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DirtyMartini

Over 90 days ago

United States

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19 Jul 2011

Doesn't look like this is a paying gig, but...

THE ENIGMATIST is a poetry journal dedicated to poetry the common man can understand. We seek poetry that speaks about now, that helps us comprehend the electronic universe we all live in. We strive to keep in touch with the beauty of the natural.
We believe the spoken and the printed word have power. We publish books for all of us who feel the same way.

The Enigmatist is looking for poetry...and the guy who publishes it, Mike Gullickson, also runs the Georgetown Poetry Festival...Sept 30, REGISTER BY NOTIFYING MIKE GULLICKSON
<mailto: > or by calling ...if anyone cares... smile

smile

Home Page The Enigmatist...
http://theenigmatist.info/

19 Jul 2011

Somebody on LinkedIn just told me about AuthorStand...they currently have two writing contests going on with no entry fees...$250 first prize...go for it... smile

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Writing Contests AuthorStand...
http://www.authorstand.com/writing-contests.aspx

Not sure what else AuthorStand has to offer...but, it might be worth checking out the site...maybe someone here can give us the full report... icon_smile

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19 Jul 2011

Fund...

Quote by scooter
lund

Damn Scooter...I had to look that up...it's a city in Sweden...I had no idea... dontknow

dontknow

19 Jul 2011

Quote by ladysharon
Too late. j/k. I'm editing someone's story and i'm having a field day right now.

Having a field day editing? Lol...that's one thing I hate...I'd rather write a whole new story than edit one...

Not to sound too dumb, but who is "j/k?"...can't think of anyone here with those initials...

18 Jul 2011

Just sent them "The Birthday Party"...

What the heck...right?

18 Jul 2011

Here you go...just came across this while doing a Duotrope search for something else actually...The Fringe pays $5AUD for stories, poems, etc up to 40k words...and they accept previously published stories... smile

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The Fringe Magazine
http://thefringemagazine.blogspot.com/

Another one of these magazines based on Blogspot.com...that seems to be the latest thing... happy8

happy8

Here's the actual deal as far as payment, according to the site...

"Currently we only offer payment for one story selected as the feature story in the monthly pdf magazine only. The successful author will be contacted to organise payment via paypal for a $5AUD payment. Authors of other accepted stories published on the webzine and in the pdf copy will receive a copy of the pdf version of the mag the story appears in.

We are open to unpublished and previously published stories up to 40,000 words in length."

But hey...what do you got to lose???

18 Jul 2011

Don't normally like to post contests with entry fees, but this one has a £1,000 first prize and accepts previously published short stories... smile

smile

Looking for stories 1-3k in length, any theme...I just might go for this one...:)

Welcome

Inktears Short Story Competition 2011...
http://www.inktears.com/Inktears/Welcome.html

Heck...I can send them my contest story from here...

I believe in getting mileage out of a story if I can... happy8

happy8

18 Jul 2011

Oh, I think I finally found a contest and award made for my friends..."Have you got the words to be Beer Writer of the Year 2011 and win £1,000?"...yeah, they're searching for the best beer writer...I guess you have to drink a lot of beer as part of research for the project, but it's worth the effort...that's a lot of beer money if you win...go for it Stories Space Cadets... icon_smile

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British Guild Of Beer Writers
http://www.beerwriters.co.uk/awards.php

Yes, the search for the best beer writer has been launched...

18 Jul 2011

I think I mentioned here recently that my favorite guitarist is Albert King...but my favorite group is the what? No, sorry...The Who...yeah, you say "Who?"...well, you know... icon_smile

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17 Jul 2011

The next few weeks will be a record for the number of submissions I'm waiting to hear back on...and some are potentially lucrative from a financial standpoint... icon_smile

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1. August 5, will be the results of this contest on Stories Space...$100 potential...

2. August 15 will be the results for the Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest...I submitted "The Facebook Poem"...first prize is $1500 btw...I have my fingers and toes crossed on that one...

3. I sent in a poem titled "If I Should Forget" to Poetry Magazine on June 18...it is supposed to take 6 to 8 weeks to hear back...so, I should be hearing back about that soon...$300 potential there...

4. I sent three erotic stories to Rachel Kramer Bussel for an erotic romance short story compilation..."Dance Class"...an Editor Pick on the sister site, btw..."Is She Happier Without Me" and "Carnival Knowledge"...that's a potential $150 in the unlikely event she picks up all three...so far, she has rejected everything I've sent her...and I've sent her several stories since I started submitting stuff to paying gigs on September 7, 2010...

