Prima magazine

Prima magazine have a regular fiction slot. It's in the form of a monthly competition with a £100 prize, plus publication. Entries of not more than 800 words should be emailed to yourwinningstory@hearst.co.uk

There are terms and conditions, including the possibility of losing your copyright, so I strongly suggest getting hold of a copy of the magazine and checking you're happy with them before submitting. (I haven't been able to find these details online - if anyone does, please let me kow and I'll add in a link)

The picture isn't relevant; I just thought the post looked naked without one.

Interview with womagwriter Patsy Collins cont.

My guest today is once again Patsy Collins! I'm continuing to answer the questions you asked. First half of the interview is here.

Ados wanted to know, "Which women's magazines have you written for? Is there one you find 'easier' or one that you have more success with on a regular basis?"

I submit to all of those which accept submissions, except Yours as they take all rights and I'm not willing to give up copyright. Overall I've had most success with Woman's weekly, closely followed by Take a Break's Fiction Feast. Both still send me plenty of rejections though.

Loopers asked, What is your most favourite thing you have won with your writing, and which story/ book makes you the proudest up to now?

My first ever success was to a 40 word story competition, Loopers. I won book tokens and tea with the mayor, which involved cake. Possibly even more importantly it gave me the confidence to move on from the rejections I'd collected and continue to send work out. That's my favourite prize.

It's very hard to say which story makes me proudest, but this one is definitely a contender.

Up the Garden Path

Over the Garden Fence

Nicola asked, "I get most of my ideas for stories, short and longer, when I'm weeding the garden - and the weeds keep on sprouting! What inspires your ideas?" 

Gardening does it for me too, Nicola. Lots of my stories involve plants in some way (so much so that I have two collections of garden related stories and a third due out next spring). 

Often I don't know exactly what prompted a story idea, but they often come when I'm doing something else and it's difficult to write them down.

Glynnis Scrivens asked, "How many stories do you submit to each editor each month? How many magazines do you write for?"

I submit to all the magazines I know of which will accept submissions and don't take all rights, Glynnis. The number I send to each varies on the number of suitable stories I have available as well as how many the magazine publishes. 

I generally send several to Woman's Weekly as they use a lot in both the Fiction Special and the weekly magazine. I believe The People's Friend take the most, but it's very rare for me to write anything I think they'll like, so it's very rare for me to send them anything.

There seems little point sending more than they can use, as I'd be competing against myself. For that reason those magazines which publish fewer stories each month will recieve fewer submissions from me.

Glynis also asked, "Do you find some months are generally better than others in terms of sales?"

Yes, it's very variable! December, June and July are generally quietest (I don't know if that's the same for everybody?) Other than that I've not noticed any pattern. I'm not aware of it making any difference when I submit the stories.

Keith Havers asked "Do you start with a plot or with the characters?"

They grow together, Keith. The plot reveals things about the characters and they in turn influence the plot. Quite often a story doesn't come out quite as I planned as characters don't do exactly what I thought they would.

Keith added, "Do you have a lovely new book featuring a naked Carol Vorderman coming out soon?"

*shakes head and gives Keith 'the look'*

Sue Blackburn said, "Oooh if you have a lovely new book featuring a hunky fireman coming out anytime soon that would be just great. Heard rumours - is it true? "

Where did you hear a rumour like that, Sue? Actually it is true. Who'd of thought, eh?

Firestarter is a romantic comedy involving not only hunky firemen,  but a jealous ex, unhappy rivals, creepy boss, danger, weird clothing choices and a few red-footed crows. There's masses of wonderful food, disgusting wine, and smelly mud, plus mind boggling sisterly advice and steamy Welsh passion.

You can order it here.

Carol asked If it came to a choice between heroes, hunky fireman or hunky farmer or gardener?

A hunky photographer, Carol! You weren't trying to get me in trouble there, were you?

Emma asked, New book sounds fab, and I'd like to know... of all the short stories you've written, do you have a favourite? If so, why?

Thanks, Emma. I'm usually quite fond of whichever one has sold most recently! No, I don't have a favourite. Some stay in my memory more than others though. 

Thank you so much everyone for the great questions!

Interview with Womagwriter Patsy Collins

Today my guest is Patsy Collins! I know it's a bit weird to be my own guest but heck, I'm a writer! At least I'm not talking to myself as you've kindly supplied a good selection of questions.

Penny asked, "Are you an Owl or a Lark? Which is your best time for writing?"

Neither! I need a lot of sleep. 
Generally the morning is my most productive writing time but I can, and do, write at any time of the day.

Sue Blackburn asked, "Are you a disciplined writer in that you have a strict routine?"

