Over To You
I think / hope that I've now made it possible for you to subscribe to this blog and get new posts sent to you by email. There's a purple box thingy on the top right of the page. Give it a try if you like! (You can also do the same thing with the blog on my website, if you happen to fancy that.)
UPATDE This does seem to work, although the email notifications don't arrive until several hours after the post goes live.
Please share writing related news – successes and failures, details of free entry writing competitions, updates about the womags you submit to, any other publication opportunities, and raise any queries you may have. All these things will help other readers of the blog, and help me to keep it going!It takes time to find new free competitions every single week and it's very difficult to keep track of markets I don't submit to. Your support through sharing information, and leaving comments, makes a big difference. (Never worry you're telling me something I know – reminders are welcome!)
Womag news
If you claim ALCS (money you're entitled to if you're a UK citizen who has work published in magazines) then make sure you update your claims before the end of the month, so you don't miss out on any payments.
Free entry competition
This is from Best. I don't think I can make the t&c's big enough to read, so the highlights are - only one entry per person. First prize £500, two runners up of £200. All rights are taken from prizewinning stories, but not on all entries.
26 comments:
Thank you, Patsy. I’ve clicked the purple button and subscribed!
Things have been quiet for me, but I did get an acceptance from Best of Woman’s Weekly a couple of weeks ago. It’s for a Christmas story I’d submitted quite a while ago, and which I assumed had missed its chance, so it was a lovely surprise.
LIkewise Marian things have been very quiet for me, no news either way for a while. However, I did manage to write a 4000 word story (in response to TPF call out for same) which is my longest story ever & amazingly I really enjoyed writing it. Don't know if it will be successful but it felt like a real achievement & I loved that the longer length allowed me to do a bit of research which I really enjoy too.
Oh by the way ALCS is not just open to UK citizens but royalties can be claimed by anyone anywhere who has something published in a UK publication which is great.
That's great, Marian. Being in a Christmas edition is just little bit more special. Prima did a call out a while ago. Has anyone had any feedback/fallout from that? August, I think, for Christmas stories. Right, Sheelagh: I want you to run an online workshop for a) Getting into TPF and b) writing A Long Story!😉 Well done! I know you seemed to be a bit like me, anxious to try but finding it hard. Well done for that! You've done it once, so... I'm about to try the purple button, Patsy. I've sent my Best and just this minute sent Weird Christmas... and steeping my cake fruit in brandy, so starting to get in the festive spirit.
Well done to all with positive news. I've had a no from scribble for a Xmas story and April at BOWW is still ghosting me!
I'm writing Xmas stories for next year. By the way, That's life mag in Australia do run a short story slot but it's written by a staff features writer now.
I would love an info/ advice sheet for how to have a story accepted by TPF. I've been trying for years with no success.
On a final note, do you remember that I posted a call out for a copy of Yours with my story in? I have finally received it.
I didn't get an email notification this morning, Patsy, despite hitting the purple button during the week. I've tried it again but will have to wait until next week to see if its successful.
I sent a story to Prima @Marguerite, but have heard nothing. Many years back (ten or more) I also responded to a call out from them and heard back in a couple of days as they took my story, so not holding out much hope!
Well done, @Sheelagh on a 4000 word story. Less people write the long stories.
I sold a story to Andrew at WW this week. That's all my news.
Alyson
Sadly it looks like the subscribe thingy hasn't worked. It's entirely possible I set it up incorrectly and I'll try again.
If anyone does get an email notification, or got one this morning, please let me know.
@Patsy. Just got the follow.it email aprroximate.y 16.10
I've just tried to subscribe. Will let you know how it goes. Good to hear from people who've had stories accepted. I haven't really been submitting, as I'm working on a longer piece.
@ Alyson - thank you for letting me know. It seems as though they do come through, although there's a delay. I'll see if I can change any settings, but even if I can't it's probably still better than nothing.
Great pics, as always, Patsy - wish I could live in a house with a library, preferably with a fireplace. Congratulations to Marian on the Christmas acceptance - I agree with Marguerite that having work included in Christmas issues is extra-special. I recently submitted a 4000-word story to The People's Friend, too, in response to the call-out, so am now crossing my fingers and hoping. And I had a story accepted by the 'Friend' yesterday, so that was a real boost going into the weekend. I have also written my first Christmas story for next year's submission and hope to explore this mood further with a glass or two of Harvey's Bristol Cream later (far too sweet for me, really, but very festive). Sharon, I'm sorry that you have not yet had a breakthrough with the same magazine. I'm aware of other writers who have taken quite a while to have material accepted there, but then, once they get that first success, it leads to lots more. I don't think there's a magic formula - you only have to read an issue to see the variety of styles - but would recommend trying for a fresh angle on friendship or family and aiming for the sort of story that reflects those key words that recur on the cover, such as 'sparkling', 'charming', 'warm' and 'uplifting'. I don't think you have to have a knockout plot, as long as you have engaging characters who feel like they could be your friends. I have no authority to give you advice, but this is what I'm noticing. Wishing you, Patsy, and all who follow this blog an inspired week of writing ahead.
Congratulations to all with positive news. I have a Christmas story in WW on 3rd December. I agree that it does feel a bit special to be included in one of a magazine’s festive editions. And at this time of year there is plenty of aspiration for future Christmas story ideas. I think that goes for any seasonal theme. (Currently plotting a Halloween story idea for next year).
