Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2023 i Writing Magazine

Where to start First, think about what kind of agent you want, and your aims for your novel. You’ll want a clear idea of the genre and where it fits into the market, so you can submit to agents who represent authors in that area. If you aren’t sure, look for good comparative titles. If you write in multiple genres, think about those as well as the genre of the book you’re submitting – ie, if you write fantasy for both YA and adult audiences, you might target agents who represent both. Some agents are happy to move out of their usual genre for existing clients, but if they don’t feel they’re the best person to sell one of your works, may suggest finding a separate agent. Consider whether you’re…

J ennifer Croft is a multi-award-winning author and translator. Add twins to the mix and my question has to be, ‘How do you manage to write?’ ‘My twins are almost nine months old now,’ she says, ‘and we’re still figuring out how to cope. Thankfully, my husband, Boris Dralyuk, has turned out to be the best and most attentive and most creative dad, which was reassuring as I began to get back to work. ‘In general, I’m a little bit of an all-or-nothing person. My husband who is a translator, as well as an editor and a poet, is great at multi-tasking and at creating reasonable routines that enable him to get his work done at a slow and steady pace. So, unlike me, he’s extremely reliable. ‘Often I’d get…

'As a child, I loved reading, had a flair for languages, engaged an audience with my storytelling. I knew that one day I’d like to write a book. The problem was I had no idea how I’d get there. ‘I grew up in India. When it was time to go to university, India was on its way to becoming a tech powerhouse. The only career option presented to us was engineering. To add to that, my family wasn’t rich; it was essential that I get a job and can pay my bills; there was no golden parachute. I didn’t know any writers. The English-language Indian authors were few, and their lives seemed very distant from mine. Over the next decade, as I focused on studies and jobs, writing disappeared from…

Looking around during my local Remembrance Day service, I was struck by how many ex-servicemen and women had turned up on their own. This got me thinking about the line, ‘All the lonely people’, in Eleanor Rigby by The Beatles, and that got me thinking about how I could do something positive to help all the lonely people. If one writer wrote a letter to one lonely person, not only would that show them that somebody cared, but it would open a line of communication. Stories would be exchanged, and history would not be lost to the mists of time and forgetfulness. By sharing stories, ideas would be created, characters would be formed and short stories, or maybe even the odd novel or two, would be born! All of that…

‘My latest ebook Beware of the Trains is set in the summer of 1967, and the main protagonist, Peverell Wood, is something of an anachronism,’ writes subscriber Alan Orchard. ‘Whilst the youth of the day were becoming enthralled with flower power and the permissive society, 23-year-old Peverell felt more at home with his suit and tie, his battered old Wolseley 6/90, and his passion for the works of Agatha Christie. The latter had inspired him to set up business as a private detective in Durham. Thankfully, he has a private income, as the residents of the county seem to have neither the inclination nor the money to employ his services. ‘The gestation of this novel was somewhat lengthy. It began as far back as 2012, with a hastily written first…

Maybe it’s because although Shakespeare as a writer is of course inimitable, the hundreds (if not thousands) of tribute acts in novel, movie, stage, short story and any number of other formats have been enriching the literary life of the English-speaking world for centuries, and of the non-English-speaking world, too. The classic Japanese movie Ran, for example, is an epic retelling of Shakespeare’s King Lear, set in the world of the Samurai. The American novelist Jane Smiley won a Pulitzer Prize for A Thousand Acres for her own take on the story of a notvery-imaginative, overbearing father and his three children. But why should the work of a single poet and dramatist, who was one among many working during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, have become such an…

Inspiration for author and WM subscriber Vasundra Tailor’s debut novel, The Secret of Elephants (Lake Union Publishers, September 2022), came following a visit to India in 2016. The trip included a visit with her sister to see a mansion built by her father in Navsari in 1954. ‘He was immensely proud of it,’ Vasundra recalls, ‘but after 62 years, it was in a very dilapidated state. We were sad to see it like that. A lovely family invited us in when we explained our connection, and seeing the place brought back wonderful childhood memories. Later, I began to wonder about the lives of the families living in the building, and the germ of an idea began to form in my mind…’ That germ grew over time into the tale of…

If you have a query for Lisa, please send it by email to lisacuttsenquiries@ gmail.com QA youth leader is suspected of murdering a 15-yearold girl. Though he has no alibi, the police can find no evidence to connect him to the crime. However, the police discover the girl was pregnant by him. Is this enough to hold him pending further investigations, or can the police only charge him with having unlawful sex with a minor? If so, can he be remanded in prison until his trial, or must he be released on bail? Michael Chambers via email A In the circumstances, even if he was charged with sexual offences, both due to her young age and the position of responsibility he holds as a youth leader, it may not be…

Founded in 1986, leading independent publisher Oneworld publishes some 100 books a year and has a commitment to ‘great writing, editorial excellence, high production values and marketing flair to produce books that are read by the intellectually curious all over the world’. The publisher is open to submissions of proposals for non-fiction titles. You are advised to check out the publisher’s catalogue (available online) to see if your book will fit their list and and whether a similar title has been recently published. In your proposal say how you are qualified to write this particular book and if you have books previously published give as much information as possible about these. Otherwise, give details of any other writing experience you may have. The publisher will be looking intently at the target…