Yes and no, Sue. I try to be disciplined and work on my writing for a reasonable time each day, but my routine is flexible. Usually I have several projects on the go at different stages, so if I don't feel like writing one story, I edit another instead.

I travel quite a bit with photogrpher my photographer husband in our campervan, and although I still write away from home, I'm more likely to get distracted. 

Fay Knowles asked, "What's your secret to getting your short stories published so frequently?"

Dogged determination and persistence, Fay. I get plenty of rejections, but I don't let them discourage me. Instead I try to write what the editors are looking for and do my best to look at things differently and come up with unusual ideas. Sometimes though it's very difficult to know why one story sells and others don't.
Wendy asked a really excellent question. ''Do you have a lovely new book featuring a hunky fireman coming out anytime soon and if so where can I get it?'" 

Funny you should ask that, Wendy as actually I do! (oddly several other people made similar enquiries ... almost as though someone put them up to it.) 

Firestarter is a romantic comedy. If it's half as much fun to read as it was to write, people are going to enjoy it a lot.  Firestarter isn't officially due out until November 5th but for once I'm not leaving the promotion stuff until it's too late. (Offers to host me on blogs and the like most welcome).

You can order Firestarter here. My local book shop will be stocking it and it'll be available from some libraries. 

Julie Day asked, "What started you writing short stories for womags? and which magazine was your first one in?"

I took creative writing classes and my tutor (author June Hampson) suggested I submit to womags, Julie. I'm very glad she did. My first acceptance was from The Weekly News, but The Lady actually published me first.

Julie also wondered, "Do you reward yourself with each success?"

Yes! That's very important. A sale gets the biggest celebration and I'll treat myself to something nice to eat or drink, but I think we should congratulate ourself on every achievement along the way.

Thank you for all the questions! I had lots more, so this interview is to be continued ....

Discover your inner editor

If you fancy learning how to edit your own work, take a look at Red Pen on the ScrivenerVirgin website. This is an updated version of the RedPen group I joined ten years ago and to which I still belong. I now make fewer mistakes and, thanks to my friend Anne Rainbow and her three tasks system, I get more worked published than would otherwise have been the case.  

Red Pen is free to join and members receive regular newsletters with help, advice and editing tasks. If you join up now, you'll be invited to take part in a free editing webinar on Tuesday 29 September. 

For those wanting to invest in further Red Pen Training, a private Facebook group offers additional information and the chance for mutual mentoring with fellow RedPenners. There is a programme of online tutorials and ‘Proof of the Pudding’ editing workshops. In the first of these POP workshops, Anne will take you through the steps involved in turning one of my earliest first drafts into a story which was published by Candis magazine in 2007.

Later, Anne will be offering the option of a paid-for upgrade for those who'd like individual help with a particular piece of writing.

If you have any questions put them in the comments and Anne will do her best to explain

Over to you!

I was wondering who I could pick on  select to interview next and I decided on that Patsy Collins woman. The only trouble is she refuses to talk to me. She thinks you'll all think she's even odder than she really is if she does.

So can you think up some questions for her? I'll pick out the ones I like and are easiest to answer I think will be most informative. Feel free to include one something like 'do you have a lovely new book featuring a hunky fireman coming out anytime soon and if so where can I get it?'

Woman's Weekly

I've just heard from Woman's Weekly (via Jo Styles) that they have a bit of a backlog of submissions at the moment. This is due to people being away, all the workshops they're now doing and Live! which has just finished for this year. They hope to catch up soon.

Interview with womagwriter Della Galton

My guest today is Della Galton. I don't think she actually needs an introduction, so I'll get straight to it...

1. When I first started writing short stories, two names appeared in every magazine I looked at - yours and Teresa Ashby's. How long have you been writing womag stories and how did you get started?

I joined an evening class called Writing for Profit and Pleasure in 1987. I was inspired by a young woman – Tina Wade – who stood up in that class and announced she’d just sold her 27^th short story that year. I wanted to be her! She was writing for a teenage magazine (now gone) called Loving. I studied them carefully, and a few months later they accepted a short story from me. It was the most thrilling moment of my life! (I don’t get out much!)

2. After so many acceptances do you still celebrate after a 'yes' and if so how?

If it’s a big one – say a novel – then yes. I buy myself something I can keep, an item of jewellery is good. Or something writing related. I bought my iPad, for example. Is that writing related? I do love it though.

3. You teach writing. Do you think that's made a difference to how you write?

Yes, because teaching is a learning experience. Always be both student and teacher – that’s my motto. I still attend other people’s writing courses as well as teaching my own. I think I always will.

