Writing for Woman’s World Short Fiction Markets

by Paula Gail Benson

If you’re interested in writing short romance or mystery stories, you might want to consider submitting to Woman’s World (WW), a weekly magazine found in most grocery stores. Before sending in a story, you’ll definitely want to read the publication. Its fiction guidelines are strict: (1) romances must be contemporary and no more than 800 words, and (2) mysteries must be up to 700 words written in a “solve-it-yourself” format to allow readers to test their sleuthing skills with the resolution at the end. The pay is excellent (about $800 for romances and $500 for mysteries), but the competition is fierce. If your story is selected, you’ll become part of a distinguished group, including John Floyd and B.K. Stevens.

Several websites have been developed to help writers determine how best to hone their submissions.

The following provide guidelines:

for romances

http://womansworldstyle.blogspot.com/2012/10/womans-world-fiction-guidelines.html

and for mini-mysteries

http://womansworldstyle.blogspot.com/2013/08/womans-world-mini-mystery-guidelines.html

Until September 6, 2016, when she had to suspend her messages to concentrate on caring for her mother, Jody Lebel, a WW published mystery author, analyzed the mini-mysteries and listed other markets accepting shorts. Her blog is well worth reading to understand the type stories and formatting that WW is seeking. Here’s the link:

http://wwmysterystory.blogspot.com/

In addition, two Sleuthsayers blog messages from R.T. Lawton (“Me and the Mini-Mystery”) and John Floyd (“A Woman’s World Survival Guide”) give some excellent advice for successful submissions. They can be accessed at: http://www.sleuthsayers.org/2012/08/me-and-mini-mystery.html and http://www.sleuthsayers.org/2012/08/a-womans-world-survival-guide.html.