If you can write personalised poems that will bring a smile to the faces of people celebrating important milestones then Do Us A Ditty would like to hear from you, writes Jenny Roche. As one of the team you would write a personalised poem from the ideas customers have requested on the type of poem they would like, what the poem is for, how they want it to sound and what they would like included. If interested email a little about yourself, your experience and availability on a weekly basis. Include also your writing portfolio and examples of any poems you have written. Payment is made by bank transfer on completion of the requested poem. The fee is based on experience, the poem length and is negotiated with writers individually…

Win a £1,000 first prize in the Bath Flash Fiction Award. The Bath Flash Fiction Award, which runs three times a year, is given for original, unpublished short fiction up to 300 words. The winner will receive £1,000, and there are second and third prizes of £300 and £100. Two commendations each get £30. 50 longlisted entrants will be offered digital anthology publication. The judge is Sudha Balagopal. The entry fee is £9 per flash fiction/£15 for two/£18 for three. The closing date is 5 February. Website: www.bathflashfictionaward.com/…

Debuting in 2015, Inverse is a US website which positions itself as ‘the coolest place to get smarter’. It claims to take ‘a scientific approach to analyzing culture and a cultural approach to talking about science’ with the aim of better understanding tomorrow by examining today. The site at www.inverse.com is a mix of popular science articles, such as a look at whether cannabis smoke causes more lung damage than tobacco smoke, a feature on the current stage of sleep research, lots of pieces about space research and the latest technology, plus a strong focus on gaming, gadgets, superheroes and all things Star Wars. Inverse pays medium to high US professional rates, with some features at 50 cents per word. The editorial team welcome pitches from people without a lot…

Full Bleed is the annual print and online journal published by the Maryland Institute College of Art. The team seek submissions of ‘criticism, belle lettres, visual art, illustration, fiction, poetry, and graphic essays.’ They are ‘especially interested in promoting innovative projects combining word, image, and design, collaborations between writers and artists; ekphrastic creations; and ground-breaking critical essays.’ For submissions for issue six, they would like work on the theme of materials. The team publishes ‘shorter, recurring columns, 1,000 to 2,000 words’. Close Looks needs ‘in-depth critiques of individual artworks,’ and Studio Visit wants writers ‘to visit with and interview a contemporary artist.’ For full length essays, no more than 7,500 words, the team like graphic essays and texts, excerpts from artist books and ‘other innovative texts combining word, image, and design.’…

Sidmouth Literary Festival will be holding a How To Get Published Day on 12 March. Hosted by Jane Corry, the day will feature talks from agents and publishers, and there are limited opportunities for manuscripts to get critiqued. Website: http:// sidmouthlitfest. co.uk/ The shortlist for the 2022 Translation Prize is: Elena Pala for a translation of The Hummingbird by Sandro Veronesi; J. Ockenden for a translation of Snow, Dog, Foot by Claudio Morandini; Nicholas Benson and Elena Coda for a translation of My Karst and My City by Scipio Slataper; Stash Luczkwi for a translation of Without Ever Reaching the Summit by Paolo Cognetti; Stephen Twilley for a translation of Diary of a Foreigner in Paris by Curzio Malaparte; Tim Parks for translations of The House on the Hill and…

Harpur Palate is the literary journal managed by the graduate students in Binghamton University’s Department of English. The student editorial team place ‘no restrictions on subject matter or form’ and accept submissions of ‘short stories, flash fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction.’ Do read what is published in the online version of the journal on the website to see what they publish, and do follow the guidelines. Between 15 February and 15 April the team are accepting creative nonfiction submissions, no more than 5,500 words and flash essays of no more than 1,000 words each; fiction submissions, up to 4,500 words and flash fiction, under 1,000 words, which should be ‘scene-driven stories that are strange, offkilter, and sometimes ruthless,’ and submissions of 1 to 5 poems, no more than 10 pages…

In the US the 73rd National Book Awards were given in November by the National Book Foundation. Tracie D. Hall was recognised with the Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community, while Art Spiegelman was recognised with the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, presented by Neil Gaiman. The award’s were given as follows: Fiction, Tess Gunty, Rabbit Hutch (Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House); Young People’s Literature, All My Rage, Sabaa Tahir (Razorbill/Penguin Random House); Translated Literature, Seven Empty Houses, Samanta Schweblin, translated from the Spanish by Megan McDowell (Riverhead Books/Penguin Random House); Nonfiction, Imani Perry, South to America: Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation (Ecco/HarperCollins Publishers); Poetry, Punks: New & Selected Poems, John Keene (The Song Cave). GD…

