Greetings!
Do you ever wonder exactly where your
genre fiction falls? Many of us know what
genres we like to read, and perhaps, that's
influenced our writing quite a bit, but with
all the new genres and subgenres that seem to
be popping up monthly, it's hard to keep up
as a reader, let alone a writer.
When I first started writing fiction, genres
like "Steampunk" and "Wuxia" didn't exist.
What in the heck are they? Where did they
come from? Does my writing fall into this
category? What authors write in these genres?
How can I write for and sell to these
markets? This issue tackles these questions
and more.
I used to think I could just write anything
and when I was finished, someone would put it
into a neat little category for me. This
isn't true. If you're serious about becoming
an author, you'll need to arm yourself with
all the knowledge the writing world can
provide before you set out to market
your book or story. Keeping up with the
latest genres and relevant titles will only
help you become better prepared for when it
comes time to pitch your novel to an editor
or agent.
In this issue, we explore many of the genres
we haven't tackled yet (Fantasy, Horror,
Magical Realism, etc.) and break down their
subgenres. The experts in this issue provide
you with the knowledge and tools you need to
break into these fascinating markets. You may
even discover your true calling.
Ready to find your genre or a new one? Let's
go exploring!
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A big, warm, Thank You goes out to our
freelancers & staff:
We welcome back freelancer Sue Bradford
Edwards and thank her for introducing us
to the wonderful world of fantasy writing.
Her article, Navigating
the Fantastic: Rules for Writing
Fantasy, guides us through the
fantasy subgenre labyrinth and provides us
with the basic rules we need to craft a
magical tale of our own.
A big thank you goes to WOW! columnist
Margo L. Dill for providing us with
her insightful article, Five
Historical Fiction Pitfalls and How To Avoid
Them. If you're in the midst of
crafting a historical novel, be sure to take
note of the common traps into which writers
in this genre often fall.
We welcome back freelancer Allena
Tapia and thank her for introducing us to
the passionate genre of Magic
Realism. Allena provides a lot of great
resources in this article, including a
mentorship opportunity from published magic
realism author and editor Tamara Kaye
Sellman, so be sure to check out all the
great links at the end.
If you're a fan of the Southern Gothic genre,
then our 20 Questions column is for you. We
welcome back Marla Cordle and delight
in her interview
with Amanda Stevens, who calls her novels
"creepy, southern suspense." If they are
anything like the book trailer in the
interview, yikes! I'm scared, yet
intrigued!
As a Mystery/Thriller short story writer, you
may have noticed that many of the markets for
this genre have bitten the dust. Now it's
time to get creative and Break
Out of the Mystery/Thriller Slush
Pile. We welcome back freelancer
Susanne Shaphren and thank her for
providing us with innovative ideas for
placing our stories in a seemingly dry
marketplace.
Are you interested in writing horror? Then
you may want to find out How
2 Find the Perfect Horror Fit for
You. We welcome back freelancer
Cathy C. Hall and thank her for going
in-depth to bring us many of the terrifying
subgenres horror has to offer, complete with
resources to market and mingle with
like-minded authors. Keep the lights on!
By now, you must be ready for a bit of
inspiration! How about 92 year's worth? We
welcome freelancer Carol Ayer to the
WOW! family, and thank her for interviewing
Betty Isabel Ferguson, a
ninety-two-year-old creative dynamo with a
vibrant sense of humor. Betty is a poet, an
actress, a sculptress, a painter, and a
playwright who has the energy of a woman half
her age. We can all learn from her insight
and positive outlook!
We also announce the Winter
2009 Flash Fiction Contest winners! Read
their winning stories and find out what they
won! A big thank you goes to literary agent
Janet Reid for choosing this season's
top winners.
I'd also like to thank our lovely graphic
intern Amy Robertson for the fabulous
headers she created this month! Amy is moving
to New York to intern with US Weekly,
so this is her last month with us. Although,
I guarantee it won't be the last time we see
her gracing WOW's pages. With any luck, we'll
have her freelancing for us in no time. Good
luck, Amy!
As always, I'd like to thank Annette
Fix for her wonderful editing skills, and
for making this issue sparkle!
