Thought for the Month

"It is the first mild day of March.

Each minute sweeter than before ...

There is a blessing in the air..."

- William Wordsworth, poet

Hello Authors and Readers,

Returning to Wordsworth, he reminds us that March heralds the last hurrah of winter. Here on the BC coast we have had just that. There have been days of warm sunny weather interspersed with some snow and freezing cold nights. While it may be too early to start our garden it is time to turn over the soil of our inner garden and plant the idea seeds in wait for the fruitful abundance of our mind.

Keep writing,

Sandra

Markets:

Prairie Schooner seeks submissions for their forthcoming contest. Submission guidelines:http://prairieschooner.unl.edu/prizes/index.html

Gulf Coast seeks submissions of poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Submission guidelines:http://www.gulfcoastmag.org/

Glimmer Train seeks submissions of original, unpublished fiction. Submission guidelines:http://www.glimmertrain.com/writguid1.html

Harpur Palate sees submissions for the John Gardner Memorial Prize for Fiction. Submission guidelines:http://harpurpalate.binghamton.edu/johngardner.html

Indiana Review seeks submissions of poetry. Submission guidelines: hhttp://indianareview.org/general/prize.html

Narrative Magazine seeks submissions or their Third Person Story Contest- Fiction and Nonfiction Forms. Submission guidelines: http://narrativemagazine.com/

Shenandoah seeks submissions for The Shenandoah/Glasgow Prize
for Emerging Writers. Submission guidelines:http://shenandoah.wlu.edu/glasgow.html

Sycamore Review seeks submissions for the 2009 Wabash Prize for Fiction. Submission guidelines:http://sycamorereview.com/contest/

Other Voices seeks submissions for their current fiction competition. Submission guidelines:http://www.othervoices.ca/contest/

Toasted Cheese seeks submissions. Submission guidelines:http://www.toasted-cheese.com/

CV2 seeks submissions for their Annual 2-Day Poem Contest. Submission guidelines:http://www.contemporaryverse2.ca/contest_2day.php

Permafrost seeks submissions for two annual literary contests. Submission guidelines:http://www.uaf.edu/english/permafrost/contest.html

Canadian Writer's Journal seeks submissions. Submission guidelines:http://www.cwj.ca/04-00fiction.htm

The Lakeview Review seeks submissions. Submission guidelines:http://www.lakeviewreview.com/competition.cfm

March discount of 20% to all newsletter subscribers

Manuscript Evaluation -Treat yourself or a writing friend/relative to a manuscript evaluation from a publishing professional. This could include advice on a short story before submitting it to publishers or an evaluation of your novel or non-fiction book. Ask for details by e-mailing Windshift. Please put 'manuscript critique' in the subject line.

Publishing News:

Changing Face of Print 1

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer recently stopped publishing in print but hopes to stay alive in some form online. It isn't the first daily newspaper nationally or internationally to make the move. Most literary journals are no longer able to publish a print edition unless they are attached to a university. Where will opportunities for writers exist in the near future?

Changing Face of Print 2

One of the questions often asked of librarians is, "How can I get my book published?" Unfortunately, the unwanted answer is, "In your dreams" or "Not easily." But being helpful people, librarians steer prospective best selling authors to books such as "Writers' Market Place" or "Writers' Market." They can be found in almost any library or bookstore. Both books offer good advice about agents, preparing a book for submission to a publisher, researching likely publishers, etc. Still, it is almost impossible in these economic times for a first-time author to get a book published by a commercial publisher who will be absorbing the cost of publishing with the hope of recouping the money from book sales.

In the past, many famous authors self-published in order to have more control over their work, and perhaps, with the hope of larger profits. Mark Twain, Edgar Allen Poe, Carl Sandburg, and Henry David Thoreau, among others, went the self-publishing route.

There remains hope for us all.

Home News:

Our Spring/Summer publishing schedule is in full swing. The next three months also bring a myriad of bookfairs and events that we will be attending with individual authors.

We appreciate hearing your news especially when you have won a contest that was included in one of our newsletters.

Note: While every effort is made to check the markets suggested in this newsletter, writers must use their own judgment when submitting their work.

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