Broadstone Media LLC is a modern multipurpose company which includes publishing as part of its portfolio. The editorial team call themselves a cultural promotion company and are based in Kentucky, USA. The team are engaged in book publishing and promotion, artistic endeavours and creative artists gallery management. They specialise in poetry and related titles, but are also open to ‘many other genres and subjects’. This team have a Statement of Principles which they ask writers to read and consider. They ask that writers who have any questions about the principles should refrain from submitting work as they will probably not be a good fit for the community. Broadstone Books like ‘exciting new writers’ and are open to first book proposals. They want ‘to hear new voices.’ Poetry is their main…

SmokeLong invites submissions of narratives of no more than 1,000 words and pays well for quality fiction. Submit work online without any personal details on the piece or file. Include a print-ready, thirdperson bio plus a ‘simple’ cover letter. Response time is ‘up to two weeks.’ Payment is US$100 per story,’ via PayPal or Zelle. Website: https://www.smokelong.com Exist Otherwise Literary Journal is interested in works about identity, the self, and the personal, and accepts poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, essay, and script. The team like mash-ups and prefer experimental, genrebending, and unconventional work. Each issue has a theme and a prompt. The theme is always a quote from Claude Cahun, and the prompt will be a photograph. Do not follow them literally. Submit no more than 3, poems and personal essays,…

Ploughshares is an award winning quarterly American literary journal with an editorial team open to publishing the best, the most exciting and stimulating poetry and prose. For poetry submit 1 to 5 pages at a time with each poem beginning on a new page. Translations are welcome if permission has been granted. For prose, both fiction and non-fiction, no more than 7,500 words. ‘Excerpts of longer works are welcome if self-contained.’ Include a short cover letter with the submission, with details of any major publications and awards, any association or past correspondence with a guest or staff editor and any past publication in Ploughshares. PDR Lindsay-Salmon For longer work, 7,500 to 20,000 words, submit to the Ploughshares Longform Issue. This is a digital-first series for longer stories and essays. New…

How to practice obstacle thinking Distractions are everywhere. Email, social media, work, other people – life! It can feel like a constant struggle to manage them. The key to combating these distractions so they become less disruptive is to understand what they are and where they come from. First, consider how you get distracted Grab a pen or open your laptop. Think back to your last writing session. Make a list of the things that typically pull you away from your writing. Be as precise as you can, first focussing on a recent and specific time and place – then open out. • Do you have anything specific that distracts and interrupts you? • Are there any regular, reoccurring things that pull you away? • Now, think forward to your…

Any idea of writers as wafty, arty types sitting around waiting for the Muse to show up is blown away by the powerhouse that is Claire McGowan. In the decade since her debut, The Fall, was published in 2012, the Northern Irish writer has published a seven-book crime series, seven standalones and seven works of women’s fiction (writing as Eva Woods). She set up the UK’s first crime writing MA and ran it for five years. She teaches creative writing. Last year she published two books – adomestic thriller, Are You Awake?, and her first work of non-fiction. A true crime book, The Vanishing Triangle tackles eight murders of young women in Ireland that took place in Claire’s childhood. The murders have never been solved. ‘What is most amazing was…

John Hancock is a security officer/trainer who lives in Northern Ireland. He has been trying to write a novel for a long time now and this is really the first time he has started getting into the story, having written the first three chapters (all drafts), and is now planning the rest. Hidden1within The Port of Belfast is the Hotel Linenopolis. An exclusive hotel not open to the general public. 2It was 8am and hotel music 3played in the background 4as the working day started. Back and forth across the foyer 5Linenopolis staff went about their business. 6Their attire denotes their function. 7The concierge, David Esler, opened the main doors to welcome clientele as they arrived. 8 Standing on the steps outside9he used the opportunity to breathe in the fresh…

‘I knew there was something special about One Small Voice from its very first page. There was a confidence and distinctiveness to the narrative voice that was incredibly arresting and original. As I read on I found myself captivated and intrigued: by the parallel stories of the child who witnesses an act of violence that shapes the course of his life, and of the young man learning how to live with the scars of his past and his present – and the web of experiences and relationships that connects them. One Small Voice is a wonderfully textured novel: there is humour and heartbreak, violence and love, and some dazzling set pieces. It has powerful things to say about trauma, on both the individual and the societal level; about collective cruelty…

Climate fiction, the subject of your article by Alex Davis (WM Dec), certainly poses problems for the writer, but in the marketing rather than the storytelling. If, as Alex suggests, cli-fi will become a big growth genre in years to come, the tipping point for getting populations to recognise the importance of climate change is now, as COP27 has demonstrated. The contribution of fiction, in imagining the ways in which our future could evolve, can give traction through that blend of exciting storytelling and soft warnings that scientific facts and political exhortations cannot achieve. But, we do not have to wait for a new generation of writers. Many authors are already producing these powerful stories, being concerned about their children and grandchildren. The problem is not with the writers, but…

Like Sue Cawte (WM, Dec, page 6), I enjoy a variety of different types of writing. Last year, I went part-time at work to spend more time writing. I write for half an hour every morning before work, but on Tuesdays I devote most of the day to writing. My main focus is short stories, and that’s what I tend to write in my sessions before work. However, on Tuesdays I split the day into four writing sessions. One is for short stories (or nonfiction), one for working through writing course books, one for working on a novel I’m writing, and the other is flexible – Imight choose to spend more time on the novel, if I’m on a roll, or I might go back to short story writing. Occasionally…

