Your Go

Each month I'll be making a posting just like this one, so blog readers can ask any questions*, share any womag news, tips, advice they may have, or make womag related comments or observations.

*If you can answer these, please do.

PNs - change of word count

There's a slight change to the guidelines for My Weekly pocket novels.

What's your routine?

Today's post is from womagwriter Lisa Macgregor.

As I sit at the kitchen table with my laptop in front of me (plus tea and biscuits of course) about to start a day of writing, I suddenly find myself wondering about the routines of my fellow womag writers and how you all like to plan your day.

Like many people I enjoy the discipline that having a routine can bring. But when you are a writer at home by yourself, with no company timetable to adhere to or a boss keeping a beady eye on you and threatening to stop your wages, it's hard to remain focussed and know how best to juggle what needs to be done.

For example, I normally spend my days writing short stories for magazines. However this year I have decided I would like to tackle a novel, which feels like a mammoth task, especially as I want to continue with the short stories as well. So I'm wondering how best to divide my time so that I don't get distracted and start jumping between the two tasks and not accomplishing anything.

Are you juggling writing short stories with writing a novel? Or are you juggling a full time / part time job with catching a few hours writing late at night or early morning?

I'd love to hear about your writing routines. Maybe you have some good tips to share? And if anyone knows how best to avoid the biscuit tin and slip some much needed exercise into the day please let me know as I'm developing a bad case of writers bottom!

Good news from Woman's Weekly.

I have a story in the current issue of Woman's Weekly, which is great news for me, but not so interesting to everyone else. Fortunately I have what I think is good news for us all - the new fiction editor has confirmed she is now able to accept stories from all writers, whether or not they've had stories published in the magazine before.

If you've not had success with Woman's Weekly, I reccomend reading the three posts from Clare Cooper, particularly the second one.

New Woman's Weekly Fiction Guidelines (reproduced with the permission of the fiction editor)

We regret we can't accept stories by e-mail. Please include a SAE in case we have to return your manuscript.

Fiction is a vital ingredient of Woman's Weekly, the place where readers can escape and switch off. This doesn't mean predictable plots or old-fashioned romances. Escapism means getting involved in a really gripping tale with believable characters. Above all, we are looking for originality and a wide variety of themes and moods, such as mystery, humour, relationships and family issues, with warmth still an important factor. Try to be subtle in your writing and remember the maxim: "Show don't tell". We recommend you read several issues of Woman's Weekly and Woman's Weekly Fiction Special to get a feel for our audience.

Unfortunately, we can't offer criticism, but if your writing shows promise, we will contact you.


WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

For the weekly magazine:
Short stories of 1,000 and 2,000 words
Serials in 3 or 4 parts of 3,800 words each

For Fiction Special (At least 20 stories 10 times a year):
Stories of 1,000 to 8,000 words


GENERAL TIPS

• We read only typescripts. Handwritten work or disks can't be considered.
• Double line spacing on one side of the paper only and wide margins.
• Number each page and make sure your name is at the top of each page.
• If sending stories from abroad, please enclose an international reply coupon.
• If you would like us to acknowledge receipt of your manuscript, enclose a stamped, addressed postcard.

 Please note that it can take up to sixteen weeks for manuscripts to be considered, and that we are unable to enter into any correspondence by email.

Please send stories/serials to:
Fiction Department, Woman's Weekly, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP

Those who currently submit by email, may continue to do so.

GET WRITING FIT FOR 2018!

The Christmas break is over. The shops are already stocking Valentine cards and crème eggs and it’s back to business for many. If you’ve been over-indulging, eating and drinking too much, lounging about indoors and writing nothing more taxing than endless shopping lists, it’s time to follow Clare Cooper’s light-hearted resolutions guide and get yourself back on track with your story-writing fitness regime.

WALKING AND LIFTING

Power-walk your way to your nearest bookshop. Now, buy as many books as you can afford. Don’t forget to use those book tokens you were so loudly dropping hints about in the run-up to Christmas. Balance it out by buying an even number and size of books, so that the weight is evenly distributed.

As you make your way home, you can congratulate yourself on two things. One: The weight of the books is giving your upper arms a much-needed workout. No, lifting the TV remote control every day and night for the last two weeks doesn’t count; sorry. Two: You can treat it as research but, more importantly, you are supporting your fellow writers and keeping everyone in jobs, from the bookseller to the delivery van driver to the publisher to the editor to their assistant to the cover jacket designer to the printer to the coffee machine vending company to the office cat to… you get the picture.

When you do finally sit down at your desk, remember to take regular breaks every hour. Walk around your desk, walk around the room, walk up and down the hallway, walk up and down the stairs but try to resist walking to the fridge or food cupboard more than once every hour. OK, twice.

