Sean Penn Tries Writing
nationalreview.com – Thursday March 29, 2018
I’ll be the first to concede that I am sometimes — in the spirit of KDW and WFB — prone to a bit of sesquipedalian ostentation. Some call it legerdemain; some call it shtick. And, to be honest, sometimes it is shtick, but at least the reader is in on it. Anyway, I bring this up without apology, simply to head off the lazier charges of hypocrisy. But also to introduce some of the worst writing I’ve seen in a while, even if it is intended to be an homage to Thomas Pynchon.
Sean Penn has written a novel. Claire Fallon, over at the Huffington Post’s U.K. encampment, has done the heroic work of reading it. She’s posted excerpts:
New Magazine Listing
firstwriter.com – Wednesday March 28, 2018
Publishes: Essays; Fiction; Nonfiction; Poetry; Reviews
Areas include: Arts; Culture; Literature; Philosophy; Short Stories; Translations
Markets: Adult
Preferred styles: Literary
Online literary journal publishing literary fiction and nonfiction, reviews, poetry, art and photographic essays. See website for submission guidelines.
New Publisher Listing
firstwriter.com – Wednesday March 28, 2018
Publishes: Fiction; Nonfiction
Areas include: Culture
Markets: Children's
Preferred styles: Contemporary
Publishes picture books and narrative nonfiction focused on diversity for 4 to 8 year olds up to 500 words (prefers 200-400 words). Particularly interested in contemporary writing with modern-day settings, especially if they feature Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic families. Publishes almost exclusively authors of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds.
9 tips for writing your own murder mystery, from a published author
cosmopolitan.com – Monday March 26, 2018
So, you’ve got a great idea for a murder mystery novel – what do you do next? Writing a book can feel daunting, but if you're dead set (wahey) on writing a thriller, AJ Waines, number one bestselling author on Amazon, shares the inside know-how on getting that brilliant story out of your head and on to the page below.
New Magazine Listing
firstwriter.com – Monday March 26, 2018
Publishes: Poetry;
Markets: Adult;
Preferred styles: Literary; Traditional
Publishes rhymed verse in traditional forms, with an occasional piece of blank or free verse. Poems must be original, unpublished, and not under consideration elsewhere. Send submissions by post with SASE if return required (not necessary if email response is sufficient). No submissions by email unless from outside the US.
Get lit(erary): Why writing drunk could save your grade
dailycal.org – Saturday March 24, 2018
One thing I appreciate about being a copy editor is never having to face the dreaded writer’s block — all of the content I’m working with is already finished and ready for me to edit when I show up at the Daily Cal office. I may face a momentary pause as I contemplate what the most appropriate headline might be for a piece or how to fit all the critical information into a photo caption, but I’m never left sitting for hours unsure of how to continue my writing or even how to start or what to write about in the first place.
New Magazine Listing
firstwriter.com – Friday March 23, 2018
Publishes: Fiction; Poetry
Areas include: Short Stories
Markets: Adult
Preferred styles: Contemporary; Literary
Magazine of contemporary fiction and poetry, aimed at a UK audience. Submit up to six poems or up to one piece of fiction by email as attachments. No previously published material or simultaneous submissions. See website for full guidelines.
Why You Should Write for Free
lifehacker.com – Tuesday March 20, 2018
If you want to write for a living, you should write for free. Hell, if you already do write for a living, you should write for free. And that free writing should be some of your best work.
Unless you’re already famous for something else, you’ll write for free before you write for money. And if you try to make it your living, you might spend the rest of your life trying to make your paid writing look more like your free writing. Here’s the writing you probably should do for free, and the writing you probably shouldn’t:
Authors hit back at Self's claim 'the novel is doomed'
thebookseller.com – Monday March 19, 2018
Authors have hit back at writer Will Self's assertion that the novel is “doomed to become a marginal cultural form”.
Self’s interview in the Guardian, published on Saturday (17th March), featured insights into his thoughts on the Iraq war, e-readers, the future of fiction and female writers.
The headline of the interview with journalist Alex Clark, ‘The novel is doomed’, attracted much debate on social media with writers such as Colin Barrett, Roxane Gay and Joanne Harris disagreeing with Self.
Odds and Ends: The false romance of writing
thepostathens.com – Monday March 19, 2018
A great book was written way back in 1918, then expanded on in 1959 and in other editions. The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B. White is essentially the Swiss army knife of writing – small and bland, but wildly useful when you need it. The book aside, the foreword written by Roger Angell, White's stepson, resounds with all writers: “Writing is hard, even for authors who do it all the time.”
There is a pretty big misconception about writing, and that is that it’s this romantic affair between the author and a blank piece of paper or an empty Word document. Media outlets make writing out to be some odd thing in which you go on a date with your words; in reality, it’s a long-term relationship in which you sit at opposite ends of the couch and argue over what to watch on TV.
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