5. I sent in "The Birthday Party" to Short Story America for their Story Of The Week...I think that pays $100...should be hearing soon...

6. I have a total of nine stories that I sent to the erotic e-Zine Oysters & Chocolate that I'm waiting to hear back on...and I still haven't sent them anything this month yet, you can send three per month...in the unlikely event they want all nine, that would be a cool $90...they pay ten bucks a pop...
They bought two of my stories this year..."Morning In The Park" and "Getting A Raise"...they rejected eight so far...

I think that's it for now...hopefully something will come through...like they say though, "You have to be in it to win it"... happy8

happy8

Cheers,
Alan.
occasion5

occasion5

17 Jul 2011

Tune...

17 Jul 2011

mystery...

16 Jul 2011

Nice video of Freddy King doing "I'm Tore Down"...1966...

16 Jul 2011

They publish all sub-genres of romance - Regency historical, contemporary romance, paranormal romance and urban fantasy. For historicals they prefer Regency. They prefer dark, sexy paranormals and like small-town set contemporaries. Avon's digital imprint. They pay 25 percent royalties on the first
10,000 copies and 50 percent royalties after 10,000 copies...did you get that?

Impulse
http://www.avonromance.com/impulse/

16 Jul 2011

New imprint of Aspen Mountain Press. We are actively seeking: science fiction, both hard and soft; fantasy, from epic to urban and in between; horror, all types; Steampunk; cyberpunk; dystopian stories and anything else that falls beneath the wide SF umbrella. What we are NOT seeking: SF erotica. Romantic
subplots are fine, but cannot comprise the majority of the storyline...good luck... smile

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Aura Submissions - Aspen Mountain Press Romance, Erotica, and Adventure ebooks - Aura Speculative F
http://www.aspenmountainpress.com/aura-submissions/info_12.html

16 Jul 2011

Here's a chance to win £300...that's money across the pond..."The winners will be published on the website. Deadline September 15, 2011. Word limit: 1,000-5,000 (maximum). Email your story as a Word document or pdf. No poetry,
novel chapters, sci-fi, fantasy or stories for children."...no entry fee...good luck... smile

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The Short Story
http://www.theshortstory.net/

16 Jul 2011

Here's another chance to win $10k..."The winner of the annual competition will be awarded the David C. Horn Prize of $10,000, publication of his/her manuscript by Yale University Press, and a staged reading at Yale Rep."...go write a play... smile

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Yale Drama Series: Award-Winners, Competition Rules and Submission Instructions
http://yalepress.yale.edu/yupbooks/drama.asp

16 Jul 2011

Do you have a crime novel? Now you have an excuse to go write one...how about a publishing deal and $10,000 advance? OK, you have to win the contest...but hey, go for it... smile

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Contests for Writers | Mystery Writers of America
http://www.mysterywriters.org/?q=Contests-Writers

15 Jul 2011

Quote by ladysharon
Don't worry, Alan. I have a couple of pet peeves I'm about to throw into the mix.

No problem Sharon...as long as you don't use my stories as an example of "what not to do"... icon_smile

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15 Jul 2011

Warning!

There’s a dangerous Rascal on this site,
Who will try to tell you she’s always right,
She’ll tell you it’s day when it’s night,
She’ll tell you it’s black when it’s white,
It’s best to amuse her, don’t start a fight... happy8

happy8

15 Jul 2011

Wow...my head is spinning now, and we still have more sins to go...

I'm still working on eating my possessive lesson...does anyone know if a little hot sauce would make that taste better? Talk about eating your words...

I might have to go revise all of my stories after this is all over... icon_smile

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15 Jul 2011

dime...

15 Jul 2011

dime...

15 Jul 2011

dime...

15 Jul 2011

Quote by gypsymoth

The section I hightlighted in bold gives the clearest reason I have come across: they become new words. Ah how nice! Easy-peasy Alan.

Gee...thanks for that Gypsy...I must have been out that day in English class, or asleep...no doubt one of the two...

I'll just have to find some flavored paper or something...funny though, I can't seem to find "easy-peasy" in the dictionary...

Let me go look again.... icon_smile

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14 Jul 2011

You two sinners going to come up with a big sin list? Shouldn't be that hard...

I could probably come up with a couple myself...but, I try not to think about it too much...

14 Jul 2011

Quote by scooter
It's the reason I pretend I can't spell,
I call it color

You're right about that Scooter, your stories are certainly colorful... icon_smile

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Btw Yas...I'd like to think my poems have progressed too...though I'm not sure there is anything particularly wrong with "rhyming verses about butterflies and fluffy clouds."...reminds me of a poem I read over on Poetry Craze a few weeks ago about watching the clouds go by and seeing different shapes and animals in them...

