MORE BITS & PIECES FOR Writers/Authors #169

REASON TO KEEP WRITING - PETER GRAVES, age 83, star of the television series Mission Impossible and the Flying High films. Graves was best known for his portrayal of Jim Phelps, leader of a gang of special agents who battled evil conspirators in the long-running television series Mission: Impossible. Normally cast as a hero, he turned in an unforgettable performance early in his career as the treacherous Nazi spy in Billy Wilder's 1953 prisoner-of-war drama ‘Stalag 17’. He also masterfully lampooned his straight-arrow image when he portrayed bumbling airline pilot Clarence Oveur in the 1980 disaster movie spoof ‘Airplane!’, which was released in Australia as Flying High.

CONSCIOUS CHOICE - editorial content builds community; promotes social, political, environmental awareness; supports wellness through natural foods, nutrition, integrative health care. Pays up to $150. Guidelines: http://www.consciouschoice.com/info/submissions.html

ROAD KING MAGAZINE - readers are owner-operators and fleet truck drivers who average 23 nights a month on the road. Covers new truck equipment, technology, finances and driving tips, health advice, sports, music reviews and hobbies. Guidelines: http://roadking.com/writers-guidelines

AMERICAN HISTORY - a history magazine for a general audience. One of America’s most respected history publications tells the stories behind the people and events of U.S. history and provides insight into the cultural, military, political, and social forces that have shaped our nation. $500/700 on acceptance for first rights +Byline. URL: http://www.historynet.com

ATLANTA TRIBUNE - source for relevant, thought-provoking news, info on business, careers, technology, wealth building, politics, education. Audience is metropolitan Atlanta's progressive, politically concerned, culturally aware, family-oriented Black executives, prof’ls, entrepreneurs. Features: 1200/2500/wds. $250/600. Sections: 600/wds. $100/ 200. All print and electronic rights for assigned articles. E-queries only: Fredrick Robinson, Ed. frobinson@atlantatribune.com T: 770-587-0501, Fax: 770-642-6501. The Magazine, 875 Old Roswell Rd. #C-100, Roswell GA 30076. Main Link: http://www.atlantatribune.com

CONCRETE HOMES – nonfiction. $100-300/article, the benefits of concrete homes, new technology and design, environmental benefits, safety and durability, as well as other benefits that make concrete homes an attractive home-building alternative. Guidelines: http://www.concretehomesmagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=182&Itemid=33

HORSE & RIDER - mag of Western riding, to educate, inform, entertain both competitive and recreational Western riders w/tightly focused training articles, practical stable management techniques, hands-on health care tips, safe trail riding practices, well-researched consumer advice, a behind-the-scenes, "you-are-there" approach to major equine events. Neg. fees & rights. Guidelines: http://www.equisearch.com/horseandrider/submissions

5th ANNUAL PORTIA STEELE AWARDS – Deadline: April 15, 2010. No entry fee. Poetry/Nonfiction. For women aged 50 or older. Poetry: 50 words of text or less. Prose: 200 words of text or less. $100 prize. Guidelines: http://www.portiasteeleaward.org/contest.htm

RELIX – non-fiction, the latest about upcoming tours, festivals, special events, new music and other happenings in the world of Relix: blues, reggae, bluegrass and jazz. Contact page to query: http://www.relix.com/contact-us

POETRY PUBLISHERS - http://www.wmich.edu/newissues & http://www.perseabooks.com & http://www.ausablepress.org

GERMAN NEWSPAPERS - (article) agree to pay equitable freelancer fees
http://europe.ifj.org/en/articles/german-newspapers-agree-equitable-fees-for-freelancers

ADVICE FOR PUBLISHERS ARTICLES:
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/bookbiz/advice/advice.htm

REPETITION DETECTOR – helps writers show words repeated in mss. Free download http://softfive.com/repetition-detector-1-02

READABILITY PLUS - software for writers & screenwriters http://www.storyscribe.com/readability-plus-software.php

CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK COMPETITION - chance to show the world how good you are at your craft. Guidelines: http://www.abcbookcompetition.org/overview.html

LITERARY CONTEST SCAMS –Writers should bookmark this link & check the list before entering any contest. http://windpub.com/literary.scams

