Hippocampus Magazine enthusiastically accepts unsolicited submissions in the following categories: memoir excerpt – a self-contained portion (chapter or selection) of a larger, book-length work personal essay – a short narrative reflecting on a particular life experience or observation flash creative nonfiction or a work of creative nonfiction in an experimental format Here is an article that discusses the difference between memoir and essay. And here is another. 2014 Theme: Weather & Acts of Nature From storms and sprinkles to earthquakes and extreme heat, Mother Nature can pack a punch or paint a pretty picture. Weather can be wacky and wild. And weather can be calm. Weather often plays a character in our everyday—and not so everyday—lives. We’re seeking tales in which the weather or even a natural disaster played a significant or supporting role. To be clear, we’re not specifically looking for stories just about bad weather or destruction; instead,…
Category: Just Write
See your story and tell it.
Tips to writing deeply and comfortably. Stretch – either standing or sitting in a chair. Do whatever whatever stretching feels good to you. Sit easily in a comfortable chair. Take a deep breath in through your nose, exhale out through your mouth, like you are blowing out a candle. Take several deep breaths and whoosh out on the exhalations. Relax into your chair. Smile. Escort your inner critic out the door. Shed your ideas about what perfect writing means. Give yourself permission to write the worst stuff possible. Writing isn’t about talent, it’s about practice and going into another dimension. Creative writing is an act of discovery. Take another deep breath. Relax into your breathing. Exhale with a satisfying sigh. Rather than write for an audience, write from an instinctual level. Immerse yourself in writing. Let go of your worries and write. Just write to a satisfying inner desire to…
SmokeLong publishes flash fiction up to 1000 words
SmokeLong Quarterly publishes flash fiction up to 1000 words. The SLQ aesthetic remains an ever-changing, ever-elusive set of principles, but it most likely has to do with these kinds of things: language that surprises narratives that strive toward something other than a final punch line or twist pieces that add up to something, oftentimes (but not necessarily always) meaning or emotional resonance honest work that feels as if it has far more purpose than a writer wanting to write a story We have a special place in our hearts, more often than not, for narratives we haven’t seen before. For the more familiar stories—such as relationship break-ups, bar scenarios, terminal illnesses—we tend to need something original and urgent in the writer’s presentation. Click here for submission guidelines. Sonoma County author and writing teacher Stephanie Freele has been published in SLQ: Breathing Oysters Have you, or someone you know, been published in…
One pearl is better than a whole necklace of potatoes.
Constance Hale launches Sin and Syntax, How To Write Wicked Good Prose with: “The French mime Étienne Decroux used to remind his students, ‘One pearl is better than a whole necklace of potatoes.’ What is true for that wordless art form applies equally to writing: well-crafted prose depends on the writer’s ability to distinguish between pearls and potatoes. Only some words are fit to be strung into a given sentence. Great writers are meticulous with their pearls, sifting through piles of them and stringing only perfect specimens upon the thread of syntax. The careful execution of beautiful, powerful prose through beautifully, powerful words is guided by my five principles.” Hale’s five principles: Relish Every Word Aim Deep, But Be Simple Take Risks Seek Beauty Find The Right Pitch Peruse Sin and Syntax to discover the pearls of wisdom of these principles and how to distinguish between words that are pearls…
WriterAdvice seeks flash fiction, memoir, and . . .
WriterAdvice seeks flash fiction, memoir, and creative non-fiction running 750 words or less. Enlighten, dazzle, and delight us. Finalists receive responses from all judges. First prize is $200. Submit to the 9th WriterAdvice Flash Prose Contest by April 18, 2014. Complete details at www.writeradvice.com Is Writer Advice’s Manuscript Consultation Service right for you? Details here Scroll down column.
The nervousness of writing — Francisco Goldman
“When you’re beginning a book, or getting back into a book, as I am now, you have to learn to deal with the nervousness and stress of it. The blank page or the stalled page is incredibly intimidating. And you have to turn that nervousness – rather than into something that blocks you, rather than into something that makes you try to over-think, that makes you feel that you can’t proceed unless you have a clear idea of where you’re going – you have to harness that nervousness, almost like a natural force, and make it work for you. You have to trust that you’re just going to get inside the page and get inside the sentences, and you have to release the desire to feel in control and just follow the writing where it takes you and have faith that you’re eventually going to find the way. — Francisco…
Redwood Writers Anthology Accepting Submissions
It’s a good idea to always have something ready to submit. You never know when a call for submission might be a perfect fit for your writing. Redwood Writers Anthology is open for submissions. . . deadline extended to April 1, 2014. Submission Guidelines Members of Redwood Writers may submit up to two pieces in any genre, including short story, memoir, essay, flash fiction or poetry. You need to be a Redwood Writers Member to submit. Email your submissions to: anthology@redwoodwriters.org. Redwood Writers is a branch of the California Writers Club.
Put into written words . . .
From the Hard Life to the Writing Life by Jay Baron Nicorvo Put into written words your understanding, and misunderstandings, of the world. — Jay Baron Nicorvo, Jan/Feb 2014 issue of Poets & Writers magazine. “The Miracle of Mentors: From the Hard Life to the Writing Life,” by Jay Baron Nicorvo.
Your writing will soar with Hemispheres Magazine
United Airlines Hemispheres Magazine “Hemispheres is written for the affluent, curious, sophisticated citizen of the world. Blending long-form journalism with trend stories, think-pieces and service [articles].” — Writer’s Digest Magazine, February 2014. 95% freelance articles, pays $.50 per word and up. Hemisphere’s Three Perfect Days series is gorgeous photography. Scroll through for a mental mini-vacation. Pitch your story. Details here.
I’d like you to meet Pat Schneider.
I am fortunate to have experienced the wonderful and intrepid Pat Schneider, founder of Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA) . . . both in her books and in writing workshops. Pat was born in 1934, lived in tenement housing with her brother and single mother where there was seldom food in the cupboards, let alone on the table. When she was ten, Pat and her brother went to live in an orphanage. Those early experiences deeply influenced her writing, and fueled her passion for those who have been denied voice through poverty and other misfortunes. Through the help of a caring teacher, Pat was awarded a scholarship and was able to attend college, where she met her future husband. And so a life of writing began for this remarkable woman who lives and loves passionately. Here’s a story about Pat, from her website: I was a young poet, published in…