|
|
|
Finding the Bacon Greetings, avid freelancers, and
welcome to this issue of Finding the Bacon. It’s sizzling in the pan as we
look ahead to “Back-to-School 2002” issues. Back to school?! You bet!
Although spring still hasn’t sprung in many parts of the country, many
publication’s editorial calendars are reflecting a need for queries for
Back-to-School issues now. Girls’ Life publishes
a special Back to School issue for their August/September edition. Girl’s Life Guidelines Available Online: yes Meet this publication’s back to
school needs with how-to, general interest, inspirational, essays, travel, and
sports targeting girls aged 9-15. Nonfiction articles run between 700 and 1200
words. They buy an average of 50 articles from freelancers per year. Query by standard mail only with
published clips. Address queries to executive editor Kelly White. Published
bi-monthly. Pays:
On publication. $150-$800 for 700-1200 words. *********************************************************** Christian Parenting Today
is 90% freelance written, and buys content for both its web site and print
publication. Targets the real needs of today’s families. Christian Parenting Today Guidelines Available Online: Yes http://www.christianparenting.net Buys nonfiction pieces featuring
parental guidance, parenting issues, good health, and family activities.
Promotes the truths of the Bible. Columns include “Ideas That
Work”—parenting strategies experienced by readers (this is a good place to
break in to the publication, although short pieces only: 25-100 words. Pays $25)
and “Life in Our House”—growing up in a Christian family(500 words—pays
up to $150). Accepts reprints. Likes features
that reflect real living rather than lots of fluff. Query by mail or e-mail.
Address queries to associate editor Jennifer Mangan. Pays: Upon acceptance. Features run
750-2500 words. Pays 12-20 cents per word. *********************************************************** Now if you’re headed back to
school where this magazine is published, you’re doing okay! Did I mention I
went to Harvard? (All right, so I only went to Harvard to watch a dear friend
present her master’s thesis! I still “went” there—right?) Harvard
Magazine is the prestigious university’s magazine, published bi-monthly.
It serves to inform and entertain students, staff, and alumni. Harvard Magazine Guidelines Available Online: Yes http://www.harvardmagazine.com Buys nonfiction essays, interviews,
profiles, and topics related to Harvard studies. Query editor John Rosenberg by
regular mail or fax. Include published clips. Articles run 800-10,000 words. Pays: Upon publication. Pays
$250-$2000 per article. *********************************************************** It might be small, but it packs a
lot of punch. Guideposts for Teens, published bimonthly, may only be 48
pages long, but its articles are chosen for their depth, inspiration, and
relevance to teens. Guideposts for Teens Guidelines Available online: No Website: http://www.gp4teens.com Send queries with published clips by
mail only to editor Betsy Kohn. From quizzes and profiles to how-to, humor, and
inspirational articles, the magazine’s mission is to empower teens with
knowledge. An adult point of view is not welcome! Personal experience is. Pays
more for assigned articles than for unsolicited manuscripts. Pays: Upon acceptance. Pays
$175-$500 for 700-2000 words. *********************************************************** Why would anyone query a
retirement magazine with a proposal for a Back-to-School article? Because a
growing number of college students returning to school each fall are aged 50 or
over! Modern Maturity might just be the market for your Back-to-School
article. Modern Maturity Guidelines online: Yes Modern Maturity
is published bimonthly, and its editors and staff are adamant about accepting
queries only. In addition to articles pertaining to older college students, the
publication looks for pieces about money, relationships, advice, how-to, Careers, and everyday living. Query
by mail only. Address queries to editor Hugh Delehanty. Pays: Upon acceptance. Up to $3000
for up to 2000 words. *********************************************************** “If you don’t like teenagers,
then we’re probably not going to like you,” is the underlying theme of Seventeen.
An understanding of teenagers is imperative. Seventeen Guidelines online: no Website: http://www.seventeen.com Seventeen,
while noted as one of the best magazines for freelance writers, is stringent
about their statement regarding empathy for teens. Features of interest to young
women are needed in the areas of college, relationships, fashion, beauty,
health, and fitness. Readers are an average of 13-22 years old. Also a prime market for fiction, its
annual fiction contest touts a highly coveted honor. Nonfiction articles run 1200-2500
words, and queries should me sent via regular mail or fax to deputy editor
Tamara Glenny or senior editor Darcy Jacobs. Fiction submissions should be send
in their entirety to senior editor Darcy Jacobs. Pays: Upon acceptance. $1 per word for nonfiction. 50 cents-$1 per word for fiction. Kimberly Ripley is a freelance writer and published author from Portsmouth, NH. A wife and mother of five, her family's antics have led her to write books like ''Breathe Deeply, This Too Shall Pass',' a collection of thirty tales of the trials and tribulations of parenting teens. She is the owner/publisher of Writerip Publishing, and editor of a newsletter and web site called ''Freelancing Later in Life,'' based on her book by the same name. Visit her site at http://www.freelancing1.homestead.com.