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Announcements:
New! Workshops &
Classes
WOW! Women On
Writing launches Online
Writers' Classes and Workshops. We've hand
picked talented instructors and classes we
know you will love. Head over to our classes
page and see what's available. Be sure to
update your newsletter preferences to keep up
with the latest offerings. You can always do
this by using the "Update Profile" link at
the bottom of this email. Invest in yourself,
write now.
----------------
Spring 2009 Flash Fiction Contest
DEADLINE: May 31, 2009 Midnight,
Pacific Time.
GUEST JUDGE: Literary Agent, Wendy
Sherman
About Wendy: Wendy Sherman launched
her Agency in 1999 following a twenty-year
career in publishing. Her experience includes
being Associate Publisher and Executive
Director of Henry Holt as well as positions
as VP and Director of Sales, Marketing and
Subsidiary Rights at Simon & Schuster and
Macmillan. With this experience, the Agency
offers a competitive edge to its clients.
Wendy Sherman Associates has an impressive
roster of well established, critically
acclaimed and award-winning clients that
range from literary to more commercial,
including Nani Power (Crawling at Night),
Howard Bahr (The Black Flower), William
Lashner (A Killers Kiss), Liam Callanan (All
Saints) and famed actress Rue
McClanahan (My First Five Husbands).
Attracting a wide range of fiction and
non-fiction authors, the agency is especially
well known for discovering new writers,
including Therese
Fowler, author of Souvenir one of the
most talked about first novels of the year
(March 2008, Random House/Ballantine), which
is a Barnes & Noble New Reads Book Club
choice, a Book Sense Notable and has been
sold in eighteen countries (so far). With two
younger agents, Michelle Brower and
Emmanuelle Alspaugh, the Agency also attracts
the next generation of writers.
Find out more about Wendy Sherman Associates,
Inc. by visiting her website: http://www.wsherman.com
WOW! had the honor of interviewing
Wendy in our Literary
Agents Issue. Be sure to check it out
to learn more about this prestigious and
talented literary agent.
PROMPT: Open Prompt
WORD COUNT: 750 Max; 250 Min
LIMIT: 300 Entries
Don't wait until the last minute! Enter
Today. Visit our Contest
Page and download our terms &
conditions ebook. Good luck!
----------------
Call for Submissions
WOW! is seeking submissions for their
upcoming themes:
- Successful Women (Sept. '09 issue):
interviews with celebrity authors,
best-selling authors, philanthropists,
editor/publishers, entrepreneurs.
We are also looking for photo essays and
video on a variety of subjects:
workspaces,
tours of author's homes, how-tos, speakers on
craft of writing subjects, author interviews,
event coverage, balancing work/writing with
family, etc. If you have an idea for a photo
essay (300-500 words), or a video, please
query us with examples of photo essays/video
work you've previously completed.
Please review our submission guidelines on
our Contact
Page (scroll to the bottom) for pay rates
and how to submit. We look forward to hearing
from you!
To find out about first calls from
WOW! please subscribe to our Premium-Green
Writer's Markets. We share detailed
descriptions of specific articles we need
right now. Land one gig and it more than pays
for a year's subscription! We currently have
over 19 issues--ebooks filled with over 100
pages of markets--available for immediate
download with the purchase of your
subscription. Join the community that gives
back! And write-on!
----------
On to the issue, enjoy!
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Winter 2009 Flash Fiction Contest Winners Announced!
Drum Roll...
Congratulations goes out to everyone who
entered the Winter 2009 Flash Fiction
Contest. All your entries were incredible
this round, and our esteemed guest judge,
Janet Reid, of the FinePrint Literary
Management, did not have an easy job! But
with her expertise, she dutifully picked the
winners, and we thank Janet!
Ladies, and gents, I know you've all been
waiting patiently, so here's the results!
-- 1st Place Winner: Gay Degani
-- 2nd Place Winner: Theresa Mae
Leitch
-- 3rd Place Winner: Kimberly A.
Zook
Runners Up (in no particular
order):
-- Cindy Haynes
-- Vera Constantineau
-- Dianna Graveman
-- Sarah Hina
-- Katie Noah Gibson
-- Julie C. Eger
-- Tricia Bowering
Read the Top 10 winners' stories in our contest
feature!
