2 superior and free creative writing resources to help you get published

Sure, most of us writers with manuscripts to submit know about Duotrope and the AWP (Association of Writers and Writing Programs ), two long-standing and comprehensive Web sites with lists of contests and publications (AWP has jobs as well). The good news is that other excellent resources are around for you to use that don’t cost a subscription or membership fee. Here are two that I’ve used successfully:

crwopps (Creative Writing Opportunities list), run by Allison Joseph, will come right to your e-mail either in digest format or as individual mails, depending on your settings. I use individual e-mails for each opportunity to make it easier to sort and delete. But a warning – this list is so good that will mean a lot of stuff in your inbox. I use a separate e-mail account for newsletters and mailings to help me keep organized. Allison Joseph is the poetry editor at Crab Orchard Review. Sign up at groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/CRWROPPS-B/info

When crwopps went on hiatus during the winter holidays, Joseph was kind enough to refer her readers to Cathy’s Comps and Calls Web site, and so I discovered a second excellent and free resource. I highly recommend it. Compiled by Cathy Bryant on her WordPress site, the list only considers competitions and submission calls that have no reading or entry fees. Thanks, Cathy! Check out Cathy’s Comps and Calls.

My thanks go to Allison Joseph and Cathy Bryant for doing the detail detective work so that the rest of us can have an easier time with our careers.

Know a good resource? Post a comment and let us know.