Contests
Corner Hello
from Africa, where we are sweltering in the heat and looking forward to the
onset of autumn. I have ten contests for you this month, some that require
serious research or in-depth knowledge of a subject, others that should stretch
your imaginative powers, and a few that will exercise your wit and sense of fun.
Enjoy! LETTER-WRITING
CONTEST "As
we all know it takes many different personalities to make up this world of ours.
Not everyone has the same *tastes* therefore we are inviting your personality
and imagination to create letters for use at All Letters.com. Take a look around
if you are interested, and see how our letters are formatted. Get a good feel
for them. There are some guidelines for your letter.txt letter (see a sample on
the website followed by explanations.) "The
basic format should work for a targeted audience. For instance: for small
children, Mom, one person in general and so on. It's best to create a theme as
the letter above is from Peter Rabbit and character's of his fairy tail. Set the
scene so to speak. "At
this time we are looking for some humorous letters in the following subjects: PRIZE:
$50 ENTRY
FEE: None DEADLINE:
Monthly URL:
http://www.allletters.com/writers.shtml
ADHD
CHILD--SEEING THE FACE OF GOD © "Dear
Writers, Parents, Teachers: I am seeking all positive stories about ADHD
children. They will be edited and compiled for an upcoming book project. The
purpose of the anthology is to share the loving hearts and actions of these
special gifts from God. Give hope and inspiration to all, as we change the
overwhelming negatives of society's perception. "Help dispel the myths by submitting your story/poem/essays. Together, we will bring the Face of God reflected in these children more clearly into focus. At this time, I cannot offer pay, but each accepted submission will be credited with authorship. If the author wishes to remain anonymous, please state that in your submission. Profit from the book are earmarked for educational funds/scholarships for special needs students. PRIZE:
Publication ENTRY
FEE: None DEADLINE:
None stated URL:
http://www.dixiesky.com/ADHD_Soaring/
PAX
FANTASTICA CHALLENGE "The
2002 Pax Fantastica Challenge is sponsored by the Young Writers: Speculative
Fiction Forum. Submission open to under-21 writers only, word count: no more
than 6000 words. "Theme PRIZE:
Amazon gift certificates ENTRY
FEE: None DEADLINE:
March 31, 2002 URL:
http://writersbbs.com/members/ywsf/2002challenge.html
ICT
STORIES COMPETITION 2002 "In
almost all projects up-to-date knowledge about Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) is crucial, but resources and access to this knowledge are
very limited. Moreover, in most projects there is neither time nor money to
carefully compare the various options available. In such a situation, the
experiences of others facing the same problems become invaluable. By learning
from the mistakes and successes of others, one does not have to reinvent the
wheel. Further, the rapidly changing nature of ICTs means that continuous
innovations and availability of information can confuse the picture. In such a
dynamic environment, opportunities to learn from one's own experiences and to
share the experiences of others become an important means to strengthen
respective know-ledge bases. "In
1998, infoDev and IICD acknowledged how important experiences and lessons
learned are in the field of ICTs for development by agreeing to partner to
support the ICT Stories Project. Knowledge is generated throughout the entire
course of a project. The ICT Stories objective is to capture the learning
process that accompanies the introduction and implementation of ICTs in a
project in exemplary stories. These stories describe good practices and lessons
learned from contributors' experiences. "The
collected stories are stored in a database on a joint website (www.iicd.org/stories)
and available to anybody interested in projects with ICT components. The ICT
Stories deal with a range of problems and opportunities and with a variety of
actors, project sizes, objectives, target groups and regions. By means of a
single keyword search one can retrieve a collection of stories from a number of
different projects, all discussing a single issue. The readers could then learn
about those experiences and contact the project implementer if they wish "To
kick-off ICT Stories and to motivate story owners to share their knowledge, IICD
and infoDev launched an annual competition. An internationally acclaimed ICT
Stories jury selects the winning stories from a growing database. Our expert
panel of judges selects winning stories based on guidelines jointly formulated
by infoDev and IICD. These are as follows: "The
project ·
involves
important issues in the field of ICT and development; ·
uses
ICT in a new way: it may use state-of-the-art technology; basic ICTs in a
creative way, or a combination of ICT and traditional media; ·
has
a significant effect on the sector it is applied to; ·
serves
as a model for other initiatives "The
story ·
gives
a background of the project and describes the incentives for creating it; ·
clearly
specifies the challenges encountered during the project and describes how these
challenges; ·
includes
advice for others." PRIZE:
The
annual contest winners participate in an international ICT event to present
their story to the public. infoDev and IICD as part of the collaboration,
cooperate to support these events. ENTRY
FEE: None DEADLINE:
April 15, 2002 URL:
http://www.iicd.org/stories/ LITERAL
LATTE SHORT SHORTS AWARDS "Send
Unpublished Stories, 2,000 Word Max. All styles and subjects welcome.
