SPAWN Market Update – January 2013

We hope to help you enjoy a very happy and prosperous New Year by providing nearly 50 opportunities for authors and freelance writers in this one issue of the WPN Market Update. Discover which publishers are seeking manuscripts, who accepts unsolicited manuscripts, where to promote your book through articles, sites for tracking book sales, new book reviewers, submission opportunities and more.
Here’s What’s New – 5 changes to note and official new words for 2013.
Opportunities for Freelance Writers – 10 submission opps.
Opportunities for Authors – 5 publishers seeking ms and what’s in a pen name?
Book Promotion Opportunities – a dozen of them including 6 article sites.
Resources for Authors – 13 of them, including 5 book sales trackers and 6 new book reviewers.
Going, Going, Gone – 4 to report
Here’s What’s New
Did you know that the folks at the Miriam Webster Dictionary website keep track of things, like what was the most looked up word in 2012? It was actually two words: Socialism and Capitalism.
Each year, at least in recent years, new words are added to the dictionary. If it wasn’t for the Internet, it would be necessary to purchase a new dictionary every year. Here are some of the recently added words (and phrases): “man cave,” “sexting,” “cloud computing,” “aha moment,” “game changer,” “bucket list,” “underwater” (used to describe a mortgage for which more is owed than the house is worth) and “f-bomb.” Are there any surprises? Those of you under thirty, probably thought these words were already in the dictionary.
HH Backer Associates, Inc. has sold PetAge Magazine to JP Multimedia. If you have a story idea, the new contact person is Michelle Maskaly at michellem@journalmultimedia.com Their new address is 220 Davidson Ave., Suite 302, Somerset, NJ 08873. (Make a note in your current copy of Writer’s Market.)
BookLocker has two new print publishing programs. One is a payment plan for authors and the other provides printing with no setup fees if you send a pre-formatted PDF file. Here’s where you’ll find more information: http://publishing.booklocker.com/packages.php
eBookwise is no longer selling ebooks through their site, http://www.ebookwise.com
Fictionwise has also shut down as of December 9, 2012.
Newsweek will go online only as of this month.
Opportunities for Freelance Writers
Catamaran Literary Reader is a new quarterly visual arts magazine. They are seeking submissions of fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction and art. Editors of this magazine, which is based in Santa Cruz, CA, prefer that you have a California setting in your stories. Submit online at http://catamaranliteraryreader.com
Gemini Magazine is gearing up for their annual Gemini Magazine Short Story Contest. The grand prize is $1,000. The entry fee is $4 and the deadline is April 1, 2013. Learn more at http://www.gemini-magazine.com. Or contact David Bright at editor@gemini-magazine.com
If you win, be sure to let Sandy@spawn.org know so she can post it in WPNews.
I had lunch with a colleague the other day. She writes poetry. Only now, she says, she is also writing songs. If any of you are considering putting some of your poetry to music, here’s a resource you might want to check out. Worship Leader Magazine in San Juan Capistrano, CA accepts songs for publication. http://www.songdiscovery.com/submit-a-song.
The Toastmaster Magazine website has a note stating that editors do not want to receive submissions until June, 2013.
Following are 5 magazines that you might not consider for your fiction and/or your poetry, but that could be worth your while to contact:
Aim Magazine publishes fiction and poetry. They particularly want fiction that teaches lessons in the brotherhood of man. They suggest ethnic, historical, mainstream and suspense. They pay $25 to $30 per 1,000 to 1,500-word piece. Contact Ruth Apilado at apliadoone@aol.com. http://aimmagazine.org.
Kaleidoscope publishes fiction and the editors are pretty particular about what they publish, so check out their guidelines carefully. http://www.udsakron.org/kaleidoscope.htm. Contact Mildred Shiplett, mshiplett@udsakron.org
The Country Connection out of Canada uses fiction. They pay 10 cents/word for fantasy, historical, humorous, slice-of-life, country living. http://www.pinecone.on.ca.
Horizons pays $50 for each 600 words and they accept. They have a 1,200-words max. This is a religious magazine, so you might want to check out some back issues to get an idea of their style. http://www.pcusa.org/horizons. Contact Susan Jackson Dowd at susan.jackson-dowd@pcusa.org
Puget Sound Magazine is a regional publication and they do use fiction and poetry. They pay 10 cents/word for fiction pieces up to 1,000 words. They need historical humorous, mainstream, mystery, adventure and westerns themes. http://www.pugetsoundmagazine.com
Duotrope is now charging a fee of $5 per month or $50 per year. As many of you know, Duotrope has a searchable database of markets for fiction, nonfiction and poetry, a submissions tracker and a calendar of upcoming events and deadlines. If you’re one of the 90% who have enjoyed using Duotrope for free, you can still use it; it’s just going to cost you a minimal fee. They say it’s the only way they say they can keep it going. https://duotrope.com
Opportunities for Authors
Two publishing houses are adding imprints. For Harlequin it is KISS, an imprint representing sensual romance novels. And Harper-Collins is launching HarperWave, a new health, wellness and lifestyle imprint.
Using a Pen Name
Have you ever considered using a pen name? Maybe you are using one and running into a few glitches with it. Karen Hodges Miller has written a good blog post on this topic. Read it here: http://www.opendoorpublications.com/strategies  It’s her November 28, 2012 post. I especially like her list of reasons why one should use a pen name:

