The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

  • Literary translator Peter Constantine describes his current work: translating early Chekhov stories.
  • Five “quick and dirty” submission tips from a lit-mag editor.
  • Lots of writers I know love The Sun, so I suspect that many of you will appreciate this interview with the magazine’s managing editor, Tim McKee. (via Leslie Pietrzyk)
  • Counsel on clips from freelancing expert Linda Formichelli.
  • I’ll be investigating this “Ultimate List of Twitter Tools.” (via @davidbcrowley)
  • And I’m bookmarking these “simple writing exercises” from Brian Klems.
  • Earlier this week I blogged about “My Year in Jewish Books” on my other blog (My Machberet, which focuses on matters of Jewish literary and cultural interest). Stay tuned for a “meta-post” in which I reflect on that post’s revelations.
  • Thursday’s Work-in-Progress

    I’ll admit it: I’m tired. Today we will be meeting a big deadline at the “day job,” and honestly, that’s my main focus right now.

    Which brings up a subject that I saw treated on the Fiction Writers Review blog earlier this week. What the question came down to was this: “Do you consider your day-job writing to be Real Writing? How does it affect your drive to tell your own stories in your fiction?”

    Well, now that I’ve had a little more time to think about this, I have a few more (and hopefully clearer) thoughts.

    First, for me, these are two discrete questions. At this point, I can divide my “day-job” writing and my “Real Writing” into two categories. But the “Real Writing” would include a lot of writing that isn’t fiction. I’ve written only two new short stories this year. But I have written poems, essays, book reviews, and magazine articles, too. None of that is for my “day job.” All of it is “real” writing.

    And sure, the memos, e-mails, and minutes that I work on at the day job may not reflect as much “creativity” as the rest. But I’m a writer who researches whether I’m writing fiction, a freelance article, or a memo. I’m a proofreader all the time. And frankly, I’m often far more deadline-driven at the day job than I am anywhere else. And there’s one big plus to my day job writing: I’m told, repeatedly and frequently, that the work that I’m doing is good. I’m told that it matters. I’m told that my skills are appreciated. Yes, I get some of that feedback as a fiction writer, too. But not nearly so much, and not nearly so often.

    The second question–about how my day job may affect my drive “to tell [my] own stories in [m]y fiction”–is more complicated, and it forces me to consider something I don’t especially enjoy thinking about very much. And that’s the fact that since I returned to a full-time, 9-5 office job, my fiction production has declined precipitously. I’m not sure I’ll ever be back where I was in my MFA program, when I was writing literally a dozen stories a year. I’m not sure why that is. I don’t think that it is due entirely to the changes in my schedule and the intense daily demands on my brainpower. But it’s true that most of the time I feel as though I’m thinking in poem or essay form. I’m thinking about something intense, something that can be encapsulated in a few lines, or a few pages. I’m thinking in ideas or emotions, not in images or characters. That’s been excellent for a lot of my outside-the-day-job writing. But it isn’t great for fiction.

    So much for clarity, I fear! What do you all think? Please chime in here or on the FWR blog, as you prefer.

    The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

  • Attention, MFA applicants: Wise words on the SOP (otherwise known as “statement of purpose”) from Cathy Day.
  • Advice from Betsy Lerner on how not to begin your query letter.
  • Kelly James-Enger shares “10 Ways to Treat Your Writing Business Like a Business.”
  • Sticking with that general theme: On Carol Tice’s “Make a Living Writing” blog, Syed Ali Abbas suggests “6 Elegant Ways Freelance Writers Can Raise Their Hourly Rates.”
  • Win a seat in Marla Beck’s virtual intensive course, “Two Days to Write.” Deadline to enter is Friday, December 2 (that’s the day after tomorrow!).
  • Excellent tips from Midge Raymond: “On getting (or not getting) reviews.”
  • Fascinating sneak peek into the new Norton nonfiction anthology. (via @fernham)
  • Special insights into litmag submissions, courtesy of Diane Lockward.
  • Over the Thanksgiving break, I had some time to catch up with my New Yorker issues. One of the pieces I most enjoyed is Thomas Mallon’s recent article on “alternate history” in fiction. That article is accessible to subscribers only, but you can listen to Mallon talk about the subject in this podcast.
  • I won’t be there this year, but you can check out the schedule for the 2012 Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) online now.
  • Monday Morning Markets/Jobs/Opportunities

  • “As a part of the Women of Color Travel Project (WOCTP), we invite you to submit your work for potential publication in our new book. This anthology aims to capture stories of women of color who see the world as their playground to explore and enjoy….This anthology will focus solely on the travel experiences of women of color: their experiences with different cultures, the ways in which their trips shaped their view of the world, themselves, their community and how, upon their return home, their lives were transformed. We are not looking for advice on what hotels and cafes to frequent. Rather, we want to hear how, through travel, you, as a woman of color, were able to connect with yourself.” Submission deadline: January 15, 2012. Pays: $20/piece on publication, plus percentage of royalties.
  • It’s almost time for the December issue of The Practicing Writer to go out to subscribers. More no-fee competitions and paying calls for poets, fictionists, and writers of creative nonfiction to consider. As always, it’s free to subscribe, and as always, we don’t share your email address.
  • From the Poetry Translation Centre (U.K.): “The Poetry Translation Centre is looking for a freelance Project Manager to work on its programme between January and March 2012. Home based, you will be working closely with PTC Director, Sarah Maguire. Your key responsibilities will be to co-ordinate production of four dual-language chapbooks and manage a series of about five readings by the Somali poet, Caasha Luul Mohamud Yusuf, and her translator, Clare Pollard. Previous experience of producing publications and events is essential, as are excellent communication and organisation skills, and the ability to work independently. Experience of working in the poetry sector would be an advantage. Fee for services: £200 per day for a maximum of 15 days between January and March 2012.” Apply by December 5.
  • Another opportunity for a U.K.-based writer: “Are you an established writer with extensive experience of undertaking writing residencies in England and across the UK? NAWE, in partnership with Literature Wales, Poetry Ireland and Scottish Book Trust, wishes to commission a briefing sheet on writing residencies aimed at writers who are interested in undertaking residency work and want to know more about what is involved and how to get started….This will be the latest title in the NAWE series of Briefings – other topics in this series of ‘how to’ factsheets to support the creative and business aspects of being a writer include writing and regeneration, fundraising for projects, time management, creative co-mentoring and marketing for authors. These are available as downloads from http://www.nawe.co.uk/the-writers-compass/resources.html The briefing will be available as a download from the NAWE website and from the websites of partner organizations Literature Wales, Poetry Ireland and Scottish Book Trust. A fee of £500 is available.” Apply by December 14.
  • The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is looking for a Web Writer/Assistant Editor for Technology Review, the Indiana University President’s Office seeks a Speech Writer, and Drexel University is accepting applications for a Web Writer/Site Manager.
  • The University of Wisconsin-Marathon County seeks an Assistant Professor of English (tenure-track). “RESPONSIBILITIES: Typical teaching load is twelve-credit hours per semester to include four, three-credit courses in both composition and creative writing. The candidate may teach courses in first year composition, intermediate composition, creative writing (fiction and/or poetry), and the literary magazine course. Our campus is also eager to engage the local community in literacy and creative writing activities and would welcome candidates with innovative community outreach ideas and experience. Teaching two courses of freshman composition (ENG 101 or ENG 102) will be a part of a normal semester workload. Interest in teaching Ethnic Studies and developing Interdisciplinary Studies courses and/or courses with a service learning component are also desirable.”
  • The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers