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Summary

Chicken Soup for the Soul is seeking true, heartwarming holiday stories for their upcoming "The Blessings of Christmas" edition, with a focus on diversity, unity, and the joy of the season, and is accepting submissions until May 15, 2021.

Abstract

Chicken Soup for the Soul, known for its uplifting and inspirational story anthologies, is calling for submissions for their 2021 holiday edition, "The Blessings of Christmas." The publisher encourages writers to share genuine stories about various December holidays, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, and New Year's. The stories should reflect real-life experiences, traditions, and memories that embody the spirit of the holidays, with an emphasis on positivity, gratitude, and the magic of the season. The company values inclusivity and aims to publish narratives from a diverse range of authors, including those from the LGBTQ community and various ethnicities, nationalities, and religions. Chicken Soup for the Soul pays for accepted stories and allows authors to retain all rights. The deadline for submissions is May 15, 2021, and stories will be reviewed as they are received.

Opinions

  • The author of the web content reflects on the impact of Chicken Soup stories, acknowledging their effectiveness in providing perspective and emotional connection.
  • There is an appreciation for the "hometown charm" of Chicken Soup stories, which are seen as a contrast to fictional or sensational narratives.
  • The author admits to initially finding Chicken Soup stories too sentimental but later recognizes their value in fostering positivity and emotional well-being.
  • The author has personal experience with the publisher, having successfully submitted stories in the past and currently working on submissions for future editions.
  • The content suggests that reading and writing Chicken Soup stories can be a cathartic experience, often leading to a "good kind of crying" that connects one to their heart.
  • The partnership between Chicken Soup for the Soul and the Boniuk Foundation is highlighted as a collaborative effort to promote tolerance, great parenting, and making good choices through various programs and book series.
  • The author endorses the Hallway Heroes program, which is aimed at spreading tolerance and understanding in schools, starting with local schools in Houston and Harris County, Texas.
  • The content includes a personal call to action, encouraging readers to submit their stories and providing an affiliate link for a book, indicating the author may earn a commission from purchases made through the link.

Chicken Soup Wants Your Christmas and Holiday Stories

Deadline May 31, 2021

Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash

We’ve all read a Chicken Soup story.

They’re short, easy to read, and upbeat.

When I was a teenager, I thought they were too shmaltzy. My reading tastes back then tended more towards Steven King novels, horror stories, and thrillers.

The first Chicken Soup book was a collection of inspirational stories written by real people about their lives.

They weren’t rich and famous, or people that lived in a fantasyland. They weren’t fictional love stories or mystery novels. These stories had a hometown charm.

Let’s face it. It’s hard to stay positive sometimes.

Reading a couple of these stories every day helps you put your problems into perspective.

There’s nothing like reading about the real lives of other people to help you see that acceptance of a situation, concentration on the present moment, and enjoyment of the good, positive aspects of all circumstances help us to rise above difficulties.

It’s not all sugar and spice. Sometimes the stories are emotional. A really good story tugs at your heartstrings and puts you inside the story.

They’re kind of like a good car commercial, you know the ones.

I dare you to watch it.

I don’t think I’ve ever made it through a Chicken Soup book without crying at least once.

But it’s a good kind of crying. The kind that connects you to your heart.

I’ve submitted quite a few articles to this publisher and have been successful twice so far. I have a couple in the works for the upcoming editions and I have my fingers crossed.

The Miracle of Love

This anthology includes my story called The List.

Angels All Around

This anthology includes my story called the Parking Lot Angel.

Chicken Soup for the Soul is a company that publishes anthologies of short stories that are intended to make the world a better place.

They pay for each story they accept, and you retain all rights. If you like to write feel-good stories, this might be a fit for you.

All stories must be TRUE and must be your stories. They don’t accept stories written about things that happened to other people.

They are inclusive and share their revenues with nonprofits, with a focus on furthering unity and understanding in the world, and fostering an appreciation for our differences.

“Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.” — John F. Kennedy

They are interested in reading stories from a diverse group of writers, including stories from the LGBTQ community and people of all ethnicities, nationalities, and religions.

