. Sure, sometimes writers get nice and list their agents in their books or websites. Sometimes not. Now you can concentrate on who really represents the kind of work you like to read. 

If you have a book length manuscript, take at look, www.querytracker.net/.

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I don’t always promote contests, but this one’s special -- East Dallas retirement home C.C. Young’s 2013 art and writing contest. The theme is “Spirit is Ageless.” If you’re at least age 55, enter this one for the love. Entries must be received between April 8 - 11. For specifics, call 214-841-2831 or email ccy@ccyoung.org.

Also, SMU has a few places left for this Saturday's (March 23) writing workshop with BK Loren.  See www.smu.edu/Simmons/CommunityEnrichment/CreativeWriting/.

Wordcraft -- Give your story its second act

Have you given your stories a second act? I don’t mean a screenplay “act” but a chance for previously-published stories to find new audiences, maybe even bring in fresh money as reprints.

When I first started sending stories out, I had a backlog of new material to get out. But once the thrill of seeing stories in print wore off, I looked at my contracts and realized the initial publisher had only bought rights for a limited time, maybe even only one time. Stories somebody had been willing to buy began languishing in out of print anthologies, or buried deep in online archives. They were occupying space, even if cyberspace, without paying rent.

So I scanned my favorite writing markets reference for publishers who accepted already-published material. Surprising to me, there was plenty of demand for reprints. The publishers didn’t usually pay as much as for stories that hadn’t been previously published. In some cases, I even accepted nonpayment just to get my stories in front of new readers.

Of course, publishers want assurance that you have the legal right to resell your stories. Check your contracts. I keep folders for mine, but if yours are lost, often the original publisher’s website will list the contract terms. Also, check the new publisher’s requirements. After waiting a year for my rights to a particular story to revert, I learned the publisher I was interested in wanted an eighteen-month hiatus before accepting a reprint.

The subject of reprints is fresh on my mind because of a recent sale of audio rights. Audio books and podcasts are hungry markets. Perhaps because of the volume of material they need, they also, in my experience, can have long response times. Consider fine-tuning your market search for places that accept simultaneous submissions. Just notify one if another accepts you first.

Speaking of market research, fellow blogger Deborah Walker commented on last Monday’s post that the Submitomancy project never got off the ground. But she mentioned another rival for Duotrope’s Digest -- Submission Grinder, http://thegrinder.diabolicalplots.com/.

Submission Grinder follows much the same format at Duotrope, without Duotrope’s subscription fee. I compared search results at both, using the criteria of fantasy genre, short story length, electronic submissions, token payment or better, and acceptance of reprints. Although I specified at least token payment, the Grinder brought up several nonpaying listings. It also brought up one recently closed market, and at least a couple that accepted book length works, not short stories. It also had fewer listings than Duotrope, understandable given that the Grinder only opened in January 2013.

Otherwise, there was considerable overlap between market listings for both Grinder and Duotrope. But not complete duplication. The Grinder had some that Duotrope didn’t show, and vice versa. For now, I’m registered at both. And I’d love to hear your experiences with these or other market research sites.

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Last week I promised updates on Texas literary festivals and writing conferences first posted in January. Two of the biggest are Southern Methodist University’s announced lineup of authors for its 2013 Literary Festival, and deadlines for Hugo nominations for the Worldcon science fiction and fantasy convention in San Antonio.

SMU’s eight speakers -- poets, novelists and short story writers -- come bearing credentials as New York Times bestsellers, Pushcart Prize winners, Tobias Wolff Award winners, and more. For the complete list, see www.smu.edu/litfest/.

Hugo (fan-based) awards nominations for Worldcon close this coming Sunday, March 10. For details and a link to the nomination ballot, see www.lonestarcon3.org/.
  

Wordcraft -- Much ado about Duotrope

If you read any writing post, by now you know that Duotrope’s Digest, the searchable database of writing markets, is only available by subscription. There was a lot of weeping on writing websites about the formerly free site’s decision to charge for its services starting the first of this year. Didn’t Duotrope love us anymore? How dared it charge for its services, after years of unsuccessfully begging us, its users, for support?

Although some writers I respect swore off Duotrope and offered alternatives, I went ahead and paid its fee -- $50 for a year’s subscription or $5 for one month. I’ve looked at alternatives and will share them in this post. But frankly, I don’t find any offering as much value as Duotrope. They’re free because sell advertising or solicit donations, as Duotrope did unsuccessfully.

Only you can decide which site, or variety of sites, is the best value for your situation. But consider that Duotrope offers a database of more than 4,500 markets which it keeps current, lets you keep a continuously updated spreadsheet of your submissions, and provides feedback from other users.

If you know for certain you’re not ready to submit stories, articles or poems for publication, it may be a waste of money to pay for a market research site. If you’ve published so much you’ve built your own list of markets, ditto. But if you publish but don’t have well-established markets, or if you’re not sure what’s out there in the ever-changing world of publishing, consider a short-term subscription to Duotrope.

For alternatives, especially for writers of “speculative fiction” -- that umbrella term covering science fiction, fantasy and horror -- take a look at writer J.W. Alden’s discussion of “10 Free Alternatives to Duotrope for SFF Writers,” at www.authoralden.com/.

I also check listings on incredibly prolific UK writer Deborah Walker’s blog,
http://deborahwalkersbibliography.blogspot.com/.

Deborah is one of those writers who’s built her own list of markets. She’s also a fan of an upcoming site, Submitomancy, billed as a free alternative to Duotrope. See its Facebook site for a current progress report.

Not a spec fiction writer? Consider New Pages, www.newpages.com/.

The literary type? Try Poets & Writers online listing of contests, grants, residencies and awards, at www.pw.org/.

Like me, you probably already subscribe to the likes of Glimmer Train and Writer’s
Digest. Share your own favorite sites. We’re in this together.

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Last Monday, I told you to expect a review of YA author Mark Zusak’s appearance at the Highland Park literary festival, but a bad cold and hectic schedule intervened. However, next week I hope to provide an update on literary festivals and conferences cited earlier this year. For now, I’ll just mention that the FenCon writers’ workshop in October is already filled. Hope you got your place to hear husband and wife Tor editors Patrick and Teresa Nielsen Hayden. But if not, I’ll fill you in on what they have to say.

Wordcraft -- The contest issue

Since Kristen Lamb, author of We Are Not Alone, gave me a lesson in blogging last year, I’ve tried to figure out what you, my reader, wants from this site. You’ve taught me, partly through comments, but most of all through the posts you look at, that you want to know 1) how to improve your writing, 2) how to network with other writers, and 3) how to market your work. So raise a glass -- or a pen -- to yourselves for prompting this post on contests. (You can see Kristen’s blog at http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ ).

A writing friend, understandably, recently questioned the point of fees for writing contests. So before you dive in, read “The Economics of Competition: A Look at Contest Budgets,” in the current issue of Poets & Writers magazine (www.pw.org/ ). And consider what the fees you pay to enter contests actually accomplish.

I feel comfortable listing contests vetted either by P&W’s staff, or that I’ve entered personally, but I’m including some others I’ve gleaned from various sources. They’re focused on fiction writing, since that’s my specialty. As always, read the fine print.

The May/June 2012 issue of Poets & Writers lists dozens of upcoming deadlines, mostly for literary fiction and poetry. Read carefully -- all have specific requirements. Also take a look at the lists of craft-building and resume-building residency programs and workshops.

P&W listed Writer’s Digest’s annual writing competition in its listing. But although the early bird deadline for this contest is May 1, the absolute deadline isn’t until May 15 for a variety of genre writing. See www.writersdigest.com/competitions for information. Check out the magazine’s current issue to see what judges have liked in the past.

You know I love Duotrope Digest’s listings (www.duotrope.com/ ). But although it’s added fee-paid sites, its search engine doesn’t differentiate between contests and regular submissions. So check out www.ralan.com/. This science fiction/fantasy/horror (aka speculative fiction) site lists contests, even by literary publications, if they also accept its genres.

Speaking of genre fiction, take a look at the Abandoned Towers 2012 Writing Contest. The newly restarted site, like many ezines, asks for donations to support its projects. It accepts any genre of short fiction or poetry for consideration, provided the concept of “abandoned towers” is incorporated. See http//abandonedtowers.com/contest/ for specifics.

