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Happy Holidays, Everybody!

This is a busy time for everyone, so we've combined the November and December issues into one. But we didn't want you to miss anything, so this newsletter is longer than usual, chock full of upcoming contests and markets for you, with answers to your questions about how to set up book signings.

If you still haven't finished your gift buying, here are some suggestions, from us. Available in bookstores, but if you order from us (from the websites listed below) between now and December 15, we'll give you 5% off.

For Children:

3-10-year-olds - Ralph's World and Ralph and Jimbo's Great Golf Adventure $13.95 Ever wished you lived on an island -- one with a volcano that spewed ice cream?

Than you'll love reading this to your kids. Terrific illustrations. Great fun!

For Adventure & Law-and_order buffs:

The Firestone Syndrome $24.95 hardcover What happens when cops take the law into their own hands? Answer: Mystery, adventure, tension and a satisfying resolution. Written by a man who spent 21 years in the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. Based on real events.

For the Divorced, Widowed or Separated:

First Wives Tool Kit $15.00 . written by a woman who has been there, shows how to pick yourself up, dust off, and start over.

For those with mate troubles:

Don't let your Cheating Mate Drive You to the Mental Institution $19.95 (by special order through us.
Email advohouse@aol.com) For every person who has been used or abused by a mate. For everyone who has loved completely and been betrayed. This is a true first-person account by a woman who spent a year in a mental institution recovering her sanity. Shows the road back to happiness.

For Mom and/or Dad:

Always wanted to know more about your family history? Well, here's how you can find out. Give How to Write Your Own Life Story to Mom or Dad. This walks them through it, even if they've never before written anything more than letters. Highly acclaimed by genealogy societies. (www.acappela.com)

For the Writer on your list:

Everything You Need to Know to Write Publish & Market Your Book. Really - everything! Now taught in three online schools and in school systems.(www.acappela.com)

The Writer's Tool Box details the specifics of writing on those all-important aspects of Openings, Voice, Character and Plot.(www.acappela.com)

Now, wasn't that easy? Your shopping is all done, and you didn't even have to stand in line!

Happy Holidays to you, one and all!

Patrika

Did You Vote Yet? Do you think A Cappela is one of the best sites for writers? If so, please vote for us .
E-mail wd-tools@fwpubs.com with "Web Site" in the subject line. Give our URL (www.acappela.com) and tell why you think we deserve to be chosen. Also disclose any relationship you have with us (e.g., subscriber,student, client, Pat's friend, etc.). DEADLINE FOR NOMINATIONS IS DECEMBER 1ST, 2002.

We goofed! Note the corrected email address in last month's message, below:

Let's Get Personal! Hi. This is Jodi Green, the list manager for The A Cappela Newsletter for Writers. We want to get personal....well, not that personal, but we would like to be able to address you by name rather than just by your email address. So please email us backwith the following information: your name your mailing address (snail) your email address (so we can match your name to it) your phone number (All fields except name and email address are optional.) Once we have this, we can get on a first-name basis. Thanks for your help. Jodi Greene send to: jodigreene1@aol.com

Of Note: U.S. book publishing--2.41 billion books sold in 2001, 135,000 new titles issued.

WRITE TO ME!

You're new to the writing game and you have more questions than you can count. You don't have an agent yet and aren't even sure what an agent does. Same goes for an editor or a publicist. You're not even sure who can help answer all your questions.

These are the things you've been telling me about yourselves. In response, I've revamped this newsletter, dropping some columns and concentrating on those you most value. I'm always open to suggestions, however, so if you're one of the subscribers who has not yet made your wishes known, please do so now. This newsletter exists to help you with your writing career, so let me know what will help most. I know you're busy, so I've made it easy for you to make your opinions known. Go to http://www.acappela.com/current newsletter.htm and cast your vote on our new poll.

E-mail your WRITING questions to our Q&A and read your answers in this newsletter. Send to:

acappub@aol.com, Subject: Q&A. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!

Help a fellow writer: Patty Blair is looking for different versions of the poem, "Twas The Night Before Christmas," for a collection she is putting together. Email her at (eclectusbird@aol.com)



DON'T MAIL THAT MANUSCRIPT

without a professional review from A Cappela

Before you mail out that manuscript or query, make sure it's as polished and professional as possible. Send your work to A Cappela Publishing and get the specific tailored advice you need to get an extra edge on the competition -- and make all your manuscripts more marketable.

After a thorough evaluation of your submission, one of our published, professional staff writers will give you detailed feedback and recommendations. You'll learn what is and isn't working in your writing, and how to fix it.

Your Critique includes:

*Genre-specific Advice: Whether your writing is a novel or a nonfiction book, an article or short story, a query letter or book proposal, you can be sure that your work will be evaluated by a pro who has personal experience with the same kind of writing.

