Archive for December, 2009

Calling All Authors

Dec 3rd, 09 / 0 Comments

I’m used to posting the calls for submissions, not putting out my own call. :P Anywho, I have a fun promotional opportunity for the new year. I’m working on a new blog called “Life in the First Draft” that focuses on – yep, you guessed it – anything and everything to do with the first draft. Be it making time to write, those funky little writer habits you have or just the fun things you have on your desk, I’m looking to create a comfortable hub for any and all aspiring writers. (And for established writers as well! We have to go back and face that first draft again and again…)

So, let’s get to the nitty gritty. What I’m looking for:

*One (to three) guest post/s in the range of 250 – 500 words – with a title, please
*Any pictures that correspond to your post (for example, if you decide to write a ‘my desk/my writing space’ guest post – take a picture of it!) .jpgs please
*A brief biography with a link to your website and/or blog
*A picture of you or your book cover

Easy peasy.

If you’d like to participate but are feeling a bit stuck for a topic(s)…

*Introduce us to your writing space (with pictures, hehe)
*How do you make yourself write when you don’t want to?
*Do you have a daily word count goal or do you go by some other measurement?
*How do you balance your ‘regular’ life with your writing life?
*Finding inspiration
*Anything on character, plot, setting, research, etc
*What has been going on in your mind before you sit down to write the first words of that first draft?
*Are you a ‘planner’ or a ‘pantser’ (outline or no outline)?
*Finally typing ‘The End’ on your first draft…

But…

This is another promotional opportunity, which is always good for authors, but this will be a brand new blog. Not a lot of traffic. That’s not a secret. So what I’m going to do is make it even more worth your while.

**Anyone who sends me their guest post(s) on or before December 16th will receive a *FREE* copy of my new ebook: So You Want to Write a Guest Post: An Author’s Guide to Promoting with Guest Posting. Just let me know if you would like the ebook in your email, and I will be happy to send it along.

Please send all guest posts to jmfictionscribe (at) gmail (dot) com.

Dates will be scheduled in the order they come in, so it’s sort of a first come, first serve. When you email me, I will email you back with the ebook and the date you will appear at Life in the First Draft.

Cheers.

PS. The URL is: http://lifeinthefirstdraft.blogspot.com/ Keep in mind that the blog won’t be active until January 1st.

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Announcements

NaNoNotSoMuch

Dec 2nd, 09 / 0 Comments

Another November, another NaNoWriMo that has flown passed without me getting to that 50k line…

As per usual, I got off to a decent start before life set in. This year’s version of ‘life’ included a lovely holiday, an annoying as heck back problem that makes it hard to sit for any decent length of time, emotional upheaval… Yada yada. I’m sure you don’t really care about my reasons because I’m getting bored just listing them.

As always, NaNo has provided me something I needed. This time, it was the need to learn that I can make myself sit down and write.

Call it a block, call it ‘issues to work through’, but I have not finished a book in a long time. I wrote one ebook, which proved to me that I could write something and finish it… But as for fiction? Well, I have yet to see something to its completion since I moved to Australia.

There it is: the sad but true fact that I have had ‘writing issues’ for just over three years now.

Yet, there is a light at the end of this abysmal tunnel. I attempted NaNoWriMo. I like the story idea. I like it so much that I think this could be it. No, this will be it. This will be the first completed novel I’ve written in my new life.

Because I say so, darn it.

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NaNoWriMo

Call for Submissions – Chicken Soup for the Soul: Thanks Dad

Dec 1st, 09 / 0 Comments

chickensoup

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Thanks Dad
101 Stories of Gratitude, Love, and Good Times

Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen & Wendy Walker

Father’s Day will be here before you know it, and what better way to celebrate than to give your father a Chicken Soup for the Soul book with your own story in it! Share your stories of good times with your father. We are looking for funny, quirky, and unusual stories, as well as those heartwarming stories about the unique ways that our fathers help us and show their love for us.

We are not looking for eulogies, life stories, or very serious stories, as we already have plenty of those in the book. We are also not looking for stories about your children. This book is about Dad and for Dad, so let’s give our fathers a good time and a book that will make them smile.

We have about 75 great stories selected so far for this book, and are looking for 30 more. This is the first time that we have sent out an e-mail about this book, but many of you saw it listed on our website. We are reopening the database for Thanks Dad for two weeks, so if you have a great story about your father, we look forward to reading it.

We prefer stories and poems written in the first person of no more than 1,200 words. Stories should not have been previously published in our books or other major publications. Previous publication in school newsletters, local newspapers, and other small circulation venues is okay. Stories must be non-fiction.

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story and you will retain the right to resell it.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO http://chickensoupforthesoul.com/form.asp?cid=submit_story.

DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 14, 2009. Book is scheduled for publication April 20, 2010, and you will receive your free copies in advance of that.

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Publication Opportunities