Friday, August 30, 2013

Chicken Soup is Looking For Stories



I recently checked the Chicken Soup for the Soul website to see what books they have in the works. It's been one of my best markets in the creative nonfiction area of my writing world. I will have number 14 in November in a book titled Just Us Girls.  The cover above is a book published several years ago but still available. I checked at Amazon.

A Chicken Soup story must be true and it must be a story, not an essay or a sermon. Creative nonfiction stories are no different than fiction in that they must have a beginning, a middle, and an ending. They aren't just a slice of life kind of writing. But let's go on to the book titles so you can see if you have a story that will fit or would like to write one. Check out this page for details on each book.

1.  Home Sweet Home
2.  Living With Alzheimers and Other Dementia
3.  My Guardian Angel
4.  Overcoming Challenges
5.  Reboot Your Life
6.  Recovering From Traumatic Brain Injuries
7.  The Cat Did What?
8.  The Dog Did What?

Numbers 2 and 6 are pretty specialized but some of you just might have a story to share on these difficult subjects. Read the blurbs behind the titles to see what the editors are looking for. It's interesting that they keep creating new books about cats and dogs, obviously a popular subject.

Remember the Golden Rule of Submitting--Follow the Submission Guidelines Carefully. The submission page that will give you guidance is found here. There is a great deal of information on this page but, beleive me, you had better read and digest it before you submit to this publisher. After you write your story, go back and read it again and see if your story fits within the guidelines. If not, make some revisions before submitting.

We have a long weekend coming up. August exits, September smiles at us and Monday is a holiday. Perfect time to get some writing done unless you have lots of outdoor activities planned. As for me, I'm going to the first Kansas State football game of the season tonight but will be working on some stories for Chicken Soup the rest of the weekend.

2 comments:

  1. Nancy, I'm happy for you that your stories are accepted by Chicken Soup for the Soul, and wish I could be so fortunate. Thanks for all your encouragement.

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  2. Nancy--I've been very fortunate with my Chicken Soup acceptances, but let me assure you that I have had plenty that were submitted and rejected. I sent in 4 for the new Writers book and none of them made it. So, just keep submitting. You're bound to have one accepted sooner or later. Go for it!

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