UPDATED Chicken Soup for the Soul Writing Opportunities and Submission Guidelines

Chicken Soup for the Soul has an astounding collection of inspiring books! I remember about 15 years ago when I got the one for mothers for Mother's Day and I still have it, all Post-It noted and highlighted! Click here to check out their possible upcoming books, which you can contribute to! They update it all the time as they publish more and come up with more ideas! Here are some that are coming up!

How I Got My Start as a Paid Parenting and Family Magazine Writer

Everybody is different, so how we go about launching a writing career is going to be a different story for everyone. For some of you, a quick query to Working Mother might be the first you’ve ever written. You nervously hit the SEND button on your email program and go about your life. You check your email later that day and find an acceptance of your pitch at a pay rate of $1.00 per word! You create an article based on that piece that’s just different enough to send to the regional parenting magazines, and you sell nothing … for a week. Then the acceptances come pouring in.

Or maybe you always got As in college writing classes and everyone you know says you rock as a writer. But you are having trouble getting any of the RPMs to give you even so much as a nibble. Then you try an online literary magazine that pays and you have found your niche. You go on to sell many pieces to Chicken Soup for the Soul, then try the regionals again and find even more success.

This is my Writing Story because I think it’s important to remember how you started doing something you are very passionate about.

What is a Regional Parenting Magazine or Publication and Why Do They Want Your Reprints?

A Regional Parenting Magazine (RPM) is a publication that caters to parents and families in a specific geographic area. For example, Kansas City Parent, my local publication, distributes their magazine all over the Kansas City metropolitan area, which is huge and covers two states!

The articles in RPMs range from how to handle newborn sleep issues to how to deal with too many activities and your middle schooler to how to deal with a surly teenager to how to deal with living with an aging parent. Many also have special separate issues dedicated to babies, special needs, teens, etc.

RPMs depend on freelancers to fill their pages with articles, essays, how-tos, etc., usually on a monthly basis, but sometimes bi-monthly or quarterly.

They make most of their money from advertisers and give out their magazine for free, which means pay to writers is usually low ($15-200 per article in general, depending on advertising income and subscriptions), and they need a steady diet of new and reprint articles, listicles (combination of an article and a list) and essays.

"Reprint" means you write an article and sell it to a magazine (I submit to a huge list of possibilities), then other magazines also buy it. Check out this post on how I can earn over $500 for writing just one article and sending it out to many RPMs.

Check out the story of how I got started in this online, at-home money-making labor of love back in 2006:

“My friend is crazy,” I said to myself when I got home from a visit with a friend who had kids around the same age as mine. I could not believe she actually went grocery shopping with a baby and a toddler every single day so she could have fresh ingredients. I, on the other hand, avoided the grocery store as much as possible and stocked up so I would not have to deal with the drama of taking kids there while my husband was out of town. I also liked to cook in bulk and freeze meals ahead of time so I wasn't living in the kitchen. My husband traveled for work often just like hers did, and I couldn't imagine spending my life at the grocery store and in the kitchen while caring for little kids.

So, like I had done since I was a very young girl, I channeled my annoyance into writing. I started writing about stocking up on groceries and meals to save time and money. Pretty soon I had what resembled an article like I had seen in my local parenting magazine, Kansas City Parent. I always picked up a copy of KCP when I was out and devoured it, and I figured I'd get the email address for submitting my piece and see what might happen. They snapped it up and sent me $25 after publishing it the following month and I was hooked. Making money to do what I loved was great enough, but being able to do it while being at home in my sweatpants while nursing a baby was EVERYTHING. It still is, about a dozen years later, minus the nursing and plus the homeschooling J

After that, I got to work tracking them all down individually, with no internet at home, dragging my then-three kids to the library and friends’ houses to grab info to pop into a main document later. How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids has changed a lot over the years. It’s gone through a lot of cosmetic changes and even some title changes. Each edition sees magazines folding and being replaced with others, as well as magazines being added to the book in droves.

Are you interested to find out where I've been published and how I've made money by making this my career? Click the link in the sentence above.

You can purchase my book How to Get Published (and Paid!) Writing About Your Kids as an instant download here!

Determined Hearts: Talisman Mountain Trilogy Book Two by Samantha Thomas

Sometimes I have the honor of working on some truly wonderful editing and proofreading projects. Please check out book 2 in the awesome Talisman Mountain trilogy by Samantha Thomas ... clean romance books! This one will be released May 14, so you have time to grab the first book (Healing Hearts) and devour it before this one comes out! Pre-order Determined Hearts and it'll come straight to your Kindle!

This is the cover of Book One, which you also need to check out!

Write for ParentMap Seattle

Below are the guidelines for ParentMap from my upcoming instantly downloadable book from the Write Anywhere Series!

Location: Seattle, WA

Frequency: monthly

Website: http://parentmap.com

Contact Info: editor@parentmap.com

Proofreading Jobs from Home: 20 Places to Get You Started + Income Potential

I have met many writers and published parents who are also passionate about editing and proofreading, so this post is for you! I work primarily on Fiverr, and I have received almost 3,000 positive reviews since I started in 2013. 

Benefits for me include:

* Being able to work from home and homeschool! 

* Being able to pick up and travel with my family and make money while we're away from the house. 

* Not having a boss.

* Not working in a cubicle anymore.

