Back to coloured sticks this week!
Free entry writing competition news
Here's a flash fiction competition. In this case, flash means up to 1,000 words. It's for women writers only. The prize is publication and an invitation to join the group who are running the competition.
On The Premises have a vey short story competition on the theme of circles. With a top prize of $35 you could earn more than a dollar a word! Thanks to Ruth for mentioning this in the comments to last week's post.
My news
I've got two stories in womags this week. There are more details on my website.
Many thanks Patsy. I've heard this week that a family story that I've had for years has finally found a home!
ReplyDeleteOriginally a womag reject, I'd sent it out to various projects and it was always a no. Yet I had faith in it, so I kept it.
Over time, I tidied It and edited it until this year, finally, someone wanted it.
It proves the point that if you have faith in a story, keep that faith and keep trying, no matter how often it's rejected.
Don't throw it out or delete it, because one day, someone Is bound to say yes!
Wise words and many congratulations for having the courage of your convictions
DeleteThanks Patsy, some interesting competitions there. Love your series of coloured sticks 😁.
ReplyDeleteSharon thats great news & good advice too
Thank you Patsy for the competition info and reminders.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Sharon, pleased to hear about your story! Such encouraging words too. I haven’t been writing stories for that long, but I can tell some are better than others (!) and hopefully, with a bit of extra work, they may find their place in the sun. 😊
Dee
Thanks for info Patsy and others. Many congratulations Sharon on placing your family story and for your wise words!
ReplyDeleteThank you as ever Patsy.
ReplyDeleteAnd brilliant news Sharon. That gives us all hope. Its just a case of having faith and perseverance sometimes.
Congratulations, Sharon, and also just seen your news from your blog, Patsy. Yes, the message is keep going. I have my third success in BOWW coming up next month and it really gives you a boost.
ReplyDeleteThat's great news Marguerite, something to brighten a grey and wet day.
DeleteDee
Thank you, Dee. That was from the first week in January so a nice surprise this week :)
DeleteWell done, Sharon! Sounds like this story was close to your heart and you knew it would prevail eventually. Congratulations to Marguerite, too, on another success! I love hearing everyone's good news. I'd like to mention that The People's Friend has a quartet of short messages on X just now, giving really concise guidance for aspiring contributors. I realise that many/most people who read this blog will already have done their homework in this regard, but for those who are newer, this would be well worth a look, and for the rest of us it's no harm to take a quick refresher check-in (especially considering that they publish around 1,000 brand new pieces of fiction a year and have an open door to new writers). Meanwhile, I am really enjoying my writing this week - is it just me or do you sometimes hit a seam of enthusiasm that carries you along? Thanks, Patsy, as always, and happy writing, everyone.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Eirin. Although I've only had a handful of actual sales of my stories, each one gives me more encouragement. From that begets enthusiasm...!
DeleteI agree, Eirin. I find the reminders TPF posts really helpful and some inspiration as well.
DeleteWell done to all with positive news.
ReplyDeleteI'm not on x, Eirin. I've tried many times with TPF with stories but had zero acceptances. Some say it's all about emotion but I've read stories that had plenty of warmth yet not necessarily a lot of heavy sentiment and emotion. My writing style is naturally fast- paced, so maybe it's too fast- paced for them.
@ Sharon – Well done!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that we should never give up on a story we believe in. Thanks for the reminder that good stories will eventually find homes if we keep giving them that chance.
@ Sheelagh – That's you officially responsible for all future stick photos!
@ Dee – Learning to assess our own work and realise which need attention and which are ready to go is a useful skill.
@ Elizabeth – I think it's sometimes easy to feel that others always sell their stories at the first try and we're the only ones getting rejections.
@ Sue – I sometimes think perseverance is my strongest trait as a writer!
@ Marguerite – Thank you. As you've made me realise that news is relevant here, I've now added in a link.
Well done for the success in BOWW.
I've now seen your good news, too, Patsy - fantastic! I wasn't aware there had been a change of policy around rights at Woman's Weekly - can you tell us more?
ReplyDelete@ Eirin - Our posts crossed!
ReplyDeleteI'm not on X, so haven't seen those posts. It's a shame they now seem to only post on that platform, rather than on their website where it would be available to all of us. It is encouraging to realise how many stories they use though.
Yes, I do sometimes have those bursts of enthusiasm.
@ Sharon – Warmth does seem to be a vital ingredient in TPF stories. You're right that your stories do tend to be faster paced then many of those in TPF.
@ Eirin – There hasn't been any official change of policy (as far as I'm aware and I believe I'd have heard). I never signed the newer all rights exclusive contract, so was never bound by those terms.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Patsy on your double publication good news!
