Native Tree Species are Under Threat

 

Mexico is one of the most floristically rich countries in the world.  Knowledge of its plant diversity,  geographic distribution, and human uses is still largely fragmented.  Unfortunately, deforestation is heavily impacting this country and native tree species are under threat.  To counter the forest loss, some large-scale reforestation programs have been activated in the past few decades.

.

.

Mexico has at least 2,885 native tree species (and 3,500 species according to the last updates).  And
approximately 44% are endemic to the country.  When analyzing species richness, the southern part of the country showed the highest values, with at least one peak of >400 species per 625 km2 cell in the states of Veracruz and Chiapas and values >300 species per cell in Jalisco, Oaxaca, Querétaro, and México state.

.

.

All in all, Mexico has ca. 23,000 vascular plants and is the fourth most floristically rich country in the world, after Brazil, China, and Colombia.  Despite the richness of Mexico’s flora, its inventory and mapping are still incomplete.

Read More:

https://peerj.com/articles/9898/

Fine-Quality Mexican Coffee

 

Mexico’s highland topography and the rich nutrients in its volcanic soils combine to create an ideal natural environment for growing fine-quality coffee beans.

Possibly the best-known Mexican coffees come from Chiapas, which is the state that produces the most.  But there is plenty to be said for Oaxaca state’s Pluma region, as well as coffees that are grown in Veracruz state’s Córdoba region.

For home consumption, a fair selection can be found at most Mexican supermarkets.  Although for a wider choice, the coffee shops that grind the beans on the premises are a good place to go.  They also tend to have more sizes of bags, so you can try out different kinds quite frequently, ordering quarter-kilos (about a half-pound), “un cuarto.”  Or find one type you always want, and buy a big bag of it.  The handful of high-end food shops, some with branch networks across the country, also stock ample ranges of high-quality Mexican coffees.

It’s probably fair to say, without being too nationalistic, that Mexico produces enough of its own good quality coffee to make paying extra for imported grains is a waste of money. 

Mexican coffee production is widespread, with more than 300,000 mostly 

small growers dedicated to its cultivation across 15 of Mexico’s 32 states.  

Most of the coffee grown in Mexico is of the arabica kind, and more than a third is grown at high elevations which yields higher quality, and more expensive, varieties of beans.  Much of it is grown in the shade, which adds to the quality of the coffee.

Read more about the variety of coffee from the producing regions:

https://www.mexperience.com/tag/mexican-coffee/

.

<><><><><>

.

Tips for Successful Publishing - Newsletter February 2023

 

Content of this Newsletter:

- Freelance Writing

- Book Pre-Orders

- Writing Contests

- Fellowships & Grants

- Writing for Magazines

 

Hello friends, happy February.

I hope you had a great first month of the year and that you are full of energy to tackle new projects. Get lots of new ideas in this month’s newsletter:

FREELANCE WRITING

Chicken Soup for the Soul: 

Miracles. True stories and poems. "All of us have experienced events in our lives that are completely unexplainable: the strange premonition that made you take a different route home causing you to miss an accident; the eerie feeling that you should call home… now, saving someone’s life; the mysterious communication from a loved one who has passed on." Payment: $200. Deadline: Feb 28

https://www.chickensoup.com/story-submissions/possible-book-topics/

.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: 

The power of positive thinking. True stories and poems. "How did you “think positive” and how did it change your life? Tell us your success story about using the power of positive thinking!" Payment: $200. 

Deadline: Feb 28.  https://www.chickensoup.com/story-submissions/possible-book-topics/

.

AFAR

The magazine publishes a range of reported features, personal essays, opinion pieces, photo essays, illustrated features, short fiction, poetry, and shorter middle-of-book pieces. Instead of more traditional aspirational lifestyle travel stories, we tell the stories of a place and the people who live there. Their rate starts at $1/word.

https://www.afar.com/about/pitch-guidelines

.

WIRED Magazine

A publication about change—about the ways science and technology are reshaping the world and what it means to be human. While the subjects of WIRED stories run the gamut from deep dives into the biggest tech companies to Hindu extremism to digital blackface to space food to true crime, every story has technology, science, or innovation as one of its key variables. Finished pieces tend to be in the range of 1,200 to 1,800 words. Story fees now start at about $2,500 and rise from there. Other short, online-only content starts at $500 and rises with time commitment and reporting intensity.   

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/contributor-guidelines

.

BOOK PRE-ORDERS

Apple offers a powerful marketing feature on iBooks, and even authors who upload directly to Apple can use it.  Your book title can be posted on iBooks for pre-order — up to one year before the book launch — even if you don’t have a book cover or interior file yet.  However, it’s advisable to have the cover at least. “e-Books born as pre-orders earned the authors 3 1/2 times more income than books that were simply uploaded on the day of release.