MORE BITS & PIECES FOR Writers/Authors #168

REASONS TO KEEP WRITING: DICK FRANCIS, age 89, the jockey who turned to writing bestselling thrillers set in the world of horse racing. There were more than 40 novels, selling more than 60 million copies. Francis, who left school at 15, always admitted that his wife, a former teacher and university graduate, helped with the research – she even learned to fly to assist with one book – and that she tidied his grammar, spelling and punctuation. The couple had an arrangement with publisher Michael Joseph that all Francis books, including his first, a biography called The Sport of Queens, would remain in print so long as he produced a new novel each year. Accordingly, he sat down to write on January 1st and produced a finished manuscript on March 31st, before they both embarked on the research for the following year’s book. Francis was champion jockey in 1953-54, but it was the Devon Loch disaster that made him a national hero, in the traditional British way as a gallant loser. The queen mother’s horse, well ahead of the field, was haring for victory when it suddenly did a belly-flop a few yards short of the winning post. By the time jockey and horse had recovered, most of the rest of the field had gone past.

RUNNING TIMES – the authoritative voice for the dedicated runner. Willing to work with unpub’d writers. Features 1500-3000/wds. Columns 800-1200/wds. Fiction 1500-3500/wds. Any genre, related to running and runners. Guidelines: http://www.runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=6878

SEA KAYAKER – looking for destination and journal articles. Depts open to ideas. Guidelines: http://www.seakayakermag.com/contribute/writers_guidelines.htm

COMMUNICATIONS NEWS – mag written for enterprise telecommunications, data communications and network managers who are looking for solutions for their corporate or organization networks that are practical, proven and cost-effective. Looking for features, cover stories, product spotlight. Neg. fees & rights. Guidelines: http://www.comnews.com/mediakit/contributing.aspx

TRAVEL + LEISURE - about Travel, the latest resorts, hotels, fashions, foods and drinks. Guidelines: http://www.travelandleisure.com/contact (scroll down for submissions)

ZOETROPE – looking for short stories and one-act plays no longer than 7000/wds/max. Neg. fees & rights. (Also see info on short fiction contest) Guidelines: http://www.all-story.com/submissions.cgi

THE CHRONICLE OF THE HORSE – mag of competition results, how-to equitation, horse care, interviews with prominent horse people. Nonfiction, fillers, photos & artwork. Guidelines: http://www.chronofhorse.com/search/node/writers%20guidelines

THREADS – bimonthly how-to mag celebrating garment sewing, design, embellishment, machine and hand embroidery. Looking for new authors. Guidelines: http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/th_authorguidelines.asp

MOAA MAGAZINE (Military Officers Association of America) - for commissioned and warrant officers, families, surviving spouses of Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, Nat’l Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin. actively serving and retired. Topics: Current military/political affairs; recent military history, especially Vietnam, Korea; travel; financial planning; health, fitness; military family; retirement lifestyles; general interest. No fiction, poetry, or fillers. No reprints. First rights, to include Internet and reprint rights. Features, up to $1800; mini-features, up to $1000. Guidelines: http://www.moaa.org/Magazine/Guidelines.asp

HERIZONS, Canada - publishes articles related to "health, social and political issues, environmental issues, equality issues, justice issues, spiritual issues, parenting issues and all issues informed by diverse racial and cultural experiences". The main pieces published are news (500-800 words), features 1000-3000/wds; reviews 400/wds. Pays $200/thousand wds. First North American Rights. Guidelines: http://www.herizons.ca/writers.html

GLIMMERTRAIN SHORT STORY AWARDS FOR NEW WRITERS – Deadlines: Feb., May, Aug., Nov. Entry fee $15. 1st place: $1200. Guidelines: http://www.glimmertrain.com/shorawfornew2.html

2010 PYRICAL PASSION VERY SHORT FICTION AWARD – Deadline: June 10, 2010. Entry fee: $4/story. $10/collection. 1st prize $200. Seeking high quality short fiction of 1000/wds. Guidelines: http://lyricalpassionpoetry.yolasite.com

71st ACW CLUB WRITING CONTEST – monthly contests, see list http://www.acwclub.com

FANSTORY CONTESTS – See monthly list: http://www.fanstory.com/contests.jsp

yWriter 2 – a writers help to show words used most repeated in mss. Free download http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html

ABOUT THOSE LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEWS - TIP: If you don't get a review when you first submit your ARC to review journals, don't give up. Research the reviewers who write for that journal or site, send them personal queries. You have to find a reviewer who likes your genre and submits reviews in it. Go to the Library Journal site and sign up for their editorial schedule, or email their marketing dept and tell them you'd like to receive an editorial schedule. They may have a whole issue dedicated to your genre. The regular notice they send out may or may not give you the name of reviewers. Another way is to get reviews by going around the system they have set up. To read about getting in the backdoor of Library Journal, read the rest of this article at http://www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com/#uds-search-results

