2008 Novel & Short Story Writer's Market (Novel and Short Story Writer's Market) (Paperback)

~ Lauren Mosko (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

For 26 years, fiction writers have depended on Novel & Short Story Writer's Market to help them sell their work and make professional connections in the industry. Listings for over 1,350 book publishers, magazines, literary agents, writing contests and conferences--202 of which are new to this edition--provide current contact information, editorial needs, schedules and guidelines that save you time and take the guesswork out of the submission process.

This edition also contains interviews with and essays by best-selling and award-winning writers, such as Bret Lott, Judy Budnitz, Gregg Hurwitz, Carly Phillips and Steve Almond, offering practical guidance and a glimpse into the successful writing life. A new section for writers of graphic novels features advice from comics heavy hitters, including Marv Wolfman, Peter David and Craig Thompson. Other top mainstream, literary and genre writers share their insights into the craft and business of fiction.

You have a story to tell. So what are you waiting for?

About the Author

Lauren Mosko is editor of Novel & Short Story Writer's Market in addition to a number of titles from Writer's Digest Books.

Product Details

• Paperback: 656 pages
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books (July 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582974985
• ISBN-13: 978-1582974989
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.2 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #404,941 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential For Writers New to the Submission Process, October 5, 2007

By	Darshan "darshan1" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

It seems this book improves every year while providing the core basic information on agents, magazines, book publishers, electronic markets, and conferences in an easily understandable manner.

I've found that submitting is actually a very frustrating process. A magazine may seem perfect for you until you see that they only accept stories shorter than yours or they aren't accepting new submissions during the month you're ready to submit or they only accept authors from their region. Really the only way to prevent pulling out all your hair by submitting to the wrong markets again and again is to read this book carefully. I'd still advise looking at the individual markets' websites just in case there is an update since publication, but four-fifths of the time what you need to know is in the book. However, enough information changes each year that acquiring (or reading) the newest edition is a good idea.

I've tried to move beyond this book in the last couple of years by looking for markets not listed in NSSWM which has taught me something else. A lot of markets they don't list (such as several I found in Poets and Writers) are less than stable, and you wind up "submitting to the black hole" never to learn what happened to your story or poem. While I'm sure there are exceptions, in my experience markets in NSSWM tend to be more reliable than ones I've found elsewhere.

Even though I've said this book is essential for new writers because of material on the "Business of Fiction Writing" which discusses cover letters, query letters and rights, there is a lot of information of interest to writers further in their careers such as interviews with major authors in a number of genres and lists of websites and resources important to each genre. This particular edition contains articles geared for authors considering hiring a publicist, the pluses and pitfalls of co-authoring, and the process of moving from published author to bestselling published author.

There are a couple things this book could do to be even better such as have a cross-referenced list of markets that accept submissions via e-mail as well as a cross-referenced list of "entry-level" markets. However, this is by far the best guide available, particularly for those writing for magazine markets.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not for fantasy/ sci fi writers!, January 4, 2008

By	annibus - See all my reviews

I bought this book in order to find markets for some of my fantasy short stories. The list short story publications doesn't list even the most famous of the fantasy/ sci fi!

There is a dedicated information section, however. It included some articles, but over all the sci fi one was pathetic; the section on fantasy was even worse. The list of external resources for fantasy writers was thin, and included a broken link!

I don't doubt that this is a great book--for a very specific market. Fantasy and Sci Fi writers, save your money. Horror and Romance writers, you might fare a little better, but those sections looked pretty darn thin to me too.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Successful" free-lance novelist relies - hopefully - on useful source again., November 28, 2007

By	Alan H. Neff (Chicago, IL, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Three years ago, I used N&SSWM to sell my first novel. It's very comprehensive and, by and large, user-friendly. The listings could be more consistently (and clearly) written, though. The sources (publishers and agents) aren't always as explicit about their submission guidelines or general accessibility as a user would hope. It would be great if the publisher of N&SSWM did a bit more follow-up with them. Many of the targets direct users to their websites, so the problem cures itself, but only with additional work.