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Writing Short Stories/Questions
| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
| writing | 1/28/2012 | Pat |
| Q: and custodians? Im writing one about a girl who gets hired at night for a custodian job shift and ... A: .. Your story idea is very interesting. There are all kinds of different ways you can plot it. One ... | ||
| book | 1/8/2012 | William Sternman |
| Q: I am interested in looking into getting it published. I have looked on the internet to see what to ... A: Mel: I'm confused. Are you talking about a fictional book (a novel) or a non-fictional book, a ... | ||
| Creative Writing | 12/31/2011 | William Sternman |
| Q: I am a high school student and I was wondering whether you could help me with my english creative ... A: Scarlett! I apologize for taking so long to respond to your question. Each writer has a unique ... | ||
| Is writing a book online a good idea | 12/10/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: I'm 17, and I find myself getting really bored when i'm at home but none of my friends live near me. ... A: Ryan, You're right to worry about your ownership of text when posted online. It's not just a ... | ||
| short story | 11/29/2011 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: i'm doing diploma in film making course. i'm searching for short stories with creative ideas. every ... A: A trick I learned from a writing professor to generate ideas is to get a stack of paper, cut it up ... | ||
| Multiple Submissions | 11/5/2011 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: I would dearly love to know how I can know if multiple submissions are acceptable when a magazine ... A: Virginia, I think you mean simultaneous submissions - right - to more than one publisher at a time. ... | ||
| After publication of a short humor piece can I use it in a longer story? | 11/5/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: I have written a very short humor piece for a magazine. They said they buy North American Serial ... A: Virginia, What you're thinking of is "FIRST North American rights". It's the "first" that's ... | ||
| fonts | 8/28/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Which fonts are used for submissions nowadays? I read to use only courier or times new roman, but i ... A: David, No, Courier or TNR aren't outdated and for good reason. Calibri is a sans serif font. ... | ||
| magazine rights | 8/28/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Once i submit a manuscript to a magazine, am i legally bound to let them publish it if it gets ... A: David, With magazines, you can only negotiate in a narrow window with how they treat other ... | ||
| cover letter | 8/28/2011 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: I have a short fantasy story that I will be submitting to an online fantasy magazine called "Beneath ... A: Is the magazine asking for a cover letter? If it's not required, I generally don't even do one. If ... | ||
| Characters | 8/9/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: How do you develop a believable important character that is a little less main then the main ... A: Becky! What you're describing is known as a "secondary character." They're very important people in ... | ||
| Characters | 8/9/2011 | William Sternman |
| Q: How do you develop a believable important character that is only slightly less main then the main ... A: You create him/her exactly the same way you created the main character, without worrying at this ... | ||
| typing help | 5/14/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: I am writing a Short Story and I need some help with how to use my Punctuation Marks. Here is just ... A: Bob! I saw your question in the question pool and thought I'd try to help out. There are actually ... | ||
| type help | 5/14/2011 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: I am writing a Short Story and I need some help with how to use my Punctuation Marks. Here is just ... A: First of all, it's sentence. She looked back over her shoulder with a snicker and replied, "Because ... | ||
| Long short story. | 2/25/2011 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Can you advice me where to look for examples of long short stories. For example, a centenarian ... A: martinkealy3! I saw your question in the question pool and thought I'd try to help out. The term ... | ||
| Murder Mystery Short Story | 2/7/2011 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: Please can you help me structure and plan a short murder story. I don't know how to plan it or know ... A: Lucy, I'm sorry, but that is beyond the scope of what I can do. My suggestion is that you read a ... | ||
| short stories. | 1/27/2011 | William Sternman |
| Q: I have short stories(35) That i write several years ago. I'm in a creative writers class trying to ... A: Congratulations on having written 35 stories! That's great. I would not send any of them to ... | ||
| Using book titles in writing stories | 1/5/2011 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: Is it legal to use book titles by other authors in short stories I am writing? Do I need a footnote ... A: I am not a copyright expert, and I don't feel comfortable answering this question. Let me give you ... | ||
| Publishing short stories | 12/15/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: First of all, thank you for providing this service, I greatly appreciate. In this world it is rare ... A: I appreciate your thanking me. You are welcome! You are on the right track with both options. Short ... | ||
| Publishing short stories | 12/15/2010 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: First of all, thank you for providing this service, I greatly appreciate. In this world it is rare ... A: Robert, Publishing an anthology is difficult for an unknown writer. Not that it can't be done, but ... | ||
| Novice Writing | 11/28/2010 | Susan Rand |
| Q: Susan, Now that I am unemployed, it is my desire to write short stories. How do I get the story from ... A: Getting your story from your mind onto paper is the hard part! Here are some tips that might help: ... | ||
| The Little Limping Girl | 11/4/2010 | Pat |
| Q: Okay, so I'm only fourteen so I can't be sure I got the teacher's perspective right. But its a ... A: Gracie... You show great potential as a writer..! I enjoyed your story; there's a lot of tenderness ... | ||
| is this a good storyline? | 9/30/2010 | William Sternman |
| Q: a teenage boy about 17 who has lived his life normally like any other but is shy and has always ... A: It really depends on how you develop it and how believable you make it. I would advise you to use a ... | ||
