Welcome…

Happy new year! Welcome to your first Writing Magazine

THE WORLD OF WRITING

This month the challenges in Writing Land include drizzle, dysentery and absqualated hornswogglers, discovered by Derek Hudson

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

We want to hear your news and views on the writing world, your advice for fellow writers – and don’t forget to tell us what you would like to see featured in a future issue…

Editorial calendar

Strong forward planning will greatly improve your chances with freelance submissions. Here are some themes to consider for the coming months.

Away from your desk

Get out of your garret for some upcoming activities and places to visit

BBC NSSA OK?

Your essential monthly round-up of competitions, paying markets, opportunities to get into print and publishing industry news.

Win £10 per word

The annual Reader’s Digest annual 100-Word Story Competition

Bath prizes get bigger

Now in its fifth year, the international Bath Short

Big writing adventure

The Wilbur Smith Adventure Prize is inviting entries

Moz the Monster vs Mr Underbed

John Lewis found itself at the centre of a plagiarism

A new adventure

Adventures in Fiction is inviting entries for its 2018

UK MAGAZINE MARKET

Sarah Wright edits two of the UK’s leading pet titles

FLASHES

With Matt Bolton now the editor, T3 technology magazine

UK CHILDREN’S MARKET

Maverick Arts Publishing Ltd, an independent publisher

GLOBAL WEBSITE MARKET

Paste.com is a hugely popular US pop culture website

It’s a Funny Old World

Philip Pullman whose famous trilogy, His Dark Materials

FLASHES

Lauren Morton is now acting editor of the bimonthly

UK SPECFIC MARKET

UK publisher Gollancz have been publishing speculative

Keep it short for BWC

Bridgend Writers’ Circle is inviting entries for its

Supernatural storytelling

The Fiction Desk Ghost Story Competition 2018 is open

Third outing for first novel prize

The First Novel Prize 2018 will open for entries on

Play with Papa

The Papatango New Writing Prize is inviting entries

UK MENTAL HEALTH MARKET

Pull the trigger on mental health issues

The appliance of science

Patrick Forsyth dips into a research study about improving concentration

GLOBAL SPECFIC MARKET

Future imperfect

Rewarding new TV talent

New TV writing is invited for the Edinburgh International

A poetic intrepretation

The Interpreter’s House Poetry Competition 2018 is

Desperate writing

Desperate Literature is a new international book shop

FLASHES

Peter Hassall is the editor of Swimming Times, the

UK CHILDREN’S MARKET

Words for children

Poems waiting to emerge

The Caterpillar Poetry Prize is open for entries. The

And another thing…

‘Key figures in the formation of thought and belief

GLOBAL LITERARY MARKET

Get into Litmag

Classics hit the small screen

Two mid-20th century classic American novels are about

Too many characters

Many top writers weren’t happy when Twitter doubled

Lost Chandler story published

In November The Strand Magazine published It’s All

FLASHES

Claire Munnings edits Health & Wellbeing magazine

INTRODUCTIONS

Writing Magazine presents a selection of health publications currently accepting contributions. We strongly recommend that you familiarise yourself with their guidelines before submitting and check websites, where given, for submission details.

GLOBAL POETRY MARKET

Beans and booze

GLOBAL LITERARY MARKET

Call for December

Showcasing SF

If you have had a science fiction story published anywhere

The books that bunnies bought

The library of Watership Down author Richard Adams

FLASHES

Nick Compton is acting editor of Wallpaper, the design

UK HEALTH MARKET

A healthy approach

Novel Ideas

You run a risk if you use familiar faces in your fiction, says Lynne Hackles

GLOBAL WEB MARKET

Get under the skin

Write your life

Aiming to celebrate and develop life writing in the

Keep it short

Running monthly themed competitions with a first prize

INTERNATIONAL

ZINE SCENE

GLOBAL LITERARY MARKET

Correspondents wanted

Making up the numbers

Twenty-two Twenty-eight is a fascinating place. Visit

Awards for promising student writers

Aiming to recognise and reward emerging critical and

Get your writing seen

Recently launched, NinetyFour magazine, based in Glasgow

UK NATURE MARKET

Country file

Body text

Corpus Press is a niche American small press, specialising

People, people, people

Patrick Forsyth looks at how the number of people you encounter must affect how you write.