‘The attempted demise of Augusta Walsh age 15 years, 4 months, and 6 days gives a rare glimpse into life as a modern teenager dealing with 21st-century issues,’ writes subscriber Melanie Stephens. ‘When I learned that mental ill health was affecting more of the Gen X generation than ever before, and numbers are still rising, I felt inclined to help. I wanted to look closer at the issues and causes, including the additional pressure of social media, the worries about the future, our planet, and so much focus on identities of gender and sexuality. ‘Your mind works differently as a teenager, making it hard to control emotions, and leaving you vulnerable to depression, overthinking, and sleep problems. Your brain is still developing, and you are not yet considered an adult.…

‘My first day as a journalist, in 1967, was made memorable when a fellow reporter told me that the only people who entered the profession were either mad or not tall enough to make the Foreign Legion,’ writes subscriber John Phelps. ‘I had previously worked in insurance for eight years and, perhaps because I happen to be 6ft 1in, it was not hard to see he was a wind-up merchant! ‘“You need a completely different attitude of mind,” he told me more seriously over a pint a bit later on. And he was dead right! ‘He was, of course, a bit of a character … mercurial, talented and a bit of a loose cannon. ‘Mad as I might be, I remained in journalism for the remaining 36 years of my…

When and where did your journey as an author begin? Becoming an author followed rather the same process as becoming a mother. It was not something I’d actually planned. In 1988 I was a soldier’s wife. My neighbour, the editor of an army wives magazine, asked me to write a short, humorous column. It became a regular feature, which in turn led to a tongue-in-cheek book about being an army wife. Back then, military wives weren’t supposed to take the mick out of the forces, so it attracted publicity, then sales, and then an inquiry from an agent about writing a novel. She didn’t end up representing me, but this inspired me to try my hand, which led to my first three-book deal, which were all books with soldiers for…

The Northern Writers’ Awards 2023 are inviting entries. The Awards support writers from the North of England, with a focus on new work-in-progress. The 2023 Northern Writers Awards are in the following categories: • Northern Writers Award for Poetry: £2,000-£5,000 to support emerging and established poets working on a collection. Submit up to 30 poems and a 600-word commentary. • Northern Debut Awards: Poetry: Three poets yet to publish a full collection will be awarded £2,000, mentoring and a group writing weekend at Lockhaugh Farm. Submit up to 30 poems and a commentary. • Northern Writers Awards for Fiction and Narrative Non-Fiction: £2,000-£5,000 to support emerging and established writers to complete a novel, short story collection or work of narrative nonfiction. Submit 3,000-6,000 words and a synopsis. • Northern Debut…

The editorial team at Other Worlds Ink are seeking stories for their third anthology in the Writers Save the World series, Transform the World. Editor J. Scott Coatsworth wants near future hope-punk stories with diverse characters and hopeful solutions set in the near future. Diversity of race, gender, orientation, ability, mental spectrum etc is encouraged. Submit by email but fill in the form at the website first. Include a short submission letter with the story title, word count, the problem addressed in the story, and the solution or adaptation. Payment: US$50 for 2,500 to 5,000 words, US$75 for 5,000 to 10,000 words; US$100 for 10,000 to 15,000 words; reprints ‘pay half the new story rate.’ The closing date is 28 February. PDRLS Website: www.otherworldsink.com…

To celebrate its 125th birthday NewYork’s Brooklyn Public Library has published a list of its 125 Most Borrowed Books. It might come as a surprise to find that the single most popular book in the entire history of the library is Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Gibson House is a small literary press with a team who like to ‘connect literary fiction with curious and discerning readers by fostering and promoting individual writers and their work.’ Make a first contact using their online form and submit complete full-length-novel manuscripts, 50,000 to 80,000 words. Include a brief bio and a synopsis of the novel in a cover letter. Response time is within three months. Rights and royalties are discussed with the contract. Website: https:// gibsonhousepress. com Decide when…

The Deep Wild Journal invites entries for its international free-to-enter Graduate Student Poetry Contest for students currently enrolled on graduate courses. There are prizes of $300, $200 and $100 on offer for the top three poems plus publication and five complimentary copies. Other poems may be selected for Honourable Mentions and will receive a copy of the journal and possible publication online or in print. Judges will be looking for poems that capture the ‘experiences, observations and insights of the back country’ meaning journeys undertaken away from roads by any non motorised means. Poems can be personal or political and only one submission may be made. This should be a single file of a maximum three poems of a total 100 lines. When submitting, include a cover letter with name…