Honorable Mentions (in no particular
order):
-- Madra Sikora
-- Penni Harris Jones
-- Kendra Smith
-- Joanna Smith
-- Leona Charlie Holman-Collins
-- Elizabeth Ledford
-- Lisa Ammerman
-- Kim Hedden
-- Halie Rosenberg
-- Cathy Graham
-- Christine Endy
-- Alan Grayce
-- M.L. Van Haaren
-- Kimberly Luchsinger
-- Christine Francoeur
Congrats ladies! And congrats to everyone who
hit the send button--we know it's not easy,
but each season provides a rebirth of
opportunity!
So, go on already! Read the entries!
MORE >>
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20 Questions: Amanda Stevens, Southern Suspense
Interview by M.L. Cordle
When it comes to southern gothic, Amanda
Stevens is an expert. Her novels are
mind-provoking works of fiction in which
readers experience a keen sense of place.
Those dusty back roads and moonlit bayous,
simmering with secrets and fragrant,
sweltering heat, provide a powerful backdrop
for her creepy, southern suspense novels.
Join M.L. Cordle as she interviews Amanda
Stevens about writing for this sultry genre,
and learn how to incorporate setting, craft
complex villains, and how to deal with other
things too, like coping with rejection and
landing an agent.
MORE>>
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WOW! Women On Writing Workshops & Classes
invest in yourself, write now
Whether you are looking to boost your income
or work on your craft, we know that education
is an important part of a writer's career.
That's why WOW! handpicks qualified
instructors and targeted classes that women
writers will benefit from. The instructors
are women we've worked with on a professional
level, and these ladies offer high quality
courses on various topics.
How the courses work: All of the
courses operate online--whether through
email, website, chat room, or listserv,
depending on the instructor's
preferences--and are taught one-on-one with
the instructor. The flexibility of the
platform allows students to complete
assignments on their own time and work at
their own pace in the comfort of their own
home. It's a wonderful experience and an
excellent way to further develop your skills,
or to try your hand at something completely new!
Featured e-Courses (By Date):
BECOME A FREELANCE
WRITER! YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO FREELANCE
WRITING BASICS, by Nicole LaMarco
START DATE: June 1,
2009
DURATION: 10 weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This class is for
beginning freelance writers or for those who
are interested in becoming freelance writers.
It includes all of the basics of freelance
writing: overviews of the different fields in
freelance writing, what is needed to begin,
how to store ideas, where to get ideas, how
much you should make, where to find clients,
and how to get clients.
In this class, I am your writing mentor
through every lesson and every assignment.
Make some extra money with your writing or
create your own full-time freelance career!
Learn from my personal stories, information,
resources, goals, activities, lessons, and
assignments. This class will provide the you
with the structure and guidance you need to
earn money from your writing. A certification
will be
given to those who pass the entire class.
COST: $150, which includes email
support and
feedback from your instructor, weekly
assignments, and a FREE ebook, Paying Markets
for Writers, (valued at $19.95). Paying
Markets for Writers contains direct links to
over 1,000 paying publications online!
Limit: 25 students. Early registration
is recommended.
Visit
the Classroom Page for Full Details>>
--------------------
CREATING A CHARACTER SKETCH
by Janie Sullivan
START DATE: June 1, 2009
DURATION: 3 weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Developing a
character sketch for each character in the
story is essential to the success of the
story. The writer needs to know who the
characters are, what they are thinking, and
why they do the things they do in order to
make them believable to the reader. This
course will teach writers how to develop
their characters so their readers will
identify with them--whether or not they like
them.
COST: $125, which includes access to a
private blog group, email support and
feedback from your instructor and peers.
Visit
the Classroom Page for Full Details>>
--------------------
SHORT FICTION WRITING
by Gila Green
START DATE: June 2, 2009
DURATION: 8 weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Through writing
exercises and classmate and instructor
feedback we will delve into the fundamentals
of short fiction with a view to publishable
work. We will explore a variety of craft
elements including: character, plot, point
of view, description, dialogue, setting,
pacing, voice and theme.
Course objectives:
- To complete at least one work that is
publishable.
- To encourage you to read published short
fiction including, short stories, personal
essays and flash fiction (Fiction under 800
words).