TONING

Your arms and legs are toning up nicely, but there’s another type of tone: your writing voice. Make this the year you develop your own unique tone and style. Remember what Oscar Wilde once said: “Be yourself. Everyone else is taken.” Target your chosen market and do your research on them. Buy a few issues of that publication, go online, look at their website, get hold of their guidelines, study their readership (their Facebook page will be great for this) and don’t give up too easily if you receive a few rejections before you hit the mark.

RESISTANCE TRAINING AND TREADMILL

You have been sending in your stories to various publications for months, if not years and you’re still not hitting the mark with them – see above. Resist the urge to take it all too personally. Step off the treadmill of negativity. It’s not the fault of the editors. They know their publications inside out and they know what their readers want. They also know about stories that have well-worn themes and are therefore predictable and guessable, with no real surprises. Plots that are not strong enough. Disjointed stories that appear to be about more than one thing and stories that are too far-fetched. Keep learning, keep trying and remember to be patient! Editors have to read hundreds of stories, not just yours (though, of course, yours is undoubtedly the best and most important one in the heap), as well as getting on with the many other sides to their job – and all to deadlines!

PRESENTATION

Don’t sweat the small stuff. House styles vary between publications and no two are the same. Your job is to provide the words, in a clear and readable manner, preferably double-spaced, with a word count. Put your contact details on there somewhere and let them take care of the rest.

BODYBUILDING

It takes time to build the perfect body and it takes time to build a good relationship with your editors. Keep it polite and pleasant; don’t be stroppy or difficult. You won’t necessarily get any more acceptances if you are the former, or fewer acceptances if you are the latter, but who wants a reputation for being awkward to deal with? (Bribes won’t work, either, but they will make editors very happy. I like chocolate, btw.)

SPINNING

Don’t get yourself in a spin with words. There is such a thing as overwriting; a common fault seen everywhere. You may think, why use two words when you can use ten? But editors won’t be impressed with your exhaustive knowledge of the dictionary. It won’t help your story along. It will, instead, halt the flow and befuddle the reader. Less is often more. Many consider Raymond Chandler novels to be among the best. Read them to find out why.

STRETCHING AND FLEXING

If you have been sitting at your desk, beavering away for some hours (you have, haven’t you? I don’t mean catching up with everyone on social media, either), you will find that you will need to flex your fingers and stretch your neck and limbs. My top tip: never put food within stretching distance. Always have it where you have to leave the room to go and find it, thus building in a little more exercise along the way.

Back at your desk, stretch yourself a little with your writing: don’t just stick to the tried and trusted same-old, same-old themes because you’ve had some success with them in the past. Don’t be afraid to test the water with your editors – speak to them and run your ideas past them first (without giving too much away), so that you’re not wasting your time and theirs. If they’re not suitable for them, try elsewhere. Expand your markets. Flexibility can also mean taking constructive criticism on board and working with your editors to make the necessary changes to improve your story’s chances.

BOXING

Sometimes, the cut and thrust of the writing business will get you down. Everyone has their off days. Take any criticism on the chin - see above. We’re all here to learn. Switch off that critical, nagging inner voice, cut yourself some slack, go into the garden and take it out on the weeds, maybe clear out a few kitchen cupboards as well, then get back in the ring. Raise those gloves. Slug it out. You can do it; you know you can!

ROWING (WITH AN “OH” NOT AN “OW”)

Don’t worry too much about how you are going to get there. Some have it all planned out and will only ever steer in a straight line, with no distractions; others won’t have a clue and are quite happy to meander endlessly around the byways and tributaries until they can see where they are going. Everyone has their own preferred method. It’s not a race. Just follow your own course.

PULLING, PUSHING AND PRESS-UPS

When you feel the pull of the computer, don’t fight it. Push yourself to write something every day. Get into the habit of a daily workout. Press yourself to do a little more each time. Enter competitions, review books online, send something to magazine letters pages. Build up your writing muscle.

Oscar Wilde (him again; he was a busy boy) wrote that we should always travel with a diary so we would have something sensational to read on the train and Mae West, who also led a somewhat colourful life, is quoted as saying: “Always keep a diary. One day it will keep you.” Maybe your entry will read more along the lines of: “Went to Sainsbury’s, waited ages for the bus, forgot cat food, forced to share my tea with Tiddles, had a bath, went to bed” but my point is that it’s all good practice and life, even at its most mundane and routine, will be fodder to an active imagination. Don’t forget that notebook and pen!

PERSONAL TRAINING

Sometimes we reach a plateau, stalemate, and need a fresh approach to reach our goals. It can seem we’re never going to get there. At the gym, we would be assessed regularly and our training program adjusted accordingly. Our trainer would hopefully be supportive and encouraging, too. Try joining a writing group or going on a course. There are many excellent ones out there. You will get valuable feedback and possibly some new ideas. If nothing else, it’s a break from your normal daily routine and you will likely end up with a few more friends on Facebook.

