Harris - Writing & selling short stories & personal essays: the essential guide to getting your work published

WritersDigest.com

Cincinnati, Ohio

At a time when the publishing world appears saturated with how-to books on writing, author and editor Windy Lynn Harris has crafted a guide that truly stands outan easy-to-read, no-nonsense compendium of original wisdom on the art and science of short prose. Unlike many other volumes on the market, Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays offers insights into two related but distinct challengeswriting successful stories and essays, and marketing those works once they are written. The book abounds with first-rate advice and draws upon numerous practical examples. Harris clearly has mastered the distinct crafts of writing and publishingand she can help you do so too. If youre only going to buy one book to launch your career as a writing professional, this is the book. JACOB M. APPEL , author of The Mask of Sanity

Better pick up several copies, because you will be handing them out to friends and students. Windy Lynn Harriss Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays demystifies the process of writing and publishing short form writing with refreshing clarity and ease. There is something here for writers of every skill level and experience. Harriss professional experience as a published author, editor, and consultant shine in this guide. Her patience and knowledge emerge from the pages as though you have a mentor to assist you along the journey. APRIL BRADLEY , writer, editor, and Pushcart nominee.

Windy Lynn Harris has succeeded in writing a thorough, engaging, easy to understand how-to bible for the writing industry. Its chock full of great writing samples, templates, and clear instructions on both craft and marketing. There is something for everyone in this book; both the novice and the published writer will gain much from studying these pages. I, for one, will keep a copy close to my desk, no doubt dog-earring pages and re-reading Harriss sage advice again and again. ALICE KALTMAN , author of Staggerwing and Wavehouse (2018)

Windys book, Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays is a practical and user-friendly guide to add those coveted bylines to your resume. Each section of the book breaks down what you need to know to garner success in your writing career. RUDRI BHATT PATEL , essayist and co-founder/co-editor of The Sunlight Press

Finally! A straightforward guide to polishing, formatting, and publishing essays and short stories. Windy Lynn Harris demystifies the process and makes it easy to navigate the path to publishing. This book will have a permanent place on my desk. SUSAN POHLMAN , essayist and author of Halfway to Each Other: How a Year in Italy Brought Our Family Home

This gem of a book is chock full of helpful tips and advice for writers who want to break into the short fiction and/or essay market. Along with detailed advice on the craft of writing short stories and essays, you will also find databases and resources for publishing your polished work. Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays is a must-have for every writers bookshelf. JEANNE LYET GASSMAN , author of the Independent Publisher Book Award-winning Blood of a Stone

Writers, here it isthe one book you need to start your journey to writing and publishing. Windy Lynn Harris, herself a seasoned writer, is your sure-footed tour guide who teaches you the language of the locals. Part MFA professor, part cheerleader, and always your trusted mentor, Windy draws on her own experience as writer and writing coach to demystify the craft and process of writing and publishing short stories and essays. Beginners can rely on this book to teach them everything they need to know from the basic structure and scope of short stories and essays to where and how to publish them. Seasoned writers will learn more than a few new tricks of the trade. The numerous top ten tips alone are worth the price of admission. Though there are many books on craft out there, and others on publishing, this book is truly your one-stop shopping! JENNIFER KIRCHER KARR , co-founder of WordTango and winner of the Nebraska Reviews Fiction Prize.

Rooted in the context of the current short-form literary landscape, Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays is more than an excellent source of information. Each page is the best kind of companionone who helps you out while also cheering you on. Functioning as both a craft book and an informative guide, Harriss unique collection helps us first to find the most succinct way to put our experiences and ideas on the page, and then how to get our words out into the world. Im not quite sure how anyone has been able to write effectively in the short form genre prior to this books existence. CHELSEY CLAMMER (author of Circadian and BodyHome)

Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays is a brilliant and concise guide to writing compelling work and getting it published. From sharpening the implements in your creative writing toolbox, to crafting a perfect cover letter, and identifying the best markets for your work, Windy Lynn Harris delivers expert advice for every stage of the process. When it comes to writing short work and getting it published Windy tells her readers you can do this, and with her book you will! ELIZABETH PETTIE , co-founder of WordTango

For Darin, always.

Writing short stories and personal essays is a marketable skill in publishing. These types of short pieces are submitted and accepted every week. And the great news about this kind of writing: Writers dont need a literary agent to participate in the process. We can independently market our prose and land bylines that make us proud. It just takes sending our work to the right editor, at the right time, and in the right way.

In 2009, I founded the Market Coaching for Creative Writers program to help writers get their short stories and personal essays published in magazines. In that program, I teach writers how to create targeted cover letters, professionally format their manuscripts, and find hundreds of perfect markets to match their voice. They study magazine guidelines and submission etiquette, learn the difference between copyright and the rights available to sell, and set up a system for keeping their submissions organized. By the end of a Market Coaching session, writers are not only able to submit their work to viable magazine editors with confidence; theyre able to repeat the process for every piece of short writing they produce in the future.

Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays is going to teach you all of those things, too and more. This book is a complete conversation on the topic of publishing short works.

The first part of this book is dedicated to storytelling because we must create the best version of our prose before reaching out to magazine editors. To learn how to recognize sharp prose, well start by examining contemporary short stories and personal essays. Then well study voice, scene writing, setting, characterization, point of view, meaningful dialogue, and theme. Well discuss how to craft publishable short stories and essays and how to revise them effectively.

All of these topics will likely be familiar to you already, but in this book well study them through the tightly focused lens of short-form writing. Every craft chapter is specifically designed to help you excel in economical storytelling. Youll learn to pay attention to every single detail.