Writing and Publishing News from

A new issue of SPAWNews hits our subscribers email boxes this morning, as it does every first of the month. You don’t have to be a member of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) in order to subscribe.

If you are a subscriber, and I know that many of you are, you’ve probably already read your copy and feel inspired and/or more well-informed. For those of you who do not subscribe, you can read the November issue here http://www.spawn.org Click on “SPAWNews.”

Click at the top left side of the page where it says “click here” and you will receive a subscription to the e-newsletter as well as a free ebooklet, “Promote Yourself, 25 Ways to Promote Your Work Whether You’re an Artist, Author or Small Publisher.”

In this month’s issue you’ll find information about writing the essay. Our editor, Sandra Murphy, interviewed the editor of the Christian Science Monitor about how to break into the magazine with an essay. It isn’t as difficult as you might think. Also in this issue, one of our esteemed members talks about how to write a personal essay and another one explains the difference between a personal essay and a memoir. Our resident Book Doctor answers more questions this week, including how to get involved writing a newspaper column. I offer a smorgasbord of mini-book reviews, including books on book marketing, self-publishing, writing children’s picture books, and making a living as a poet. And our president shares a few thoughts on whether or not you are thinking big enough about your book—beyond how much money you can make and more about what your book can bring into your life. Fascinating topic!

We always include member announcements, so you’ll get an idea about what some of our members are doing to promote their books, etc.

Are you interested in contests and various events occurring throughout the US? You’ll find several only a click away.

Each issue of SPAWNews (which is free to all subscribers) includes information about the SPAWN Market Update which is posted on the first of each month in the member area of the SPAWN website. This newsletter is available to members only and it is jam-packed with opportunities and resources for authors, artists, freelance writers. We also include information and resources for photographers, screenplay writers and other creatives. Herein you’ll find job directories, book marketing ideas and resources, current opportunities for authors seeking publishers or freelance writers with stories/articles to publish, for example.

The member area also includes dozens of interviews with publishing/book marketing professionals that you can download and listen to. Members can also participate in SPAWNDiscuss—our member online discussion group.

SPAWN will be going to the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books again this year. If you have a book you’d like to exhibit and/or sell from our booth, you’ll definitely want to become a member. Watch for news about this beginning in the December SPAWNews.

It’s $65 per year to join SPAWN. http://www.spawn.org Click on “join/renew.”

Questions? Patricia@spawn.org.

I received my new 2012 Writer’s Market this week. It sure has a different look. There are a lot more pages of instruction and guidance, which is nice for many who will pick this book up. In fact, the help material would fill a regular size book. It encompasses over 200 pages.

There are new symbols to get used to—a plus sign instead of an N signifying new to this edition publishers and magazines, an arrow showing an online opportunity and a little comment balloon dealy that is supposed to indicate comments from the editor of Writer’s Market. At least some of these, however, actually note comments from the publisher or editor of the listing.

The print for magazine titles and publisher names is lighter and the format different than I am used to. I’m not sure I like it, but I will get used to it.

I soooo miss the Book Publishers Subject Index. Do you remember this in the 2010 and a few earlier editions of the Writer’s Market? I thought this was a most useful tool for authors who were seeking publishers of children’s books, mysteries, western stories, self-help and so forth.

It was also the 2010 edition whose page numbers were askew. The Subject Index listing might say the publisher was on page 285, but it was actually on 286. This was a problem throughout this section.

The Writer’s Market has been informing and guiding authors and writers for ninety-one years. I’ve been purchasing Writer’s Market for thirty-nine years. And boy do I use it. I used it probably daily when I was supporting myself through magazine article-writing, especially before the advent of the Internet, which didn’t come into my life until around 1996. And I use it still on behalf of clients and students who are seeking a publisher or an appropriate magazine to send something to. I use it as a research tool while compiling the SPAWN Market Update. I refer to it often when I am writing certain articles and books and I recommend it frequently to anyone who is seeking a publisher or an appropriate magazine.

For those of you who are new to the world of publishing and freelance article/story writing, Writer’s Market lists publishers who are seeking manuscripts. You’ll find contact information, the type of material they are looking for, tips for submitting to each particular publishing house and website listings where you can locate additional information. You’ll also find consumer and trade magazine listings in all categories—literary, juvenile, regional, business, fashion, association, management, health, auto, animals, general interest and so forth.

While there is a whole lot of information contained in each listing, I always recommend that you do not approach a publisher or a magazine editor until you have studied that particular publisher or magazine Submission Guidelines. Generally, you’ll find these at the publisher’s or magazine’s website. If they are not there, email the editor and ask for a copy.

Sometimes it is difficult to locate submission guidelines on a publisher’s website. In my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, on page 24, I give fairly detailed instructions for locating submission guidelines when they are not obvious. And there are a whole lot of publishers who seem to do their best to conceal these guidelines. What are they thinking?

Order your copy of The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book at a discount here: http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Get your copy of the 2012 Writer’s Market at http://www.writersmarket.com or at your local bookstore or through Amazon.com