Arvon has partnered with The Literary Consultancy to offer aTLC Free Read manuscript assessment to low-income writers who meet the criteria. Apply by 16 January. Website: www. arvon.org/writershub/tlc-free-reads/ Alienhead Entertainment call themselves a hotbed of stellar, creative activity specializing in digital content creation and book publishing. The Press team seek stories for their anthology, LITERALLY DEAD: Tales of Holiday Hauntings. Submit spooky stories, 2,000 to 4,000 words, that take place during the winter days of Christmas, Hanukkah, winter solstice,Yule, Kwanzaa, etc. Submit by 20 January. Website: https:// www.alienheadentertainment.com If you don’t want to write a realist novel, that’s not who or what you are. Work out the kind of novel you want to write, that you’re best suited for, and do that one instead. David Mitchell…

Black Elephant Press, which began as a literary journal, is passionate about inclusivity and has a focus on highlighting emerging and marginalised voices, and is open to submissions of ‘completed manuscripts in the genres of poetry, literary fiction, speculative works, and creative nonfiction.’ The team will consider ‘philosophical works and genre complex manifestos’ and have ‘an interest in discovering brilliant literary religious fiction or speculative literary fiction.’ There’s a monthly ‘Feature Poem’ where poets are asked to submit one to three poems which will be featured on the website for the ‘Poem of the Month’ project. The team select one poem and poet to be featured on the website each month. The team are also open to regular submissions. They seek ‘literary fiction, creative non-fiction, speculative fiction, long-form journalism projects,…

Alnwick Story Fest is a new book and film festival that will take place in Alnwick, Northumberland, between 24 and 26 February, featuring ‘how to write’ events and interviews with authors including Ann Cleeves. Website: https:// alnwickstoryfest. com/ The winners of the 2022 Scotland’s National Book Awards were Dave Alston, who won the Saltire Society Scottish Book of theYear Award for Slaves and Highlanders: Silenced Histories of Scotland and the Caribbean, and Alexander McCall Smith, who was awarded the 2022 Saltire Society Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Scottish history. Writers ALWAYS find time to read. Read for pleasure as well as analytically. Jot down phrases you think work particularly well and work out why they do.The more you read, the more you will absorb vocabulary and style without…

The international Pet Flash Fiction Contest 2023 from Booksie is for true stories about pets. Enter original, unpublished flash fiction up to 300 words that involves a true-life story about a pet. Stories may be in any genre. The winner will receive $250 and promotion across Booksie. Two runners up will each receive $50 and exposure across Booksie. The entry fee is $4.99 for regular members (membership is free) and $2.50 for Premium members. The closing date is 28 February 2023. Website: www.booksie.com…

Launched in 2004 and published twice a year, Ninth Letter is an award-winning literary arts print journal edited and produced by the Creative Writing Program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. The journal’s mission is to present original literary writing of exceptional quality, illuminated by cutting-edge graphic design. Stories published in the magazine have been selected for many anthologies, from The Pushcart Prize to Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror. The editorial team are interested in previously unpublished prose and poetry that experiment with form, narrative, and non-traditional subject matter, as well as more traditional literary work. For poetry, submit 3-6 poems (max. 10 pages) at a time. For fiction and nonfiction, send only one story or one essay at a time, up to 8,000 words, or up to 3 pieces…

The editorial team at Qwerty Magazine are seeking submissions for their next special issue, ‘Home/Town.’ They are interested in ‘stories of place and space,’ in poems ‘shaped by positions’, and ‘art resisting and defining geography.’ The team suggest writers write about their home, or town, ‘about how one is not the other.’ Street artists and urban photographers are especially welcome to submit, and they’d love to hear from ‘the recently displaced such as refugees and immigrants.’ For fiction and creative non-fiction, submit no more than 5,000 words. For poetry submit no more than 6 pages of poetry. For artwork and photography submit one to five high-quality, unpublished prints per submission. Payment CDN $15 and one complimentary copy. Deadline is the 11 February. PDRLS Website: www.qwertyunb.com…

Romance publisher Entangled Publishing has announced the launch of Red Tower Books, a new romantic science fiction and fantasy imprint, which will, the company says, ‘champion feminist and empowered perspectives in the fantasy and science fiction space, while also enfolding in what Entangled Publishing does best… romance.’ No submission guidelines have been released as yet, as the imprint already had its 2023 titles under preparation at the time of the announcement. There will be seven novels released this year, including The Last One by Rachel Howzell Hall, The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A. Linde, Bloodguard by Cecy Robson, Starbringer by Tracy Wolff and Nina Croft, and Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. GD…

Win a €1,000 first prize in the Southword Literary Essay Competition 2023. The Southword Literary Essay Competition from Munster Literature Centre is inviting entries of original, unpublished personal essays between 2,500 and 5,000 words. The winner will receive €1,000 and eight runners up will each receive €500. All nine winning essays will be published over the course of 18 months in the next three issues of Southword. The contest will be judged by Southword editor Patrick Cotter. The entry fee is €20. The closing date is 28 February. Website: https://munsterlit.ie/southword-literary-essay-competition/…

