Get Published Weekly Roundup: February 19th, 2018

Book Barcode By Thepwnco [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Change made: from color to black and white.

For everybody who was just dying to know whether or not I took my wife out to dinner for Valentine’s day: I prevailed! Dinner was at home. Of course that meant flowers, and some incredibly expensive meat exquisitely prepared by yours truly, but it was here, and not out at some overwhelmed and understaffed restaurant on Angry Amateur Night. Next up is our first anniversary. I’ll keep y’all informed. This week we have agency additions, a couple of great contests, sci-fi and fantasy on some wishlists, and a federal judge’s Valentine to everybody who wants the internet to keep its hands off their stuff (or her misinterpretation of important precedents which could result in the further restriction of internet freedom—it all depends on your perspective).

We’d love to hear your feedback. Please let us know what you think in the comments and if there are certain types of information you would like to see in the Roundup. Also feel free to tweet at us (@freelancingrads) with any ideas or questions. Have a great writing week!

Two new agents over at Bookends Literary this week

Naomi Davis has joined Bookends Literary Agency as an agent.

Seeking:

Fiction: Middle Grade, YA, and Adult Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Romance; Select Picture Books

Nonfiction: Not at this time

“LGBTQ+ elements and diversity in all fiction are a particular plus, and Naomi will consider picture books featuring those elements. Naomi is particularly passionate about finding new fantasy and sci-fi settings with unique magical structures that surprise the reader and change the rules readers associate with those worlds.”

You can contact Naomi at ndavis@bookendsliterary.com. Click here for more information on the agency’s submission guidelines, or here for Naomi’s online query form.

Amanda Jain has also joined Bookends Literary Agency as an agent.  

Seeking:

Fiction: Adult Romance, Mystery, Women’s, and Upmarket, with a special emphasis on Historical fiction in all genres.

Nonfiction: Narrative nonfiction, especially projects exploring the literary world, art history, material culture, archaeology, food history, or social history.

“She loves projects with a strong sense of place and those that create a completely immersive world. She is particularly interested in books that add something important to the conversation, that explore stories we haven’t yet heard, and that introduce new voices to our reading experience.”

Email Amanda at AJain@bookendsliterary.com. Click here for more information on the agency’s submission guidelines, or here for Amanda’s online query form.

A contest of note for African American poets, and an opportunity for sci-fi/fantasy leaning flash-fictionists to put their skills to the test. Cash prizes!

YSCI-FI Flash Fiction Competition—Submissions due by February 28th, 2018 (fiction contest, $$$ prize)

What: A 750-1000 word piece of flash fiction in the genres of science fiction, fantasy, or horror. Winner receives $250.

Cost: Free

To Submit: Contest guidelines and a link to the submission form may be found here

Broadside Lotus Press Naomi Long Madgett Poetry Award—Submissions due by March 1st, 2018 (poetry contest, $$$ prize + publication)

Who: African American poets who have not previously had a book published by Lotus Press or Broadside Press. Winner will receive $500 in cash and publication of the manuscript by Broadside Lotus Press within the first three months of 2019, as well as free copies and discounts.

What: A book-length poetry collection (approximately 60-90 pages). 

Cost: Free

To Submit: Contest guidelines and a mailing address for submissions may be found here

#MSWL Highlights: Non-Western fantasy, magical diaspora, and women in metal

Lauren Spieller, Agent Assistant at TriadaUS
Lauren wants to see a Middle Grade fantasy/adventure novel set somewhere other than the United States or Europe.  Source Tweet

Seeking:

Fiction: Middle Grade; YA; Select Adult

Select Nonfiction

“Whatever the age category or genre, Lauren is passionate about finding diverse and underrepresented voices. In YA, she’d love to find authentic teen voices in any and all genres. She is especially fond of fantasy, magical realism, and space operas; contemporary stories with a hook; and anything with a feminist bent. In Nonfiction, she’s particularly hungry for counter culture books, cocktail books with a twist/theme, or narrative nonfiction with a unique hook.” 

How to submit: Lauren is accepting submissions via email at lauren@triadaus.comClick here for submission guidelines and more info on what she’s looking for.

Follow Lauren on Twitter @laurenspieller

Kurestin Armada, Associate Agent at P.S. Literary
Kurestin is looking for a fantasy novel that deals with the diaspora of a magical community. “How does the magic change/thrive?” Source Tweet

Seeking:

Fiction: Upmarket and Commercial; Magic Realism; Science Fiction; Fantasy; Historical; LGBTQ (any genre); Picture Books; Middle Grade; Young Adult; Graphic Novels; Romance

Nonfiction: Design; Cooking; Pop Psychology; Narrative; Photography; Nature; Science

How to submit: Kurestin is accepting submissions via email at query@psliterary.comClick here for submission guidelines.

Follow P.S. Literary on Twitter @PSLiterary, and Kurestin @kurestinarmada

Kira Watson, agent/foreign rights manager at Emma Sweeny Agency
Kira wants you to tell her a story of a young female musician in the 90’s owning the metal scene, not just surviving it.  Source Tweet

Seeking: 

Fiction: Young Adult and Middle Grade realistic fiction, speculative fiction, magic realism, thriller/mystery, horror, fantasy, and historical fiction. 

“Stories with folklore elements, complex villains, morally enigmatic (and very flawed) protagonists, medieval literature influences, and taboo subjects are bound to catch Kira’s attention.”

How to submit: Kira is accepting queries via email to queries@emmasweeneyagency.comClick here to read the full submission guidelines on the company website.

Follow Kira on Twitter @KiraWatsonESA

Ejusdem Generis

On Thursday of last week, District Judge Katherine Forrest gave a late Valentine’s Day gift to lovers of strong intellectual property law and a big middle finger to those whose affections lie instead with the free use and exchange of information on the internet. As you know, here at GSF we harbor a keen interest in all matters copyright related, and so the federal judge’s ruling that embedding a tweet containing an image on one’s webpage may be a copyright violation drew our attention. Photographer Justin Goldman and Getty Images sued a number of media sites over their use of his photograph of Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge and Patriots QB Tom Brady. Goldman had posted the photo to Snapchat, after which INTERNET, and soon major news organizations, including the Boston Globe, had posted stories with embedded tweets that displayed the image. The photograph was newsworthy because it showed the lengths to which the Celtics appeared to be going in their wooing of superstar Kevin Durant. The judge ruled against the defendants’ motion for a summary judgment against Goldman, which leaves the door open for the lawsuit to proceed. There are a number of legal and technological issues at play here, none of which will I bore you with, but the important takeaway for all of you writers with your own websites is this: you can reproduce and embed tweets that are text-only with impunity, but if you embed a tweet that has an image attached, you may be in danger of violating copyright law. Kelly Figueroa-Ray, our Director of Worldwide Copyright Operations, was way ahead of the courts on this one, forbidding the embedding of images in our Roundups from the beginning. If you’re interested in more of the ins and outs of this case, check out Wired’s coverage here, and the Verge‘s here. For those of you really into this kind of thing, you can find the court’s ruling here. Bonus points to anyone who can get through the judge’s description of how people embed things like it’s some sort of supergenius dark web hacker move without giggling.


Grad Student Freelancers (GSF) is dedicated to helping authors take care of the details of the publication process. Part of the process includes sifting through huge amounts of information to find important news, events, and tips that can give you an edge in the publication process. Every week GSF will provide three lists of curated information focused on helping writers get published. Our goal is to gather what’s important from the web in the past week, so you can focus more on your writing.  

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