4. Despite writing loads of short stories and non fiction you've found time for novels. Care to tell us a little about your latest release?

The Morning After TheLife Before is the sequel to my last novel, Ice and a Slice. It has the same central character, SJ, who is a very flawed, but I’m told, very lovable character with a teeny weeny drink problem.

5. I'm guessing you must be very disciplined about your writing and stick to a rigid timetable in order to get everything done?

Just work all hours – that’s another of my mottos. Mornings are my best time. I usually write before I do anything else – admin, blogs, social media, teaching etc. Once the writing is done, then I’ll do whatever else I need to do. But writing is my priority.

6. I've heard that some writers use real people and situations in stories to work off frustrations or put something right. Do you ever do that?

Yep, frequently. I can’t give you an example. I might get sued!

7. The right writing snacks are very important - what's your fuel of choice?

Coffee. Oh and Nutella Sandwiches, or if I’m feeling virtuous I stir Nutella through a 0% fat yoghurt. You can get quite a lot in if you use a big spoon! 

8. What has been your happiest or proudest writing moment so far?

Actually, this recently changed. Last month I gave a talk to 200 people at Swanwick Writers’ conference. At the end of my talk the chairman asked for questions and a lady stood up at the back. She said, “My name’s XXX and I’m an alcoholic. I want to tell you that your novel Ice and a Slice saved my life. I read it last year, and I could relate to the main character so much. It motivated me to seek help for my own drinking problem. Now I have been sober for 8 months. Thank you so much.”

I cried. Right there on stage. In fact, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house. What a courageous lady. Her comments completely blew me away.

You know yourself how much blood sweat and tears go into writing. When you get feedback like that, it makes every single moment worthwhile.

9. Can you pass on a tip for other womag writers?

Write from the heart. Write the story you really want to write. Don’t follow convention. I think that readers – and editors – recognise authenticity.

Thank you so much for having me.

Coincidentally, Della and I both have novels on promotion this week. You can get Della's Ice and a Slice and my A Year and a Day for 99p each.

Rumour has it...

Actually it's more than a rumour. I have it on good authority that Take a Break's Fiction Feast want more one and two page stories. If you have anything suitable that's either 700 or 1,200 words, now might be a good time to send it in.

Here's my idea of a feast.

An ad break

I'm going to be sending out occasional newsletters about my writing. If you'd like to sign up for them you can do so here.

Ok, that's done.

Here's a cute picture to keep you going until the next womag related post.

Interview with womagwriter Teresa Ashby

My guess today is Teresa Ashby.

1. When I first started writing short stories, two names appeared in every magazine I looked at - yours and Della Galton's. How long have you been writing womag stories and how did you get started?

I sold my first fiction story in 1984 to Secrets which was published by D C Thomson, but I started writing short stories a year or so before that. I had written a few (awful) novels by then. I used to invest in as many magazines as I could and after reading them, I’d count the words in each story. There weren’t a lot of guidelines back then, so you had to create your own. There were dozens of magazines which was good in a way as you had to learn to write in many different styles to suit each market.

2. Do you remember your first acceptance?

Yes, I do. It was called Happy to Oblige and the story was written about my two year old son trying to put my cat in the tumble dryer – he’d just come in out of the pouring rain. Thankfully I caught him. He was acting with the best of intentions and Leo came to no harm, but it sold my first story. The first thing I did when I got the letter was to phone my mum. Honestly, she was that chuffed, I still smile when I remember that phone call.

3. You've had soooo many since - do you still celebrate after a 'yes' and if so how?

I am always ecstatic when I have an acceptance. Mainly it’s a smile on my face and the push I need to get on and write more.

4. I know your family are important to you - do they still make it into your stories?

They sneak in sometimes without me even realising it. Same with the pets. Mainly I see my characters as people I’ve just met, but they often share some character traits with those I love – and a few people that I don’t (you’ll always need villains).

5. Do you have a strict writing routine, or is it impossible to fit one around the grandchildren and animals?

No I don’t have a routine at all. I write when and where I can.

6. The right writing snacks are very important - what's your fuel of choice?

At the moment it’s peanut butter on toast, but if anyone passing cares to throw me a tasty snack, I won’t say no.

7. You've published several collections of your short stories, could you tell us about the latest one?

Margaret’s Mouse &Other Stories is the latest. (US link) The stories were all published in The People’s Friend and there are twenty in all. It’s a mix of all sorts – but mainly about families with a bit of romance thrown in. (The collection is available at the special price of 99p/99c from today until Tuesday)

8. What has been your happiest or proudest writing moment so far?

I think it must be when I sold my first serial in 1988 to My Weekly, “For The Children’sSake”. I bought my first computer, an Amstrad with what I earned from that. Then I was contacted by publishers in Norway and Italy who wanted to publish it too. It was also published as a pocket novel. Many years later I found out that I could also sell large print rights. That serial opened up a whole new world for me and I should say here that I am forever grateful to D C Thomson for the encouragement they gave me when I started out.

