NORTHWEST INDEPENDENT WRITERS ASSOCIATION
  • HOME
  • NIWA
    • Our History
    • Board of Directors
    • Become a Member >
      • Membership Application
      • Membership Policy
  • BOOKS
    • 2021 NEW RELEASES
    • NIWA SEAL OF QUALITY AWARDED BOOKS
    • SEARCH BY AUTHOR >
      • A >
        • April Aasheim
        • J M M Adams
        • Heather Ames
        • Frank Arcilesi
        • Stephen Atkins
      • B >
        • Pam Bainbridge-Cowan
        • Barry L. Becker
        • Michael Bershay
        • Kerry Blaisdell
        • D Dean Boom
        • Lori Beasley Bradley
        • Anna Brentwood
        • Andy R. Bunch
      • C >
        • Baer Charlton
        • L B Cheryl
        • Mike Chinakos
        • Kathleen Concannon
        • Jeffrey Cook
        • William J. Cook
        • Adam Copeland
        • Pamela Cowan
        • Lisa Cromwell
      • D >
        • Steve DaVala
        • Disa Dawn
        • Sheila Deeth
        • Raven J. Demers
        • Laura Doyle
        • Liam R. W. Doyle
      • E - F - G >
        • Jonathan Eaton
        • Jonathan Michael Erickson
        • Johanna Flynn
        • James L. Gillaspy
        • Thomas Gondolfi
        • Joel Graves
      • H >
        • Stephen Hagelin
        • Suzanne Hagelin
        • Heidi Hansen
        • Mindy Hardwick
        • Audra Harley
        • Anne Hendren
        • Angela Highland
        • M. P. Hopcroft
        • M. W. Horses
        • A. M. Huff
        • Mollie Hunt
      • I - J - K >
        • Maquel A. Jacob
        • Maggie Jaimeson
        • Connie J. Jasperson
        • F. L. Journey
        • Kimila Kay
        • Sheri J. Kennedy
        • Signe Kopps
        • Angela Korra'ti
      • L >
        • Michael R. Lane
        • Katherine Lee
        • Ellie Derrick Lewis
        • Cyn Ley
        • Larry Lindberg
        • Eric Little
        • Maggie Lynch
      • M >
        • Tonya Macalino
        • James D. Macon
        • Ramona D. Marek
        • David Martyn
        • tom r. mcconnell
        • Nikki McCormack
        • James M. McCracken
        • Donald McEwing
        • Roslyn McFarland
        • K Z Miller
        • Rory Miller
        • Jeff Monday
        • Sonja S Mongar
        • Barbara J Moritsch
        • Linda B. Myers
      • N - O - P >
        • Judy Nedry
        • R. W. Nichelson
        • Tammy Owen
        • Jocelynn Pearl
        • Julie Pershing
        • Nichole Phoenix
        • Courtney Pierce
        • L. Wade Powers
        • E. M. Prazeman
      • Q - R >
        • Kennedy J. Quinn
        • Cordelia Rains
        • JMD Reid
        • Shawna Reppert
        • Joyce Reynolds-Ward
        • Ellen King Rice
        • P. K. Ross
        • R Roderick Rowe
      • S - T - U >
        • Andretta Schellinger
        • Steven C Schneider
        • B. J. Scott
        • James Scott
        • R. G. Shannon
        • Ann Simas
        • Susie Slanina
        • Walt Socha
        • Thomas Stimson
        • Brian Tashima
        • Charles Thomas
        • Patrick Timm
        • Contessa Timmerman
      • V- W- X - Y - Z >
        • Theresa Verboort
        • Cody Voeller
        • Brad Wheeler
        • Steve Zell
        • Gregory E. Zschomler
    • SEARCH BY GENRE >
      • Anthologies
      • Children
      • Teens / Young Adult
      • New Adult Fiction
      • Action & Adventure
      • Contemporary
      • Erotica
      • Fantasy
      • Historical Fiction
      • Horror
      • LGBTQ
      • Literary Fiction
      • Mysteries
      • Cozy Mysteries
      • Paranormal
      • Romance
      • Sci-Fi
      • Suspense Thrillers
      • Non-Fiction
    • GIFT SHOP
  • NEWS BITS
  • MEMBERS ONLY
    • ANTHOLOGY >
      • 2021 ANTHOLOGY FORBIDDEN
      • ESCAPE - Contributor Copy Request
      • ANTHOLOGIES - Member Discount
    • ADD MY BOOK
    • AUTHOR PAGE INFO
    • BANNER BLITZ
    • BOOK COVER ASSISTANCE
    • BUNDLE BLITZ
    • EVENTS >
      • ADD AN EVENT
      • ANNUAL EVENTS & SIGNUPS
      • PAY TABLE FEES
      • Annual Events - Events Director
      • Event Checklist
      • Event Assistance
    • FEATURED AUTHOR INTERVIEW FORM
    • NSQ
    • PUBLISHING CHECK LIST
    • RENEW MY MEMBERSHIP
    • RESOURCE DIRECTORY >
      • Advertise Your Book
      • Cover Designers
      • Editing & Formatting
      • Grammar
      • Indie Friendly Bookstores
      • Printers
      • Publishing
      • Add A Resource
    • REVIEW A BOOK
    • SHARE MY SHORT STORY, 1ST CHAPTER, OR EXCERPT
    • UPDATE MY MEMBER INFO
    • ZOOM MEETING VIDEOS