Feminist writers (not necessarily female) will want to check out www.mzbworks.com/ for specifics on the Sword and Sorceresses anthology based on the work on Marion Zimmer Bradley. Free -- but deadline is May 12, 2012.

And if you plan to attend any writing conference, check its site to see if it offers low-cost contest add-ons, such as those for the Writers League of Texas, www.writersleague.org/, and FenCon (www.fencon.org/).

(Beginning today, April 30, “Wordcraft” moves to Mondays. “Adventure classics” moves to Wednesdays on May 2, for a quick, fun read to get you over the work week hump. “Totally Texas” moves to Fridays on May 4, to help you plan your weekend.)

Wordcraft -- Resolution 4: Pay it forward

’Tis the season for giving -- and, maybe, tax deductions. And, like making resolutions, giving doesn’t have to be painful. Some of my favorite sites are asking for funds now, and when many join together, a little can become a lot.

Duotrope’s Digest, http://www.duotrope.com/, states that if each of its current users and subscribers contributed $6.01 for the year, it would meet its goal to keep the site free.

Duotrope is my go-to place to find publishers for my fiction. It’s a favorite of many other writers as well. Even the occasional cranky ones who gripe about the overabundance of statistics. Or the fallibility of self-reported statistics. But I can live with the knowledge that five writers got acceptances to a collection I’m aiming for without reporting their information to Duotrope. It may sound like I work for Duotrope, but I don’t. I only subscribe and use.

A few years ago I would have been embarrassed to admit to another of my now-favorite sites -- Wikipedia. Now, like the print encyclopedias I used to buy, it’s a first stop for research. Often pedestrian and seldom the last stop, but always useful. And it’s looking for funding, too.

You’ve probably seen the appeals from article writers and even Ward Cunningham, who invented the wiki as a website whose users can easily modify it. I clicked on one of the links and used my PayPal account to make a donation. (Other forms of payment are accepted.)

Another of my favorite sites is Wikimedia, http://commons.wikimedia.org/ , filled with non-copyrighted “clip art” to use when I don’t have a photograph of my own for a blog
post. Wikimedia shelters under the same umbrella as Wikipedia, the Wikimedia Foundation. This is a nonprofit organization whose donations may be deductible as charitable contributions in the United States.

(Duotrope is not established as a nonprofit and contributions to it are only deductible as possible business expenses. But in either case, contact your tax adviser or the U.S. Internal Revenue Service,
http://www.irs.gov/.)

Finally, in keeping with my favorite price for anything -- free -- there are ways to give back to our writing community that only cost a few minutes of time. One suggestion from a former mentor, Susannah Charleson (author of the book on search and rescue dogs, Scent of the Missing), is to write a review on Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/, for writers who have inspired us. Or if you belong to a professional site such as LinkedIn, offer to write a recommendation for someone -- writer, teacher, editor -- whose work you admire. And show up for free readings and discussions in your community.

Happy New Year and keep writing!

(Next Wednesday -- Writing conferences in 2012)

Wordcraft -- Resolution 3: Get out there!

Okay, you’ve written a story. Maybe several stories. And you think you’re ready to publish. Well, here’s my experience. I tried writing a novel (actually, a few novels), sent them to agents and got -- nothing. In those pre-online days, it seemed as if literary agents could have made a living from re-selling the stamps off my SASE’s.

So when a friend from a university novel writing course confessed she’s writing short stories now and asked whether I’d heard of Glimmer Train, I told her what I’m telling you. I have heard of the big contests; I’ve entered them; and I’m not trying to discourage anyone from going out for them.

But big publications and big contests receive many more stories than they can handle. Most entries get a form rejection at best or nothing at. In the meantime, smaller publications, less prestigious sites, and sites that don’t pay as much may be eager for your stories, or at least willing to provide valuable feedback.

Finding them isn’t as hard as you may think. By following resolution #1, you know what kinds of stories you write, that is, what genres you do best. Your writing group from resolution #2 has helped you work through a lot of basic craft issues. But ultimately, the only person who can tell whether your stories are publishable is a publisher.

