February 2012
Monthly Archive
February 29, 2012
This Saturday, March 3, I’ll be signing copies of The Woman Who Loved Jesse James at Who Else? Books at the Broadway Book Mall, 200 S. Broadway in Denver. The fun starts at 3:30 — author J.A. Kazimer will be signing with me, so please come on down and say hello!
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Netherworld Books is a new publisher of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror and Paranormal books. They publish both print and digital editions of their titles. They’re looking for manuscripts that at 65,000-90,00o words in the following genres: paranormal romance, paranormal erotica, science fiction, fantasy, historical fantasy and horror. Find their submission guidelines here.
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This isn’t a fiction writing competition, but I thought it was too fun not to post. Carnival Cruise Lines is celebrating the launch of its new ship, Carnival Breeze, by giving one person the chance to enjoy a free cruise and write about their experience for Cruise International magazine. If you’ve always wanted to be a travel writer, here’s your chance to enjoy a free 12-day Mediterranean cruise. You’ll need to submit a sample of your writing and some holiday photos by April 2. Get all the details here.
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Want to do a favor for an author with almost no effort on your part? Click the “Like” button on the Amazon listing for their book. Then scroll down to “Tags” and check off a few. This helps raise the book’s rating in search engines. You could start here with The Woman Who Loved Jesse James. And thank you!
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Poisoned Pen Press, an independent publisher of some truly wonderful mysteries, is holding its first ever Discover Mystery Contest. First prize is $1,000 and a publishing contract with Poisoned Pen Press. Submit your mystery manuscript (60,000 to 90,000 words) by April 30, 2012. Winners will be announced by May 31, 2012. There is a $20 entry fee. Find all the details here.
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Tor.com is the short story arm of Tor Books. The website publishes all kinds of speculative fiction, from hard science fiction to alternative history, steampunk, fantasy and more. The editors are looking for stories under 12,000 words. They pay 25 cents a word for the first 5,000 words, 15 cents a word for the next 5,000, and 10 cents a word after that. Stories are published online, but may also be included in print anthologies (in which case you’ll receive additional compensation.) Check out all the details here.
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As always, feel free to share any information gleaned from this blog – repost, reprint and pass it on. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source of the information, and include a link back to the blog. Thank you. Cindi Myers
February 15, 2012
“Everybody walks past a thousand story ideas every day. The good writers are the ones who see five or six of them. Most people don’t see any.”- Orson Scott Card
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Family Circle Magazine’s 2012 Fiction Contest opens for entries on March 1. Submit your short story of no more than 2,500 for a chance at cash prizes and publication in Family Circle Magazine. You can read this year’s winner in the current issue of Family Circle Magazine. First prize is $750, plus a MediaBistro.com online course certificate, and MediaBistro video and AvantGuild memberships. Second prize receives $250 and MediaBristro video and AvantGuild memberships; third place receives $250 and a Media Bistro AvantGuild membership. No word on who the judges will be for 2012, but the 2011 judges were author Kristin Hannah and St. Martin’s Press Editor Jennifer Enderlin. Entries must be received by September 7, 2012. Find all the contest rules here.
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The First Line is a quarterly magazine that publishes short stories that begin with a first line supplied by the magazine. Each issue has a different first line as a prompt. The first line for the Summer 2012 issue is “Rachel’s first trip to England didn’t go as planned.” Submit your 300 to 3,000 word story beginning with this first line by May 1, 2012. Stories may be any genre. Find the submission guidelines here.
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Do you know an aspiring young writer, in kindergarten through third grade? PBS Kids sponsors the 2012 Young Writers Contest. Children should write and illustrate their original story. Kindergarteners and first graders should submit a story between 50 and 200 words, and second and third graders’ stories should be between 100 and 350 words. Each story must have at least five original illustrations. The contest runs from January 16, 2012 to July 13, 2012. Prizes include tablet computer, e-readers and MP3 players. For all the details, go here.
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Writers in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware can enter the 2012 City Paper Writing Contest. You can submit up to three stories of no more than 3,000 word. There is a $5 entry fee per story. Winners get cash prizes and publication in the Philadelphia City Paper. The deadline to enter is Wednesday, February 29, 2012. Get the scoop here.
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Inspired Romance is sponsoring the 2012 Write for the Soul Inspirational Romance Writing Contest.
Does your inspirational romance need a publisher home? Can your writing make a reader laugh? Cry? Sigh? Inspired Romance Novels is hosting a contest to discover new inspirational talent! Inspired is looking for tales of love and spiritual healing. Stories that spread God’s good news. All lengths eligible for entry. The grand prize winner will win an e-publishing contract with Inspired Romance Novels and a $50 sign-on bonus. Runner-ups will also be offered an e-publishing contract. Enter between now and March 31st, 2012. Please read both our submission guidelines and contest rules at http://www.inspiredromancenovels.com before submitting.
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My latest release, The Woman Who Loved Jesse James, is on sale now. This “based on a true story” love story takes you inside the life of one of America’s most famous outlaws. Get your copy here or here, or order it from your favorite bookseller.
