Dear Friend of the Dictionary,

The Dictionary of Moments is a new web-based communal writing project that I am coordinating. I am humbly requesting expressions of interest in the project. My hope is you can spare some time and talent to help this project during its infancy (and beyond.).

THE PITCH.

The idea is simple.  I’d like to collect and collate micro fictions in the form a dictionary. The reader will look up a word, as you would in a dictionary and rather than finding an explanation of meaning, they find an exploration of the words in the form of a short story. My aim is collect a wide selection of word-inspired vignettes, enough to make the dictionary huge vault of story. A collection of vignettes.

Here is what you’d have to do.

1. Look up a word in the dictionary (or just think of one), that word is the title of your story.  I prefer to have the words given to me by other people. It forces me to consider the word and the story more fully.
2. Write a story of up to 400 words using the titular word as inspiration. The story need not be a literal interpretation of the word, just an exploration of the themes, ideas, characters, locales that fill your mind while thinking of it.
3. Send it to the dictionary for publication online at www.dictionaryofmoments.com

The only limitation is the word count. Stories should be up to approximately 400 words. (A few words over is fine).

Style, genre, content are yours to define.

The author of each piece is listed clearly below the title on-screen, and hyperlinked to the contributing writers page where you may submit a bio and link to your personal site. The potential for through traffic to your site is two clicks away.

Dictionary of Moments cannot offer any monetary compensation for your contributions at this time; by submitting your stories to the project, you give Dictionary of Moments permission to publish them online on this site.

It is a far off dream that a hard copy of the dictionary will be published.  If/when, this does occur I will contact all contributing authors to negotiate terms of using your work in this medium.

A list of FAQ is detailed below.  I’ve tried to answer as honestly as I can at this point if you have any other questions please email me at Jason@dictionaryofmoments.com

Thank you for your consideration.

Jason Geary.

FAQ

Do I retain copyright of my work?

Yes you do. By submitting to Dictionary of Moments you are giving consent to publish your work on the site. If a hard copy of the Dictionary comes to fruition, permission will be sought with terms relating to the publication of your work in that medium.

Can I publish it elsewhere or do you prefer not?

I prefer not, though ultimately the work remains yours to do with what you wish.

Can I submit something I have already written or do you want new pieces?

Dictionary of moments is about creating new works. In the spirit of the project, I’d encourage you to produce new work for the project.

Will everything I submit be published or will there be a selection process?

My goal is to publish as many stories as possible. There is no selection criteria as such, however if a similar story exists for the same word I may choose one story over the other.
If there are very different stories springing from the one word then both will appear.

How often can I submit?

As often as you like. There is no limit.

Will my piece appear exactly as is or will you (Jason) be doing any editing?

I would like to publish the stories as they are sent to me. As such, the stories I receive should be the copy that you would like posted. If there are any changes made, I will seek the author’s permission and send the altered draft to them for approval before it is put online.

How strict is the word restriction?

The 400-word limit is firm but not restrictive. If you need 10 – 20 words more to complete the story, go for it. If you can tell your story in far less than 400 words that is fine. I’d like moments of all lengths, approx 400 is the maximum.

SUBMISSIONS.

If you wish to submit a story please send it to:

submissions@dictionaryofmoments.com

Please include a short Bio and any sites you’d like me to link to your info.

Thanks.

Jason.