If you like to write feel-good stories, this might be a fit for you.

It’s easy to submit. You can find the details in the link below.

This is from the Chicken Soup for the Soul website.

Just as we’re putting the last of the holiday things away and getting into a routine for the new year, we find our editorial team already hard at work on our Holiday 2021 edition, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Blessings of Christmas.

So, while your holiday memories are still fresh in your minds, we hope you will write your story and submit it to us to consider for the next edition.

We are looking for stories about the entire December holiday season, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, and New Year’s. Please make sure that they are “Santa safe” so that we don’t spoil the magic for precocious readers!

We want great holiday stories that share your traditions and memories of normal holidays pre-pandemic. We’re hoping the pandemic is behind us by the time we’re all reading our 2021 holiday book. Here are some possible topics but we know you can think of many more.

• Thanksgiving — holiday fun, disasters, and family bonding • Hanukkah — all by itself or incorporated into your Christmas tradition • The weeks leading up to Christmas — anticipation, energy, the kids • Shopping and finding the perfect gift • Holiday humor — things that went wrong • Holidays through the eyes of the children • Around the table — holiday foods and traditions • Family reunions • Unique gifts, creativity, the best gifts you ever gave or received • Holiday miracles, amazing coincidences, answered prayers • Gratitude, counting your blessings • Forgiveness and how you used it during the holidays • Family dynamics — milestones, tender moments, epiphanies • What you learned during the holidays

We know the holiday season was very different in 2020. Some traditions and celebrations went on as usual, but due to COVID-19, many things changed. Were your traditions and celebrations different? Were you able to gather with family, go to church, attend holiday parties and share the special spirit of the season, brightening those long winter days?

Or were new traditions and celebrations started? Pleasant changes, from chaotic to quiet, that you will be continuing for years to come? We do also want to hear about how the pandemic changed your most recent holidays. Here are some suggested COVID-19 related topics but we know you can think of many more:

• New traditions started — and to be continued? • Using technology, Zoom or FaceTime gatherings • Staying home instead of traveling • Gift giving changes • Gift receiving changes • Decorating for your own enjoyment • Enjoying a simpler time • Seeing the silver linings

A few guidelines for you and some general information:

If your story was already published in a past Chicken Soup for the Soul book, please do not submit it. We will not publish it again. If you submitted a story to one of our previous Chicken Soup for the Soul book titles and we did not publish it, please submit it to us again if you think it will fit in this title.

If you already submitted your story to this topic now, please do not submit it again. We have it in our system and it will be read and considered by our editors.

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO OUR WEBSITE.

The deadline for story and poem submissions is MAY 15, 2021 but submissions will be reviewed as they come in, so please don’t wait until the deadline.

Here’s another feel-good story from NBC news.

The Boniuk Foundation

Chicken Soup for the Soul is in a partnership with the Boniuk Foundation, a Texas-based organization that promotes Tolerance, Great Parenting, and Making Good Choices.

The Foundation was created by Laurie and Dr. Milton Boniuk.

“The Boniuk family has become known throughout The City of Houston for their commitment to philanthropy and vision for change. Their belief that the world can be made a better place in our lifetime guides the work of The Boniuk Foundation.”

Their goal is to encourage everyone, students, teachers, and parents to celebrate differences.

They have a mission of spreading well-informed tolerance.

Here are some of the Boniuk Foundation and Chicken Soup for the Soul Joint Programs.

Book Series: a new series of Chicken Soup for the Soul books for children, teenagers, parents and grandparents created with The Boniuk Foundation

Family TV Show: award-winning series streaming free on Crackle

Social Emotional Learning Program: an evidence-based, CASEL-endorsed school curriculum available to schools nationwide

Book Sets: donations of existing Chicken Soup for the Soul books to schools in Houston and all of Harris County, TX

They’re also spearheading the Hallway Heroes program, which is endorsed by the Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) program.

Together, the Boniuk Foundation and Chicken Soup for the Soul are spreading tolerance and understanding all over the world, starting in their local schools in Houston and Harris County, Texas.

This post contains an affiliate link for a book. If you use this link to buy it, I may earn a commission. Thanks.

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