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SUCCESSFUL PUBLISHING - NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2026
Content of this newsletter:
- PUBLISHING TIPS
- WRITERS RESIDENCIES, GRANTS, FELLOWSHIPS
- PAID CONTENT
- PUBLISHING NEWS & TIPS
- WRITING CONTESTS
Dear fellow writers and publishers:
October’s clock changes will create time differences you may need to take into account from late October onwards.
Take advantage of this newsletter’s free worldwide listings.
This is how your book, audio, or e-book will be exposed to international markets.
- PUBLISHING NEWS & TIPS
3 Useful Tips for Writers and Publishers Alike:
Frances Caballo gives authors some great ideas about what content to share on their social media sites:
https://writenonfictionnow.com/20-ideas-sharing-social-media
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Designing the Back Cover of a Book: The 10 Must-Haves
https://www.thebookdesigner.com/designing-the-back-cover-of-a-book/
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Book Fairs: The Do’s and Don’ts
https://medium.com/@doris.aubin/book-fairs-the-dos-and-don-ts-f4510b94c9cb
- WRITERS RESIDENCIES, GRANTS, FELLOWSHIPS
Neal Peirce Foundation Journalism Travel Grants
Genre: Journalism. "Grants are intended to support journalists in covering undertold stories about ways to make cities and their metro regions work better for all their people. Grants will cover travel expenses necessary for on-the-ground reporting. Full-time freelancers as well as journalists currently employed by a news organization are eligible to apply. The grants are for journalists to travel to cities within the U.S. to produce one or more stories for publication." Prize: Up to $1500. Deadline: October 13
https://www.nealpeircefoundation.org/apply/
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Amy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship
Restrictions: Poet must be born in the United States. Genre: Poetry. The sample must not exceed either (1) 40 typed pages or (2) one printed volume plus no more than 20 typed pages of your most recent work. There is no minimum page requirement. Prize: $60,500 for a year of travel and study abroad.
Deadline: October 15
https://www.amylowell.org/applicationInstruct.html
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Mass MoCA Residencies
To apply for any of these fellowships, simply select the appropriate box on the fellowships question of the general Studios residency application. There is no separate application for each opportunity. Be sure to also indicate whether you would like to be considered for a regular, partially subsidized residency at the Studios at MASS MoCA if you are not awarded one of these special fellowship residencies. Please read each fellowship carefully to ensure eligibility. Location North Adams, MA. These applications are for residencies during July to December 2027. Deadline November 1
https://massmoca.org/studios/applying-financial-aid/
- PAID CONTENT
New Orleans Review
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Payment: $300 for prose, $100 for poetry. In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, there are no submission fees for Latinx writers from September 15th to October 15th.
Deadline: October 15
https://www.neworleansreview.org/submit/
US Naval Institute Essay Prize
Genre: Essay. Length: 3,000 words max. Great power competition will require the Sea Services to rethink how to address national, strategic, and operational challenges and the way they will have to fight. Essays may address any topic. Prize: First Prize: $6000; Second Prize: $3000; Third Prize: $2000.
Deadline: October 31
https://www.usni.org/essay-contests/2026/2026-general-prize-essay-contest
Climate Home News
They welcomes article pitches from freelance journalists, experts and organisations working on climate policy. All stories must have a climate change theme and an international outlook. Rates start at £0.35 a word (GBP).
A standard 600-word news story should involve interviewing (and usually quoting) three or more sources and linking to relevant data or research.
https://www.climatechangenews.com/about/write-for-us/
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Michigan History
The state’s popular-history magazine will only consider subject matter that takes place 35 or more years ago. Before writing your article, please submit a query. Manuscripts should range in length from 1,500 to 2,500 words. The payment range for members/subscribers is $150 to $350, for non-members/subscribers $100 to $300.
https://hsmichigan.org/submission-guidelines
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Blue Dot Living
We are always looking for writers to share stories of what’s happening in their communities – the changemakers, innovations, policy shifts, and so on. The stories that may not bubble up to the NY Times or The Guardian but that we should all know about.
We pay $175 for roughly 400 - 600 words (plus a few photos — either provided by source or taken on phone is fine). We’re a young, small company with loads of enthusiasm that is punching way above its weight.
https://bluedotliving.com/write-for-us/
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Food Print
We cover a wide range of food-related topics with a focus on sustainability: industry trends, food policy, labor issues, animal welfare, pesticides and pollution, packaging and plastics, food sovereignty and more, all focused on the U.S. and topics that impact U.S. consumers. Rates range from $650 – $950 depending on experience and the needs of the story. Most pieces run between 800 and 1600 words. Send pitches by email (with “pitch” in the subject line) to kylie@foodprint.org.
https://foodprint.org/contact-us/
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Chicken Soup - Married Life
Stories about married/couples life. Share the ups and downs, the funniest moments, the most romantic moments, difficult moments, and all your tips and advice for other couples. We want to know how you got together and how you stay together! First person POV, 1200 words. Pays $250 and 10 copies.
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NWT, Canada Artist Travel & Touring Fund
The Artist Travel and Touring Fund helps NWT artists travel to promote, share or advance their artistic practice through performances, exhibitions, showcases, markets and other professional opportunities. This fund is for artists who have developed their craft to a level where they are ready to engage broader audiences and pursue opportunities beyond their home community or the NWT. Pay is $4,000.
https://www.iti.gov.nt.ca/en/services/artist-travel-and-tour-fund
- WRITING CONTESTS
The London Magazine Short Story Prize
Open to writers from around the world. Looking for previously unpublished stories of no more than 4,000 words. First Prize: £1000. Second Prize: £600. Third Prize: £400. £12 Entry Fee. Deadline October 18
https://thelondonmagazine.submittable.com/submit/363643/the-london-magazine-short-story-prize-2026
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The Hope Prize
First place: $10,000 AUD – jointly funded by Readings Books and Simon & Schuster Australia. Second place: $2,000 AUD – funded by The Hope Prize. Third place: $1,000 AUD – funded by The Hope Prize. The winning entries and a selection of highly commended entries will be included in an anthology to be published by Simon & Schuster Australia. The Hope Prize is an international competition, open to writers from anywhere in the world. Limit 5,000 words.
$33 AUD Entry Fee. Deadline October 31
https://www.thehopeprize.com/guidelines
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The Stern Prize
The prize of $2,000 will be awarded in 2027, with publication by The American Poetry Review in partnership with Copper Canyon Press in 2028. The author will receive a standard book contract, with royalties paid in subsequent years. The prize is open to all poets age 50 and over, regardless of previous publication history. Submit a manuscript of 48 pages or more
$25 Entry Fee. Deadline January 1
https://americanpoetryreview.submittable.com/submit/306584/the-stern-prize
I wish you a great month of October, blessed with joy, fulfillment, and good health!
All the best to you, my writer friends!
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