I’ve also entered the Best Christmas competition. It’s
a story I originally wrote two years ago, but I just couldn’t get the ending quite right - until recently.
Like Sharon, I’d also like an advice sheet on how to write for TPF. If only they would reintroduce personal feedback.
Michael
Congratulations to everyone with positive news.
I’ve been entering poetry competitions this week so just have to send off and forget about them as it takes so long for them to be judged.
There’s an exhibition about local writers past and present in my home town Montrose. It opened in the museum yesterday - I’m very chuffed to be included!
Many thanks Erin. I've been writing womag fiction since 2011. I'm confident that I can do warm and uplifting- however, sparkling and charming are a person's opinion of that piece of work. I've had TPF published story writers read my TPF rejected stories and they say they're ok, so I'm at a loss to understand it really!
Patsy, I forgot to say I subscribed and got an email immediately.
Congrats to everyone with positive news.
I had an amazing four-hour-turnaround acceptance from TPF last week. I submitted it around 7pm my time and it was accepted at around 11pm. Very exciting. I initially thought it must be an acceptance for one of the stories that they've had for a while and did a double-take when I realised it was for the one I hadn't long submitted.
@Sharon, I read one of your stories in the current edition of Woman's Weekly yesterday. This is one of the mags my local library has a digital subscription to. I opened it because of its Christmassy cover. I really enjoyed your story and the touch of magical realism took me by surprise.
Congratulations to all with good news. Everyone sounds very industrious. I can't say the same as I've been in Australia for 5 weeks visiting my family, though I have made the occasional note for a Valentine Day story. That will probably be my next writing project as I shall have to hit the ground running when I get back next week with Christmas prep. Thanks to Erin for the advice about TPF. I haven't tried them this year for stories but would still like to give it another try next year.
I tried subscribing to the blog and received the email but then the links went a bit awry so not sure if I completed the process. Will await developments. Thanks as ever to Patsy.
Thanks, Patsy, and congratulations to all with acceptances.
I'm also working on Christmas stories and finishing my entry for Best.
Glad to hear you got the copy of Yours, Sharon.
HB
Many thanks Liz. Your kind comment is much appreciated.
Thank you for that, Alyson. Ah, well... another one for the awaiting outbox pile for next year.
Oh Marguerite if I only had the formula to ensure that they all got accepted! Yes I was reluctant to write anything longer than 2000 words but I'm finding the longer lengths do allow you to expand your characters or go into a bit of background that the shorter ones don't allow for. On another symmetry I baked my Christmas cake on Saturday & the aroma is still wafting about the house (love it)
@ Marian - Congratulations! (I'd have assumed a no for a Christmas story by now too.)
@ Sheelagh - Well done on writing something longer. It's fun to be able to add a bit more depth and detail isn't it?
Good to know you can claim ALCS too. I wasn't aware of that (I think plr is the same?)
@ Marguerite - I've not heard of anyone getting a response from Prima. You'd think they'd have made their selections by now, wouldn't you? Perhaps they only notify whoever is successful?
Will you and Sheelagh please stop talking about cake? You're making me hungry!
@ Sharon - starting next year's Christmas stories now is very efficient – but if that's what you're in the mood to write, now is a good time.
I'm glad you eventually managed to get your magazine.
If anyone would like to do a guest post with tips on writing for TPF, I'd be very happy to host it!
@ Alyson - Congrats on the sale.
@ Alyson – I signed up myself and didn't get the notification until the following day. Better late than never?
@ Maisie - best of luck with your longer work.
@ Eirin - One wall of the office I share with my husband has a floor to ceiling bookcase, so if I look in the right direction I can almost kid myself I have a library, An odd one, as all the non fiction is cookbooks, gardening books and stuff about ships, and nearly all the fiction was written by people I know.
Well done on the sales.
I know what you mean about Harvey's Bristol cream - it does seem Christmassy.
Great tips on writing for TPF. I hadn't thought of focussing on the cover keywords, but that makes a lot of sense.
@ Michael - well done on the sale.
It would indeed be really helpful to us writers if magazine editors could give detailed, personal feedback on why a story was, or wasn't, selected. Sadly they don't seem to have anywhere near as much time as used to be the case.
@ Fiona - good luck with the poetry.
Wow - how flattering to be included in the exhibition.
@ Sharon - You can indeed write warm and uplifting stories. It's so hard to know sometimes why one particular story isn't selected. As Michael says, it would be really helpful to have this spelled out, but I can understand why it doesn't happen.
@ Liz - crikey, that was fast! Congratulations.
@ Sue - I think you're excused writing in order to spend time with family in Australia! (And maybe you'll use some parts of the experience in a story, so really it was five weeks of research.
@ HB - Good luck with your stories and competition entries.
I think I'd better just get on and try it! Thank you for the encouragement, Sheelagh. Ah, I can smell the cake...😋.
That's more or less what I did, decided I will try a longer length without any plan as to what to write, started & then kept going. No guarantee of publication success but I was pleased that I did it, so that's a success in itself.
A published TPF story writer has looked at a recent story and said it was a lovely, heart-warming, family story. There was no unpleasant characters in it. TPF rejected it in 1 day.
Works great, Patsy. Thanks, very convenient
Post a Comment