- To increase your confidence and skills as
a writer.
- To develop a foundation for the skills of
crafting, editing, and revising.
COST: $150, which includes access to a
private Google Group, email support and
feedback from your instructor, weekly
assignments, as well as downloads from the
Google Group files. Skype & Skype chat.
Limit: 8-10 students. Early
registration is recommended.
Visit
the Classroom Page for Full Details>>
--------------------
PUBLISH THAT BOOK: HOW TO WRITE A
NONFICTION BOOK PROPOSAL THAT SELLS
by Andrea Campbell
START DATE: June 8, 2009
DURATION: 8 weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Let me show you
through my intense, 8-week-long workshop how
to get a nonfiction book proposal ready for
publishers. This is your opportunity to gain
a serious business advantage over other
writers who will try to wing it. And even if
your first book doesn't sell, you will have
the skills and the template to apply to other
ideas and other projects. You may even come
up with more ideas for more books as you work
through this course.
And my workshop is different. I keep the
classes small so you receive a lot of
individual attention; class size is
limited to 10 students. In addition, you
will have e-mail feedback on all assignments.
Another thing I do in my workshops is to have
weekly chat sessions. Yes, every Thursday
night, we will meet online to ask questions,
discuss the lesson plans, and talk about
additional information or details that you
might have missed. Chats are an important
tool for learning (and camaraderie) and why
shouldn't we work together to leverage our
knowledge? And to make it worth your while,
you will also receive additional materials to
help illustrate important points from the
lesson plans or that you can use to aid you
in staying abreast of what is happening in
the publishing industry.
This course is for intermediate level
students. Try to clear your plate of other
things that may distract you and be prepared
to work hard. If you want results, you will
get them but this class involves work and
preparation week after week. In this class,
you can expect to learn:
- If your idea is a good one
- The essential ingredients of a book
proposal
- What the format and overall look of the
actual proposal should be
- How to write your proposal letters and
the best markets for your book
- Why you must exploit your "intellectual
capital"
- The nuts and bolts of the nonfiction book
publishing industry
By the end of class, students will have a
marketable, nonfiction book proposal package
ready to send out to agents, including a
query letter, along with the confidence to
market his/her product.
Note: One of her students recently got a
"very good deal," and, according to
Publisher's Lunch, a $100,000-plus book
contract.
COST: $379, which includes access to a
private Yahoo! Group, a weekly 1 hour chat, a
weekly critique and assessments/corrections
done by the instructor. Limit: 10
students. Early registration is
recommended.
Visit
the Classroom Page for Full Details>>
--------------------
POETIC PASSION: IMAGE, STORY, LINE &
LANGUAGE by Melanie Faith
START DATE: July 3, 2009
DURATION: 4 weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Ever wonder why
some poems fall flat while others hum with
the kind of energy and fire that draw us
nearer as readers? In this 4-week,
workshop-style class, we will focus on four
key elements in crafting a successful poem.
We will delve into several poetic examples,
noticing how literary techniques shine within
the poems. A weekly assignment from our
springboard text, The Poet's Companion, and
thematically-linked prompts will be the next
steps in enhancing poetic skills. The
instructor will provide a helpful weekly
critique of each student's submitted poem,
offering suggestions as well as positive
feedback on elements which work well. This
class is meant to inspire your own poetic
Muse--from strengthening your knowledge of
literary techniques to providing a bridge for
sparking your own life-breathing, imaginative
poems from pen to printed page.
COST: $100, which includes one-on-one
support and critiques through email.
Limit: 8-10 students. Early
registration is recommended.
Visit
the Classroom Page for Full Details>>
--------------------
I hope you are as excited about our classes
as we are. WOW! Women On Writing
ensures that our instructors will work with
you one-on-one. In most cases you will
receive emailed course materials and
assignments, or for those with groups, you
will be able to download course materials.
Your instructor will give you assignments and
personal feedback, and guide you through a
charted course of learning. Our instructors
are wonderful ladies who go above and beyond
to help you achieve your writing goals.
MORE>>
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Article: Breathing Life Into Dialogue
By Sandy Tritt
From WOW's Articles
Page:
Have you ever read a court transcript? It
accurately gives a word-by-word report of
exactly what is said. But it is
interesting?
