Missing Access to Duotrope? Here Are Some Alternatives

If you relied on Duotrope to find publications for your fiction, essays, poetry and more in 2012, this year may look a little gloomy. That is, unless you want to pay the yearly fee for full access to the site. Personally, I'm a cheapskate and even if I did have the extra money to spend, I probably wouldn't do it. The information is out there and usually for free, so I find it hard to justify paying for convenience in this case. However, if you are willing to pay the fees and you are writing full time, it can be a tax deductible expense.

So--if you are still looking for the convenience of a database or set of listings to search through, here are a couple of options.

Poets & Writers
This magazine's website has a list of literary journals under the Tools for Writers tab. The listings are pretty straightforward, giving you the information you need when it comes to submissions, payment and the reading period. From what I can tell, it has a mix of mid- and high-level literary listings, good for those who may have already been published once or twice before.

Ralan.com
If you are looking specifically for markets that want spec fiction or humor, this is the place to go. The listings are categorized by the amount of pay offered. The website is also updated regularly to keep the listings fresh.

Those are actually the only two websites I have found so far that do a similar job to what Duotrope did, but I will be on the lookout for more websites like this so we can all be frugal writers together.

Humor for freelancers

I'm getting to the point where I no longer dread working. I'm starting to enjoy my new projects, even if they take up way too much time for the amount of money I'm being paid. Anyway, I thought I would start off the week with a little bit of humor that I found while begin distracted from research on the Internet. Enjoy!


Top 10 Ways to Tell You're a Freelance Writer - The FWJ Network

Off Duty Freelance Writer Tee - Zazzle

An Anti-Terrorism Invention The Solution To A Common Freelancing Problem? - Angie's Copywriting