New Magazine Listing: Fictive Dream
firstwriter.com – Wednesday August 19, 2026
Publishes microfiction, flash fiction, and short stories up to 2,500 words, including translations, with all work previously unpublished in print or online. Handles microfiction to 400 words, flash fiction to 1,000 words, and short stories to 2,500 words. Seeks original fiction submitted as Word attachments and welcomes simultaneous submissions. Nominates selected work for national and international awards and retains First Serial Rights and non-exclusive Electronic Archival Rights.
New Literary Agency Listing: Selby Howard
firstwriter.com – Tuesday August 18, 2026
A literary agency founded with four decades of experience. Interests are eclectic and span literary fiction, narrative and expert-led non-fiction; lifestyle and cookery, politics, history, memoir and biography.
After Editing Two AI-Assisted Manuscripts, I Rewrote My Client Agreement
janefriedman.com – Thursday August 13, 2026
Having worked on thousands of manuscripts as a freelance editor, I’ve developed a pretty reliable instinct for what makes a project difficult to edit. That said, I have never priced my services according to a manuscript’s overall perceived “quality” or the level of “effort” required to offer feedback (as these judgments are extremely subjective).
Recently, AI-generated writing has entered my inbox, and this has made me rethink what editors are being asked to do, how, and how to charge for operating in this new world.
Earlier this year, I unknowingly accepted two AI-assisted novels back-to-back. Why? Well, I didn’t ask … and the clients didn’t disclose their chatbot use. Now, this article isn’t an ethical argument about AI. Writers will make their own decisions about where and whether these tools belong in their creative process, as will the industry at large. This is, however, an article about how editors should protect themselves accordingly from AI “scope creep” with new contracts and even fee schedules.
New Literary Agency Listing: Renegade Literary
firstwriter.com – Thursday August 13, 2026
Handles literary fiction marked by serious ambition and a desire to be widely read, favouring work that is emotionally precise, unafraid of darkness, and willing to confront grief, history, and the uncanny. Represents contemporary poetry by established voices whose work interrogates migration, desire, embodiment, and the aftermath of upheaval. Seeks evocative lyrical voices, structurally inventive forms, and perspectives that engage meaningfully with the world.
Why Your Book Description Feels Flat—and How to Fix It
janefriedman.com – Wednesday August 12, 2026
Every good blurb takes readers on an emotional journey—a sort of miniature version of your story. You’re creating a series of emotional beats that guide readers from:
Curiosity > Interest > Action
If this progression is missing, your blurb will feel flat and directionless. Your blurb should move through three stages:
- Who is your protagonist?
- What is going on with the plot?
- Why should I turn the page?
Your “who” should spark curiosity by establishing your protagonist’s unique situation. Your “what” covers the problems your protagonist is facing. Your “why” convinces readers to click “Look Inside” or make a purchase. This could be an unanswered question, an impossible choice, a major threat, or a promise of transformation.
New Publisher Listing: Weatherglass Books
firstwriter.com – Wednesday August 12, 2026
Publishes novellas and short works of literary fiction, with a focus on distinctive voices and formally adventurous storytelling. Issues a novella prize and produces limited‑run editions through a subscription model, offering new writing in compact formats. Handles original fiction rather than nonfiction, concentrating on work that blends clarity of style with imaginative depth.
How a Debut Self-Published Novel Earned Five Figures in 10 Weeks Without Kindle Unlimited
janefriedman.com – Wednesday August 12, 2026
When I made the decision to self-publish my historical novel Emmaline, I had little knowledge about book publishing. But having spent 25 years in journalism and marketing, I understood enough to know that publishing was both art and business. I suspected the same marketing principles that I used to help organizations communicate with audiences would also serve me in this new endeavor, even if I had to learn the business side of book publishing from scratch.
Emmaline is an adult historical novel primarily set during the 1856 Mormon handcart migration. It follows a 14-year-old girl who escapes a forced plural marriage. The book explores themes like grief, religious coercion, polygamy, and the struggle for personal agency. But at its heart, Emmaline is a character-driven story about resilience.
Defining the goal
I started by asking myself the question I have asked marketing clients over the years: What is your goal? I don’t believe there is one perfect marketing strategy for anything. Start with your goal and work backward to get there.
Some indie authors simply want to have a book printed for family and friends. Others want to publish frequently and build a profitable backlist. I didn’t want either of those things. I wanted to produce a novel that could stand alongside traditionally published comps and be taken seriously. None of these goals is right or wrong. But each leads to a different set of publishing decisions.
Call for Submissions: Dominion II Seeks Speculative Fiction of Black Resistance | Submit by February 28, 2027
brittlepaper.com – Tuesday August 11, 2026
Crowne Books, the Black woman-owned independent press behind the acclaimed 2020 anthology Dominion, has opened submissions for its long-awaited sequel, Dominion II: Speculative Stories of Black Resistance from Africa and the African Diaspora. The anthology is edited by the award-winning duo Olivia Nightingale and Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, who previously partnered on Dominion and on Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction (Tordotcom, 2022), the latter of which earned an NAACP Image Award nomination.
Where the first Dominion asked what the legacy and future of Africa and its diaspora might look like, Dominion II poses a sharper question: how do we fight for the future while holding fiercely onto the past? Editors are calling for boundary-pushing, unapologetic Black speculative fiction and poetry grounded in real-world liberation histories work that carries Black joy, communal defiance, and untamed magic across genres like Sword & Soul, Afrofuturism and Africanfuturism, Afropantheology, Horror Noire, Steamfunk and Dieselfunk, Black Cli-fi, and more. Stories engaging the global climate crisis are of particular interest to the editors.
New Magazine Listing: The Poke
firstwriter.com – Tuesday August 11, 2026
Publishes humour content drawn from trending videos, tweets and news, covering politics, celebrity, entertainment, sport, science and life stories. Features satirical takes on current events, social media reactions, unusual happenings and offbeat human interest pieces. Presents short, topical articles built around viral moments, public commentary and comedic perspectives.
New Literary Agent Listing: Lucy Malone
firstwriter.com – Monday August 10, 2026
Handles multi-generational domestic novels in which characters develop over extended periods. Seeks historical fiction set before the twentieth century, including work exploring female familial relationships and wide-ranging narratives of the past. Reads psychological suspense, crime and thrillers and is interested in big, pacy standalone novels with unexpected twists. Looks for nonfiction with elements of mystery, discovery and forensic re-examination of history, including narratives uncovering lost places and challenging established interpretations.
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