Writer's Market Companion [Paperback]

Joe Feiertag (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1582972915 | ISBN-13: 978-1582972916 | Publication Date: July 27, 2004 | Edition: 2

It's a great time to be a writer!

In today's information age there are more books, magazines and written communications being produced than ever before. Writer's Market Companion helps you get in on the action, so you can get published and paid for your work, whether you write articles, screenplays, novels, newsletters–virtually anything.

Page after page features sound information on professional writing issues, focusing on everything from contracts to creativity. Just open this guide and you'll find what you need:

• Submit winning query letters following the examples on pages 150-153
  
  
• Make contacts and stay informed through hundreds of writing websites and organizations listed in Chapter Two
  
  
• Price your work fairly according to the guidelines for rates and fees
  
  
• Build your business with Chapter Four's tips for finding your niche, managing your time and getting organized
  
  
• Legal advice from page 141 helps you understand contracts before you sign
  
  
• See page 55 to generate great writing ideas in eight easy steps
  
  
• Get the most from your interviews following the proven tips in Chapter Seven
  
  
• Compete your projects on time, every time using the foolproof checklist on page 83
  
  
• Learn about the pros and cons of agents on pages 246-248

More than your companion, this guide is your best friend and the "how-to" reference for writing success.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Joe Feiertag is a public relations professional and former journalist who has built a highly successful career as a freelance writer and editor; Mary Cupito teaches journalism and, since leaving full-time reporting, she has written many freelance articles for a number of publications.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books; 2 edition (July 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582972915
• ISBN-13: 978-1582972916
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #902,586 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A truly superior companion !, May 31, 2000

By 

Leon Fletcher (Ben Lomond, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Writer's Market Companion: The Essential Guide to Starting Your Project, Getting Published and Getting Paid (Writer's Market library) (Paperback)

If you are an aspiring writer or a well- established writer, "The Writer's Market Companion" may be the most valuable guide you can consult.

Its 17 chapters cover virtually all aspects of the business of writing---including resources, planning, selling ms (manuscripts), protecting your creations, promoting, and more. Information on both fiction and nonfiction is provided---with plenty of specific tips, realistic examples, pratical techniques.

Writing and publishing online as well as conventional print are covered.

A sufficienty of specifics, quotes, examples, statistics, illustations, and such support virtually every point.

The authors are experienced, know the business, and are effective writers.

This book is recommended to its intended readers without reservation.

54 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive, informative, indispensable., June 5, 2000

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Writer's Market Companion: The Essential Guide to Starting Your Project, Getting Published and Getting Paid (Writer's Market library) (Paperback)

One of the key reference books for aspiring writers seeking publication, The Writer's Market Companion is a compendium of sound information on every aspect professional writing. Joe Feiertage, Mary Carmen Cupito, and the Editors of "Writer's Market" have collaborated to provide up-to-date information on writer organizations, internet resources for writers, securing representation, obtaining a publisher, copyright protection, self-promotion, marketing and promoting fiction and non-fiction, taxes and financial issues, and much, much more. The Writer's Market Companion is a comprehensive and informative addition to any personal, professional, and community library professional writing reference collection.

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Valuable Supplement to "Writer's Market", May 19, 2005

By 

Kelly Garbato "www.easyvegan.info" (Kearney, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Writer's Market Companion (Paperback)

From Writer's Digest Books comes "Writer's Market Companion," which serves as a valuable supplement to their `writer's bible,' "Writer's Market."

In the volume's introduction, the authors explain their reasoning for a companion to the popular "Writer's Market" guide: "As the publishing industry changes, we have become more selective in choosing markets that appear in `Writer's Market.' As a result of these choices, we have to sacrifice essential content, the nuts and bolts of publishing...To fill this gap, we're providing you with this `Writer's Market Companion, 2nd ed.'"

In their "Writer's Market Companion," authors Joe Feiertag and Mary Carmen Cupito provide an overview of "the nuts and bolts of publishing": writing and selling different types of material, including poetry, short fiction, non-fiction articles and essays, book-length fiction and non-fiction, and even screenplays and scripts. They also discuss alternative markets for a freelancer's work, such as corporations, web sites, and eBook aficionados. Other topics covered include conducting research; executing interviews; promoting your work; pursuing grants, fellowships, and prizes; finding and evaluating writing groups and communities; treating your writing career seriously, like a "real" business; contractual and copyright issues; and pricing your work.

As compared to other manuals on writing, publishing, and promoting books and articles, "Writer's Market Companion" is easily one of the more superior ones I've read (and trust me, I've pored over quite a few!). The guide is well written (an essential when it's a book about writing!), informative without sounding dry or boring, and chock full of useful advice. However, I thought a few of the chapters were on the weak side; for instance, chapter 13, "Promoting Your Work and Yourself" didn't offer much beyond the monotonous promotional strategies I've seen in every other writing manual. Nonetheless, the book as a whole is good buy, definitely worth the time and money.

A caveat: if you're just in search of market listings, stick with "Writer's Market." There aren't any paying markets included in "Writer's Market Companion," simply descriptions of the different types of markets out there, along with advice on how best to court them. Conversely, if you're a newbie just starting out, you'd probably be best served buying both the "Writer's Market" and its companion (after all, what good are market listings if you don't know what to do with them?).