STAR JUMPS

Because, when you have finished your piece and, even better, had it accepted, you will feel like jumping for joy. Probably best to do it outdoors, though. Never mind what the neighbours may think. They’re well used to you and your funny little ways by now.

Happy new writing year, everyone!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2018!

I'm wishing us all peace, happiness and correctly placed apostrophes in the year ahead.

What are your hopes for 2018?

The bit in the middle

The few days between Christmas and New Year always have an odd feel to them, I think. I'd assumed magazine editors would all be at home, until I got an acceptance from Woman's Weekly. That made me feel guilty about not working, so I sent off a couple of submissions and got auto responses saying the people concerned would be away from their desks until well into the New Year.

What about you – are you still on holiday or back at work? (If you feel you should be working but can't get motivated, you might like to try this marvellous book .)


Coming soon ... Clare Cooper will be sharing her excellent tips for getting writing fit in 2018.

Season's Greetings

Wishing you all a wonderful Winter Solstice, fabulous Yultetide, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Cheerful Mōdraniht, Joyful Soyal, fun Pancha Ganapati and a good time at any other celebration, gathering, feast or festival you may wish to get involved in.

And if you decide to skip the whole lot and stay in with a mug of tea and a good book, I hope you enjoy doing that.

Here's a mince pie for everyone who has supported this blog through guests posts, comments and sharing links on social media. I really appreciate your support.

Another change at Woman's Weekly

Those of you who're currently able to submit to Woman's Weekly should have heard that the new fiction editor, Danni Dawson is leaving on 12th January. From today onwards, submissions should be submitted to Emma Shacklock, who is the 'new full time fiction coordinator'. Any stories already accepted by Danni will still be used.

Emma is already hard at work buying stories and has just accepted one of mine!

Your Go

Each month I'll be making a posting just like this one, so blog readers can ask any questions*, share any womag news, tips, advice they may have, or make womag related comments or observations.

*If you can answer these, please do.

Have you written anything lately? Had an acceptance or rejection? Got a story in one of the current magazines? Waiting for a reply to your submission?

Contracts

I've said this before, but I think it's worth repeating - If you are asked to sign a contract, PLEASE be sure you understand it and agree to the terms BEFORE signing it.

No reputable publisher will mind you asking questions about points you're not sure of.

If you sign something you don't understand then there's a danger you'll accidentally break the contract terms.

If you don't agree, then say so and don't sign. In some cases it may be possible to negotiate (I've successfully done this in the past when a publisher requested full exclusive rights, which I wasn't prepared to give up.)

Once you have signed (if you do) be sure you keep a copy for future reference.

Might I suggest...

It's the time of year when many of us are asking or being asked, 'What would you like for
Christmas?'. How about asking for, or giving, a subscription to one of the womags which publish fiction?

Just by making the suggestion you're reminding people these magazines exist and are of interest, and if you give one as a gift you may well turn the recipient into a loyal customer. If those of us with a vested interest in keeping them going aren't willing to support them, then who else will?

Another good gift idea (in my opinion) is this very nice writing book.

Are you giving, or hoping to receive, any writing related gifts this year?

Back ... for now

The blog got a few unpleasant spam comments yesterday. I deleted them and then got a few more. It wasn't loads, but more than the number of genuine comments I'd got in the entire previous week, which was very disheartening.

Rather then spend what would otherwise have been writing time trying to keep the blog free of the spam, I took it down as a temporary measure. Hopefully that will be the end of it.

Joint ventures

My writing friend, the editing expert Anne Rainbow, and I are running a Writers’ Workshop Weekend at Hope Cove in Devon next March.

We hope (excuse the pun) some of you will be able to join us.

Another of my writer friends Rosemary J Kind and I have set up a Facebook group called From Story Idea to Reader as a companion to our book of the same name. We’ll be offering writing tips and support. 

Group members are invited to ask questions about any writing related subject (including womag fiction!). It will be nice to see some of you there.



And on Saturday 25th November I'll be at Elmore Angling Club's Christmas Fair (10-2 Lee-on-the-Solent seafront) with my husband Gary Davies, where we'll bot be selling our books (trying to at least.) It's free entry, so if you're in the area, do come in and say hi.

Bit of a shocker

Last week the editor of Australian magazine Yours contacted me to say they were making changes at the magazine and would be including longer fiction. She was particularly looking for serials and asked if I thought my blog readers might be interested in submitting these. As I thought some of you might, I invited her to write a guest post.

Lisa sent me details of what she was looking for both in serials and short fiction and I scheduled the post. Before it could go live, she emailed to say they were closing the magazine. Not dropping fiction, or reorganising a department, but completely closing it.

This magazine is owned by Bauer media - as are several other titles, some of which currently publish fiction.