Yes, It's Still On The Way!

I know that many of you are impatient for the release of the new Inner Circle Writers’ Magazine, something which I can understand - there is no one more impatient than me for it. Maybe the last thing you need is another teaser from me about what’s going to be in it. But, as I composed the contents page recently - an incomplete contents page, as there are still many more items to include, I hasten to add - I became excited all over again and wanted you to get a glimpse of the thrills to come.

There’s a focus in the magazine on the lives of writers who have had or are having success with their work. You will probably have already seen the magazine’s cover (above), which features the well-known Steve Carr, but inside you’ll get a unique look at what makes him tick as an author and publisher of over 230 short stories in the last couple of years. Yes, he’s about to release, at this writing, his new book Getting Your Short Stories Published: A Guidebook - but that volume will zoom in on the practicalities of the professional writer and empower you to copy his successful systems for getting work out there and in print. In an article called 'The Summing Up', Steve elaborates about his background in storytelling, what motivates him to write, who his heroes are and the influence of place upon his fiction. The combination of the guidebook and the insights of this article will prove valuable to any writer who wants to emulate his success in the field.

As well as Steve, though, we also get a quick look into what lies behind Carmen Baca’s storytelling. She explains the power of her cultural background and what her surroundings have to do with her success, in an article called ‘Inspired by Mis Antepasados (My Ancestors)’.

Blogger and author Melinda Newmin is interviewed by Zada Kent about her invented vampire of Baltimore, and Justin Wiggins gives us a succinct glimpse into his world in a piece called ‘Surprised by Agape, Robert Falconer, Oxford and the Gift of Friendship’.

Apart from all these real-life cross-sections (and more), though, several experts are on hand to offer their advice with regard to different aspects of the writing game, including Dennis Doty in an item called ‘Avoiding the Publisher’s Shredder’ and Susannah J. Bell in an article named ‘Writing a Treatment for Your Novel’; Emma Prior gives us a look inside writers’ conferences; Maria Zach gets us going in ‘Beginnings Made Easy’ and Warren Alexander instructs us on ‘How to Write Funny’. The great Gary Bonn reveals some of the ways he develops characters, and Samantha Hamilton appears with her regular column Grammar Ninja, this month teaching us about commas in ways which give us pause. Plus much, much more, as they say.

I haven’t even mentioned the fiction that will appear throughout the magazine, including ‘From Brooklyn to Spain by Subway’ by Warren Alexander; ‘Still Alive’, the first story from Gary Bonn’s new collection The Tethered Goat; ‘Tocsin’ by Samantha Hamilton; ‘Why Miriam Can’t Get A Head’ by Copper Rose and ‘An Englishman in New York’ by David Bowmore and many more.

Artwork includes some gorgeous pictures from Anja Hata and the first instalment of a comic strip version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, as drawn by Yours Truly. Plus I’ll analyse some things, including poetry, Gary Bonn’s story, and more - and there’ll be various windows into the worlds of such master authors as Tolkien, Blake, Wordsworth and others.

There’ll also be word games and challenges - and hints at what is taking shape as The Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge, which you won’t want to miss.

Of course, this doesn’t really scrape the surface. I’m already at 80 pages and I’m not even halfway. (Let’s hope you won’t have to order a new hard drive to download the thing.) Material is lining up, but there is still plenty of room for more submissions, keeping in mind that if you don’t make it into this issue, there’ll be acres of opportunities to come for the rest of the year and into the future. Successful submissions win various awards, including my big writing course and various books.

You can still advertise too - ad rates are available from me. And if you have any questions you can just email me too:

grant@clarendonhousebooks.com

It’s getting closer! I hope to be able to publish within a couple of weeks or so! I will soon have the subscription lines set up so that you can begin to order either one copy or a whole year’s worth. Please spread the word! I’m working to get the show on the road!