The photos were taken at Bodnant Gardens in Wales a few days ago. It's looking magnificent!
Womag news
Thanks to Sharon Boothroyd and others for alerting me to the fact that My Weekly are advertising for a new fiction editor. The details are here, in case you fancy applying. I don't yet know what difference, if any, this will make to submitting fiction to this magazine, or what is happening with Kirstyn – something nice, I hope.
Free entry competition news
Thanks to Fiona for all the following ...
This competition is for UK authors who have been published at least once. You'll need to send a proposal, first three chapters and a statement about how your work 'contributes to the sustainability discourse'. First prize is £15,000.
This one is for true, 50 word stories on friendship. The details state that entries from those resident in Scotland will be considered for a book, but it seems you can still submit something if you live elsewhere. Unpublished authors only.
You definitely have to be resident in Scotland to enter this 'Gothic Aberdeen' short story competition. Having been to Aberdeen several times, I can see why the organisers consider it a suitable location for a gothic tale. Prize is £300.
Are any of you resident in Scotland? If not, I won't continue to post details of competitions with that restriction.
My news
Thanks to Alyson Hilbourne for reminding me I'm the People's Friend writer of the week. I'm sure I was told the date the interview would appear, but had completely forgotten about it.
Thanks to Alyson Hilbourne for reminding me I'm the People's Friend writer of the week. I'm sure I was told the date the interview would appear, but had completely forgotten about it.
23 comments:
Yes, re My Weekly, I wondered what is happening to Kirstyn, too.
Not living in Scotland, Patsy but visit often. However I'm not sure that is good enough for the competition entries.
I'm wondering what is happening at My Weekly too. Hoping nothing changes as I've only just got on their list...
Congratulations on being TPF writer of the week! Good publicity, too!
Alyson
A lot of opportunities although I don't live in Scotland either. Great photos though!
Thanks for all the info Patsy, great interview in TPF, congrats on that.
Hi Patsy, congratulations on being TPF, Writer of the Week and on your short story Rooted In Love, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Thanks Patsy and others for the competition info. Yes, I am in Scotland and grateful for those comps to be included. With regards to a new fiction editor at My Weekly, Kirstyn was lovely to deal with in regard to Pocket Novels, which they no longer publish. I wish her well whatever the future holds for her. Despite numerous enquiries I never did make it on to their list for short stories!
To Elizabeth, re making it onto the 'list' , despite managing to sell three short stories to Kirstyn, I never made it either, although - according to Kirstyn - I was on it. However, I never received the regular guidelines without specifically requesting them. In the end I gave up and stuck to the People's Friend, who always acknowledge stories.
Thank you Margret for sharing your experience with My Weekly and congratulations on selling to them. It's lovely to know we can rely on The People's Friend to at least acknowledge our submissions.
You're most welcome, Elizabeth!
Thanks Patsy, and congratulations on being Writer of the Week. 😀
TPF haven't acknowledged any of my submissions since publishing one of my stories. From the comments here, wondering about this now. 😕
HB
Well done being writer of the week for People's Friend, Patsy. I am still trying, (a bit) not sure they get my style, but I will keep trying. And the competition sounds good so might have a go at that. xx
Thanks, Margret. Yes, I have a designated editor to send to, but as you say, they have enough to do!
HB
Congrats on being Writer of the Week, Patsy - great interview!
My impression as someone not in the My Weekly closed shop was that the latest fiction editor hadn't been there for very long.
@anonymous - TPF don't always acknowledge submissions, so if you haven't received an acknowledgment, it doesn't mean they didn't receive it.
Congratulations on being the Writer of the Week, Patsy... again with the cake! I look forward to reading the story later.
Thanks, everyone!
It seems that each PF fiction editor works in a slightly different way. Some acknowledge receipt of stories, others wait until they've read it and then either reject or say it's gone on to the next stage. Sending one acknowledgement doesn't take long, but when there are scores of them, those few minutes must add up.
Kirstyn hasn't been the MW fiction editor very long, but in that time there have been changes. Without the specials and the PNs to deal with, maybe the job can now be done in fewer hours than she wishes to work?
Patsy, I'd like to add my congratulations on your Writer of the Week success. It was a great interview. I really enjoy this feature as it's so nice to learn a bit about the writers whose work we see in the pages of the "Friend".
Congratulations Patsy on being the TPF writer of the week. I'm puzzled by Margaret 's comment that the fiction eds there are desperately busy, trying to keep the mag afloat. I wasn't aware that it was in financial difficulty, and I'm wondering why Margaret thinks it is?
Sharon, I didn't say the PF was in financial difficulties, but these are tough times for all mags, and so many have folded in recent years.
www.thepeoplesfriend.co.uk/lifestyle/books/editors-diary-tough-times-for-magazines/
If you read their regular posts on X, you will see how they stress how busy they are, hence the often long waits for acceptances.
It's no secret that circulation figures for UK women's magazines, including TPF, plummeted in 2024, and DCT have had a couple of restructures in recent years, resulting - as all restructures do - in redundancies and in increased work for remaining staff. TPF's workload must be enormous - a weekly mag, three-weekly Specials, an annual, at least 3 bookazines, plus the pocket novels. As someone who's gone through similar situations, with having to do more with less at work, I should think the working week is pretty challenging sometimes, hence the lack of time to acknowledge all submissions.
I'm not on X, so I'm not able to read the TPF posts there. It's a fair point about the sales of mags dropping. I think Alyson is very lucky to become accepted on the closed MW list, as they don't usually accept new writers. I know many have tried and failed to get on it.
@Sharon at A Quick Read - I wrote them a pocket novel which allowed me on the list. They've always said that was the case and it was...
Ah I see! Well done on both counts.
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