  • If you are well known in another genre.
  • If your name is the same as a very famous author.
  • For personal safety reasons.
  • To avoid family conflict.

Traditional Publishing Options
It seems that more and more people are bypassing traditional publishing and going straight to the pay-to-publish route. Why?

  • They hear that it is hard to get published and they decide not to put themselves through the stress.
  • They don’t know how to approach publishers.
  • They don’t want to take the time to try to land a publisher.
  • Publishers often hold manuscripts for months and months, holding up potential publication using another option.
  • They aren’t fully aware of all of their publishing options and don’t know how to choose the best one for their project.

The fact is, there are hundreds and hundreds of traditional publishers seeking good projects. Here are a few:
The Christian Small Publishers Association lists eight publishers seeking manuscripts. Check out the list here: http://www.christianpublishers.net/?page_id=846
Reagent Press publishes books in a wide variety of genres—both fiction and nonfiction. At their site, they give explicit reasons why they reject manuscripts. They also give a good rundown of what they want. http://www.reagentpress.com/about.htm
Bianco Publishing produces nonfiction books. Learn more here: http://www.biancopublishing.com/?page_id=5
Sleepy Hollow Books editors are currently seeking children’s books for the 8 to 13 age group. Spend some time at their website to find out if they would be a match for what you have to offer. http://sleepyhollowbooks.com/submit.html
Would you like to tap into a list of publishers who accept unsolicited manuscripts? Here’s a good start: http://www.ehow.com/about_5384861_publishing-companies-accept-unsolicited-manuscripts.html
Book Promotion Opportunities
You’ve heard me and other professionals hound you about the value of submitting articles to appropriate publications for the purpose of promoting your book. For a book on parenting tips, this might be parenting magazines, ezines and newsletters as well as some religious publications, general interest, womens, senior and others. If your book features a particular business management style or technique, consider writing articles for publications directed at business owners and managers, college students, educators, organization leaders, church leaders and those who are involved in specific fields—insurance, accounting, real estate, construction, food, cosmetics, advertising, sport fishing and so forth.
Here are some online sites that publish articles. While some of those listed specialize within certain areas of interest, others leave the possibilities wide open. Some of them pay, and most of them provide great opportunities for authors to build their platforms and promote their books as they claim to have a wide viewing audience. Check them out. (As with all of the resources we offer through WPN, we always, always urge you to do your own thorough investigation into any of them before getting involved. We cannot recommend a site, service, company or organization we haven’t personally used. Our intent is to inform you as to what’s available. It is up to you to determine whether the company, service, site or organization is right for you and your purposes.)
Divine Caroline publishes articles at their site on a variety of topics. Learn more here: http://www.divinecaroline.com/login/show.
Blog Her is a great-looking network for women. If you have something to say that women want or need to hear/read, you might consider contributing it here: Learn more at: http://www.blogher.com/about-this-network.
Yahoo Contributors provides the opportunity to build your platform at their busy site. You may even be able to make a little money if your articles are among those that are most popular with visitors. Here’s where they post information about their site—you can sign up here, as well: http://contributor.yahoo.com/signup.
Ezine Articles welcomes articles in a wide variety of categories including business, games, art, real estate, home improvement, book reviews, food, home, pets, writing/speaking and more. http://ezinearticles.com
Articles Base lists 26 categories of articles they use including health, hobbies, Internet, law, writing, education, beauty, shopping, technology, sports and spirituality. http://www.articlesbase.com
Saching.com offers a wide variety of interesting articles, why not some of yours? http://www.saching.com. Check out their guidelines for submissions here: http://www.saching.com/submitguide.php
Remember that an article designed to promote your book is not an advertisement or even an advertorial for your book. It should not be an essay touting your book. A promotional article is informative and/or entertaining. It is your opportunity to demonstrate your expertise in your topic. The article should cause the reader to trust you enough to purchase your book on a topic of their interest. Your bio at the end of the article gives the title of your book and an ordering link.
Rethink Books is a technology company focused on helping readers buy and share more books. And one way they do that is to, as they say, “give books wings.” I found this at their site: “We believe everyone has a story…and everyone likes to read a great story. That is why we devote so much of our vision, time, and heart to working with publishers and authors and giving their books wings. Call us crazy, but we believe technology can help us engage with books in exciting new ways. Why can’t you read your favorite novel with three of your best friends on different devices? Why can’t an author engage with his/her readers in real time? Why can’t companies, churches, schools, and organizations learn together? Maybe we can. And maybe we should demand it, since ultimately, it is better for all of us.
So come dream with us. We don’t have all the answers about what a digital book can do or be, but we are actively innovating, creating, failing, sprinting, pausing, learning, collaborating, and celebrating each step along the way. I guess we’re kind of writing our own story. We’d love for you to be part of it.” http://rethinkbooks.com
As part of their program, they developed Bookshout! This is an innovative social and group reading platform designed with you, the reader, in mind. And they claim the reading experience is richer and more personal. Their program works on iPhones, iPads, Android devices, and the web. They offer some free books. But they also have services for authors who want to shout about their books. http://bookshout.com
Is this program for you? I suggest studying the site and deciding for yourself.
Author & Book Promotion has been in the business of helping authors promote their books since 2006. I’m not sure just what they can do for you or how much it costs, but I can tell you that they have some resources worth checking out. They list a few book reviewers, for example, awards for authors, promotional resources, organizations for authors and my favorite, author interview requests—people requesting interviews with authors. I checked some of the links and it looks like several of the interviewers are open to just about any topic—nonfiction or fiction. However, some of the links are no good. That’s disappointing. Check out Author & Book Promotion at http://www.author-promotion.com. They have a newsletter you can subscribe to.
Are you looking for a way to give back? Leaders of an author association in San Diego are having trouble keeping their organization going and they’re seeking volunteers to help. They need a newsletter editor, events coordinator, someone to start or lead a speakers’ bureau, press secretary, data entry person and more. Contact Maria at Maria@americanauthorsassociation.com
You’ve heard about my latest book by now—Talk Up Your Book, How to Sell Your Book Through Public Speaking, Interviews, Signings, Festivals, Conferences and More. (Available at Amazon.com and most other online and downtown bookstores. Also at www.matilijapress.com.) Once you’ve studied this book and you’ve come to terms with the process of setting up opportunities to promote your book in person, you might be ready to move forward and attend a few workshops to hone your public speaking skills. I found Linda Kundell on the web. She provides all kinds of services for authors and others who wish to become more skilled in front of audiences. If you are interested or curious, here’s a link to her site: http://www.publicspeaking4u.com
Resources for Authors
Are you familiar with The Broadsheet? This is a web-based zine dedicated to women writers of science fiction, fantasy and horror genre fiction. They accept articles, interviews, book reviews and commentary about any topic involving women writers and artists in these areas. They only print nonfiction articles for this ezine written by either men or women. You might interview a woman author of science fiction or fantasy, for example. They pay anywhere from $25 to $50 for articles. The reason I am posting this information here, however, is to inform you about this zine if you weren’t aware of it and to alert you to the publicity opportunity for your books. http://broaduniverse.org
Track Your Book Sales using these trackers.
http://www.metricjunkie.com
http://www.novelrank.com
http://www.salesrankexpress.com
http://www.rankforest.com
http://www.booksandwriters.com
http://www.ranktracer.com
Beth Barany has launched a new magazine for authors called Author Entrepreneur. View back issues of this monthly magazine and subscribe here: http://author-entrepreneur.com
Christine P. Silva has added to her Book Reviewer Yellow Pages. All of the reviewers Silva features accept books from small presses and independent publishers. Here’s a list of some of the new ones:
Reviewing in Chaos. Kelly (Momma Chaos) reviews fiction only and prefers print books. Contact her at reviewinginchaos@gmail.com
KC Book Girl. http://www.kansascitybookgirl.blogspot.com. kcbookgirl@gmail.com. Fiction only.
A Write to Review. Lauren Johnson has been reviewing books for only a few months. She also reviews fiction, but will accept nonfiction if it involves history. Lrjohnson13@gmail.com
Time 2 Blog. Engelia Mc Cullough started her review site in August of last year. She reviews fiction, prefers mysteries and historical fiction.
5 Girls Book Reviews. http://5girlsbookreviews.blogspot.com  5girlsbookreviews@gmail.com Charity is the blogger/reviewer. She accepts young adult, picture books, chick lit, contemporary fiction and mysteries. No nonfiction.
Book Reviews (The Way I See Them). Sree Devi at sreedevipv16@gmail.com reviews mostly fiction. Does not accept history.
Going, Going, Gone
Wild Blue Yonder has closed.
American Artist has gone out of business.
Play Station The Official Magazine has quit.
Healthy Cooking has ceased publishing.