The Path

The Summer issue of THE PATH is now available in paper and ezine from Amazon and Barnes and Noble (Kindle and Nook).

Writers Beware

MECHANICS WHEN PREPARING A MANUSCRIPT FOR PUBLICATION

__________ Spelling

• Don't trust spell-check to interpret your connotation. Use a dictionary.

__________ Capitalization

• Know the rules and obey them.
• Essentials of English; p. 2-3, 134-135

__________ Punctuation

• Avoid overuse of commas and exclamation points. Properly punctuate quotes.
• Essentials of English: p. 119-139

__________ Manuscript properly formatted

• Editors appreciate a double-spaced manuscript with one-inch margins. 

Be sure to read the publisher's submission guidelines. Not all publishers have the same requirements. Read them and reread them again.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

The submission period for the fourth issue of THE PATH is open. Please refer to the submission guidelines at www.thepathmagazine.com when developing your manuscript. The theme for this next issue is 'One Fine Night.' 

THE PATH vol.2, number 1

                                  TABLE OF CONTENTS

                             Volume 2, Number 1  Summer, 2012

D. E. Z. Butler	Two Poems	7
Catherine Becker Reynolds Joanne M. Deck Paul Grella Betty Mathews Steven G. Farrell Isadora Dahlen	Michael and the Mother’s Day Present Life Lessons from the Littlest Ones The Marathon Poem The Crimson Druid of Wisconsin Mom, Where are you?	10  17  23  33  35  56
Eva Willis	Two Poems	65
Budd Nelson Steven G. Farrell	The Ancient One Four Irish-American Hellcats!	67  75
Tatjana Debeljački  Chris Wilkensen	Poem Skydiving off Skyscrapers	92  94
Tracy Werth	What a Boy Needs	101
A  Paul Bergen R. J.  Buckley Mary J. Nickum Contributor Bios Submission Guidelines Advertisements	On The Necessity of Being God Jessica Carter Sanford Book Review:  Steve Jobs	108 117 131 142 147

Advertise in THE PATH now

THE PATH is available in print from Amazon ( http://ning.it/oHXSxK via @amazon), Smashwords (www.smashwords.com), CreateSpace (www.createspace.com)  and Barnes and Noble (www.barnesandnoble.com).

THE PATH is available electronically for Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, and at Smashwords (www.smashwords.com); in print on Amazon and CreateSpace (www.createspace.com).

THE PATH is a publication of The Path to Publication Group, a 501(c)(3) non-profit literature and writing organization. Dedicated to supporting innovative, cross-genre writing, the press publishes the work of translators, poets, and other writers. We encourage interaction between writers and readers by featuring works that appeal to a wide range of readers in our semi-annual literary journal. By actualizing the potential linguistic, cultural and political benefits of international literary exchange, we aim to ensure the advancement of literacy.

Specifications for Advertising in THE PATH

Full Page:         8”x10” black and white                                              $75.00

                          Any font that is easy to read

½ Page:               8”x5” black and white                                               $50.00

                          Any font that is easy to read

¼ Page:              2” x 2 ½” black and white                                          $35.00

                          Any font that is easy to read.

    Business Card is ok.

All ads must be submitted in .jpeg format and sized to fit. It must be ready to drop into the publication without further editing or resizing.

Orders to:

Mary Nickum

The Path to Publication Group

www.thepathmagazine.com

16201 E. Keymar Dr.

Fountain Hills, AZ 85268

New blog for Nickum's Nook

Please visit my new Nickum's Nook blog at: http://nickumsnook.com/

The Path

THE PATH is available electronically for Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, and at Smashwords (www.smashwords.com); in print on Amazon and CreateSpace (www.createspace.com).

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

The submission period for the third issue of THE PATH is now open. Please refer to the submission guidelines below when developing your manuscript. The deadline for submissions is April 30, 2012.

Submission Guidelines*

The Path

The Path to Publication Group is publishing a new literary publication – The Path.    You are invited to submit short stories, essays, book reviews and poems for inclusion in the semi-annual issues.  

 The theme for this issue is ‘Potpourri.’ For more information please visit the websites: www.pathtopublication.net and www.thepathmagazine.com . Past contributors will receive a call for submissions by e-mail automatically.  

1)      Short stories and essays - 2500 to 7000 words

2)             Poetry - 1 page

Please polish your manuscripts to the best of your ability and, of course, have someone else edit your work before sending to Path to Publication.   Do not format your work: no page numbers, no headers or footers, no paragraph indentations (skip a line for paragraph spacing).  Manuscripts must be submitted in Microsoft Word or RTF form.  Font: Times New Roman - size 12. All submissions must be submitted electronically, as e-mail attachments, to: mjnickum@cox.net .

Deadline for Issue #3 is April 30, 2012

All rights are retained by the author, and there will be no compensation for accepted work at this time*.

*Because we are staffed by volunteers, we can only compensate our writers in exposure to our audience.  Our columnists enjoy great publicity for their own blogs, books, websites, and projects.  Many find great reward in doing something good for the world of literature and literacy. You may also purchase add space to further promote your work.