9. Can you pass on a tip for other womag writers?

Read the magazines – the whole magazine that is, even the adverts. Know who you’re writing for and respect them. I think respect for the reader is vital. During a stay in hospital in 1985, the nurses

were only allowed to spend a maximum of two minutes in the room with me and one lovely nurse in particular used to have to keep looking at her watch because we’d end up talking about magazines. She said she loved reading the confession ones during her break. From that moment on, I thought of her when I wrote confession stories and imagined her reading them. I hadn’t thought about it this deeply before, but I definitely have someone in mind as my reader when I write –almost as if I’m chatting to them and telling the story.

Update from Jill Finlay

Jill has posted an update to her last post in the comments. I'm copying it here too, so no one misses it.

Hello again!  A few of you have mentioned the word count and the fact I'd said 1200-1500 instead of the flat 1200.
Yes, it was the case for a long time that the uppermost word limit would be 1200, but I realised that stories closer to 1500 were perfectly all right for the space, too, so I didn't want to restrict it to a rigid 1200 anymore.
For the supplement - and there will be another one! - we have space for a story of 2000 words, which gives a lot more scope. When I know the date of the next supplement, I'll let everyone know and anyone wishing to submit a longer story for consideration can do it then.
Thanks again for all your feedback and questions - it's been great to hear from you all. If you have any other queries, please get in touch and I'll do my best to answer them.
The guidelines will be posted on the Facebook page in the near future - huge thanks for all our new likes.
Jill.

Guest post by womag editor Jill Finlay

Here are Jill's answers to questions left on my last post. She'll be looking at the blog over the weekend and if there are more questions, she'll try to answer those too.

Hi Patsy - thanks so much for the opportunity to have a chat with writers about fiction in The Weekly News.
You've asked how many submissions I receive roughly each month. It does vary, but it's usually somewhere between 40-60. June, for instance, was 52. (I had a count!)
Some writers will send more than one at a time - I even had a query last week from someone who was offering me 20!
However, a word of warning comes with that. What I often find with fiction submissions is that it's quality not quantity. Whilst you undoubtedly have more scope for success the more you submit, mailing over a huge batch at once sets alarm bells in my head.
That's an awful lot of writing from the same source. How similar will they be? And is it possible for one writer to have written 20 separate stories with TWN in mind? I have some writers who'll submit once every few months, and often, they're accepted, because they only send me what they know will hit the mark.
I've been following the recent debate on the forums about whether writers should read the publications they're targeting. To throw in my tuppence-worth - absolutely! Yes. Please, please do.
And don't stop at just the fiction section. If you read the entire paper, you'll have a far better understanding of the tone, the content, the target market.
You also mentioned the fiction supplement.
I was really pleased to get the chance to showcase fiction in that way, and we definitely have plans to do it again. What it does mean is that there will be a space for a longer story - around the 2000-word mark - for each supplement. Normally, we aim for 1200-1500, so it will give us a bit more variety.
At the moment, I don't have a specific date for the next supplement, so don't all rush at once sending in 2000-word stories! I'll spread the word once the plans are firmed up.
The supplement itself was well received by readers, and fiction always comes out well in any surveys we've conducted in the past. So doing another one can only be a positive for everyone.

Following on from the comments about reading the publication, and streamlining submissions rather than going for the shotgun approach, Helen Yendall has asked how to make the life of a fiction editor any easier. Ha ha - well, besides, the yacht, some sunshine, a trip to NYC and what I mentioned above, making sure your work has been proofread thoroughly is an absolute must.
Check your spelling (beyond spellchecker!), check the paragraphs, make sure the names of characters are consistent throughout (bizarrely, a common error - a character will have name change midway) and, in general, make sure it's easy to read.
I find myself reading stories at strange times of the day and often later at night, and if work is poorly formatted, regardless of how brilliant the ideas are, it can make things a little laborious.
I know that sounds a bit whingy, but it makes such a difference.
Occasionally, I'll get some stories in files that I can't open, so generally, either a Word attachment or pasting the story into the body of the email is the best way.
Please don't send hard copy anymore. Those days are gone, I'm afraid!
We still don't use stories written in the first person. It's simply a style preference. Sometimes, I have changed it to the third person myself, but ideally, if they could arrive that way, there would be more chance of acceptance.
Acceptance can only come about now if you've signed the DCT contracts. These were rolled out company-wide and were introduced to clear the grey areas of copyright and republishing. If anyone would like to read the contract with a view to signing, please contact me directly and I can send all the relevant information.
Email me at jfinlay@dcthomson.co.uk and I'll pick up all my emails there. There is an auto-forward set up when I'm not in the office going to jkfinlay@hotmail.co.uk but I'm reliably informed that the out-of-office reply is choosy about when it decides to work!
If I'm in the office when your email arrives, I'll try to respond immediately.
I've spread the word about the new 12-week rule, which seems to working . . . If you haven't heard from me within 12 weeks of submission, that means it's a non-acceptance and you're free to submit elsewhere. If you've been successful, I'll contact you with all the relevant info.
It was a time issue. It's a far cry from the responses when I first started doing this, but I couldn't keep people hanging on for months.

