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Thursday’s Work-in-Progress: Non-Writing Writing Resolutions

by Erika Dreifus on
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How many of you have made New Year’s resolutions concerning your writing practice this year? Let me see those virtual hands!

As you know, one week ago I was content with simply resolving to get a few projects under way before midnight on December 31. I’m happy to tell you that I did write and submit the two reviews I mentioned; I did send the newsletter out; and I did continue working on that prompt-into-poem-into-essay project (yes, that one has indeed carried me into 2012).

But with the surfeit of resolution-related posts that I’ve seen on others’ blogs lately, and the actual arrival of the new year, I think that I’m finally ready to make a few long-term resolutions regarding my writing practice. The funny thing is, none of them will require any writing. And not one of them is really new. (more…)

The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

by Erika Dreifus on
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New Year's cake decorated by my niece. Photo © Joanna Dreifus.
  • Susan Woodring shares generous New Year’s wishes for practicing writers. Meantime, here are some excellent New Year’s resolutions from independent publicist Dana Kaye (thanks to @_joycastro for pointing me to the latter).
  • @SocialDialect recommends a post that features 10 blogs about blogging, “because we can all use more resources.”
  • The New York Times profiles the Hmong American Writers’ Circle–and its preoccupations. (See also the sample writings.)
  • The Millions previews highly anticipated books coming in 2012. (Hint for those who want to build a book-reviewing practice–you may find some forthcoming titles for review pitches here.)
  • In case you’ve ever wondered exactly what a “poetry chapbook” is, Brian Klems explains.

    • Does Your Kid Love Books?

    by Erika Dreifus on
    Disabled

    If you’ve got a little bookworm on your hands–or you’re perhaps looking for something to help ignite a spark–check out Moment magazine’s Publish-a-Kid contest: “We invite young readers to write book reviews. Winning entries will be published in the pages of Moment. And yes, there will be prizes, too! We’ve selected a list of books for you to choose from. Pick one or more that you enjoy or find intriguing and tell us why!”

    The contest is open to “anyone ages 9-13,” and the magazine “encourage[s] children of all faiths to enter.” There’s no entry fee, and the deadline is February 15, 2012. You can read the 2011 winning entries online, and more about the contest, including the list of potential titles and the full rules/guidelines, right here.

    Quotation of the Week: Scott Nadelson

    by Erika Dreifus on
    Disabled

    Q: “What advice would you give your younger self?”

    “I think it would be the same advice I give myself now, whenever I feel frustrated or lost, whenever I worry that I’ll never write another decent book or story or sentence: Don’t take yourself too seriously.

    I once had a teacher who told me a story about a conversation he had with Grace Paley. He was working with her while at Stanford, complaining to her about how badly the writing was going, how tortured he was by the process. And she turned to him and said, ‘You don’t have to do it, you know. No one’s sitting around waiting for your next story.’

    It may be devastating to realize that no one but you is going to care if you stop writing. But it’s also wonderfully freeing. All pressures and expectations drop away. You don’t have to worry about shaping the future of literature or saving the world. You can just put one word after another for the simple pleasure of making something out of nothing.”

    Source: Interview with Scott Nadelson, Fiction Writers Review

    Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    Disabled
  • Based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, “Southern Cultures covers all aspects of the region’s mainstream and marginalized cultures—through interviews, essays, articles, personal reminiscences, poetry, fiction, reviews, and surveys on contemporary trends. We are a peer-reviewed quarterly and welcome well-written submissions year-round from authors, scholars, and anyone else with insights into our region.” Upcoming deadlines include March 5, 2012 (for the annual Music issue), and June 1, 2012 (for a Remembering the Civil War issue). Pays: “We pay $250 for essay-length pieces and $100 for shorter works.”
  • An interesting project is going on with two Canadian literary journals (both journals routinely pay their contributors). “In the fall of 2012, The Malahat Review and The Fiddlehead will celebrate the writing of each other’s regions, with the former publishing an East Coast issue and the latter a West Coast issue. Writers with strong connections to either or both regions are invited to submit to the issue that will best provide their work the most apt and safe harbor.” Submission deadline is May 15, 2012.
  • The January issue of The Practicing Writer went out to subscribers late last week. If you’re not yet a subscriber, you can read the current issue–and check out all of the no-fee competitions and paying submission calls–right here.
  • I’ve sung the praises of Duotrope.com for poets and fiction writers before: I’m delighted to see that the site will soon expand to cover creative-nonfiction markets, too!
  • Ohio University seeks an Assistant Professor of English (Creative Writing-Fiction).
  • From Hamline University (Minn.): “The Creative Writing Programs (CWP) invites applications for a tenure-track position in fiction to begin in August 2012.”
  • From Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts: “The English/Communications Department seeks candidates for a full-time, temporary faculty position in Creative Writing and Literature, to begin January 17, 2012, with the possibility of renewal. The successful candidate will teach a wide range of creative writing and literature courses and offer courses in the general education program, including composition.”
  • “The English Department at Portland State University [Ore.] invites applications for a tenure-track 1.0 FTE position as an Assistant Professor in Nonfiction Writing to begin in September 2012.”
  • California State University, Northridge, plan to hire an Assistant Professor in Screenwriting.
  • The University of Maryland University College seeks a Web Communications Writer-Editor, the University of Chicago Medical Center Development team is looking for a Senior Writer, and the National Constitution Center (Philadelphia) invites applications for an Editor-in-Chief position with Constitution Daily, the center’s blog.