Holiday gift idea

Give your friends or colleagues a holiday gift to help them get published! http://www.allthingseditorial.com/

The Path

Today, October 30, is the deadline for submissions to Issue #2 of THE PATH. 

All Things Editorial

Visit http://www.allthingseditorial.com/ to get help with your manuscript.

Two new slideshows

New slideshows: The Path http://ning.it/r5NArF and Mom's Story http://ning.it/oDuiOa

THE PATH

I'm working on book trailer for THE PATH. It'll be on YouTube by later next week.

THE PATH

I have the proof copy for THE PATH. It will be out in days!!! now.

THE PATH

THE PATH, Arizona's newest literary magazine has gone to "press". It will be available by the end of July.

Press Release-- New Literary Magazine

Press Release-- New Literary Magazine

For immediate release

The Path to Publication Group is publishing THE PATH, Phoenix’s newest literary magazine. The first issue will be released on July 31. It is anticipated that there will be two issues per year.

It is a semiannual ebook/ezine magazine featuring essays, short stories, poetry, interviews and book reviews.

This literary magazine is not something written by and for the "elite." It's a down-to-earth vehicle for writers of fiction and non-fiction to express themselves about a given theme. The theme of this first issue is, "It's a crime."

THE PATH will be an ezine only. It will be available for US$3.99.

For more information or to place an ad, contact:

Mary Nickum, Editor-in-Chief

mjnickum@cox.net

www.pathtopublication.net

602-309-7670

All Things Editorial

I'm launching my new editorial business. I've just published my new site: http://allthingseditorial.com/

Seven Deadly Sins of a Writer

Seven Deadly Sins of a Writer April 2011 http://t.co/8ep4mMp

Seven Deadly Sins of a Writer

   Writing is often considered to be an activity done from the heart. It can be a form of personal expression, revealing what you think, what you know, who you are. So how could it then be that you, a writer, have committed a sin?

Have you gotten too close to your work?

You’ve worked hard; your boss likes most of your writing. But there comes a time in every writer’s career when introspection is necessary. Is it time for you? This list of seven deadly sins for writers might help.

1.  Deadly Sloppy Research. Nonfiction readers want accurate, reliable information. Nonfiction writers need to engage readers better than ever. After all, you are competing against 30-second commercials and all those TV shows that cover your subject. Don’t rely on your memory of something you saw on television; look it up. And use an authoritative source, preferably two or three. Never be satisfied with a random Internet search.

2. Deadly Prosaism. You want to present facts accurately. However, recitation of straight information  put readers to sleep. Readers want more than just facts and figures. Include action sequences or quotations from experts, especially experts who have name recognition, to add color to any technical explanation or historical exposition.

3. Deadly Stereotyping. Avoid describing habits of people using “conventional wisdom” no matter how well you think it explains a point. Never refer to a person’s race, creed or other characteristics that are beyond the person’s control in a way that could be construed as negative.

4. Deadly Carelessness. Editors will not correct a typo-laden manuscript for a writer who is too lazy to proofread. Even with self-published books, mistakes on every page annoy readers and make them suspect you are equally careless with facts. Don’t expect your word processor to do the proofing, either. Few computer spell checkers know the difference between “their” and “there.” Word processing and e-mail software can even create errors; so manually give your writing a once-over to make sure automatic formatting hasn’t put any tabs where they shouldn’t be.

5. Deadly Lazy Marketing. Never just open a market database and start querying publishers in alphabetical order. Read the entries in full; publishers are disgusted with nonfiction writers’ ignoring of clear statements that “we publish only fiction.” Read your chosen publisher’s full official guidelines. And even if you’re self-publishing, have a clear idea of your anticipated reader demographic and where to find them. Remember, writers who aim at “everyone” never hit anyone.

6.  Deadly Ego. Probably the No. 1 reason writers fail is that they expect their talent to absolve them of any real need to work. No author ever outgrows the imperfect first draft! Every writer can benefit from other authors’ input in the form of critique or collaboration. No successful author works in a vacuum.

7. Deadly Fear of Rejection. If a writer is paralyzed by the fear of rejection, the work never is submitted, let alone published. Every writer has experienced rejection at some time. It goes with the work. Relax and learn from it. Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner and Edgar Allen Poe received numerous rejections. All famous authors received rejections, but they didn’t let it stop them.

Conclusion

The “sins” of carelessness are easily overcome, just take your time and exhaust your sources. A feeling of pride in your work is necessary but shouldn’t become narcissistic. The fear of rejection, however, is often more difficult to overcome. There is no easy solution or recommendation, except to submit your work with the understanding that it may not get published the first time out. If the same piece is continually rejected, take a hard look at it and consult writer friends who have published. The editors rejecting the piece will not usually take the time to tell you how to improve the piece. They are too busy and want to spend time with pieces that will be published. The most important message is to keep trying, never give up.

Published in Outdoord Unlimited April 2011 http://www.owaa.org/