Sharon Boothroyd - thanks for your question about content. Yes, very much so light-hearted themes, although we do break out occasionally to have some darker topics. I did call a halt to ghost stories for a bit, as I had so many (Kitty asked about this, too) but I'm happy to read more of them now. If the twist is likely to be "someone was a ghost but we only find out at the end" I'm not so inclined to go for that, but stories with a more chilling edge or a spooky theme throughout are welcome.
There's nothing that I'd absolutely rule out, although we try to keep away from romance or "chick-lit", as other publications have the monopoly there and we do try to appeal to both sexes rather than just the ladies.
Sue Blackburn - yes, please email any submission to the above email address. The word count is 1200-1500.
Beatrice Charles - I'm currently revising the guidelines and I'm planning to post them on The Weekly News Facebook page. You'll find us there and if you "like" us, you'll be able to find links there once I get them posted. We should be at www.facebook.com/weeklynewsuk
I hope to utilise the Facebook page much more for fiction over the next few months, as it's one of the best ways to get information out there quickly.

For Fay Knowles and Sheila who live abroad, I'm afraid there isn't a digital copy of The Weekly News, but you can subscribe for overseas delivery. If you call +44 1382 575580, you'll get through the right people who can organise that. If you quote WNEWS, I believe there's a discount to be had!

"aw" has mentioned dialogue. That's a good question, because some editors have mixed feelings about too much or too little. Have too much, and it's a bit like a transcript with less scope for colour. Too little, and readers can become a little detached from the characters themselves.
So I suppose it's all about hitting the balance. Sometimes, a well-written piece of dialogue can save you a few hundred words of description, simply because nobody tells their story better than the character themselves.
We do have a style we use for dialogue, though, which means that each time a new person speaks - even if we know it's a conversation batting back between people - we denote who said what.
I did actually run into a bit of trouble once with that, because a writer felt I'd spoiled the essence of the snappy exchange they'd written. It was a fair point, and I understood what they meant, but our style is that we do mark who's speaking. So it's something to bear in mind when submitting to us.
Generally, I think readers feel closer to characters when dialogue is used, so I'd give it a go!

Coming soon - womag editor Jill Finlay

Jill Finlay, fiction editor at The Weekly News, is lovely - and I'm not saying that just because she was the first editor to send me an acceptance. Clearly she's also very brave as she's agreed to come onto this blog to answer some of our questions!

She says, "There have been so many changes recently what with the contracts and the way I’ve set things up, so it’ll be a good opportunity to clarify any fuzzy areas." 

If you have any questions for Jill, please leave them in the comments and she'll answer as many as she can in a later post.

Other feedback, comments and suggestions will be welcome too. "It’d be good to hear from writers/readers to get a feel for what everyone thinks and how I can improve things!" 

People's Friend Serial Writing Competition.

The People's Friend are running a serial writing competition. As well as the usual fee for publication, the winner will get £400 (plus loads of kudos from me! I've yet to crack either serial writing or The Friend) More details will be on their website and in the magazine on 12,22 and 29th of this month.

Thanks to Kathy Schilbach for passing on the details.

I don't have any pictures of The People's Friend, but a nice tranquil view of Scotlad seemed appropriate.

Got a question

People sometimes ask questions on old posts relating to their query. That's not a problem for me and I'll help if I can - but there might well be other readers of this blog in a much better position to answer and such questions aren't likely to be seen by them.

Therefore I've set up a new page "Any Questions?". If you have a question (preferably womag related !) or a comment or suggestion about the blog then that'd be a good place to stick it. Please also have a look there now and again in case someone has asked something you might be interested in, or to which you might know the answer.

Here's me hard at work in the office, just waiting to hear from you!