Uh-uh. If we wrote verbatim the way we talk,
our readers would execute us at dawn (or
maybe earlier). So what do we do to create
"natural" dialogue?
First, we must listen to the way people
talk--both the choice of words and the rhythm
of those words. People rarely speak in long
sentences or without pausing (except for my
mother), so we must write dialogue in
fragmented sentences and in short bursts.
Second, we must decide which of these
spoken
words are worthy of writing. For example, in
real life, when we greet someone, we
generally say, "hello," then ask how he is,
maybe how his family is, and so forth. But
this is boring stuff to a reader. The reader
is smart enough to realize small talk occurs
and impatient enough to want to get
immediately to the meat of the conversation.
Therefore, we need to eliminate the
"niceties" and get on to what the reader
wants to read.
And third, we need to add body
language and
action to dialogue to convey its true
meaning. For example, a character says, "You
jerk." Without body language, we don't know
what the emotional value of this statement
is. Consider the following statements:
- "You jerk," he said, his eyebrow cocked
just enough so I'd know he was challenging
me, that he was checking to see if I would
back down or not.
- "You jerk," he said, and the twinkle in
his eye told me that I'd finally earned his
respect.
- "You jerk!" Carl slapped his knee and
laughed from his belly until I feared he'd
fall down.
As you can see, it is the action and body
language that allows us to interpret the
meaning of the words. Since the reader cannot
see the character talking, it is our job to
describe all the information the reader
needs.
Adding action and body language to our prose
also accomplishes another task: it slows the
pacing. Now, there are times when rapid-fire
dialogue is necessary, such as at high drama
points when things are moving quickly, or
after a long descriptive section to pick up
the pace. Monologues usually do NOT need
broken, as the story being told is the story
holding (we hope!) the reader's attention and
to interrupt it to give tags or action would
be distractive.
There are no precise rules for writing
dialogue that I am aware of, but an ear for
it is developed by reading aloud. Do you
start drifting? You need action. Do you
forget who's talking? You need a tag. Is the
conversation moving too quickly? You need a
break--narrative or action--to even out the
pacing.
Here are some quick tips for writing
dialogue:
- Don't sound out sound effects. This is
annoying. Simply state, "The gun shot echoed
through the chapel," instead of "Bang! Bang!
Bang!"
- Take it easy on dialect. Sounding out
words becomes distracting and time-consuming,
and most readers tire of it quickly. Instead,
use the grammar and rhythm of the character
to insinuate the dialect or tag it with an
explanation, such as: "she said, her Polish
accent thick, the way it was when she was
tired or sick."
- Don't include "well," "uh," and other
such nonsense unless it serves a very good
purpose. (Such as a character whose only word
is "uh," or a character whose main
distinction is prefacing every statement with
"well.")
- Keep your tags invisible (see the
previous tip sheet, "Avoid Creative Dialogue
Tag Syndrome" for help with this).
- Keep your tags either interspersed with
action and description or at the end of the
quote. A tag at the beginning (although
occasionally okay) tends to make the writing
more passive. Consider which of the following
carries the most power:
He said, "Help
me. I need help."
"Help me. I need help," he said.
"Help me," he said. "I need help."
Remember, we need to be able to visualize our
characters as they talk--do they roll their
eyes, clench their teeth, smile--any of the
visual clues that help us interpret the
intent of the words.
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Sandy Tritt is the founder and CEO of
Inspiration for Writers (InspirationForWriters.Com),
an editing and critiquing service for
aspiring writers, she has edited hundreds of
manuscripts. She is president emeritus of
West Virginia Writers, Inc., the state's
largest writing organization, and was the
recipient of the 2002 Artsbridge Arts Award
for Literature.
Her website is filled with great information
for writers of all craft levels. Topics
include dialogue, characters, POV, and
grammar tips. Be prepared to spend some time
here.
Also, be sure to check out Sandy's highly
popular Character
Trait Chart.
Visit the Articles Page>>
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Give Yourself the Ultimate Gift that Gives Back
Jump Start Your Freelance Career
Are you tired of markets newsletters
that simply
"list" a bunch of markets without any personal
guidance?
