This edition includes author events, writing contests, how to get started on an author platform, and more.
On November 2, the Norwalk Library (CT), with the help of Connecticut Book Festivals, will be celebrating Indie Author Day with their Eighth Annual Book and Author Festival. Fifty authors (including me) will be included, with opportunities to meet readers and sell their books. If you’d like to be one of them and live in Connecticut, please email cynde@norwalkpl.org. Raffles will include two season tickets to the Westport Country Playhouse and a Family four pack to Stepping Stone Museum, as well as a chance to win coffee with a number of CT authors. (A one-hour coffee rendezvous at a convenient location.)
UK organization Creative Writing Ink’s 2024 Short Story Competition is open for entries until November 15. 3,000 words max. £9 entry fee. £1,000 top prize. The winner also receives a free creative writing course and publication on their website.
The ninth To Hull And Back humorous short story competition is open for entries until June 30, 2025. There’s a £10 early bird entry fee in place until March 31, 2025. From April 1 until the closing date the entry fee is £12. Discounts offered if you submit more than one story. 2,500 words max. Top prize is £1,000, your head on the book and a trip to Hull (if you live in the UK). All shortlisted entrants receive a cash prize and are published in an anthology. Total prize pot: £2,000.
Our old friends Authors Publish have produced a list of 31 Magazines that Publish Flash Fiction with links to each of them. These magazines accept micro and flash fiction; many of them also accept longer stories, nonfiction, and poetry. They’re a mix of literary and genre magazines, and listed in no particular order. Many, but not all, of them are open for submissions now. While they all publish tiny fictions, their tastes and aesthetics vary widely. Please read their archived stories wherever possible, to see if your work is a good fit. Here are a couple of examples:
The Citron Review – This is a journal of brief literature; their tagline is, ‘Short forms that shimmer’. They publish micros (100-word pieces across genres), flash fiction and nonfiction (up to 1,000 words), and poetry. The deadline is 6 December; some categories can close periodically. Details here and here.
Flash Fiction Online – They publish flash fiction, 500-1,000 words, literary as well as across many genres. They also accept reprints. Pay is $100 for original stories. They opened on September 1 for reprint flash fiction, and will open October 1 for original flash stories. They close when they reach their Submittable cap. Details here.
Interested in book awards for your book? Book Award Pro operates the world’s largest database of legitimate book reviews and awards. They offer a variety of paid services but there’s also a free version with access to the database. Here’s a link to a useful article on how to look for the warning signs that a given award may be a scam.
Happy Writing!