I think it's more how it's done than any particular subject matter...well, within reason...

14 Jul 2011

Quote by Louise
I've found that I try not to use the same old sentences or phrases especially with poetry. The thesaurus has become my new best friend.

Btw, I'm avoiding the rest of this question for now...but yeah, with poem writing...I find this site to be great...
[url]http://www.rhymezone.com/?loc=bar[/url]
You can type in a word and find synonyms, antonyms, rhymes, near rhymes and all sorts of neat stuff at the touch of a drop-down menu...I keep it open in a window when writing poems...makes life easier... icon_smile

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14 Jul 2011

Just a little something from my favorite guitarist... icon_smile

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13 Jul 2011

Quote by Lisa
Do you remember the first story you wrote and what age you were when you began writing?

Yeah, because it wasn't really all that long ago... icon_smile

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I'm assuming too, that when you ask about the first story we wrote, that we would not include stuff we had to write for a school assignment...though looking back, the only fiction I can recall writing in school was a story I wrote about my mother's stew...I was not a big fan of my mother's cooking, and her stew especially gave me trouble, so in fifth grade I wrote a humor based piece about my mother's stew in which the descriptions no doubt bore resemblance to something out of Dante's Inferno...

In high school the only "story" I recall writing was a non-fiction piece about the Citroen automobile, I think I wrote it in tenth grade if I recall...I was also reminded by one of my Facebook friends that I went to school with that my friend Tom and myself wrote poems about biology subjects in high school...strictly for the amusement of other classmates...I don't think any of those poetic masterpieces survive, though I may have a couple in the bottom of a drawer somewhere...I have a habit of not throwing much out, and if I really looked I could probably find a couple...

I do recall the first two lines of one biology poem though...the title was "Tap Root"...

When the primary root grows big and strong,
Where secondary roots do not belong,

OK...you get the idea... happy8

happy8

That same friend and I also wrote some "spoof" songs, shall we say, set to the music of other popular songs at the time...there may be a couple of those kicking around, they basically poked fun at a couple people we knew, in a light-hearted sort of way...I know we actually recorded at least one...we had a friend we called "Scrag" who's father owned an Italian ice company a few of us worked for in the summers during high school (my Italian ice experience shows up in one of my stories "Carnival Knowledge"...I did meet a girl named Cindy in the same way described in the story, though I was working at the ice stand...and I did stay for a week at the Flemington Fair, though I was not a carnie)...anyway, I do recall Tom and I recording a song called "Scrag Out Of Hell" set to the tune of Meatloaf's "Bat Out Of Hell" which came out in 1977, when we were 16...I believe I still have that recording on a reel-to-reel somewhere...

From the time I left high school until 2009, the only writing I did was song lyrics...most of these didn't survive since they were written on paper, this was before computers, and if I really digged I could probably find more...but, there are a few posted here as poems...the first one I posted on the net was "I Wish I Knew" which was a failed song attempt, hence the odd form...I think the third verse was supposed to be the refrain, which is why it is only four lines...there are a couple others, like "My Brother" and "25 And Still Alive" which were rap-song attempts, lol...and I know that latter was written somewhat after my 25th birthday...I was probably about 35 when I wrote it...

The first story I ever wrote as an adult was called "Jimmy Gets Replaced" and was written April 21, 2009...I had come across an article on sex fantasy one day while surfing the net, and it mentioned a "sex fantasy site" where people wrote up their fantasies and others rated and commented...I joined the site initially just to read and comment on the stories, I had no intention of writing anything. They had a Hottest Fantasy list though, and somehow it seemed to call my name...lol...almost like a mountain that needed to be climbed. I wondered if I could come up with something that could make the list, and so after only a few days on the site, I wrote the Jimmy story, based on something an ex-girlfriend told me...heck, I even used her name...it did not make the list...in fact, it really didn't do all that well...it had a 3.5/5.0 average and no comments for the longest...

Three days later I got the idea for another story "Morning In The Park"...that made the list with all 5 votes...it was also the first story I sold...I sold it to Oysters & Chocolate erotic e-Zine earlier this year...

I know there's another thread kicking around about if we feel we've improved as a writer since our earliest stuff...and looking back at "Morning In The Park" I'd like to say yes...I think the second or third paragraph is like a giant run-on sentence...but, I'd also have to point out, that just because a story is better "technically" does not necessarily make it more "saleable" or a better story...

Maybe I'll have to go over there and leave a comment later...enough for now...