Amazon’s bestselling book in 2022 (in print and ebook) was The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman, whose The Man Who Died Twice was also in the top ten.TikTok star Colleen Hoover wrote six out of the top hundred most-sold books – also with two in the top ten. World Book Night 2023 will take place on 23 April. See the books that will be distributed to organisations that reach people who don’t regularly read for pleasure, or have limited access to books, at https:// worldbooknight. org/ The Royal Society of Literature has announced that the winners of its 2022 RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards, which support writers on their first commissioned work of nonfiction, are Nuzha Nuseibeh, Ellen Atlanta and Malachi McIntosh. Try and produce something every day –…

Independent twice weekly email newsletter The Tribune includes Sheffield’s regional news and is looking for journalists in Sheffield and across the North to write for the newsletter on a regular basis, whether that be every few weeks or every few months, writes Jenny Roche. The readers of the newsletter, some 7,500 local readers to date, include doctors, teachers, lawyers, carers, site managers, publishers, counsellors, university professors and entrepreneurs. It has stories on politics, business, culture, history and local people. ‘We pick a handful of topics each week and look into them properly, giving you the insight and context you need to really understand what’s going,’ says editor Dan Hayes, a local journalist who set up the newsletter in 2021. He is looking for pieces that are ‘beautifully crafted and really…

New Island, based in Dublin, is Ireland’s premier independent literary publishing house. ‘In 2022 we celebrated 30 years,’ said commissioning editor Aoife Walsh. ‘We grew out of Raven Arts Press, set up in the early 1990s by Dermot Bolger. New Island publishes literary fiction and Irish-interest non-fiction. ‘It’s very broad,’ said Aoife. ‘I suppose we’re looking at fiction, story ideas, story themes, a writing style that’s unique, a voice that’s unique.’ New Island publishes debut authors as well as established and emerging authors. ‘Finding that voice in a debut writer is terribly exciting.’ said Aoife. ‘We’re looking for strong characters, good plot, interesting events.’ The majority of what New Island publishes comes under the banner of literary fiction. ‘We publish a lot less in the spheres of what’s often called…

One of the first pieces of advice I received as a young editor was that if I hadn’t made up my mind whether I liked a submission after a month, then my lack of enthusiasm was all the answer I needed. My indecision was a de-facto no, telling me that I should write a rejection letter and put the author and the agent out of their misery. The basic truth of that remains, but the thing that has changed out of all recognition is the demands placed on editors. The idea that one would be able to stay on top of one’s submissions on a rolling monthly basis would seem like an unimagineable luxury to most editors now. And to be honest, that is one of the other things which…

PIE’S THE LIMIT Frustrated with how long her novel was taking to write, Amy Wallen recounted recently on LitHub how baking pies became her literary saviour. ‘I decided on comfort food to relieve my tortured mind. I baked a savory pie. At the end of the baking process, when I stopped and looked at my finished pie, I recalled what completing a creative endeavor felt like. From the making and rolling out of the dough to inventing and creating the filling – chopping the vegetables, sautéing the chicken, whisking the roux, melding the seasonings and ingredients, adding a dash of this and a dollop of that – Iwas in the same place I go when I write. ‘I don’t know the name of that place, and it doesn’t show up…

I agree with Margaret James when she says ‘Get in touch with the real you, then your fiction should flow’ in ‘Find the real you’ (Fiction focus, WM Dec). When I started to write about autistic children in my fiction, I found my niche and the ideas flowed. I have Asperger’s Syndrome myself and base my characters’ lives closely on what I was like as a child. So, in a way I do write about the real me. Thank you, Margaret, for confirming what I felt was right about my writing. JULIE DAY London…

A copy of The Holy Bible, Authorized King James Version, published by the National Bible Press of Philadelphia was sold online in November in a Propstore entertainment memorabilia auction for £387,500. What made this particular instance of the Good Book so desirable to the unnamed purchaser? The fact that it was the copy featured in the now classic prison drama The Shawshank Redemption (1994), adapted from Stephen King’s novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, which the main character, Andy Dufresne, played by Tim Robbins, used to hide the rock hammer with which he chipped his way to freedom. The book also includes an inscription written by Andy to the prison’s warden, ‘Salvation lies within’, a reference to a line of dialogue said by the warden to Andy earlier in…

SHARE YOUR NEWS To feature in subscribers’ news contact: tjackson@warnersgroup.co.uk ‘“You never know what you can do until you try” has long been one of my favourite adages’, writes subscriber Cynthea Gregory. ‘Having failed English Language the first time around at school, probably because I’m slightly dyslexic, writing a book didn’t seem like a feasible project. But whilst living in France, I became fascinated by the culinary possibilities of a major product of the region where I was living. I started to write a goats’ cheese cookbook in French and took photographs of the finished dishes. When submitted to national publishers, I was amazed it was accepted by one. ‘Standing in the printing company, watching thousands of my cookbooks being printed was one of the proudest days of my life.…

As a “remainer” and as someone who attended the Peoples’ Vote March in London’s Hyde Park on Saturday, 20 October, 2018, I welcomed the freedom of movement which Britain’s former membership of the EU offered,’ writes subscriber V. Charles Ward. ‘But I was never so enthused about the legislating away of our traditional system of weights and measures. For me, it seemed so unnecessary. It’s why when the government announced, in September 2021, that it was consulting on allowing use of imperial units of measurements, I jumped at the chance to write a book about it. ‘I already knew about pounds and ounces and feet and inches from my school days. I also remembered what I was taught about chains, furlongs, hundredweights and tons. It gave me a starting point.…

