Tina Haapala, Excuse Editor

Whew. For those of you who already have signed up for the newsletter, you should see The Scoop in your inbox. Not signed up yet? Don't worry, just sign up with the form on the right column of my blog  (or on the one that materializes before your eyes sometimes;) This month's Scoop not only includes opportunities to see your work in print, and get paid, it has some exciting prizes as well. Some contest winners could get a chance to study in Kenya. Or Canada. One even has a grand prize of $10,000-- given to a writer of a work in progress! Good Luck! 

From the desk of the Excuse Editor: First, I decided I wanted to write. That was easy enough. I'd kept a diary since I was a little girl. As a grown up, I attended a few journaling, fiction and poetry workshops. Great, my interest was peaked, my pen desperate to start moving. But, what kinds of writing should I start with? How long should it be? My workshops focused on self-expression, and I was rightly told: write whatever you want to, write what's in your heart, write what's on your mind. Write until it's done. OK. I agree. But... What if I want to share my writing? ...if I want to get published? ...and of course, what if I want to make some money? I started to research writing markets and writing contests. Sure, I could focus on writing the Great American Novel and send it off to Oprah and hope for the best. Or Ellen. Or maybe I could get the "Colbert Bump". Instead, I kept my head out of the clouds and put my butt in the chair. Using the...