*Grammar and Style Suggestions: Your personal reviewer will evaluate your writing to point out common grammatical, structural and stylistic mistakes -- mistakes that can mean the difference between a rejection and a sale.

*Market Recommendations: If your manuscript is marketable as is, or with slight revision, you'll get recommendations for marketing your work -- including how to identify the publishers which buy your kind of writing.

For complete information, including submission guidelines and rates, visit

http://www.acappela.com/critiques.htm

                                                                                            *****

Forward this issue to your writer friends NOW and tell them to subscribe. Forward the ENTIRE issue, not bits and pieces of it. This issue has been sent out to 480 writers. Won't you help this ezine grow?
Tell your friends to subscribe at http://www.acappela.com

PAT'S PICKS:

Writers! Protect your original work and important documents in minutes! Instantly establish the date and time-of-creation of all your files, including screenplays, proposals, Web pages, treatments, inventions, lyrics and ideas. Register and protect your original work online at ProtectRite.com. ($18.95 (US dollars) for 10-year registration)Go to: http://www.protectrite.com/default.asp?SessID=318256989&AffID=9jlw0RTAF8

*****

Markets

~Fiction/Poetry

~Shy Librarian magazine now accepting short stories (1,000 - 1,500 words). Must feature a librarian or a library setting, though stories do not have to be about librarianship per se. $25 and ten free copies of the magazine. You do not have to be a librarian or work in a library to submit a story to us. Send to: shortstory@shylibrarian.com (http://www.shylibrarian.com)

~Erotica. Liquid Silver Books, a new imprint exclusively for literary erotica romance for women. Looking for novellas and novel length fiction focusing on: fantasy, vampire, paranormal, science fiction, contemporary and historical. For our complete submission guidelines, more in-depth information, contact information and what we are expressly looking for and will accept, see http://www.liquidsilverbooks.com. Liquid Silver Books is a full service e-Publisher, paying royalties of 40 percent.

~Century Needs: Stories with an element of the "speculative" or "fantastic." Buys First World English and non-exclusive reprint rights. Pays 4 cents per word (20,000 words max.). No e-mail, simultaneous or multiple subs. ( http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=122)

~Kate Harper Designs, a greeting card company that sells cards to over 2,000 retail stores throughout the country, including Whole Foods Markets, Papyrus, Tower Books, along with many independent bookstores. http://www.writerswrite.net/pubdisp.cfm?market=85581637 ~Nonfiction

~Chicken Soup for the Music Lover's Soul looking for heartwarming and inspiring short stories (must be true) related to music for the upcoming book, "Chicken Soup for the Music Lover's Soul" Submission guidelines: http://www.MusicLoversSoul.com.

~Chicken Soup for the African American Soul: Heart-warming and inspiring short stories related to the African American experience that will celebrate our culture, our people, our resilience, our strength-honoring our laughter and our tears through our stories.

~Aviation Magazine is looking for a few good writers in the South Florida area to cover regular beats and/or write feature and issue stories related to careers in aviation. Key areas are maintenance and human resources. E-mail with a couple of clips, a brief note about your experience and your rate. This is a print publication with an online edition. Pay ranges from 25 - 35 cents per word. E-mail to: Editor@aviationcareer.net.

~iPLUGiN seeks strong freelance writers to pen short profiles about emerging artists in fashion, music, art and film as well as topical articles about these areas. Looking for people who can find the interesting story that makes an unknown artist worth knowing. To be considered, please write two 150-word descriptions about an emerging (i.e., someone who has worked professionally in his/her field, has launched a first line of clothing, created an album of work, exhibited their art in a show or gallery or created a finished film for distribution) fashion designer, musician, visual artist or filmmaker. Include all materials within the body of a single e-mail and send to kwat@iplugin.com explaining why you would be good for this assignment. If possible, send a picture of the artist. Please include local flavor. Don't be afraid to use pop culture references.

~American Profile ( http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=120) Needs: Articles covering people and places, with broad regional or national relevance. Buys exclusive first-time print rights and all electronic rights to unpublished pieces for six months, non-exclusive rights thereafter. Fees vary but are competitive. One-paragraph query by post, with SASE. No fax, phone or e-mail subs.

*****

CONTESTS

NOTE: Writers interested in entering literary contests should check out the Literary Contest Caution (http://windpub.org/literary.scams/index.htm), a site that lists poetry and creative writing contests known to rip-off writers

The Santa Fe Writers Project offers literary awards and resources. Award total $6000 and the chance to be featured in our online literary journal. The 2002 awards judge is author Chris Offutt. Visit http://www.sfwritersproject.com or email submissions@sfwritersproject.com to learn more!

WIN $2500 CASH For your poems, short stories, advice, knowledge or opinions. For a limited time, FREE to enter! Visit http://www.SmartTips.org for details.