Get the Guide That Helps You Grow Your
Freelance Writing Career!
PREMIUM GREEN MARKETS
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Will Show You the GREEN!
Premium-Green isn't just market listings,
it's a guide with community benefits. For
only $4 a month, you get a 100+ Page Ebook
delivered to your inbox every month, and
you'll have access to a private community of
women writers just like you!
We know that becoming a freelance writer
takes more than just market listings. You'll
need the opportunity to network with your
peers and have a support system to help you reach
your goals. And that's exactly what your
Premium-Green Markets Subscription will do.
Here's what you get when you subscribe to
PREMIUM GREEN:
- Monthly 100+ page ebook in friendly
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No need for storing emails to find links and
articles you missed!
- Articles to grow your Freelance
Career: These are articles not found
anywhere else: More than Your Magic 8-Ball,
I.T.T. In the Trenches, Tips & Tricks, Meet
Your Mentor, Get Writing Mamas!, Project
Workbook, and more...
- Access to the PG Subscribers
Group: Network with your peers through
the Google list-serve, post
discussions, ask questions, and receive
insider tips.
- Documents for PG Subscribers:
Upload, download, and share content with
the group. We put up f*r*e*e* articles,
contracts, and ebooks for the group each
month, so take advantage!
- First Calls from WOW!: We
give you
immediate calls for what we need on the spot
(or when we're in a crunch) to fill each
issue. Get on the ground level and write for
us!
- Pink & Green: Find women's markets
only, and get insight from the editors and
what their needs are right now.
- Markets, markets, and more
markets. We provide markets for all
aspects of freelancing. One example is,
"Niche Quiche," which includes greeting card
markets, slogans, and anything you can write
in a few words and get paid! Check
out our markets
page for more details.
Earn the money you deserve, and get a real
support team
who will help you grow your freelance
career.
Join Now and Download all 19 Premium-Green
ebooks Instantly!
The subscription price is $48 a
year, which is $4 per month. We want to
support
you!
Let's make this a
banner year for all women writers. We can
only do it by helping each other and creating
a strong network and community for ourselves.
Together, we can do it!
VISIT OUR MARKETS PAGE >>
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WOW! BLOG: THE MUFFIN
Find out the latest from the Bakers of WOW!
Have you checked out what we've been baking
for you on the daily Muffin? We've stirred
together some traditional ingredients with
new ones to deliver more interviews,
enlightenment, thought provoking ideas, and
inspirational messages to help you through
those gray writing days.
----------
Never Stale! Here's the Latest:
Tuesdays are contest interview
days!
If you are interested in
writing for our contests, check out the
interviews with previous Top 10 winners to
find out how they crafted their stories.
Fall
Essay Contest 3rd Place Winner: Linda
Rhinehart Neas
Interview by Debbie Delgado
Fall
Essay Contest Runner Up: Nancy A. Jackson
Interview by Marcia Peterson
Fall
Essay Contest Runner Up: Shona Snowden
Interview by Debbie Delgado
Fall
Essay Contest Runner Up: Pamela Allison
Interview by Margo L. Dill
----------
Blog Posts of Interest:
Danette
Haworth, author of Violet Raines Almost
Got Struck By Lightning, Launches her
Blog Tour!
Interview by Jodi Webb
Previous WOW! writing contest winner
Danette Haworth launches her blog tour for
her YA novel, Violet Raines Almost Got
Struck By Lightning. It's a story of
growing up and making friends--with a few
alligators and lightning bolts thrown in for
excitement. Check out the great interview
with Danette, including her path from writing
to publication--quite a success story, as
you'll see. 29
comments! Note: This blog tour is still
going!
Check
the dates and join in.
Elizabeth
Fournier, author of All Men are Cremated
Equal, Launches her Blog Tour!
Interview by Jill Earl
Elizabeth Fournier launches her blog tour for
All Men are Cremated Equal, the
chronicles of her true life dating spree as a
marriage-minded mortician in her mid-30's. If
you're interested in learning about memoir
writing, self-publishing, going on blind
dates, or what it's like to work as a
mortician, be sure to read this fun and
insightful interview. 24 comments! Note:
This blog tour is still going! Check
the dates and join in.