Getting Your Name Out There

7/1/2016

1 Comment

 
Picture
Getting Your Name Out There: Why indies should write short stories
By Connie J. Jasperson
 
I’ve always been an avid reader, and one of my favorite things to talk about is what I am reading. Right now I’m reading several excellent anthologies, one of which was published recently by a collective of Northwest Indie writers, several of whom are NIWA members. Each of the stories I’ve read so far have been well-written and the anthologies were edited well. The cover art was awesome, but what was inside the book is what really intrigued me.

When I think about it, over the years most of the works that stuck with me as a reader have been short stories.

Writing short stories and submitting them is important if authors of any stripe, indie or traditionally published, want to get their names out there. Millions of readers subscribe to online magazines, and also millions still get their reading material in hard copy form. Readers all over the world are reading works written in English, especially in Asia and Europe.

Having your work accepted and published is more than just balm for the ego—it establishes your credibility as a writer and your author name shows up on google searches in more places.

Something to think about—it is through writing short stories that people like Anne McCaffrey and Isaac Asimov first began to find acceptance in the publishing community.

In the 1950s and 1960s, magazines focusing on speculative fiction were popular and at that time, there weren't many authors writing in that genre. People didn't have the internet, but they did have limited free time and short attention spans. Not only that, thanks to the space race, they wanted science fiction.

Magazines offered surprisingly high-quality short fiction in lengths that fit into the busy lifestyle of the time.  My father subscribed to four magazines as did my mother. Magazines or books would arrive in our mailbox each week, as my parents were also members of the Science Fiction Book Club and the Double Day Book Club. This meant that besides the eight magazines, four new hard-cover books would arrive at our house every month.

Frequently, those books were anthologies of short stories.

Times have changed and so has the publishing industry. But writing short stories is still the way to get your foot in the door and not only gain visibility, but you will grow as a writer. Magazines are springing up all over the internet, and they are accepting submissions.

It is a good idea to begin putting together a collection of short pieces in a variety of genres and in as wide a range of topics as you can think of.  The following is a list of on-line sci-fi/fantasy magazines, and many in every other genre are also accepting submissions:
Apex Magazine 
Fantasy Scroll Magazine
Strange Horizons 
Challenger 
Interzone 
Asimov's Science Fiction 
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
Analog Science Fiction and Fact

The ones I've listed here are only the tip of the iceberg—there is opportunity out there for indies to gain both visibility and credibility by publishing short works through traditional routes.
But what if you don’t write speculative fiction? I writ in any genre I am in the mood for. Much of my published short work has been mainstream, although my novels are epic fantasy. But here is a good list of places accepting more mainstream work. Some may not be accepting submissions, but many are: BookFox Top 100 Journals Accepting Online Submissions