Pre-release twelve months in advance and you have got twelve months of people discovering your book before it hits the market.  It means twelve months of additional sales in those first few days.  All you need is your metadata: the book title, author, book description, price, pre-order, and release date.  A lot more favorable than Amazon’s pre-order conditions!  Easy Upload to iBooks: Authors can distribute to iBooks on their own through a direct upload route — or through an aggregator (book distributor) such as Draft2Digital.com

.

WRITING CONTESTS

The Bechtel Prize

Essays describing a creative writing teaching experience, project, or activity that demonstrates innovation in creative writing instruction. They are looking for essays that describe a project or activity that got students excited about writing and fostered a vibrant and dynamic culture of literacy in the classroom. Prize: $1,000 and publication. Deadline: Feb 10.  https://twc.org/bechtel-prize

.

The International Radio Playwriting Competition 2023

Sponsored by BBC World Service and British Council in partnership with Commonwealth Writers. Open to non-UK residents. Genre: A script for a 53-minute radio play with up to six central characters. Prize: £2,500 sterling ($3,900) & a trip to London. Deadline: Feb 12

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5J6bfwwQ4G0044HZ5Skt33w/the-international-radio-playwriting-competition-2023

.

Governor General's Literary Awards

Books must have been written or translated by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The best English-language & the best French-language book in each of the seven categories of Fiction, Literary Non-fiction, Poetry, Drama, Young People’s Literature (Text), Young People’s Literature & Translation (French to English). Prize: $25,000. Deadline: Feb 15

https://canadacouncil.ca/funding/prizes/governor-generals-literary-awards/guidelines-governor-generals-literary-awards

.

Luminarts Creative Writing Fellowship 

The Creative Writing Fellowship awards two $7,500 grant Fellowships for excellence in creative writing in the categories of prose and poetry, in fiction and nonfiction. Open to writers between the ages of 18 and 30 years, be enrolled in, or have graduated from, a degree program; and live within 150 miles of the Union League Club of Chicago. Genre: Poetry or prose, fiction and nonfiction.  Prize: $7,500. Deadline: Feb 17

https://luminarts.org/creative-writing-opportunities

.

Scotiabank Giller Prize 

Open to books published in Canada in English. Books must be published in Canada in English between Oct 1, 2022, and Feb 28, 2023 to be eligible. Must  be nominated by publisher. Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation. Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists. Deadline: Feb 17  

https://scotiabankgillerprize.ca/important-dates/

.

Jeanne Córdova Prize for Lesbian/Queer Nonfiction 

Open to a writer committed to nonfiction work that captures the depth and complexity of lesbian/queer life, culture, and/or history. The winner of the prize will have published at least one book and show promise in continuing to produce groundbreaking and challenging work. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: Feb 17

https://lambdaliterary.org/awards/special-awards/

.

Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing 

Prize: Adventure writing novel. Prize: £10,000. Deadline: Feb 17

https://www.wilbur-niso-smithfoundation.org/index.php/awards/best-published-novel-2019/submissions

.

Dr. Jim Duggins Outstanding LGBTQ Mid-Career Novelist Prize. Restrictions: Open to LGBTQ mid-career novelists who have published at least three novels. or two novels and substantial additional literary work (including poems, stories, or essays). Published book. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: Feb 17

https://lambdaliterary.org/awards/special-awards/

.

Randall Kenan Prize for Black LGBTQ Fiction. Restrictions: Open to a Black LGBTQ writer whose fiction explores themes of Black LGBTQ life, culture, and/or history. To be eligible, the winner of the prize must have published at least one book and show promise in continuing to produce groundbreaking work. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: Feb 17, 2023.  https://lambdaliterary.org/awards/special-awards/

.

J. Michael Samuel Prize for Emerging Writers Over 50. Restrictions: Open to unpublished LGBTQ writers over 50 working in any genre. Genre: All genres.  Prize: $5,000.  Deadline: Feb 17

https://lambdaliterary.org/awards/special-awards

.

The Reporting Award 

Journalism, in any medium, on an under-reported subject in the public interest. Prize: Up to $12,500. Deadline: Feb 21.  https://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/awards-and-fellowships/the-reporting-award/

.

Wiley-Silver Prize in Civil War History

First book or monograph in Civil War history, published in the previous year. Books or monographs published by scholarly or popular presses are eligible. Prize: $2,000. Deadline: Feb 24

http://www.civilwarcenter.olemiss.edu/wileysilverinfo.shtml

.

Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize

Awarded for the best piece of writing on the theme of the Alpine Fellowship 2023 - Flourishing. The winner of the Writing Prize will receive a cash prize, and the runners-up will receive travel expense support that must be used to attend our 2023 symposium which will be held from 10th-13th August 2023 in Fjällnäs, Sweden. First place: £3,000 cash grant. Second place: £1,000 travel expense. Third place: £1,000 travel expense. Open internationally. Max. 2,500 words/entry.  Deadline March 1    https://alpinefellowship.com/writing-prize

.

Hentoen International

Students currently enrolled in a medical school or program are encouraged to submit to Hektoen International’s 2022 Medical Student Essay Contest. The winner receives $3,500, runner-up $2,500. Essays can be on any topic as it relates to medicine, art, history, and literature topics are preferred. Essays should be under 1,200 words. Deadline March 15.  https://hekint.org/

.

The Every Animal Project

We are currently accepting submissions around the theme of courageous animals for our first anthology, debuting in December 2023, The Dog Who Wooed at the World. Stories should explain how an animal’s bravery inspired and moved you. Stories must be true (non-fiction). One winning author will receive a $300 prize, and the second-place author will receive $200. All other authors with stories chosen for the book will receive a $50 award, along with a free copy of the book upon its publication. Stories not chosen for the book will have the opportunity to be featured online on the blog, with a $20 award. Please keep your submission roughly between 500 and 3,000 words.  https://www.everyanimalproject.com/contact/

.

FELLOWSHIPS & GRANTS

De Groot Foundation Grants for Writers

They welcome applications from adult writers actively engaged in a writing project and for whom a monetary boost could help further or complete the project. Applicants may be writing in any genre. In 2023, The de Groot Foundation will award grants, between $1,500 and $7,000. Deadline Feb 15   https://degrootfoundation.org/courage-to-write-guidelines/

.

Accelerate Fellowship 

It is a year-long program that gives mid-level disabled screenwriters $40,000 in funding, bespoke mentorship, industry connections, and the community they need to become industry-leading creators.  The money is unrestricted— Fellows can use it to cover living expenses and other project-related fees—which is intended to give them the time and space to further develop their projects.  The Fellowship is for individuals that self-identify as disabled. This includes physical, intellectual, developmental, psychiatric, visible, or invisible disabilities.  https://www.inevitable.foundation/fellowship

.

Emerging Creators Fellowships - Charlotte, NC

The Emerging Creators Fellowship provides resources to emerging Mecklenburg County artists to make their creative practice a sustainable vocation.  The fellowship funds can be used for research, workspace/studio rental, conferences, apprenticeships, travel, creation of new work, materials, or other experiences that help the recipients develop their creative capacity.  In addition to the grant, the fellowship recipients are encouraged to participate in professional development and growth opportunities through ASC.  The fellowship is an investment in Mecklenburg County's emerging creatives with 2-10 years' experience pursuing their creative practice as their primary occupation outside of a degree-seeking program.  In 2023, ASC will award up to ten $10,000 Emerging Creators Fellowships.  Deadline Feb 6  

https://artsandscience.org/emerging-creators-fellowship/

.

WRITING FOR MAGAZINES - WORTH YOUR TIME?

Why write for magazines and newspapers?  If you write articles, you reach many more people than with books.  Your book may sell five thousand copies.  Certainly, some books turn into bestsellers, but with more than 500,000 new books per year, many books are fortunate to sell even a thousand copies.  With one article, you can reach millions of people.

Writing for magazines will give you increased confidence that you can write for publication and meet word limits and deadlines.  A fiction author recently pondered whether writing magazine articles was worth his time.  Would his time not be better spent writing for his own blog or website?  My answer was that it depends on how many subscribers and readers his website and blog had. Should your blog have less than a million readers per month, consider writing for these magazines with enormous readership numbers:

• Huffington Post: 43 million per month

• Salon: 7.7 million per month

• Travel + Leisure: 950,000 per month

• AARP The Magazine: 21,931,184

• Better Homes and Gardens: 7,624,505

If only one percent of this readership finds your article and the byline with your name, website, and book info, it’s worth it to write for these magazines. 

.

Have a wonderful February and enjoy writing and making plans for new books. “Although February is short, it is filled with growing sun, lots of love, and sweet surprises”. Enjoy the many holidays this month: Groundhog Day, Super Bowl, Rosa Parks Day, Chinese New Year, Lincoln's Birthday, Valentine's Day, and Presidents' Day.

Don’t forget to visit my Author Page here:

https://books2read.com/ap/n4EYY8/Doris-Maria-Heilmann

.

<><><><><>

.