New Welsh Writing Awards 2023 are inviting entries. This year’s category is the Rheidol Prize for Prose with a Welsh Theme or Setting. The New Welsh Writing Awards from New Welsh Review are for short, unpublished books between 5,000 and 30,000 words. Each year has a different theme. This year’s award is for Welshthemed prose, which may be a fictional novella, short story collection or a book of non-fiction. The winner will receive £1,000 as an advance against digital publication by New Welsh Review under the New Welsh Rarebyte imprint. The winner will also receive a critique from Cathryn Summerhayes, literary agent at Curtis Brown. The competition will be judged by Gwen Davies, editor of New Welsh Review. The entry fee is £12. The closing date is 16 March. Website:…

‘In digital publishing terms, 2012 was a very long time ago and when Bookouture was originally established, its aim was to make the most of the opportunities offered by digital publishing,’ said MD Jenny Geras. Bookouture publishes adult commercial fiction and nonfiction across a large range of genres. ‘On the fiction side, some of our bestselling genres are crime and thriller, women’s fiction and historical fiction, and we’re launching a science fiction and fantasy list at the start of 2023.’ said Jenny. ‘In non-fiction, we publish memoir, self-development, parenting, true crime and health.’ Bookouture publishes approximately 350 books a year. ‘But we are growing all the time!’ The Bookouture model differs from the traditional in a number of ways. ‘Every single book gets the same amount of marketing and publicity…

Citing itself as a magazine which is about ‘sharing emotive, intoxicating adventures through gripping stories, breath taking photography and awe inspiring videos’, Side Tracked is an online and print journal open to proposals and ideas from writers worldwide on the world of adventure and people doing interesting things. There are no limitations on the style of writing but it should be exciting, engaging, have a sense of adventure and basically tell an inspiring story ‘through dramatic events, compelling characters and the texture we feel in the smallest details’. Articles are generally 1,500-2,000 words long and personal experiences of adventure are preferred to technical details. If a journey is so epic it cannot be fitted into that word count it is advised you concentrate on a smaller aspect of the journey.…

The Welkin Writing Prize 2023 is a new free-entry competition for short narrative prose. To enter, send original, unpublished narrative prose up to 400 words. The competition is being run by writer Matt Kendrick. The winner will receive £150 and an annual Writers’ HQ membership worth £190. The second prize is £75 and a £25 AdHoc Fiction book voucher, and the third prize is £50 There are additional £25 prizes for the best non-placed piece by a writer with a disability or chronics illness, an LGBTQ+ writer, a working-class writer, a writer whose first language isn’t English, a carer for an adult dependent and a new writer, and for the best pieces of historical fiction, humorous prose and speculative fiction. Entry is free. Each writer may submit one piece. The…

In 2020 the Royal Society of Literature launched its International Writers programme, a new life-long honour recognising the contribution of writers across the globe to literature in English, and the power of literature to transcend borders to bring people together. Each year more new writers are invited to join the RSL’s International Writers, forming an ever-expanding global community of authors. The second cohort of RSL International Writers have been announced as Anne Carson, Maryse Condé, Tsitsi Damgarembga, Cornelia Funke, Mary Gaitskill, Faïza Guène, Saidiya Hartman, Kim Hyesoon, Yōko Ogawa, Raja Shehadeh, Juan Gabriel Vasquez and Samar Yazbek. Recommendations for 2023 are now open and you can nominate a author here: https://rsliterature.org/rsl-international-writers-2023- recommendation-form/ At a time of rising nationalism, RSL International Writers seeks to celebrate the many ways in which literature…

Stylist Magazine is a UK weekly magazine for smart, successful, sophisticated women. There is also an online version which features new content every day, and Stylist Ex+ra, which offers additional paid digital content. The editorial team welcomes timely pitches from a diverse range of voices with a strong feminist angle. The regular sections of the print magazine are compiled in house, so your best chance of acceptance is with a feature article, which might be commissioned anywhere from a week to three months in advance. Meanwhile for the web version – www.stylist.co.uk – aim either for a short feature about breaking news which needs to be turned around quickly, or a long read (too long for the print mag) with plenty of expert comments and in-depth research. Whichever you go…

The winners of the 2022 World Fantasy Awards were announced at the World Fantasy Convention in New Orleans. The theme of the convention was ‘Old Souls and New Rhythms.’ The winners were: Best Novel, The Jasmine Throne, Tasha Suri (Orbit US/Orbit UK); Novella, And What Can We Offer You Tonight, Premee Mohamed (Neon Hemlock Press); Short Fiction, “(emet)”, Lauren Ring (The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/Aug 2021); Anthology, The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction (2021), ed. Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (Jembefola Press); Collection, Midnight Doorways: Fables from Pakistan, Usman T. Malik (Kitab). In addition, Samuel R. Delany and Terri Windling were honoured with Lifetime Achievement Awards. GD…