Stephanie
Riseley, author of Love From Both
Sides, Launches her Blog Tour!
Interview by LuAnn Schindler
Stephanie Riseley launches her blog tour for
Love From Both Sides, a memoir about
the deeply emotional and powerfully physical
story of the continued relationship between
her and her husband Dan after his sudden
death. If you're interested in learning about
memoir writing, or finding out how Stephanie
landed a publisher from one single email, this
interview is for you. Note:
This blog tour is still going! Check
the dates and join in.
Writing
and Traveling
By LuAnn Schindler
It's important to maintain a writing routine
of some kind, even while traveling or on
vacation. You never know when something you
witness or overhear will spark an idea. Get
inspired by LuAnn's post about writing on the
road!
Which
side of your brain do you trust most?
By Elizabeth Humphrey
Ever since Elizabeth finished writing a
nonfiction book proposal a few weeks back,
she has been contemplating the concept of the
creative side of the brain competing with the
literal side of the brain. The ol' right
brain/left brain coming into play. Or perhaps
warring factions...
A
Recent Re-Focus
By Margo L. Dill
It's okay to take some time and reassess your
goals and figure out a new game plan. It
might be the best thing you ever did for your
career! Margo shares some questions she asked
herself to discover where she wants to go
with her writing.
Top
10 Joys of Writers
By Marcia Peterson
Take a look at the results from a survey of
writers showing their top joys about
practicing the craft. You'll notice that many
of the joys of writing have little to do with
making money (although that's nice). Let the
list remind you of all the good things that
writing can bring to your life.
Why
Should I Keep My Domain Name and Hosting
Separate?
By Angela Mackintosh
Webmasters can't stress this enough, and is
often their first rule: Don't buy your domain
and hosting from the same company. It may
seem like an unnecessary step, but really, it
won't take you that much extra time and may
just save you time and money in the
future.
What's
YOUR Passion?
By Chynna Laird
Our passion for writing is what we draw from
when the words don't come easily some days.
It's what helps us to dust ourselves off and
get back out there after a rejection (or
two...or four...or more...). However, that
passion is something that needs constant
nurturing or it can fizzle out.
It's
the Little Details
By Carrie Hulce
While working on an article for a client, a
writer finds a way to create a story based on
a product she had never used in her life.
It's all about the details!
OMG,
U Want Me to Spell This Out?
By Alison Diefenderfer
An interesting encounter with a student
prompts a discussion about texting shorthand.
Do you see text jargon bleeding into
professional work? Do you think there's
nothing wrong with using both shorthand and
fully spelled out lexicons, as long as the
reader knows what the abbreviation means?
A
World of Inspiration
By Jill Earl
As writers, we're always looking for
inspiration to get us back to the keyboard or
notepad, or to expand on an idea (or several)
already percolating in our minds. Jill
explores HOW, an online magazine for graphic
design professionals, and comes across an
inspiring article that she shares with
WOW! readers.
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Want to contribute to The Muffin?
Friday's are "Speak Out!" days. We allow
posts from contributors for promotion. If
you'd like to submit a post, please make sure
that it's about women and writing.
Your post
can be about: writing inspiration, balancing
family life/parenting with writing, craft of
writing fiction/nonfiction, how-tos, tips for
author promotion/marketing/social media, book
reviews, writing prompts, special
opportunities (paying markets for writers),
publishing industry news/gossip, and anything
you think our readers will love.
Please make
sure that there is take-away value to our
readers. No press releases please. We're more
interested in hearing from our core
audience--personal essays and humorous
anecdotes are encouraged as well, as long as
they provide
something useful to our audience--including a
good laugh! ;)
How To Submit: Submit your 250 - 500
word post in the
body of your email to
our blog editor Marcia Peterson: marcia@wow-womenonwriting.com.
Upon acceptance, we will ask for your bio,
links, bio photo, and any other pics to
illustrate the article. We look forward to
hearing from you!
-----------
Want to get blog posts via email?
Subscribe
to The Muffin with Feedburner and get the
latest delivered straight to your inbox.