ReplyDeleteWell done Patsy. I just assumed that Future media would ask all writers who have work accepted to sign an all rights contract.
ReplyDelete@ Sharon - They did, Sharon - and that will still be legally binding for those who signed it.
ReplyDeleteYet they still accepted your work, even though you refused to sign an all rights contract?
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear all the good news this week.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations everyone.
HB
Just clicked on the link, Patsy. Congratulations! The illustrations are lovely too.
ReplyDeleteDee
Thanks for the competitions, Patsy and congratulations on your double publication. Congratulations to Sharon and Marguerite too.
ReplyDeleteI sold a story to My Weekly yesterday. I was very pleased as it is the first the new story editor has taken, was beginning to despair!
Alyson
Congrats to you too, Alyson! I so wish it wasn't a closed list... one day, perhaps.
DeleteThank you so much for the competition news and the interesting comments this week. Congratulations to everyone with successes. This week, I was lucky to have success with TPF, which was exciting and really gave me a boost.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the TPF, Marian. I am currently studying the cosy crime bumper issue.
ReplyDeleteAnd me, Marguerite. Thank you Erin for mentioning last week!
DeleteHB
Thank you, Marguerite.
DeleteCongratulations, Patsy, and everyone with good news.
ReplyDeletePatsy, does this mean people have a choice whether or not to sign the all-rights contract at Woman's Weekly? I'd always assumed that refusing to sign an all-rights contract would instantly equal no sale.
Really enjoyed your cosy crime in TPF, Liz. Very original.
DeleteHB
I thought that as well, Liz. it was an all rights contract or nothing at all. When future media first introduced them, we were given the clear impression it was take it or leave it. I didn't think womag writers were given a choice about it, which was why the majority signed them.
ReplyDelete@HB - thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
ReplyDelete@ Elizabeth - thank you
ReplyDelete@ Sharon - I wasn't able to submit to them for a long time.
@ HB - thank you.
@ Dee - They are. It's always interesting to see how our stories are represented.
@ Alyson – Congratulations! She's not taken many of mine. She seems to be buying far fewer stories than was previously the case.
@ Marguerite - when the list was first closed, I assumed it would be very temporary. I wonder how many authors are submitting to MW?
@ Marian - That's great news. Well done!
@ Liz - We've always had a choice about whether or not to sign all rights contracts. When these contracts first came in at WW many people decided they were willing to give up their rights and signed. Others, myself included, weren't willing to give up our rights and didn't sign.
I can't comment on anyone else's situation, but in my case that meant that for a long time my stories wouldn't be considered. Fortunately, in my case, it has now been agreed that I can submit under the terms of the last contract I signed (many years ago!)
@ Everyone - I'm not a legal expert. Any information and opinions I share are given to the best of my knowledge and intended to help.
As, I keep saying, please don't sign any contract unless you understand and agree to the terms. Whatever terms YOU agree to will apply to YOU and are permanent (new contracts may be introduced, but whether in our favour or not, they're not retrospective). If others don't sign the contract, or sign a different one, then they'll have different terms, which will apply to them and not you.
Generally not signing the offered contract will result in no sales to that market. It's up to you to decide whether or not signing is in your best interests.
Thanks for that, Patsy. I've never had anything published by Woman's Weekly, and their all-rights contracts preceded my writing for the womags. It's a shame they have that contract, because WW is accessible out here - the print edition appears on our shelves only a week or so after it's published in the UK - but I've never bothered buying/reading it with a view to studying it to submit to them. All I've ever sent them is a couple of TPF rejects. Andrew Shaw has had one of these on file since 2022; the other one I sent more recently (though it was rejected about 3 years ago). I read a Christmas issue last year and enjoyed it, but I can't bring myself to write a story especially tailored for them.
DeleteWell, if I'd known that future media were going to back down after a few years and say we can honour your old contract, then I would have hung on. It seems a bit of an odd situation to me, that's all.
ReplyDeleteHi Tosh, congrats on a publishing double this week. I stopped selling to WW years ago when they changed their policy. How on EARTH did you get them to agree to allow you to return to their old contract? I've been out of the womag game for a very long time and am only now picking up writing again - back to the novels though. (Yeah, and pigs are doing loop-the-loop over Exmoor). I'm Ceka, not Anonymous - sorry, can't work out how to get that through to your site!!
ReplyDelete@ Ceka - Hello! Nice to hear from you. It's been aaages.
ReplyDeleteI'm not returning to that contract. It still applies as I didn't sign a new one. What's changed, is that my stories are now being considered again.
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