Writer's Market by Robert Lee Brewer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
2012 Writer's Market is a top resource for all types of writers, from freelancers looking for consumer magazines to poets and novelists. The Writer's Market tries to be everything for all writers—the beginning of the book has helpful advice on query letters and other necessities while the listings range in interest from beginners to established writers with years of experience.
The Writer's Market is a helpful tool, but it is not the only tool available. Much of this information you can get online. However, one of the most comprehensive online listings have now turned into a pay service, so buying the Writer's Market each year would still be more affordable.
The listings in this book cover consumer magazines, trade journals, literary journals, contests and more. The first edition of this book I had was the 2005 version which I remember contained many more listings, but the listings were often already out of business before the end of the year, which can easily happen with a publication such as this.
When it comes to searching the listings, the most important advice for any writer using the book is to read the listing and completely forget about any of the symbols the book puts next to the listing. The editor's inclusion of some symbols is inconsistent at best and contradictory to the listing at worst. Some that are marked as agent submissions only do accept unsolicited manuscripts, for example. There are also many listings that do not denote the “agent only” symbol yet the listings clearly state no unsolicited submissions will be accepted. In this day and age, it is best to get the name of the publication, the website and go online to get the most up to date submission guidelines.
Overall, this is a great resource for writers, but the next time I'm in the market for a Writer's Market book, I think I will check out their more specific titles, such as the Poet's Market.
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