2002 Short Story Competition: 1st Prize £1500, 2nd Prize £750, 2 Runner-up Prizes of £250.

20 Distinction Prizes of £100 Donard Gift Certificates. 20 Merit Prizes of £50 + Donard Gift Certificates, 50 Runner-up Prizes of £25 + Donard Gift Certificates. Donard Publishing (http://www.donardpublishing.com/writers.html)

Deadline: November 27. Prose Ax Potent Poetry Contest. First Prize - $100, a 3-dose subscription to Prose Ax print mag & publication in the next dose. $5 entry fee for three poems, $1 each additional poem. http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=133

~Deadline November 30 Forgiveness contest: The Letters from the Heart Project offers your audience a chance to learn about themselves and find healing in the process. Overall, 11 winners and several honorable mentions will be awarded more than $3,500 in prizes. The grand prize winner will receive $1,500. Winners will be announced December 31, 2002. All winning letters (including honorable mention winners) will be in the forthcoming book about the daughter-mother relationship, Forgive Your Mother; Heal Yourself, to be released in 2003. Here are some sources to get you started on a story: More on Letters from the Heart Project: www.lettersfromtheheartproject.com. To interview Lisa Delman, call 305-332-0901 or 305-754-4698 or e-maillisa@heartfeltmatters.com

~Deadline December 1 The Mona Schreiber Prize for Humorous Fiction and Non-Fiction 3rd annual competition. Writers of comedic essays, articles, short stories, poetry, shopping lists and other forms are invited to submit. Up to 750 words in length, typed, double-spaced, accompanied by a money order or check for $5 administrative costs, payable to "The Mona Schreiber Prize." No limit to entries but each must have a separate fee. Put contact information on the first page. No SASEs, please. Include e-mail address for notification of winners. December 24 announcement of three winners: 1st: $500. 2nd: $250. 3rd: $100. 2 Honorable Mentions: $50 each. Entries should be stapled, are not returned and must be unpublished. Humor is subjective. Uniqueness is suggested. Weirdness is encouraged. The Mona Schreiber Prize for Humorous Fiction and Non-Fiction, 11362 Homedale Street, Los Angeles, CA 90049. Website: http://home.pcmagic.net/brashcyber.Mona.htm

Deadline: December 1 The Annual Slipstream Poetry Contest. $1000 prize + 50 print copies of book. Send up to 40 pages of poetry. $15 entry fee. http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=134

Deadline: December 15 Richard Yates Short Story Award Competition. Cash and publication prize. Submit stories from 2,500-7,000 words..http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=135

Deadline: December 31. The Tampa Review Prize for Poetry. $1,000 award; Hardback book publication. Reading fee: $20. See site for details: http://urlshortcut.com/r.php?id=136.

~Deadline December 15 First Annual Poetry Market E-zine Open. Winning poems will receive high exposure with Poetry Publishers. 1st Prize $25, 2nd Prize $10. Three Honorable Mentions. All winning entries will be published in The Poetry Market E-zine, with the option of including brief bio, site link and/or email address in E-zine issue where published poem appears. All entries must be accompanied by appropriate entry fee. Payment available via check, M.O.or credit card at www.paypal.com (Our paypal.com email payment address is thepoetrymarket@yahoo.com -- please send your payment as unverified). New poets welcome and encouraged to submit! No line limit. One poem per page. Poems in English, any subject, any form, any style. Include real name, pen name (if applicable), mailing address, e-mail address on each poem. Via e-mail, send poems in the body of your e-mail with "Poetry Contest Submission" in the subject heading. No attachments. Poems will not be returned. Enter as many poems as you like. Send SASE, SASP or valid email address for notification of winning entries. We prefer e-mail entries and payment via http://www.paypal.com. E-mail poem entries to: thepoetrymarket@yahoo.com (You must submit entry fee by mail or at www.paypal.com when entering poems via e-mail). Offline entry fee payment available by mailing check or money order to: B Sedlacek, POB 703, Lenoir NC 28645-0703. (Please address your entries exactly as noted above.) Entry Fee: $2 for first poem, $1 for each poem thereafter.http://www.thepoetrymarket.com

~Deadline December 15, 2002 Mobius Books Contest (http://www.mobiusbooks.com) accepting stories up to 5,000 words. MUST contain an element of crime (murder, theft, etc.). Accepting science fiction, horror, straight-forward police procedurals, humor, the supernatural, etc. Stories MUST be fiction and not published previously. Entry fee: $10 USD per manuscript, payable to Mobius Books. Enter as many manuscripts as you wish. Payment accepted via personal or certified check and international money order or credit card payments through Paypal.com) If paying by credit card online and sending a hard copy manuscript, please enclose a printout of your Paypal.com receipt with your manuscript. NOTE: When paying through Paypal.com enter 'mobiusbooks@mobiusbooks.com' as the recipient e-mail address. You may send one payment USD and one entry form for all entries. Send all entries to: Short Story Contest, c/o Mobius Books, 745 Sackville Drive, P.O. Box 522 Lower Sackville, NS, B4C 3J1 Canada