A lot of you link to Duotrope’s Digest. Good for you. Duotrope can also search for the most accessible sites in given genres. I ran such a search, then researched the results again, looking for sites with credibility, the ones I’d be proud to have my work seen at.

I found The Lorelei Signal. It looked good. It showcased stories I respected. And its guiding light, Carol Hightshoe, published my first story, “Gift Cards of an Ex-Goddess.” It’s still one of my favorite publications.  The next reading period begins January 15, at http://www.loreleisignal.com/

Other small publishers have printed my stories, or even when they haven’t, they’ve made comments that enabled me to sell stories elsewhere. Stories such as “Shaman,” (rejected by Heroic Fantasy Quarterly but published by Short-story.me) ; or “The Gates of Shaizar,” (rejected for a Ricasso Press anthology but since accepted by both Pulp Empire and Abandoned Towers).

Just don’t aim too low. Sites that will accept everything don’t give you credibility. And sites you’re embarrassed to be seen at -- not worth it.

(Next Wednesday -- Resolution number 4: pay back by paying forward.)
 

Wordcraft -- Stuff nobody tells to beginners

Did we all open our newsletters from Duotrope’s Digest this week in awe of the number of new listings and deadlines? Yes, vacations are over and it’s time to start serious writing again. (Not that we aren’t always writing but. . . )

My light summer writing included critiquing other people’s entries for writing workshops at the ArmadilloCon science fiction and fantasy convention in Austin in August and the FenCon convention in Addison, Texas, September 23-25. And they critiqued mine.

This year’s coordinator of the writing workshop at FenCon, Debbie Waller, sent all of us information on writing critiques, as well as an article entitled “Nobody tells this to people who are beginners.” Inspired, I made my own list of things nobody ever told me. (Or at least, that I didn’t heed the first time.):

Heads up on headings -- those things editors (or workshop readers) so often want at the top of manuscripts to tell them whose work they’re reading and what page of it they’re on. The first time I used them, I didn’t know -- honestly -- that there was a format for headings on the toolbar of my computer.

Using the format means the heading always stays at the top of the page, no matter how much material you add or delete. Not using the format means a heading drifts erratically down the pages the more you write. When I get a new computer, I have to find the heading format all over again. But it’s worth it. Have I seen this issue more than once, even from good writers? You bet.

Page numbers, please -- In an ideal world, pages always come off the printer in order. In my world, when the printer spits them out, some fall on the floor, some slide under the desk, and so on. Then I’m left matching printed pages to the version on the screen to piece the story together. Besides, it’s always easier in a workshop to be able to reference the page number of the item you’re talking about. And yes, the format for adding page numbers can vary from computer to computer. I had to get reacquainted with my toolbar.

Use spell check -- No, it won’t do all your work for you. In fact, it only does the easiest work, picking up strings of letters that obviously aren’t words in its dictionary. But why not delegate some of our work to it? We writers have enough to do as it is.

Don’t JUST use spell check -- I’ve heard people at workshops insist that they never use spell check because it, of course, doesn’t detect every misspelling. Invariably, these are writers who have misspelled words in their manuscripts.

Spell check, notoriously, will pass by an erroneously spelled word if the misspelling is itself a valid word. One manuscript I saw used “query” when the writer obviously meant, from the context, to write “quarry.”

Another spell check trick is to offer you a list of spelling suggestions. How often have we clicked on a likely looking one, only to realize later that it wasn’t what we meant? This is the hard stuff we have to find by reading our pages on our own, sometimes with the help of a dictionary.

(About the picture -- I couldn’t resist using a photo of the grandmotherly sheep doll I snapped at a previous ArmadilloCon to go with this post.)

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Libraryfest at the Lakewood Library, 6121 Worth St., Dallas -- Huge bargain book sale, kids’ activities and live music this Saturday, September 10, from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Members only preview sale Friday, September 9, 6:30 - 8 p.m.

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Writers Garret Open House Saturday, September 10, from 3-5 p.m. upstairs at Paperbacks Plus, 6115 La Vista, Dallas. Connect with others who have strong literary interests and see what the Garret has to offer. Free, but donations appreciated.