Where can I go to publish and get paid for a Christmas short story?

Question

Looking to publish in any form, and get paid, not just on-line.

Answer 1

I suggest taking a look at the book Writer's Market, or (what I use), their website found at www.writersmarket.com. I also suggest a book by the same company called Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript for help with the technical aspect of what a submission should contain. It is a very valuable resource to find outlets that may be suitable for the kind of story that you have written.

You have to do your research as well. Gather some names of magazines, journals, websites, etc and then take a look at them! Don't just read their submission guidelines but take a look at what kinds of stories they contain. Spend time at your local public library, they normally have a vast collection of magazines that can help you do this research. Honestly, you are probably much too late for most magazines for this Christmas, but you could start to do some research for next year.

And you will get rejected. Possibly quite a bit. It has happened to every great writer (and musician, artist, etc). Have patience and keep submitting to appropriate publications, and your stories will find homes!

I know it can seem impossible, but new writers DO get short stories published by reputable magazines and journals. One gentleman in a writer's group I frequent just had his first acceptance to a great magazine. He won't be retiring on the check, but it was a little extra cash and a big victory.

Answer 2

You can't. The short story genre is basically a thing of the past. Unless you go vanity publishing (and you would not do that with just one story), or go to a cheesy on line site, you are bascially out of luck on this one. Besides, Christmas material (not short stories, because as I said, that is a long gone genre for the most part) has already been selected as magazines and those in similar fields work literally months in advance of the holiday. And notice the guy above doesn't tell you WHERE he is getitng that book published. Probably a vanity press or another pay venue.

Answer 3

Magazines still publish short stories, but you're far too late for this Christmas. They start planning the Christmas editions in June. However -- get a copy of the Writers Market (your library should have one) and look through the magazine publishers. The WM will tell you the precise needs of each one, how to submit, rates of pay etc.
Go for it -- and good luck!

Answer 4

Obi San beat me to Writer's Market but I can tell you that the December issues of ALL magazines are already in the frame-out stage. What they will use is ALREADY on editorial's desks. Some may be tossed and some columnists' text are not yet in hand but it's already a done deed, dude/dudette as the case may be.

Newspapers don't use short stories anymore. Not for 50 years even in country weeklies.

Blogs don't, no one else on the Web does either.

You MIGHT get to sell to some children's magazines IF you were a known writer or authority of some sort in that area, but only for the December 2007 or '08 issues.

In short, forget it this year and if you are just starting out, forget it in future years until you establish yourself and get a "name". How can you do that?

By sending out 100s of manuscripts each year for several years until BINGO, somebody has a hole to fill and your crapola hit their desk that day and is the needed length and the editor doesn't barf when he/she scanned your stuff. It literally is exactly that today.

Sorry to pop your balloon, but I had to fight off hundreds of folks like you each month and I had only moderately sized newspapers and did not use poems, short stories, jokes, essays on well-digging or cat litter boxes. I had reporters on staff to do that for me.

And expect an income WHEN YOU ARE AN ESTABLISHED WRITER that is LESS THAN minimum wage.

Answer 5

To publish for real, you have to send out manuscripts to many publishers and will probably get rejected. One thing would be to get to know some of the editors somehow.

If you are a student, you might be able to find some type of mentorship program but if you are out of college, you will have to do leg work.

I am finally getting a book published after many failed attempts. You have to produce something very special or it will not work.

Answer 6

Good luck with that...