Timelines/Call for Submissions

Writer’s Thought for the Week: …knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.  ~ Albert Einstein 

Time Warp

www.OurTimeLines.com

If you’re thinking of writing something historical, this site will generate a timeline of significant historical and technological events. You may enter any start or end date from 1000 CE to the present.

You may customize the generated timeline with less significant events or personal events relating to your character.

CARTE BLANCHE
http://carte-blanche.org/submissions/
Fall issue deadline: Sept. 15, 2012
Pays a modest honorarium.

Fiction and Nonfiction “We like narrative: a story that moves from some kind of a beginning to some kind of an end, be it short fiction, memoir, personal essay or literary journalism. If it’s well written and tells a story, we’ll consider it. Word limit: 3500; maximum of two prose submissions per author per issue.”

Poetry  “From odes and haikus to free verse and sonnets, we welcome poems in any form. Limit: 3 poems per person per submission round.”

Market Analysis/subTerrain

Thought for the Week: When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot. ~ Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Market Analysis

When deciding where to submit my work, I review a publisher’s guidelines and read samples of what they have recently published. A sample copy of a magazine can help me identify that market's demographic by looking at the ads in addition to the articles. Do the ads target young professionals, singles and/or families, people with/without children, etc?

When studying sample articles, I’ve found a semi-automated way of comparing my writing to theirs. If I key in a few paragraphs or download one of their stories, I can use MS Word’s “readability statistics” function to analyze and compare their piece to mine. These statistics include the number of sentences per paragraph, words per sentence, characters per word, and estimated education level necessary for comprehension. I’m sometimes surprised by the results; you may be, too. I find changing sentence length or word choice is usually a simple edit task.

SUBTERRAIN

This Canadian magazine is published three times a year.  The theme for the fall/winter issue is "Our Dying Planet" and the deadline is September 1, 2012. Pays: $25/poem and $25/published page of prose. You need not be Canadian to submit but payment will be in Canadian collars.

Writer Web Sites/Anthology Call

Writer’s Thought for the Week: Authors should not only want to write a story, but should want to write a particular story. They have to believe in it, and believe in their ability to write it. ~ Barbara Delinsky 

101 BEST WEB SITES FOR WRITERS

        

You can download a free copy of Writer’s Digest’s 2012 101 Best Web Sites for Writers just by subscribing to the magazine’s free weekly email newsletter at www.writersdigest.com.

MARGARET RIVER PRESS 

Deadline: August 31, 2012

Invites short fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction submissions that illuminate the theme of “fire”. The anthology seeks works that illustrate experiences of and relationships to fire: its destructive, creative and redemptive powers, its social impact, its cultural and ecological role, its terror, symbolism and its beauty. Pays a flat fee of AUD$200 for fiction and creative nonfiction, $150 for poetry for both Australian print rights and International Digital rights, plus a contributor’s copy of the print edition. The anthology will be published in print and digital format.

Writing Habits/Travel Story Competition

Thought for the Week: Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right. ~    Henry Ford 

Slow Leaks

I’m watering my neighbor’s plants while they’re away. The well water system and hose are in their garage so they left me the garage door opener for access. The other day as I walked over I noticed a lot of water in the driveway. When I opened the garage door, a small wave of water flowed into the driveway. A narrow hose between the pump and the tank had developed a small leak. The pinpoint size breach was not visible, but the thin stream of water spewing out had soaked part of the lawn and continued to flow down the driveway.

What does this have to do with writing? The time leaks that distract us from the writing process can add up to a large chunk of lost time. The “just one more thing” that leads to another and then another until a whole morning is lost. I’ve been guilty of that lately and my writing has suffered. When I scheduled a certain time each day to write and stuck to it, I was far more productive. I asked myself if writing had become less important to me, but that was not it. I needed to recapture that focus, that discipline. I’m gradually getting back to my routine. More words find their way to the page and I’m feeling better about myself. I’ll never be as disciplined as the Olympic athletes are with their training regimens, but I’ll figure out what works for me.

Travel Story Competition
 

Deadline: August 31, 2012
No entry fee. You may enter more than once, but each entry must be submitted separately.

Leap Local wants 500 to 650 word personal travel stories involving local people. Perhaps a  tale of mishaps because you didn't use a local expert. Maybe you want to share a unique circumstance effected by the culture or environment you engaged with on your travels. Whether the story be hilarious, exciting, gorgeous or terrifying - you are invited to enter this competition. Your submission will be judged by authors, travel writers, journalists, and other industry professionals. First prize is $500 USD; there are two runner-up prizes of $150 USD. Winning stories and selected others will be published.