Markets

Places to send your stories!

Finding Markets: Don’t Give Up

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This year, I’m trying to get serious about submissions. (Really, I am.) And on this quest to send out more stories to more publishers, I’ve made a discovery: you can’t just rely on one market database – you need to use every tool at your disposal.

A while back, someone was kind enough to give me a year’s subscription to WritersMarket.com (http://www.writersmarket.com/Default.aspx). So, back in January, I fired up my membership for the first time, and eagerly began looking at potential publishers for one of my fantasy stories. Almost immediately, I found a couple of good reasons to freak out: Reason A.) I could only find about four markets – total – that seemed like they might be good matches for my story. Reason B.) Several of the fantasy markets that I had seen on Duotrope (http://duotrope.com/) last year did not show up in the WritersMarket.com listing at all.

So, not only was I bumming about having very few viable options for my poor story, but I was also incredibly nervous about those missing markets. If there were markets left out in the fantasy category, couldn’t there be markets left out in the horror, YA, and inspirational categories as well? After starting my search so hopefully, I felt like I’d been kicked in the bum. It’s hard to get energized about submitting when the chances of getting published seem so darn bleak. I mean, four markets? Total? Was signing up for WritersMarket.com an epic mistake?

The answer: No. Not at all. What I didn’t know a few months ago is that I shouldn’t have been limiting myself to that one database. No database, not even one as enormous as WritersMarket.com, could possibly list every single publisher, agent, magazine, contest and writing organization known to man. There are markets on Duotrope that aren’t on WritersMarket.com. There are markets on WriterMarket.com that aren’t on Duotrope. And there are many markets you can find with a simple Google or Bing search that aren’t listed on either WritersMarket.com or Duotrope.

The reality of the situation: WritersMarket.com gave me several good leads for my story, and I’m pursuing them. But I’m not stopping there, and neither should you. The truth is, writers need all the help they can get to find homes for their stories, articles and books – so why limit yourself? If you’re serious about getting published, attack the challenge with everything in your arsenal. And to that end, here are a few more weapons to add to your cache:

FFC’s Flash Fiction Markets:

http://www.everydayfiction.com/flashfictionblog/flashmarkets/

A free market listing specializing in flash fiction. Updated weekly, this listing is organized by word count, and features symbols that indicate whether or not the market pays, and what genres of writing it accepts. Also really handy: Many of the listings have an “Interview with the Editor” section, which can really give you a great feel for what types of stories the magazine is looking for.

Poets and Writers Magazine’s Tools for Writers:

http://www.pw.org/toolsforwriters

A free database featuring literary magazines and journals, contests, grants, MFA programs, literary agents and more. (They also have weekly writing prompts, if you’re looking for inspiration!)

Hope these are helpful! Keep writing, and keep looking for homes for your stories!

-Gretchen

 

My Favorite Fiction E-zines

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As writers, we’re supposed to read every day. We’re supposed to study the work of other writers, and learn from it. We’re supposed to have extensive knowledge of our genres, so as not to repeat a story that’s been told five gazillion times. But in this insanely busy world, most of us are lucky if we manage to find a few hours a week to write, much less read. Clearly, we’re not going to make it to Barnes and Noble to pick up a new thriller every day – so how do we keep our critical reading skills fresh? For me, the answer is simple: e-zines. There are numerous quality, free-to-read e-zines on the web, which allow readers regular access to brand-new stories, all without leaving the comfort of a cushy computer chair.

The following are three of my favorite e-zines. None of them charge for subscriptions, and all of them publish new stories on a regular basis. Also, I should add that all three of these are paying markets, currently open for submissions. So, what are you waiting for? Go check them out:

Every Day Fiction ( http://www.everydayfiction.com/ )

This is a flash fiction zine that publishes a new story every single day. All genres are welcome, and each piece is only 1,000 words or less – short enough to read in the morning before your commute, or while you’re wolfing down Cheetos on your lunch break. This magazine has great variety in terms of the styles and subject matters it publishes. One day you’re reading about a little girl trying to save a weird, cat-like creature on an alien world, the next day you’re reading about a dude who’s in love with a painting. Fresh, edgy and experimental writing goes side-by-side with more traditional prose in this cool flash zine. Stories can be sent directly to your email, and are also available on the website. Older stories remain on the site, archived by category.