I hear the Ghost of Rejections Past wailing in the background, "But what if I get rejected?" 
Rejection happens. I could wallpaper the inside of an outhouse with them. Step back, take a good look at the story, and if you still think it’s your best work, shop it to a different magazine. Every story I’ve ever sold was rejected at least once before it was accepted elsewhere. Sometimes, the place you submitted it was not the right market for that particular story. Read their guidelines carefully so you aren’t trying to submit a fantasy to a magazine like Analog—they won’t accept it, and won’t tell you why.

The thing is, magazines are not the only reason you need a backlog of short stories--consider CONTESTS. Many are free and have reputable histories. The Write Life posted this article on 27 Free Writing Contests.

Not all contests are free, and not all contests are reputable. Exercise "due-diligence" here. I enter the Lascaux Review contest every time a new one pops up, simply because it is highly reputable, is one of the friendliest to indies, and has a reasonable entry fee, usually $10.00.

Yes, that is cheap, and I know that entering contests can be far more expensive. I hear you asking if you must pay to enter and can't be guaranteed a prize, why should you do it?

It will develop your writing chops. Because you must write to the parameters of the contest, you grow your writing muscles each time you exercise them. Being forced to work within the confines of an arbitrary external limit forces you to become more creative if you are (as I am) of a naturally rebellious nature.

You have to use common sense here. If you can't afford it, don't enter that contest. Find one you can afford and see what you have that fits their needs. Every contest has rules and limits for the work they want to see in their submissions.

Writing short stories forces you to write more: more often, more widely on a wide range of topics, and more creatively using a variety of style. Using and building these writing-chops can only grow you as an author.  

And the best part is, once you have a back list of articles and short stories you can draw on, you have an edge. When a submissions open for a contest or an anthology, or for that sfwa affiliated magazine you’ve been dying to get your work into, you will have an entry all proofed and ready to submit.


Picture
1 Comment
Howard link
12/3/2020 12:36:26 am

Interesting read.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Contributor:
    Connie J Jasperson

    Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.

    Archives

    February 2021
    January 2021
    November 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016

    Categories

    All
    BLOGGING
    MARKETING
    PUBLISHING
    WRITING

    RSS Feed

PRIVACY POLICY

© COPYRIGHT 2021
Northwest Independent Writers Association.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Contact us at:
Mailing Address:   Northwest Independent Writers Association
                                            P.O. Box 1171
                                            Redmond, OR  97756

