Windshift for Writers:
A resource of markets, tips and courses for writers of fiction and non-fiction
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December Newsletter
A month of many holiday celebrations, gift giving and get-togethers with family and friends. Whether you celebrate Winter Solstice, Hanukkah, Christmas, or many of the other seasonal traditions of December, we wish you peace and joy in your activities. Windshift for Writers is closing the office from December 24th, 2001 until January 2nd, 2002. Chris and I will spend time with our family and friends. It will also be a time for me to clear my head before the advent of new classes in January and the long awaited publication of Practical Publishing Solutions. Check the web site early in the new year for course updates and publication news.
We have many new ideas for this newsletter and the web site for 2002. We are quite excited about several new ideas for services and competitions. But before we rush off in a whirl of enthusiastic energy, wewould like you to offer us some suggestions for the things you would like to see. We are reluctant to burden newsletter recipients with a survey and have therefore decided to ask you to voluntarily send us a short e-mail with a note of what kind of writing you do and what new and different writing projects you would like to be involved with in 2002.
On behalf of Chris, myself and the Windshift for Writers family, I wish you a very creative 2002.
Writing Tip: Names - How often have you been introduced to someone called Mark or Julie only to find that they really do look like a 'Mark' or a 'Julie'? Names can give you the essence of a character in just one word. The names of characters are as important as their physical description. Names also have periods of popularity so it is important to consider this when naming your characters. My grandmother's friends were Rose and Violet. Lately I have taught a number of Jenna's and Natasha's.
Markets: Raven Chronicles - A journal of short stories from Pacific Northwest fiction writers. They publish science fiction, literary, humorous, adventure, historical, poetry. Submission Guidelines: http://www.speakeasy.org/ravenchronicles/raven/rvsubm.html
The Recursive Angel is an online journal of poetry and short fiction. The editors are looking for quality submissions. Check their 'What we look for' page to see if this e-zine is for you. http://www.recursiveangel.com/issue16.htm
Contest: Cotswold Writers' Circle Open Writing Competition. - £200, £75 and £25 are on offer. Poems 30 lines max; prose 1,000 words max. Closing date 31 January. The winner will be published in the anthology Pen Ultimate. Copies from the address below, £2.50 post-free. Details: Cotswold Writers' Open Competition, Dar-es-Salaam, Beeches Park, Hampton Fields, Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire GL6 9BA.
Industry News
Workshops:
WHERE WOMEN UNITE TO WRITE - 2002 Writer's Conference. Come and be a part of this exciting event on February 16th at the University of Texas at Arlington. Visit http://www.naww.org/generic.html?pid=10 for more information on the program and our speakers. Send a blank email to naww@onebox.com with CONFERENCE in the subject area and we will send the brochure/registration form to you as soon as it is ready.
Creativity Workshop: Writing, Drawing, Story Telling
and Personal Memoir -
A workshop for writers, artists, and performers to explore the processes
of their creative expression and to develop and share work-in-progress.
Feb 02, 2002 - Feb 03, 2002 in New York, New York.
The answers offered in this column are the personal opinions of the staff at Windshift for Writers. They are in no way meant to take the place of the professional advice you may need to seek for your specific query.
Questions and Answers
Q. I self published a regional history book two years
ago which sold quite well. Now I am looking for an agent for a general
fiction book I have just written. Can you suggest anyone? - Ken T. -
A. Working with an agent is a very personal thing so I am afraid I can't
recommend anyone. However, http://www.literaryagent.com might help you
to find exactly what you are looking for.
Q If I want to write articles on a totally different subject
than I have previously had published should I still send clips? What should
I do if I don't have any clips at all?
- Liza J. -
A. If you don't have any clips that complement the type of article you're
pitching, you should include others. Yes, by all means send writing samples
if you have no clips. This is better than sending nothing at all.
Q. I'm sending a query to a US magazine that does not
accept simultaneous submissions or reprints but only asks for First North
American Serial Rights (FNASR). If I sent a similar query to a non-US/Cdn
publication, does that qualify as a simultaneous submission?
-Linda K. -
A. No, because they are not asking for world rights, only North American
rights.
Win a FREE place at one of our Workshops - Writers who wish to host a
workshop can do so by inviting interested friends and acquaintances to
a venue (It could be your dining-room table.) And providing the coffee.
If you host a workshop, your participation is free. Check the Local Workshops
page for further details.
REMINDER: The next series of Courses are scheduled in January. Check back to see program details. If you find that a course you want is not listed, please contact Windshift for Writers.
Newsletter written by Sandra Janssen
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Windshift for Writers
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Thetis Island BC V0R 2Y0
Canada
Tel: 250 246 1888
Fax: 250 246 1888
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