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This April there are more than seven dozen calls for submissions. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As always, every genre, style, and form is wanted, from short stories to poetry to essays. I post calls for submissions on the first day of every month. But as I am collecting them, I post them on my page,  Calls for Submissions . You can get a jump on next month's calls for submissions by checking that page periodically throughout the month. (I only post paying markets.) Also see  Paying Markets  for hundreds of paying markets arranged by form and genre. Happy submitting! Image credit: Pixabay _____________________ West Branch .  Genre : Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.  Payment : $50 per submission of poetry, and $.05/word for prose with a maximum payment of $100.  Deadline : April 1, 2021. Constelación  is a quarterly speculative fiction bilingual magazine, publishing stories in both Spanish and En...

This April there are more than four dozen writing contests calling for every genre and form, from poetry, to creative nonfiction, to completed novels. Prizes range from $100,000 to publication. None charge entry fees. Some of these contests have age and geographical restrictions, so read the instructions carefully. If you want to get a jump on next month's contests go to  Free Contests . Most of these contests are offered annually, so even if the deadline is past, you can prepare for next year. Good luck!  (Image credit: Pxhere) ________________________ Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest . Genre : T his contest seeks today's best humor poems, published and unpublished. Please enter one poem only, 250 lines max.  Prize : $3,500 in prizes, including a top prize of $2,000, and publication on Winning Writers.  Deadline : April 1, 2021. Writing for Peace .  Restrictions : Open to writers  age s 13-19.  Genre : Poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. "Writing for Pe...

Spring has sprung, and writers are thawing out! This April most writing conferences will be held online. Virtual events still offer everything a writer might want: intensive workshops, pitch sessions with agents, to how to market yourself and your books, discussions - there is something for everyone. For a full list of conferences held throughout the year see  Writing Conferences . During the pandemic most of these are being held virtually at reduced rates. Quite a few offer scholarships, so apply early. Photo credit: Wikimedia ___________________ Norwescon . April 1 - 4, 2021: Sea Tac, WA. Norwescon is one of the largest regional Science Fiction and Fantasy conventions in the United States.  Will be held online . IBPA Publishing University . April 7 - 10, 2021, Redondo Beach, CA. The Independent Book Publishers Association offers 30+ educational sessions including experiential learning labs, insightful keynotes, a gala book award ceremony, networking events, an...

Updated 9/4/21 If you've written a longer piece of fiction, but not as lengthy as a novel, you may be wondering where to get it published. (As it happens, I am too, because I just wrote one.)  With so many literary journals preferring a "sweet spot" of about 3,000 words, a short story of 8,000 words can be a challenge to publish. Once you get over 10,000 words, finding a home for your work can be daunting.  Nevertheless it is not impossible. There are quite a few literary journals and publishers that accept longer short stories, novelettes, and novellas. In case you are wondering what the word counts are for these categories, Duotrope uses these guidelines: Short story = 1000 to 7,500 words Novelette = 7,500 to 15,000 words Novella = 15,000 to 40,000 words While guidelines can be useful, word counts are hardly fixed for short fiction. A novelette can be anywhere between 7,000 and 20,000 words. But while novellas usually have a top range of 40,000 words, there is no fixed ...