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As always, feel free to share the information in this blog with other writers, newsletters, etc. All I ask is that you give me credit and include a link back to this blog. Thank you. Cindi Myers
February 8, 2012
“The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is you really want to say.” ~Mark Twain
Dorchester Books, which last year let go the majority of its editors and announced the end of mass market paperback publications, in favor of e-books and POD only, now apparently has no in-house editors, as editor Chris Keeslar announced last week he is no longer with the company. Also departing is Heather Josepowitz, who was editing confession magazines (True Romance, True Story, etc.) owned by Dorchester. You can read more at Brian Keene’s blog.
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Pelican Book Group publishes both print and e-editions of Christian Romance and Women’s Fiction, under the White Rose and Harbourlight imprints. The editors are currently looking for submissions of 15,000 to 25,000 word novellas with a Christmas theme for a special release for the holiday season of 2012. The stories may be either romance or general women’s fiction, contemporary or historical, with Christian themes. Send your submission by May 1, 2012, using Pelican’s online submission form. And be sure to check out Pelican’s full submission guidelines.
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A couple of nice reviews for my books this week. From Harriet Klausner:
“The Woman Who Loved Jesse James is a fascinating biographical fiction that looks at the famous outlaw through the eyes of mostly his adulating beloved wife in a world still suffering from the ravages of the war and the consequential agony of defeat. Because of Zee’s loving filter, Jesse comes across as heroic rather than a cold blooded killer. She needs to believe in the goodness rather than the wickedness of her mate who she knows is tender with his family. Well written, readers will enjoy Cindi Myers fine nineteenth century look at Jesse James through his spouse’s loving perspective.” 
And from Long and Short Romance Reviews:
“West With the Wind propels the reader along, at times gently and at other times in emotional or physical storms that are breath-holding happenings. The descriptions of the environment leave no doubt about how difficult the trek across half a continent is, but most of all the characters-good and bad-seem so real with their flaws and foibles that make the reader feel as if they are personal acquaintances. Once again Cindi Myers entertains with her smooth, compelling writing style as she takes the reader on a vicarious trip that keeps one turning pages. ”
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Entangled Publishing’s editors just posted their Wish Lists for February. They’re still very open to submissions. Some highlights: Stacy Abrams would like to see “Adult who-done-it mystery with main character as an accidental sleuth” and “Adult romance with medical elements a la Grey’s Anatomy or Private Practice, but no cheesy doctors falling in love with their comatose patients!” Heather Howland would love “Gritty and sexy military/Special Ops romance similar to Lora Leigh’s Navy SEALs series.” Lori Wilde says “I’d love to see more holiday themed books.” and “I’m in the mood for a good friends-to-lovers story. But remember, we want those strong alpha heroes.” Alethea Spiridon-Hopson would love “A really tight series involving sexy, charismatic men.” Nina Bruhns longs for “A super-sexy thriller”, “A classic detective story with romance added” and “an historical suspense or mystery,” while Susan Meier wants “A small town with a really great cop.” Read all their wants (and dislikes) on the blog.
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As always, feel free to pass along the information from this blog. All I ask is that you give me credit and include a link to the blog. Thanks! Cindi Myers
February 1, 2012
The Woman Who Loved Jesse James is on sale now! Find the print copy here and the Kindle copy here. Other ebook versions will be showing up for sale in the next few days. I would really appreciate it if you would stop by the links and hit the “Like” button, and maybe click on a few tags. This helps move the book up in the Amazon search engine and is a quick, painless way to support an author. (Of course, I love it if you bought the book too!)
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Harlequin Books has purchased Barbour Publishing’s Heartsong Presents line of inspirational romance. Heartsong produced four books a month, sold first to bookclub subscribers, then repackaged and distributed to retail outlets. Harlequin already publishes the Love Inspired line of inspirational romances. No word yet on whether Harlequin will be making any changes to the Heartsong program.
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Adam’s Media, a long-time publisher of nonfiction books — everything from gift books and humor to cookbooks and calendars — has plans to launch an e-book only romance fiction line. Editor Jennifer Lawler is looking for contemporary and historical romance, paranormal romance, erotic romance and romantic suspense manuscripts, 60,000 to 80,000 words. Send your pitch letter (no attachments) to jennifer@jenniferlawler.com.
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I’m blogging at http://www.bellbridgebooksblog.com/?p=1614 — all about Jesse James. Stop by and add your comments.
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Musa Publishing hosts a quarterly Young Adult Writing Contest for writers ages 11-21. First prize is publication by Musa Books. Each contest has a theme. The theme for the first quarter 2012 is Fantasy and the deadline for entries is March 1, 2012. Submit your short story, 1,500 to 7,500 words. There is no fee to enter. Find out all the details here.
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As always, feel free to pass along the information on this blog and share with others. All I ask is that you give me credit and include a link to this blog. Thank you. Cindi
This Saturday, March 3, I’ll be signing copies of The Woman Who Loved Jesse James at Who Else? Books at the Broadway Book Mall, 200 S. Broadway in Denver. The fun starts at 3:30 — author J.A. Kazimer will be signing with me, so please come on down and say hello!
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