Daily Science Fiction ( http://dailysciencefiction.com/ )

This zine publishes new science fiction and fantasy stories Monday through Friday. Like EDF, the stories can be sent directly to your email, or you can read them on the site. DSF tends to publish flash stories on the first four days of the week, with a longer story on Fridays. Most of the stories they publish have this really beautiful, literary quality. One of the neat things about this e-zine is that you don’t really have to be a fan of the science fiction/fantasy genre to appreciate the stories, since so many of them are character-driven. Another nifty feature: like EDF, the stories on the site are archived by category, so if you just want to read about monsters, or robots, or any other specific topic, you can get there with a click of a button.

Knowonder! ( http://www.knowonder.com/ )

Here’s one for children’s fiction authors! This magazine has a (non-free) print version which publishes thirty new stories each month, but you can read ten of those thirty stories on their website for free! The emphasis is on read-aloud stories with prose that engages all of the senses and adventures that capture the imaginations of young children. The tales range from humorous to action-filled, and are all, of course, kid-friendly. Definitely a can’t-miss site for children’s writers and also for Moms who are a little bit tired of reading Goodnight, Moon every single night.

Now you’ve got three great magazines to read, each just a mouse-click away. So, go get your daily dose of fiction!

-Gretchen

Chicken Soup for My Soul

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Time to bust out the champagne! A member of my writing group has just been accepted for publication in one of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Chicken Soup: Inspiration for the Writer’s Soul, as a matter of fact. Our whole group is full-to-bursting with pride, and as we clinked our plastic cups full of sparkling grape juice (hey, we were in a public library), I realized this would be a good time to say a few words about the Chicken Soup franchise, and the opportunities it provides for writers.

For those of you who don’t know, Chicken Soup for the Soul is a series of inspirational books. Each book features roughly a hundred true stories that center on a specific theme. The theme might be cats, dogs, mother-daughter relationships, parents of autistic children, brides-to-be, or, in the case of my friend’s recent acceptance, inspiration for writers.

The reason this is such a cool opportunity: Chicken Soup is constantly coming out with new books. Meaning, they’re constantly calling for new material. Meaning, there are lots of chances to get published! Right now, they’re looking for true, inspirational stories on the following topics:

-Devotional Stories for Wives

-Holiday Stories

-Lemons to Lemonade

-Miracles

-Miraculous Messages from Heaven

-Multitasking Mom’s Survival Guide

-The Dating Game!

Now, maybe you’re a semi-pro golfer who hates holidays and has never seen a miracle in his life. If so, don’t fret – next month, they might very well be calling for entries to a brand-new book that’s right up your alley, like Chicken Soup for the Golfer’s Soul: Touching Tales from on the Green, or something similar. This would be the perfect chance for you to write about those baby ducks you rescued from the sand trap. Or that time you took Grandpa putting and he really started to open up about his war days. No matter what your passions are, no matter where your life’s journey has taken you, you probably have at least one sweet, heartwarming story inside of you, just waiting for the right opportunity to come out.

Check Chicken Soup’s “Call For Entries” page often, and your chance just might come:

http://www.chickensoup.com/form.asp?cid=possible_books

Best of luck, and keep writing!

-Gretchen

Writer’s Markets

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So, you’ve written a story…

You’ve polished it, you’ve let someone else read it, you’ve listened to that person’s comments and polished it some more, and finally, after wiping the sweat from your brow, you’ve printed out the final draft. Now, only one question remains, and it’s a biggie:

Where the heck do you send this thing?

I don’t know about you, but for me, one of the biggest frustrations of being a writer is simply not knowing where to send my work. Whether it’s a flash-length piece, a short story, a poem, a non-fiction essay or a novel, I want to give my writing the best possible chance of getting published. To do that, I need to know what publishers are out there, and what types of material they’re currently accepting. Lucky for me (and you, if you’re a writer, too), there’s a super-cool, FREE site that can give us all of that info (and much, much more) in just a few clicks:

https://duotrope.com/

There are many free writer’s market listings on the Internet – most are hopelessly outdated, some no longer functional. Duotrope is the exact opposite: a continually-updated, constantly evolving and extensive database with an easy-to-use search tool that can help you find the best home for your work, no matter what you write. They track response times and acceptance rates, and even let you organize your search results according to what matters most to you (highest pay rate, highest acceptance rate, etc.). It is a beautiful, well-organized site that currently lists 4,527 markets for fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

The only other reputable writer’s market listing I know of is called (prepared to be shocked) Writer’s Market. They release new print books each year, their titles ranging from the standard, all-in-one Writer’s Market, to other, more specialized books for people specifically interested in children’s writing, short stories, novels, poetry, etc. These are great books packed with useful info, including examples of good and bad query letters, contest listings and tips on the writing process. Only trouble is, they’re kind of expensive. For those like myself, who are perpetually cash-strapped, a more affordable option would be to check if your local library has the latest editions of these books in stock (many libraries do).

The website WritersMarket.com is another option. An online extension of the books, this site lists many more markets than can fit in the standard 1,000+ pages of the print edition of Writer’s Market. The website should also (theoretically, at least) be more up-to-date. However, WritersMarket.com, like its paperback companions, is not free. They do offer a seven-day money back guarantee, though, so I guess you could take it for a trial run and see if you like it – if not, refund time!

There’s only one thing you need to be careful about, and this goes for all of the books and sites mentioned above: you must always, ALWAYS, check the home website of whatever publisher/magazine/agent you’re submitting to, BEFORE you submit. DO NOT rely solely on the information you find on Duotrope or in Writer’s Market. These databases are starting points only. In the publishing industry, things can change quickly, and information gets outdated faster than you can snap your fingers. The magazine you’re submitting to might have hired a new editor since the database was last updated. The publisher you’re eyeing for your new fantasy novel might have just stopped accepting fiction. Don’t put the wrong name on that envelope. Don’t send your sci-fi story to a non-fiction magazine. Do your homework.

If you didn’t know where to start, hopefully now you do. So, what are you waiting for? 🙂

A Few Words About Every Day Fiction

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Since one of the goals of this site is to help other writers, it would be practically criminal if I did not say a few words about an e-zine called Every Day Fiction. Not only is this my favorite magazine to read, but it’s also a great market for short story writers—especially those who are just starting out.

Every Day Fiction is exactly what it sounds like: a magazine that publishes a new short story every day. Their word count limit is 1,000 words, and they publish all ranges and genres of fiction, from literary to romance to horror. So, no matter what you like to write about—whether it’s talking zoo animals or the zombie apocalypse–they probably have an appropriate category for it.

While EDF is an excellent market for writers at all stages and levels, there are several things that make this magazine an ideal place for beginning writers to submit:

1.) EDITORIAL FEEDBACK. Every Day Fiction critiques every single piece submitted to them, whether they accept it or not. If your story is rejected, at least you will know why—and maybe learn to write better as a result. If your story is accepted, you’ll hear what the staff liked about your story (and what they didn’t like), and you’ll be given a chance to adjust your story before it’s published. In an industry where form letters are the norm, these editors truly care about working with writers and helping them grow as professionals.

2.) READER FEEDBACK. EDF has a lot of readers, and they’re a vocal bunch. If your work is published, you’ll definitely hear numerous reader opinions on what worked, and/or what didn’t. Most often, there are enough reviews to make general trends visible, so you can analyze your story’s performance (e.g. if ten people thought your 13-year-old character sounded way too mature, two people thought he sounded just “teen” enough, and one person thought he sounded babyish, then, based on that trend, you can probably conclude that your character did sound a bit too old for his chronological age, and the next time you write a character in that age group, you can work on making the voice sound more authentic).

3.) PUBLICATION. Sad fact is, many magazines care whether or not a writer has been previously published, and will be biased for or against you based on that. EDF is not one of these. They are happy to be the home of any budding author’s first published work, and, once you’ve been published with EDF, some other magazines that wouldn’t look at your stories before might be willing to give you a chance now that you’ve got that magic p-word in your cover letter.

4.) HIGH DEMAND. Their aggressive publication schedule means they have a high demand for new stories. The more stories a magazine publishes per year, the more chances you have to get accepted. Some fiction mags only publish twelve (or fewer) stories each year. EDF publishes 365. You do the math.

5.) PROMOTION. Every Day Fiction is awesome when it comes to giving authors a chance to promote their personal websites. EDF will even set up and host a free author forum, just for you and your fans. Plus, if you get published, your work will remain in their online archives, where it can serve as a free sample of your work to share with readers, agents and publishers. EDF also has a print anthology, a cool and informative blog (Flash Fiction Chronicles), a forum, and tons of other goodies.

All in all, it can be a great first step for new writers, and a beneficial boost to writers at all experience levels. So, whether you’ve been published twenty times or never at all, I would highly recommend Every Day Fiction, both as a potential market for submission, and a great magazine to read over your morning coffee. Free fiction, every day. It does not get better than that!

http://www.everydayfiction.com/

-Gretchen =)