| 'word etchings' | 9/21/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: Many years ago, when I was in my 20's, I wrote about a dozen very short 'vignettes' or as I called ... A: I'm sorry it has taken me so long to respond to your question. I apologize. About your "word ... | ||
| STORY FOR DISNEY | 9/10/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: How can I send my self written stories on Disney? A: Enrique! Disney is a tough sell, sadly. They generally don't accept stories written by anyone they ... | ||
| Proofread | 8/8/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: I have written a short humorous story (almost half page long). It's not offensive but a little ... A: Kenneth! Sorry, but AllExperts doesn't allow us to do one-on-one pay jobs for people, and ... | ||
| Humorous Story | 8/8/2010 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: I have written a short humorous story (half page long). It's not offensive but a little naughty. ... A: Kenneth, I'm sorry, but I cannot edit other people's stories for various reasons. My suggestion is ... | ||
| Formatting for dialogue in a story | 7/9/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: p In my story there is a point where one person is speaking, but the other person is not. The other ... A: Yes, you need spacing just between the first line of dialogue and the second sentence to make it ... | ||
| Suggestions on good way to get an honest opinion of one's work | 7/8/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Cathy: I recently wrote a western novel containing two self contained stories and was quite ... A: John! Your best bet would be to find a "beta reader". There are lots of them available online. ... | ||
| Getting western novel published | 7/8/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Cathy: I saw your response to another "John" about publishers who accept submissions for Western ... A: No, Forge is still publishing westerns. Five Star also does a few still, but mostly for existing ... | ||
| How to publish daughter's stories | 5/16/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: My daughter will be 9 in July, and recently her teacher pulled me aside and told me that she is a ... A: Christi! It's terrific that you're taking an interest in your child's desire to write. There are ... | ||
| Narration, etc. | 5/3/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: I've written a short story (haven't actually finished it) with what I believe is a third-person, ... A: I read some of your story and I have a few suggestions. You will probably want to give your main ... | ||
| copywriting | 4/28/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: If I write a short 25 page booklet and self publish it and self manufacture it what is the procedure ... A: If you self-publish, you will want to buy an ISBN number ... | ||
| copywriting | 4/28/2010 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: If I write a short 25 page booklet and self publish it and self manufacture it what is the procedure ... A: Al, By law anything you write is automatically copywrited. One way to protect yourself is to mail ... | ||
| short story collection | 4/27/2010 | Brian Lawrence |
| Q: Where is the best place to submit a collection of short stories about women in the West? A: Gretchen, My suggestion is to look at either a book of literary agents or online for literary ... | ||
| Help with Article | 3/11/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: It has been some time since I last wrote to you seeking assistance. I have written another article ... A: To make it less confusing for you, I only posted the parts of your piece where I made corrections. ... | ||
| Experimenting | 1/27/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: I have a somewhat general question that I hope you can help me with here. I have had a strong ... A: I am happy to answer your question. Or at least try! I think that because you're focusing on an ... | ||
| need advice | 1/20/2010 | Samantha Prust |
| Q: Can you please look over and any advice will be helpful. Thank you so much. Dear xyz Industries, ... A: Edits are suggested below. You sound like a very nice person and I wish you the best of luck with ... | ||
| Western & Athletic Publishers | 1/12/2010 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: Cathy, upon reading the link to Five Star, it specifically states they do not accept submissions for ... A: John! Yes, Forge is an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates. You can use the submission requirements ... | ||
| SUBMISSION TO Disney | 12/15/2009 | Cathy Clamp |
| Q: I've written a 150 page book cc Tinker Bell that I believe would fit well in the Pixie Hollow ... A: Philip! Unfortunately, you're in a bit of a bad position right now. My first book was likewise ... | ||
Writing Short Stories
Cathy Clamp
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I'm happy to answer questions about any aspect of getting short stories published in magazines, ezines and anthologies I can help with writing a cover letter to an editor and editing the story to suit a request for revisions. I can explain publishing terminology, acronyms and manuscript formatting. I can also assist with questions about verifying the credentials of magazines, ezines and anthology publishers and how to proceed once you've been accepted for publication.
Experience
I'm a USA Today bestselling author of urban fantasy and paranormal romance Tor/Forge Books. Along with a co-author, I've published fifteen novels (combination of mass market and trade softcover) since 2003, and have contracts for four more books through 2011. I've also published short stories in multiple anthologies, plus regional and national magazines.
Organizations
Romance Writers of America, Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, Western Outdoor Writers, Horror Writers of America.
Publications
Books/Anthologies: Tor/Forge Books, Western Reflections Publishing; Short Stories: BenBella Books, Running Press, Prairie Times, California Fish & Game, Freya's Bower, Wild Child Publishing, OxCart Press. Many others.
Education/Credentials
My educational background is limited to real life experience of publishing novels commercially for the past five years
Awards and Honors
USA Today bestseller, Waldenbooks Mass Market Paperback Top 20 bestseller, Nielsen BookScan Top 20 bestseller, RT BOOKreviews Career Achievement Award, Book Buyers Best Award for Paranormal, Romantic Times Best Werewolf Novel, Write Touch Readers Award, EVVY Best Historical Chronicle Award, The Lories Best Paranormal. Many others.
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