~Deadline December 31, 2002 ReadingWriters Short Story HOLIDAY COMEDY Contest. During this festive season, we want to read original, unpublished stories that make us laugh. No jokes. No riddles. No puns. Give us credible characters who find themselves in a genuinely hilarious holiday situation. Holiday Special -- All entries will be critiqued! Entry fee: $5 USD, per entry Length: Up to 1,500 words GRAND PRIZE: $50 USD Details: http://www.readingwriters.com

~Deadline December 31, 2002 Obadiah 2002 Writers' Contest. Two Grand Prizes of $5,000.00 each*. 100 winning entries published in our Faith Anthology, will receive a FREE copy of the Faith Anthology, and can purchase an unlimited number of additional copies at 50 percent off. Write a 1,000-2,000 word original article or essay based on the theme "Faith." Essays can be about a person who exemplifies faith, an incident that demonstrates true faith, or an article about how faith helped someone in real life. It can be faith in a person, faith in God, or faith in yourself--even faith in "the system"--whatever idea comes to mind when you think of "Faith." All entries must be previously unpublished. Move us with your words. Make us feel what you are feeling. Touch our hearts and souls. Don't ramble. Just tell the story. All entries must be typewritten in English, double-spaced, on white paper using Times New Roman, Courier, or Arial 12 pt. font/typeface. All entries must contain 1,000 to 2,000 words. All submissions must be the original, unpublished work of the entrant. To ensure an impartial competition entrant's name must not appear on the entry itself. All entries must be accompanied by a 3 x 5" card or 3 containing: Full legal name; Pen name (if applicable); Street Address; City, State or Province, and Postal Code; Country; Daytime Phone; Evening Phone; E-mail address (if applicable) On of the 3 x 5" card, please include a brief bio (up to 40 words) for inclusion with your story if it is selected for publication. All entries must be submitted by mail. Include a SASE in case your entry must be returned. Mail entries to: Obadiah 2002 Writers' Contest, 607 N. Cleveland Street, Merrill, WI 54452 All entries must include a check, cashiers check, or money order for $25.00 (U.S.) made payable to: Obadiah Press 2002 Contest. Enter asoften as you wish. Each entry must be complete and separate. This contest will be cancelled and all entry fees returned if there are fewer than 100 entrants. * Prize money is determined by the number of entrants. Assuming this contest generates 1,000 entries (but more than 100), winners' prize money will be adjusted by that factor.

WRITING Q&A

Q: How can I arrange book signings at bookstores?

A: Arranging signings is easy, if you have all the pieces required by most events coordinators, the people who will set up your signings ( often known as the Community Relations (CR) person.) You'll need to provide the CR with your Press Room, which should minimally include a news release, book review, photo of yourself and your book's cover, and quotes from positive book reviews you've gotten.

Contact the CR, explain your book and who it will appeal to. The broader the market, the more interest the CR will have in booking you, so give this one some thought before contacting the CR. It helps if you can gear it to some timely event (i.e., a book on keeping safe, after news about terrorist attacks), or show your book's relationship to some issue of importance to all of us (i.e., how to invest during hard financial times.) Remember, the CR's goal is to bring people into his/her store, so keep the appeal broad and either sensational or timely.

Consider calling this a "seminar" rather than a book signing. Reason? Because then it sounds like you're going to give your audience a lot of information, and that you will also take questions.

Once a date has been set for your signing, ask the CR how the event will be advertised; then ask for contacts with local media (radio, TV, newspapers, etc.,) and send your own press release. The more the word gets out, the more people will attend.

And be sure to send the CR a thank you note afterward, especially if you will want a repeat signing at some point in the future.

(For full info on book signings, contact lilosbox@aol.com and ask about The Manual of Book Signings and Other Promotional Techniques)

If you have questions about general writing issues, send your questions to acappub@aol.com with "Ask Pat" in the subject line. The questions with the greatest general interest will be answered here.

WORDPLAY

Each year the Washington Post's Style Invitational asks readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting or changing one letter and supply a new definition. Here are more of the 2001 winners:

Hipatitis: Terminal coolness.
Karmageddon: It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.
Glibido: All talk and no action.
Dopeler Effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH Notable quotes from those who've done it:

"Beware the highly publicized autograph session at bookstores. It is terribly embarrassing to sit behind a tall stack of your own books for two hours while customers sidestep your table, throwing sneaky or hostile glances, en route to selecting an armful of cookbooks, diet books, and how-to books written by total strangers." --Larry L. King


Don’t forget to send in your suggestions, feedback, and your writing questions and check our website (www.acappela.com) for our page of website resources

Patrika

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