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The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

by Erika Dreifus on
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  • Leslie Greffenius reflects on “The Joy of Writing (Not More, Just Better) Sex.”
  • Publishing Perspectives details the billionaire-backed rebirth of a Russian literary magazine.
  • Meet Victoria Ford, who very much seems to be a young writer to watch for in the future.
  • Erica Mena introduces a new course she is teaching, “Translation as Art.”
  • Nina Badzin addresses the “Twitter Thanking Crisis.” (I try not to fall prey to the behavior cited, but I know that I’ve been guilty from time to time. I promise to try harder to behave.)
  • Since my friend Rachel Hall was the one to introduce me to Jean Thompson’s work, I was especially pleased to discover an interview that Rachel conducted with Thompson over on Leslie Pietrzyk’s blog.
  • Josh Lambert examines “why a growing number of today’s young Jewish fiction writers…are grounding their novels in scholarly research.”
  • Congratulations to the winners of Midge Raymond’s Forgetting English & my Quiet Americans.
  • The June issue of The Practicing Writer went out to subscribers on Monday. If you’re not yet a subscriber, you can find the issue–featuring an interview with author Tayari Jones–online.

    • Monday Morning Markets/Jobs/Opportunities

    by Erika Dreifus on
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  • From WritersWeekly.com: “We’re out of features so QUERY US! WritersWeekly pays $60 on acceptance for features averaging around 600 words. See our guidelines HERE.”
  • Descant (Canada) has announced two new calls for submissions. First, for an issue themed “Masala,” the journal “is looking for the stories of the Indian Diaspora, its triumphs and its tragedies. Essays, poems, fictions, memoirs, and art work which show the ways in which the Indian peoples connect with one another worldwide and also differentiate themselves from and yet are still linked to modern India.” Submission deadline for “Masala” is August 15, 2012. Then, for an issue on “The Hidden City,” the journal will focus on “that which escapes first notice in the world’s myriad urban landscapes. From buried rivers to underground habitats to the city’s silent/silenced citizens to the city transformed by darkness, we want your best creative work on the creatures, geographies, and societies that elude our surface experience.” Submission deadline for this issue is June 15, 2012. Pays: $100 (presumably in Canadian dollars) on publication.
  • In the Snake is a new online magazine currently seeking short fiction submissions, up to 10,000 words. “Please do not submit novel excerpts unless they are self-contained as works of fiction. We are especially interested in stories that focus on character development, perception of self, and interpersonal relationships that reflect the nature and of the human experience. All genres are accepted.” Pays: $50. (via @femministas)
  • Houstonians, Writers in the Schools (WITS) is looking for creative writing teachers. “WITS is looking for 10-12 writers who can teach the joy of creative writing to young people. Employment is part-time, typically 2-6 hours of teaching one day a week from September – May. A yearlong commitment is required; however, writers who are selected to be on the WITS roster are not guaranteed immediate teaching opportunities. The pay is $55 per teaching hour. In addition to teaching, the job duties include preparing lessons, responding to student work, and compiling anthologies of student writing at the end of the school year. We are looking for writers and educators with teaching or mentoring experience who can convey their passion for the written word in ways that are relevant for Houston-area children. In particular, we are seeking bilingual writers, but others are encouraged to apply as well.” Deadline: August 1, 2011.
  • I’m busy putting finishing touches on the June Practicing Writer newsletter. As usual, the newsletter will feature lots of paying calls and no-cost competitions. I’m especially delighted that this issue also includes an interview with novelist Tayari Jones. If you’re not yet a subscriber, sign up! It’s free, and we keep e-mail addresses private.
  • Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Mass.) is looking for a Communications Specialist, the National September 11 Memorial and Museum (N.Y.) seeks a Communications Manager, and Boise State University/Boise Public Radio invites applications for an Online Reporter.

    • Friday Find: “Looking Backward: Third-Generation Fiction Writers and the Holocaust”

    by Erika Dreifus on
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    Today’s a very busy day. There’s a royal wedding, a shuttle launch, and, for me, a departure for Boston, where I’ll be leading a session tomorrow at Grub Street’s Muse and the Marketplace conference.

    This weekend also brings Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Memorial Day. Which makes it all the more important for me to share with you my latest essay-review for Fiction Writers Review, “Looking Backward: Third-Generation Fiction Writers and the Holocaust.”

    Have a good weekend, and see you back here next week.

    Friday Find: Ten Tips for a Writing Life

    by Erika Dreifus on
    5

    If you’re a regular reader of Practicing Writing, you know that I frequently cite/link to author Midge Raymond and/or her blog. I’m delighted to be able to share with you today Midge’s guest post on “Ten Tips for a Writing Life.”

    Midge is the author of Forgetting English, an extraordinary collection that I reviewed for Fiction Writers Review when it was first published. Happily, Forgetting English has just been re-released–in an expanded edition–and there’s still just a bit of time left to enter a Goodreads giveaway (it ends today!) for a chance to win a copy.

    Enjoy the post, and the weekend, and I’ll see you all back here on Monday.

    Take it away, Midge!

    I love lists. I wouldn’t get a single thing done without them. (If I forget to take a list to the store, for example, I have to return home for it, or I just wander the aisles wondering what I need.)

    Lists are helpful in terms of getting things done—but I also find that they’re helpful in remembering how to best get things done. That is, I often have to remind myself of how important certain habits are for living a writer’s life. So I’ve come up with a “top ten” list, which I hope will be useful to all writers who are, like most of us, juggling such things as day jobs and families while still trying to get all that writing done. (more…)

    The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    5
  • Love Bradford Morrow’s tribute to one of my favorite books, Willa Cather’s My Ántonia.
  • Still more words of freelancing wisdom from Kelly James-Enger.
  • Tomorrow is Poem in Your Pocket Day!
  • Have you heard that Amazon is now selling a “Kindle with sponsored offers”? This version of the device is priced $25 lower than the next-cheapest version. Readers will get ads and, as the title suggests, sponsored offers. I’m not sure that the $25 discount is worth it. What do you think?
  • Intriguing list of fiction titles under review at The Complete Review that feature “real people.”
  • The Renegade Writer interviews Julie Fast, author of Get It Done When You’re Depressed.