Simultaneous submissions welcome, let us know if a piece is accepted
elsewhere." PRIZE:
$500 ENTRY
FEE: $10 DEADLINE:
June 1, 2002 URL:
http://www.literal-latte.com THE
GREAT LIMERICK COMPETITION "This
competition is restricted to writers resident in Australia and New Zealand. "We're
looking for limericks on all types of subject matter. They need not be funny for
there's a section for serious topics as well. Here are the sections in the adult
section: 1.
Humorous limericks – something that will raise a smile. 2.
Serious topics – it may be personal, or it may be a comment on a serious topic
3.
Current affairs – either in Australia or overseas, and it can be either
humorous or serious. 4.
Australiana – this section is for limericks with a definite Aussie feel. 5.
A Kiwi Slant - a section for New Zealand writers to show their skill. "There
is also a section for Young Writers, (under 25), Senior Writers (60 and over),
and Children (12 years and under). As well, we'll be paying a fee of $5 for each
limerick that is published in the anthology." PRIZE:
AU$ 50 ENTRY
FEE: None DEADLINE:
March 31, 2002 URL:
http://www.writersnewsletter.com/Australia/Limericks/limericks.html
HOW-TO
ARTICLE CONTEST "Nonfiction
that explains how to accomplish any goal or task; 1,500 words maximum. Examples:
How to grow prize roses; writing the personal essay; teach yourself to be happy
in five easy lessons." PRIZE:
$40, $25, $15 ENTRY
FEE: $4 DEADLINE:
April 20, 2002 URL:
http://www.bylinemag.com/default.asp PERSONAL
JOURNALING'S JOY OF WRITING CONTEST "Celebrate
the Joy of Writing! "The
editors of Personal Journaling magazine bring you a competition designed to
honor and promote the craft of personal writing. Celebrate writing's meaning in
your life in either a personal essay or personal poem. "Each
entry must convey the value or impact writing has had on your life." PRIZE:
$100 in F&W Publications books ENTRY
FEE: $5 DEADLINE:
November 26, 2002 URL:
http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/joyofwriting.asp
A
PICTURE IS WORTH 1000 (TO 3000) WORDS CONTEST "Two
pictures are posted to the website, one entitled 'Creative Matter,' the other, 'Spirit
in the Stars' "Pick
one and write a story in 1000 words and under OR up to 3000 words!" PRIZE:
"This
is a three-way contest. The artist and author split the kitty with FUTURES.
We’d like to make it great for both artist and author. That’s the goal! Tell
your friends! Interested artists may contact babs." ENTRY
FEE: $10 DEADLINE:
March 31, 2002 URL:
http://www.futuresforstorylovers.com
WRITERS
UNKNOWN SHORT STORY CONTEST "Writers
Unknown is dedicated to helping emerging authors break into the world of
publishing. We will publish and distribute semi-annual, high quality paper back
editions that include a collection of short stories and poetry written by
unpublished authors. Our staff has over 35 years combined experience in editing,
printing, advertising, and graphics design. Writers Unknown would like to be the
stepping stone for authors to present their work to Real People, without the
headaches and heartaches or painful rejections from editors and publishing
houses. Writers Unknown is dedicated to authors world-wide. "
Short
Stories: Love, romance, mystery, crime, humor, and more. Remember we are
publishing short stories and our books are not required to follow a specific
theme, we will have a wide range of readers...so put your heart into any
topic.....we read every entry. Authors chosen for publication receive an additional
$200!" PRIZE:
$300,
$200, $100 ENTRY
FEE: $10 DEADLINE:
June1, 2002 URL:
http://www.writersunknown.com/contest.html I have been an accountant for a very long time, but I always wanted to be a
writer when I grew up. I realised a year or so back, that there's not that
many decades left for me get grown up, and so I'm working part time at learning
how to be a writer. Besides my column here, I write a weekly article on
Women Abuse for Suite101.com - not a pretty subject, but if you have the
stomach, check it out at http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/women_abuse
- and have recently been promoted by them to Managing Editor (Food). |
|