Robin McKinley is the recipient of the 39th Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award, given by the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America. The author, whose debut novel, Beauty, can lay claim to inspiring the modern trend for fairy tale retellings, and whose anthology Imaginary Lands won the World Fantasy Award, said, ‘I am astonished, amazed, delighted & dumbfounded. Thank you very much.’ Jeffe Kennedy, President of the SFWA, commented, ‘I read McKinley’s Deerskin in my latetwenties and it turned my world upside-down… From there I went on to read everything McKinley has written. With every story, each book, she haunts, delights, and enlightens me. Naming an author who’s been such a profound influence on me as both a reader and a writer as SFWA’s newest Grand Master is…

The Writers Co-op annual Rabbit Hole anthology is an annual anthology produced by the members of the Writers Co-op, and open to submissions of weird short stories and poems. The Rabbit Hole volume 6 has a deadline of April 30th, 2023 and a theme of ‘Destination: Journey.’ Stories, no more than 5,000 words, may be flash fiction, should be submitted by email. Writers whose stories are selected will have the choice between keeping their share of the royalties or donating them to the Against Malaria Foundation.’ PDRLS Website: https://writercoop.wordpress.com…

New online magazine Seize the Press is looking for dark fantasy and speculative fiction, bleak sci-fi, horror and ‘all kinds of weird, messy, genre defying stories that defy labels’. If your story has messy, difficult and morally questionable characters that ‘don’t fit neatly into a narrow definition of positive representation or the model minority mould’ then this is the magazine for your story. Check out the website to read content of the magazine. There is a strict 3,500 word limit for submissions and stories should be formatted using double spacing in a docx file. Payment is £0.03 per word and although simultaneous submissions will be considered, multiple submissions will not. You should gain a response to your submission within 30 days. The magazine is also open to submissions of non-fiction…

Enter prose and poetry on the theme ‘Secrets of The Trees’ in the Urban Tree Festival 2023 Writing Competition. Entries are invited of flash stories (fiction and creative non-fiction up to 250 words) and poems (up to 250 words) related to urban trees. Winners will be published in Canopy, a limited-edition chapbook anthology, which will also be made available as a podcast. There is a first prize of €200 and a runner-up prize of €50 in each category. The entry fee is €6 for one and €9 for two. The closing date is 13 March. Website: https://walklistencreate.org/competition/ urban-tree-festival-2023-writing-competition/…

Journal of ‘unpopular discontent’ Contrary invites submissions of original poetry, fiction and lyrical commentary/creative nonfiction. It is published four times a year and content can be read online. The deadline for the Spring issue is 1 March 2023 and simultaneous submissions will be considered with the usual proviso. Payment rates are $20 for all submissions and you will need to submit an invoice within six months of your work being published. When submitting include your name and contact details at the top of your piece and use only one space between sentences. Submit using the online form and use your name as part of the title for your piece. JR Website: https://contrarymagazine.com/ submissions/…

The Chicken Soup for the Soul books, anthologies of true stories and poetry of up to 1,200 words, are perennially popular in the US. The editorial team is currently looking for material for two new volumes, Miracles, and Angels, both with a deadline of 28 February 2023. For Miracles they want true stories, both religious and nonreligious, ‘that will awe us with examples of amazing events’. These may include, but are not limited to, serendipity and synchronicity, coincidences, miraculous healing or recovery, dreams that came true, mysterious helpers, stories about miracles involving pets or animals, astonishing luck, unexplained events, and communications and signs from loved ones who have passed on. For Angels, the editorial team say, ‘Have you experienced a divine intervention, answered prayer, or other miraculous occurrence courtesy of…

Writer Lui Sit and illustrator Suhayla Ibrahim are the winners of the 2022 Faber and Adlynn (FAB) Prize for new writers and illustrators from underrepresented backgrounds. Jane Austen was named the best British author of all time in a survey conducted by the Amazon Literary Partnership. She beat writers including JK Rowling, George Orwell, and Shakespeare. Ayanna Lloyd Banwo and Jarred McGinnis are the 2023 winners of the Eccles Centre & Hay Festival Writers’ Award. Both authors receive £20,000, up to a year’s writing residency at the British Library and the opportunity to showcase their finished work at Hay Festival events. Our duty is to tell the story that’s come to us in the most effective way possible. But we don’t choose the story: we’re drawn in where the feeling…

Wakefield Press is a leading independent publishing company based in Adelaide, South Australia. The editorial team ‘love good stories and publish beautiful books’, and are proud of the quality of their design and production. Their books cover a ‘diverse range of topics, including literary and popular fiction, young adult fiction, history, biography, art, poetry, food, wine, the environment, education and true life (ordinary people in extraordinary situations).’ Currently open for submissions, the team ask that writers read the guidelines carefully and check the publisher’s list. No children’s picture books. Submit completed manuscripts by email with a one-page covering letter including a brief author bio under 150 words, a synopsis under 200 words, and an outline under 300 words. Note the genre of the work, a total word count, its target…