DIGITAL BK PRINTING 4 DUMMIES® - complete guide 2 navigating the world of digital printg & POD. URL: https://www.ibpa-online.org/digitalfordummies.aspx

LITERARY CONTEST SCAMS – Writers should bookmark this link & check the list before entering any contest. http://windpub.com/literary.scams

MORE BITS & PIECES FOR Writers/Authors #167

REASONS TO KEEP WRITING: WILLIAM SAFIRE, age 79, of the New York Times and Pulitzer Prize-winning conservative columnist, language expert and former White House speechwriter for President Richard Nixon. Safire spent more than 30 years writing on the Op-Ed page of The New York Times. In his "On Language" column in The New York Times Magazine and 15 books, Safire traced the origins of words and everyday phrases such as "straw-man," ''under the bus" and "the proof is in the pudding." As a speechwriter in the Nixon White House, Safire penned Vice President Spiro Agnew's famous phrase, "nattering nabobs of negativism," a tongue-in-cheek alliteration that Safire claimed was directed not at the press but Vietnam defeatists.

2010 OKLAHOMA WRITERs FEDERATION (OWFI) WRITERS CONFERENCE - April 29-May 1, 2010, at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Four agents, 8 editors. Info: http://www.owfi.org/Conference/Welcome/tabid/60/Default.aspx

Ms. MAGAZINE - intern’l womens issues w/emphasis on in-depth investigative reporting and feminist political analysis. Considers articles on politics, social commentary, popular culture, law, education, art, environment. Considers only queries for non-fiction. Guidelines: http://www.msmagazine.com/about.asp

OKLAHOMA TODAY - regional bi-monthly magazine. Stories, essays, columns, etc. focus on Oklahoma's people and places, of what Oklahoma is all about. Guidelines: http://www.oklahomatoday.com/site/editorial/editorialGuidelines.aspx

PHOTO LIFE MAGAZINE, Canada - submit a collection of images for publication or an article w/ photos. Negotiate fees and rights. Guidelines: http://www.photolife.com/submission.php

TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE - the Outdoor Magazine of Texas. Looking for strong, well-researched and eloquently written stories on all aspects of the Texas outdoors, state park destinations, conservation issues, trends, and such outdoor activities as fishing, hunting, camping, bicycling, canoeing and hiking. Also publishes many features that don't necessarily fit into the categories listed. Guidelines: http://www.tpwmagazine.com/editorial

OREGON QUARTERLY MAGAZINE – regional mag of features and U of O alumni profiles. 1500–3000/wds; short subjects 400–1000/wds. $100 to $350+. Pays kill fee. Guidelines: http://www.oregonquarterly.com/guidelines.php

THE COUNTRY CONNECTION, Canada – Ontario's mag of choice for history, heritage, nostalgia, nature, environment, travel and the arts, published twice a year: winter/spring & summer/autumn. Accepting material for summer/autumn issue. 1000-1500/wds. Guidelines: http://www.pinecone.on.ca/MAGAZINE/writers.html

JUST CAUSE – looking for nonfiction, photos/artwork on the Arts, Education, Healthcare, Environment, Civic Causes and International Issues. Guidelines: http://justcauseit.com/help/contributor-guidelines

READER’S DIGEST – looking for General interest subjects, dramatic narratives, articles about everyday heroes, crime dramas, adventure stories. Reprints up to $400. Guidelines: http://www.rd.com/submissions/article10717.html

WARREN ADLER SHORT STORY CONTEST – Deadline: April 11, 2010. Entry fee: $15. 2500/wds. Subject matter is completely open to the author. The goal of the contest is to encourage and publicize the short story as a viable and quality literary form. First Prize: $1000. People's Choice Prize: $500. Three remaining finalists: $150 each. Guidelines: http://www.warrenadler.com/writing-contest.shtml

FRIENDS OF ACADIA POETRY COMPETITION – Deadline: April 30, 2010. No entry fee.
Nature-based poems of 30 lines max. Prizes: $350, $250, $150. Guidelines: http://www.friendsofacadia.org/events/poetrycompetition.shtml

OnceWritten SPRING FICTION CONTEST - Deadline: April 30, 2010. Entry fee: $20
$1000 & publication. Guidelines: http://www.oncewritten.com/Contests/FictionContest.php

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION (ALA) ANNUAL SHOW - display your book(s) at annual show. Info: https://www.ibpa-online.org/pubresources/exhibits_pma.aspx

LITERARY CONTEST SCAMS –Writers should bookmark this link & check the list before entering any contest. http://windpub.com/literary.scams