GLOBAL FICTION MARKET

Get into Darkhouse

Write your life

The White Review Short Story Prize 2018 is open for

Book Talk

There’s a feature in the Guardian in which authors

UK MAGAZINE MARKET

Grow green fingers

Create interactive fiction

Manawaker Studio is a niche American market which makes

Big winners this month

The 2017 Goldsmiths Prize, worth £10,000, has been

Learning to fly

If you can write books, selling them on Amazon is surely the easy part, right? Lorraine Mace discovers otherwise

The ripple effect

Get your work out there, says Michael Allen – it could have an unexpected effect

On Writing

Tony Rossiter explores great words from great writers

OF THE DESK

In publishing, biggest is not always best, reflects Piers Blofeld

Reading the future

What does 2018 hold for you? WM canvassed the experts’ assessments of the state of the publishing industry and their predictions – personal and professional – for the year ahead

Ask a Literary Consultant

A reader who can’t finish her novella needs to ask what her story is trying to tell her, says Helen Corner-Bryant

On course?

Jane Wenham Jones has advice for a writer wanting to know the best way to develop her skills

Helpline

Your writing problems solved with advice from Diana Cambridge

BEHIND THE TAPE

Expert advice to get the details right in your crime novel. from serving police

Taxing transformations

Remember the plans for quarterly tax returns? Simon Whaley finds out what writers need to do now, in preparation

The Victorian era

The 19th century is a fertile ground for writers. Tarja Moles helps you plan your research

Get creative

As Abode rolls out the latest CC upgrade, Greta Powell explores some of its useful features

Queen of Hearts

Megaseller Barbara Taylor Bradford shares the secrets of a successful saga, with Tina Jackson

How I got published

Karla Forbes tells Dolores Gordon Smith how she wanted to write thrillers that would appeal to women as well as male readers

KATHY REICHS

Tony Rossiter looks at a writer who uses her professional expertise to produce crime novels with the stamp of authenticity.

ANNA JACOBS

The romantic novelist shares her five favourite reads with Judith Spelman

SUBSCRIBER

Share your writing success stories. If you subscribe to Writing Magazine and would like to feature here, email Tina Jackson, tjackson@warnersgroup.co.uk

CIRCLES’ ROUNDUP

If your writing group would like to feature here, whether you need new members, have an event to publicise or to suggest tips for other groups, email Tina Jackson, tjackson@warnersgroup.co.uk

JEFF ABBOTT

The US author tells Chris High about researching amnesia for his new psychological thriller

LLOYD OTIS

The debut crime writer tells Adrian Magson how his first novel was inspired by his own experience of identity theft

HANNAHFIELDING

The novelist tells Lynne Hackles about the disciplined writing schedule for her sweeping romances

See through THE FOG

When you get stuck in a writing fog, do something else until the mists clear, advises Adrian Magson

The write way

Writing guru Julia Cameron shares exclusive advice and inspiration with Writing Magazine readers

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

James McCreet considers the beginning of a book for children

A look back in time

Novelising the past has challenges for the modern historical fiction writer, but human nature doesn’t change, says Margaret James

In another place

Setting accentuates story in Doris Lessing’s Through the Tunnel, explored by Helen M Walters

How to win an agent’s heart

Amy Sparkes quizzes top literary agents to give you the best advice on getting representation for your children’s book

THE CHOSEN ONE?

Alex Davis puts the case for and against contemporary interpretations of a well-worn fantasy trope

Anna, Love Séamus

I thought men aren’t supposed to do love.’ Those were

What is the question?

Get your writing group members to find out about each other to prompt new writing, says Julie Phillips

Why Not Be A Writer?

“I’m currently working on my fourth book, have been

Red Editing Pen

Each month, we give you a few sentences which would all benefit from some careful use of your red editing pen. As writers and regular readers of Writing Magazine, you should not find any of these too difficult. But if you would welcome a little help, you can always check out Richard Bell’s suggested solutions set out below:

Child’s play?

Meg Marsden has had a tough time judging the winners of WM’s competition for children’s poetry

Work it out

Alison Chisholm looks at the way a poet can develop fresh ideas in a workshop setting

Poetry in practice

Clarify your initial ideas for a poem by trying out words on paper, says Doris Corti

Poetry from A to Z

Poet Alison Chisholm guides you through the language of poetry

MONSTER MASH UP

To celebrate the bicentenary of Frankenstein, Alison Chisholm launches our competition for monster poems

Whisky Night

At seven in the morning on the Monday after the old