FAQs for GLVWG’s Self-Publishing Project

What are we publishing?

GLVWG has agreed to assume all costs associated with self-publishing two anthologies: a traditional collection of short stories and a non-fiction collection of essays entitled, Why We Write.  GLVWG members are responsible for providing all the content.

This not merely a vanity project. GLVWG plans to walk participants through the process of self-publishing so they can see what’s involved and required at every stage. Our goal is to educate our members on what it takes to get their own work into print.

Who’s eligible to participate?

Any GLVWG member in good standing. Your application must have been processed before October 20, 2014.

What are the author guidelines?

The Why We Write book is nonfiction. Members submit one or two sentences on why they write and craft a short (400-500 words) essay on why they write what they write. (Sci Fi, Poetry, Journalism, Personal Essay, and so on) You can also pick a quote from a writer and craft an essay around it.

The fiction category is open to anything but, since this is a group project, no extreme violence, explicit sex, or overuse of profanity, please.  Try to keep your stories under 2,500 words.

To be included in the anthologies, you will have to sign a contract guaranteeing that what you’re submitting is your own work and is free of plagiarism.  We’d also like to get some feedback from you about the experience with self-publishing once the project is over.

Can I submit to both projects?

Go for it, but only one submission per category, please.

Where and when do I submit?

Submissions are due by midnight on October 25 2014. All submissions must be sent to glvwgspproject@gmail.com as a doc or docx file  or pasted into the body of the email. 

What happens after I submit?

Members of the Self-publishing committee will look over your entry to make sure it meets guidelines and is acceptable. We may send you some suggestions in the acceptance email. After that, it will be your responsibility to send your piece to one of our approved copy editors. You will be expected to communicate with the assigned copy editor and make the suggested corrections.  Then you’ll have to resubmit in the approve format by the final due date (to be announced later).

We’d also appreciate all participants helping with the marketing of this book. We’ll be taking ideas for promotion as we get closer to the publication date.

When are we publishing?

We hope to have both anthologies available for sale during the 2015 Write Stuff Conference

I’m not really into the short story/essay thing. Are there any other writing opportunities for this?

You bet. We’d love to get this project written up for local newspapers or even national magazines.  If you’re looking for a story to cover, here’s an opportunity to play reporter.

And what comes after that?

If we’re successful, we may publish another book about our adventures in self-publishing.  Participants will be encouraged to weigh in with feedback, both good and bad. We’re especially interested if this project helps our members get over their qualms about self-publishing and helps them put out their own books.