MORE BITS & PIECES FOR Writers/Authors #166

REASONS TO KEEP WRITING: MARY TRAVERS, age 72, of Peter, Paul and Mary helped popularize such tunes as "Puff (The Magic Dragon)" and "If I Had a Hammer." With a group called the Song Swappers, Travers backed Seeger on one album and two shows at Carnegie Hall. In the book "Positively 4th Street" by David Hajdu, The trio mingled their music with liberal politics, both onstage and off. Their version of "If I Had a Hammer" became an anthem for racial equality. Other hits included "Lemon Tree," "Leaving on a Jet Plane" and "Puff (The Magic Dragon.)" They were early champions of Dylan and performed his "Blowin' in the Wind" at the August 1963 March on Washington. The group collected five Grammy Awards for their three-part harmony on enduring songs. They continued as boosters for young songwriters, recording numbers written by then-little-known Gordon Lightfoot and Laura Nyro. Over the years they enjoyed several reunions, including a performance at a 1978 anti-nuclear benefit organized by Yarrow and a 35th anniversary album, "Lifelines," with fellow folkies Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Dave Van Ronk and Seeger.

WASHINGTON MONTHLY - covering politics, government, culture and the media. Looking for nonfiction investigative and opinion-based feature articles 2000-5000/wds, occasional short news items and humorous sidebars 500-1000/wds), book reviews of recent political and cultural titles 800/wds. Guidelines: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/inside/writersguidelines.html

BBC SCRIPTWRITING, UK - Britain's public broadcasting service for radio and television. Accepts unsolicited scripts in a wide range of genres - radio and TV plays, sitcoms, serials, short film and factual drama. Rates variable depending on final broadcast. Guidelines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/writing/submissions.shtml

TOWARD FREEDOM - Human rights, globalization, trade, labor, environmental preservation, political prisoners. Looking for nonfiction, columns/depts, photos/artwork. Looking for articles under 3000/wds. Negotiate pay & rights. Guidelines: http://towardfreedom.com/home/content/view/397/76

ANALOG SCIENCE FICTION MAGAZINE – looking for nonfiction, fiction. Guidelines: http://www.analogsf.com/information/submissions.shtml

HONOLULU MAGAZINE - Hawaii related, personality profiles, historical events, sports, politics and lifestyle trends. Guidelines: http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/Contact-Us/Guidelines-for-Freelance-Writers

PORTHOLE CRUISE MAGAZINE – travel related articles, all stories published in Porthole must relate to things that are cruise passenger accessible. Guidelines: http://216.247.229.94/html/PortholeWriters.htm

THE CATTLEMAN – articles on cattle, range, pasture, property rights, animal health, water, new innovations and marketing. Guidelines: http://www.texascattleraisers.org/cattlemanWritersGuide.asp

2010 GREAT AMERICAN THINK-OFF CONTEST – Deadline: April 1, 2010. Essays 750/wds/max. 2010 debate question has been released: "Do the wealthy have an obligation to help the poor?" will be debated by 4 finalists on Saturday, June 12th, 2010. Guidelines: http://www.think-off.org

ERIC HOFFER SHORT PROSE AWARD – Prose Deadline: March 31, 2010
Short Stories or nonfiction: 10,000/wds/max. $500 prize and all entries considered for publication in Best New Writing annual anthology. Guidelines: http://www.hofferaward.com/HofferProseForm.html

GEMINI MAGAZINE SHORT STORY CONTEST – Deadline: March 31, 2010. Entry fee: $4. Grand Prize: $1000, 2nd: $100. Guidelines: http://www.gemini-magazine.com/contest.html

DIANA RAFFLE ONCE-ACT PLAY COMPETITION - Deadline: April 2, 2010. No entry fee. First prize: £100 http://www.plays4theatre.com/compy.htm

2010 ONCE WRITTEN POETY CONTEST – Deadline: March 31, 2010. Entry fee: $10/$15. First Prize: $500 +publication. Runner Up: $100 +publication. Guidelines: http://www.oncewritten.com/Contests/PoetryContest.php

USTREAM - worth a look if you want to start your own website. http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/4907274#utm_campaign=twitter.com&utm_source=4907274&utm_medium=social

PUBLIC LIBRARY ASSOCIATION (PLA) Display book(s)-this show attracts public librarians, support staff. https://www.ibpaonline.org/pubresources/exhibits_pma.aspx

LITERARY CONTEST SCAMS – Writers should bookmark this link & check the list before entering any contest. http://windpub.com/literary.scams