If you want to join Fiverr just to check it out and possibly sign up to do your own proofreading jobs from home, please use my referral code!

Here's what I have come up with so you can also enjoy this kind of lifestyle. The first two services I am not familiar with because I just haven't had the time to dive into them. They are reputable sites that ask for a proofreading test or sample, but I hear competition can be fierce, and I'm not about underbidding my services!

Parenting Journalists Conference March 12-13, 2021 (online) *you can still sign up and watch the playback!*

Do you want to:

• Connect with editors of top parenting publications,

• Discover a community of writers who make a good living doing what they love, and 

• Learn insider secrets to landing an agent and more? 

Register today for the live, online Parenting Journalists Conference on March 12-13 and unlock a package that includes interactive workshops and networking opportunities, roundtable conversations, master classes, and access to a private Facebook group. 

Apply to Write for Redbook's The Mix, Their Brand-New Contributor Network

 For general Redbook submission guidelines, see this post.

The following is from Redbook's brand-new contributor network, The Mix:

Have you ever wanted to write for a major women's magazine? Now you can! Join The Mix, our contributor network, and you'll have the opportunity to write for RedbookMag.com, as well as Cosmopolitan.com, WomansDay.com, GoodHousekeeping.com, and ELLE.com. Whether you're a professional writer, avid blogger, or someone with a great story to tell, we're interested in sharing your voice with our readers.

If you'd like to be considered for The Mix, you can find more information right here. Every day, you'll receive an assignments email that includes story topics created by our editors. You can submit stories on as many assignments as you'd like, and if we publish your work, you'll get paid!

This is a great opportunity to have your work published on some of the world's best websites. If you're interested, check out the link above and be sure to send writing samples to themix@hearst.com.

MORE FROM REDBOOK

Studies Show That Father-Daughter Relationships Are Very Important Throughout A Girl’s Life

We've already published some amazing stories from contributors. Here are a few examples of stories that were written by members of The Mix:

Things You Should Never Say to a Woman Who Doesn't Want Kids

I Never Expected to Be a Stay-at-Home Mom

I'm 99% Mother and 1% Wife - And It Has to Be That Way

Why I Finally Broke Up With My Best Friend

9 Thinks You Should Never Say To A Divorced Woman

If you want to share your experiences, insights, and personal stories, this is your chance. Apply to join The Mix today!

Coming soon! The Write Anywhere Series

Coming Spring 2021 and only available as an instant-download PDF for $7.00! Start a new career for about the cost of a fancy coffee and a muffin!

Curious about the other books in the series?

Book 1: How to Write for Parenting Magazines will be available for $7.00.

Book 3: 101 National & Online Parenting Writing Markets will be available for $7.00.

Book 4: The Workbook will be available for $7.00.

You can get the BUNDLE for just $20.00.

Do You Need an Editor or a Proofreader? There is a Difference!

Did you know that there is a difference between an editor and a proofreader? 

My job as proofreader/copyeditor does not entail developmental editing, or hard editing to include rearranging of text. I will always, however, create a comment in the document if I catch an inconsistency or have a question about the text as a reader. 

To see the different types of editors/proofreaders and what they normally charge (hint: my service is a steal!), head here to Dave Chesson's article "The Mastery Guide to Selecting an Editor" on his Kindlepreneur page.

You don't need to ask me what my rate is because I freely share that information right here on this very blog post.

How to Get Started as a #Proofreader on #Fiverr

To get started as a proofreader on Fiverr, you simply sign up. It's free to do this, and I'd love it if you'd use my referral code to do so.

Check out the Writing/Translation section, then Proofreading to see what others are doing as far as gig offerings … how many words will they proofread for $5 (remember that you only get $4 of that)? How fast is their turnaround? How fast can you turn something out? I started out proofing 3,000 words for $5 and got busy but wasn’t making good money at all. Now that I have many more years of experience, I was able to raise my price to $5 for 500 words.

Happy Mama Publishing/The Published Parent 2020 Income Report

Welcome to my 2020 income report. I love knowing how others are doing in my industry, and I enjoy sharing my own successes and challenges. I hope this inspires you in some way!

Confused about Happy Mama Publishing and The Published Parent? Happy Mama Publishing is my entire at-home or on-the-go business name to include proofreading, articles, my own books, and blogs (and sometimes Door Dashing). The Published Parent is this site with all its writing helps and hacks.

Keep scrolling to see the details of my 2020 income report in a much larger format!

November 2020 Work-at-Home Income Report for The Published Parent: $3,458

The McLoughlin household rocked and rolled in November — and I wish the same for you!

I am still blessed to be able to work from home proofreading, blogging, writing articles, and writing books and to be able to do it in my sweatpants or swimsuit, out on the deck or at the dining room table, at my house or traveling with my kids and husband for his work to places like Wyoming, Arizona, Texas, Chicago, Florida, and more. 

I like to share my income from home with you to show you that I am a real person with real challenges and successes. No, it is not a full-time income, but I am not aiming for that. I am thankful and grateful that my husband has a good job, and my main job is homeschooling. Words are my part-time job for now. When the kids are grown, I foresee working more hours with my word career and helping to pay for travel and retirement. But that's at least 10 years away :-)

And if you are interested in making money working from home by being on the Fiverr platform, please use my referral link! As far as work from home jobs go, this has been one that I have loved since 2013! Check out my November 2020 income below!