March 28, 2024

Magic of Memoir Call for Submissions

 

SUBMIT TO OUR NEW ANTHOLOGY, THE MAGIC OF MEMOIR (NOVEMBER 2016 PUBLICATION DATE):


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MAGIC-OF-MEMOIR_smABOUT MAGIC OF MEMOIR

From teaching memoir for so many years, we have learned from our students, and well-known memoir writers, how challenging the journey can be—from mining for memories and experiences to the point of completing a well-written memoir. Everyone who sets out to write a memoir encounters its stages—from the excitement of starting to the dread that invariably comes when you’re facing down your demons. Then there are the challenges of craft—how to find the structure and words that convey your message. We want to know from you how you solved these problems.

In this collection, we are asking writers to share their stories of hard-earned wisdom. We want to learn how you dealt with the inner critic, or the practical strategies that provided motivation to write about the dark times your story might have brought up. Share with us the lessons you  learned from the  mistakes you made on this journey, and how you overcame them. Tell us what inspired you, what kept you going, and most of all why you tackled the challenge of writing a memoir. For Magic of Memoir, editors Linda Joy Myers, President of the National Association of Memoir Writers, and Brooke Warner, Publisher of She Writes Press, are looking for a broad perspective and specific tips on the discipline and inspiration you used to write your  memoir.

 

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

The following points are prompts to get you thinking about the range of essays you might write for Magic of Memoir. We do not intend for you to try to cover all of these points, nor are you limited to what we list here.

  1. What challenges have you dealt with—craft, emotional surprises, wrestling with truth?
  2. What kinds of things did your inner critic say as you wrote your memoir and how did you get past them?
  3. Did you have “outer critics”—voices of family and friends—who challenged the idea of you writing a memoir? What did they say and how did you cope with that?
  4. What were your reasons for writing your memoir?
  5. Support and accountability: what factors or people helped you to keep writing?
  6. How did the issue of truth arise as you wrote? Did you have doubts about the truth of your story, or did other people’s take on the story influence you?
  7. Did you combine/collapse characters and time in your story? If yes, what were the factors that led to your decision to do that and what was the result?
  8. What were your concerns about exposing secrets, or revealing things that might upset your family, and how did you solve the issues that came up for you?
  9. Were you worried about lawsuits—and how did you handle this?
  10. What was it like to try to translate memories and moments into a story structure? What were the challenges and what helped you to sort that out?
  11. How many drafts of your memoir did you write before you completed it, and what was your editing and revision process?
  12. How long did it take you to write your memoir and what were the most interesting and or surprising things you learned on your journey?

 

SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES

• Send your submissions in MS Word, 12 point type, Times New Roman. Double space your entry, and be sure to edit it. We advise that you find outside editors or peer readers to go over your piece for typos, grammar, and meaning. Manuscript presentation is important.
•    Submissions up to 3,000 words maximum.
•    Please include a brief bio with contact information for the “About the Contributors” section.
•    Editors reserve the right to choose pieces based on appropriateness of subject, writing technique, and style. Minor editing for length or clarity should be expected.
• You do not have to be a published memoirist in order to submit. Previously published submissions are allowable as long as you can secure permission to reprint it from the original publisher. This anthology is being published on She Writes Press, and we welcome male contributors!

Submissions deadline is June 1, 2016, and the submissions fee is $20.


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PRIZES and COMPENSATION

The top 18-20 submissions will be published in Magic of Memoir: Inspiration for the Writing Journey (She Writes Press, November 2016), edited by Linda Joy Myers, PhD, and Brooke Warner. The top three entries will receive prize money in the amounts of:

1st place: $400

2nd place: $200

3rd place: $100

 

All chosen contributors will receive two complimentary copies of the book upon publication and the opportunity to buy unlimited at 50% off.

 

ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNERS

We will announce the prize winners and the anthology contributors on August 1, 2016. We intend to get back to all of you directly, but you will find the update on August 1st on our site: www.writeyourmemoirinsixmonths.com.

 

ABOUT THE EDITORS

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Linda Joy Myers, PhD, is president and founder of the National Association of Memoir Writers. Her memoir Don’t Call Me Mother—A Daughter’s Journey from Abandonment to Forgiveness was a finalist in the ForeWord Book of the Year Award, a finalist in the IndieExcellence Awards, and received Honorable Mention in the New York Book Awards. She’s the author of three books on memoir writing: The Power of Memoir—How to Write Your Healing Story, Journey of Memoir, and Becoming Whole. She writes for the Huffington Post, and co-teaches with Brooke Warner the program Write Your Memoir in Six Months. Together Myers and Warner co-authored Breaking Ground on Your Memoir. A therapist for 36 years, Myers speaks about memoir, healing, and the power of writing the truth.

 

Warner 2016 colorBrooke Warner is publisher of She Writes Press, president of Warner Coaching Inc., and author of What’s Your Book?, Green-light Your Book, How to Sell Your Memoir, and the co-author with Myers of Breaking Ground on Your Memoir. Brooke’s expertise is in traditional and new publishing. She is the former Executive Editor of Seal Press and currently sits on the boards of the Independent Book Publishers Association, the Bay Area Book Festival, and the National Association of Memoir Writers. She co-teaches with Linda Joy Myers the program Write Your Memoir in Six Months. Together Warner and Myers co-authored Breaking Ground on Your Memoir. She blogs actively on Huffington Post Books and SheWrites.com.