Email:  president@niwawriters.com
                webmaster@niwawriters.com

  • HOME
  • NIWA
    • Our History
    • Board of Directors
    • Become a Member >
      • Membership Application
      • Membership Policy
  • BOOKS
    • 2021 NEW RELEASES
    • NIWA SEAL OF QUALITY AWARDED BOOKS
    • SEARCH BY AUTHOR >
      • A >
        • April Aasheim
        • J M M Adams
        • Heather Ames
        • Frank Arcilesi
        • Stephen Atkins
      • B >
        • Pam Bainbridge-Cowan
        • Barry L. Becker
        • Michael Bershay
        • Kerry Blaisdell
        • D Dean Boom
        • Lori Beasley Bradley
        • Anna Brentwood
        • Andy R. Bunch
      • C >
        • Baer Charlton
        • L B Cheryl
        • Mike Chinakos
        • Kathleen Concannon
        • Jeffrey Cook
        • William J. Cook
        • Adam Copeland
        • Pamela Cowan
        • Lisa Cromwell
      • D >
        • Steve DaVala
        • Disa Dawn
        • Sheila Deeth
        • Raven J. Demers
        • Laura Doyle
        • Liam R. W. Doyle
      • E - F - G >
        • Jonathan Eaton
        • Jonathan Michael Erickson
        • Johanna Flynn
        • James L. Gillaspy
        • Thomas Gondolfi
        • Joel Graves
      • H >
        • Stephen Hagelin
        • Suzanne Hagelin
        • Heidi Hansen
        • Mindy Hardwick
        • Audra Harley
        • Anne Hendren
        • Angela Highland
        • M. P. Hopcroft
        • M. W. Horses
        • A. M. Huff
        • Mollie Hunt
      • I - J - K >
        • Maquel A. Jacob
        • Maggie Jaimeson
        • Connie J. Jasperson
        • F. L. Journey
        • Kimila Kay
        • Sheri J. Kennedy
        • Signe Kopps
        • Angela Korra'ti
      • L >
        • Michael R. Lane
        • Katherine Lee
        • Ellie Derrick Lewis
        • Cyn Ley
        • Larry Lindberg
        • Eric Little
        • Maggie Lynch
      • M >
        • Tonya Macalino
        • James D. Macon
        • Ramona D. Marek
        • David Martyn
        • tom r. mcconnell
        • Nikki McCormack
        • James M. McCracken
        • Donald McEwing
        • Roslyn McFarland
        • K Z Miller
        • Rory Miller
        • Jeff Monday
        • Sonja S Mongar
        • Barbara J Moritsch
        • Linda B. Myers
      • N - O - P >
        • Judy Nedry
        • R. W. Nichelson
        • Tammy Owen
        • Jocelynn Pearl
        • Julie Pershing
        • Nichole Phoenix
        • Courtney Pierce
        • L. Wade Powers
        • E. M. Prazeman
      • Q - R >
        • Kennedy J. Quinn
        • Cordelia Rains
        • JMD Reid
        • Shawna Reppert
        • Joyce Reynolds-Ward
        • Ellen King Rice
        • P. K. Ross
        • R Roderick Rowe
      • S - T - U >
        • Andretta Schellinger
        • Steven C Schneider
        • B. J. Scott
        • James Scott
        • R. G. Shannon
        • Ann Simas
        • Susie Slanina
        • Walt Socha
        • Thomas Stimson
        • Brian Tashima
        • Charles Thomas
        • Patrick Timm
        • Contessa Timmerman
      • V- W- X - Y - Z >
        • Theresa Verboort
        • Cody Voeller
        • Brad Wheeler
        • Steve Zell
        • Gregory E. Zschomler
    • SEARCH BY GENRE >
      • Anthologies
      • Children
      • Teens / Young Adult
      • New Adult Fiction
      • Action & Adventure
      • Contemporary
      • Erotica
      • Fantasy
      • Historical Fiction
      • Horror
      • LGBTQ
      • Literary Fiction
      • Mysteries
      • Cozy Mysteries
      • Paranormal
      • Romance
      • Sci-Fi
      • Suspense Thrillers
      • Non-Fiction
    • GIFT SHOP
  • NEWS BITS
  • MEMBERS ONLY
    • ANTHOLOGY >
      • 2021 ANTHOLOGY FORBIDDEN
      • ESCAPE - Contributor Copy Request
      • ANTHOLOGIES - Member Discount
    • ADD MY BOOK
    • AUTHOR PAGE INFO
    • BANNER BLITZ
    • BOOK COVER ASSISTANCE
    • BUNDLE BLITZ
    • EVENTS >
      • ADD AN EVENT
      • ANNUAL EVENTS & SIGNUPS
      • PAY TABLE FEES
      • Annual Events - Events Director
      • Event Checklist
      • Event Assistance
    • FEATURED AUTHOR INTERVIEW FORM
    • NSQ
    • PUBLISHING CHECK LIST
    • RENEW MY MEMBERSHIP
    • RESOURCE DIRECTORY >
      • Advertise Your Book
      • Cover Designers
      • Editing & Formatting
      • Grammar
      • Indie Friendly Bookstores
      • Printers
      • Publishing
      • Add A Resource
    • REVIEW A BOOK
    • SHARE MY SHORT STORY, 1ST CHAPTER, OR EXCERPT
    • UPDATE MY MEMBER INFO
    • ZOOM MEETING VIDEOS