Visit The Muffin >>
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Pitch Your Novel Directly to Editors in New York
Friday - Sunday: May 29-31,
2009
Where:
Ripley-Grier Studios
520 8th Avenue at
36th St., 16th Floor, NYC, NY
www.newyorkwritersworkshop.com/
New York Writers Workshop hosts the three-day
Perfect Pitch Fiction Conference for writers
of fiction, Friday-Sunday, May 29-31, 2009.
At this unique conference, participants meet
with and pitch novels to three different
editors from major New York publishing houses
(e.g., Viking, Penguin, Random House,
Scribners, Simon and Schuster).
Before the conference begins, participants
boil the essence of their manuscript down to
a synopsis of flap copy length (roughly three
minutes). The copy should include the book's
premise and hook.
How to apply:
If you'd like to attend the workshop, prepare
an email with the following information:
- Brief description of your project (up to
100 words)
- What you do for a living
- Contact information: email address, street
address, phone
And send it to: Charles Salzberg:
charles@ducts.org
or Tim Tomlinson:
newyorkwritersworkshop@gmail.com
We'll get back to you within ten days to let
you know if your application has been
accepted and, if so, where you should send
your check.
For more information, please visit: http://www.newyorkwritersworkshop.com/pitch_fiction.html
FIND OUT MORE>>
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Mailbox: Letters to the Eds:
From: Kelli Wheeler, WOW! Alumni
Member. Kelli placed in 2 of our previous
quarterly writing contests! She's an
excellent writer.
Email:
Angela, Annette, and
Staff,
Thanks for this Money Matters for Writers
issue! It's been tough to stay motivated as a
freelance writer, let alone in this economic
climate and changing landscape of print
writing. I really needed the tips offered
from the WOW! team to keep me moving
forward and plugging along. The Get
a Blog, Get a Job article really
helped me in my efforts to advance the
success of my blog and I immediately followed
the helpful links like the Alexa toolbar. It
was also great to get helpful tips from
fellow freelancers in 20
Answers - How to Survive as a Writer During
the Recession. I also followed a link
from there to get myself Linkedin. And of
course I had to make sure I wasn't making the
Fatal
5 Financial Mistakes Writers
Make.
Thanks WOW! for being a great
resource, source of inspiration and providing
opportunities to grow as a writer. I'm proud
to say, I've been with you from the
beginning!
Cheers,
Kelli
http://kellimwheeler.com/
From WOW: Thank you, Kelli, for the nice
words! We're so thrilled to hear from
long-time subscribers like yourself. You made
our day! :)
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From: Ally
Email:
Dear Angela,
I really enjoyed your article about blogging
in the April issue of WOW!. However, you gave
a bit of advice that I've never heard before
and I'm very curious as to your reasoning.
Unfortunately, you didn't provide an
explanation. You wrote:
Get Yourself a Host:
This can be done when you register your
domain name, but honestly, it's better to
have your domain name registered with one
company, and your hosting with another.
Why is that? It seems like an unnecessary
step--isn't it easier to just have everything
with one provider? I assume you had a
specific reason why it's worth the
inconvenience, and I would very much like to
know what it is. I bet your other readers
would, too.
Best,
Ally
From Angela: Thank you so much, Ally,
for your question! My editor wondered if
readers would have a question about that, so
I'm glad you asked. I did mention that it's
"standard practice for webmasters and highly
recommended." I didn't get into the
why of it because it would take a few
paragraphs of explanation, and my article was
long enough--topping out at around 4,000
words, LOL. I appreciate your keen eye for
detail, and answered your question in this blog
post so that others could understand as
well. I appreciate questions like this--keep
'em coming!
-----------
Would you like to send a letter to the WOW
Editors? We will answer your questions,
post your kudos, comments, suggestions, or
anything else you have on your mind. Email us
at: mailbox@wow-womenonwriting.com.
We look forward to hearing from you!
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In Closing:
We hope that this issue will help bring you
closer to finding your true genre/subgenre.
There are so many wonderful and creative
categories out there for you to explore.
Don't just go with the ones that are popular
right now. Make sure they are right for your
fiction. And when you find that perfect
genre, get ready to embrace all that it has
to offer. Explore all the resources, indulge
in the markets, and delight in meeting other
like-minded writers. Finding your niche is
truly what it's about. Happy writing!
Warmest,
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