THE RENAL SUPPORT NETWORK INVITES PEOPLE WITH KIDNEY DISEASE TO ENTER THE 11TH ANNUAL RSN ESSAY CONTEST

 

2013 Theme: “Provide an example of how you became an active participant

in your care”; cash prizes to be awarded

 

Renal Support Network (RSN), a nonprofit, patient-focused, patient-run organization that provides nonmedical services to those affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD), encourages people with kidney disease to let their voices be heard by entering the 11^th Annual RSN Essay Contest. This year’s theme is, “Provide an example of how you became an active participant in your care.” All submissions must be written by someone who has been diagnosed with CKD, and cash prizes will be awarded.

 

 

RSN Essay Contest winners will receive cash prizes: First Place, $500; Second Place, $300; and Third Place, $100. Winners’ names will be announced after September 10, 2013, and the winning essays will be featured in RSN’s publication, Live & Give, and posted on RSNHope.org.

 

HOW TO ENTER

• Essays must not exceed 750 words and must focus on this year’s theme: “provide an example of how you became an active participant in your care.” Limit one entry per person. Additional contact information (the author’s complete name, address, phone number, and email address, if applicable) must be included on a separate page. All submissions become the property of RSN and will not be returned.

 

• Entries can be faxed to  (818) 244-9540 , emailed to essay@RSNhope.org or mailed to RSN Essay Contest, Renal Support Network, 1311 N. Maryland Ave., Glendale, CA 91207. All entries must be postmarked or received by 12:00 p.m. EDT on August 1, 2013.

 

HOW ENTRIES WILL BE JUDGED

• All entries will be judged by an expert panel of writers and people with kidney disease on the basis of the following factors: appropriateness to the Contest Theme, Originality and Creativity, and Technical Correctness (spelling, grammar, and an accurate explanation of the disease and/or treatment). In the event of a tie, the entry with the highest Originality and Creativity score will be selected as the winner.

 

OFFICIAL RSN ESSAY CONTEST RULES

• The contest is open only to people who have been diagnosed with CKD and live in the United States and is void where prohibited by law. Employees of RSN or of agencies advertising and promoting the contest, their immediate family members and/or those living in the same household are not eligible to enter. The winner is not permitted to substitute or transfer the prize. All federal, state and local laws apply, and the winner is responsible for paying any applicable taxes.

 

• Essays must be typed. Handwritten essays will NOT be accepted.

 

• The winners will receive an Affidavit of Eligibility/Release of Liability and Publicity and have 15 days to execute it, certifying that the entry is their own original work. If the winner is a minor, a parent or guardian must sign the affidavit on behalf of the minor. Noncompliance can result in disqualification and the selection of another winner.

 

• All entries must consist of original works that have never been published before and must not infringe on any third-party rights. By entering the contest, the entrant gives RSN the right to use, edit or publish the entry without further compensation. The winners assign all copyrights to RSN.

 

• Unless such use or permission is prohibited by law, those who enter the contest and/or accept a prize grant permission to sponsors and their agencies to use the winners’ names and/or likenesses for purposes of advertising/trade without further compensation. Prizes are nontransferable. By accepting a prize, the winner agrees to hold RSN and its directors, officers, employees and assignees harmless against any and all claims of liability arising from the use of the prize. The winner assumes all liability for any injury or damage caused by, or claimed to be caused by, participation in this promotion or by the use/redemption of any prize.

 

• Entrants agree to be bound by the Official Rules as stated and the decisions of the judges. RSN is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, the administration of the contest or the announcement of the prizes. In addition, RSN is not responsible for lost, late, mutilated or illegible entries.

 

For further information about the contest and its rules, entrants can visit RSNHope.org.

 

About RSN

Renal Support Network (RSN) is a nonprofit, patient-focused, patient-run organization that provides nonmedical services to those affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD). RSN strives to motivate and assist people with CKD and to help them develop their personal coping skills, special talents and employability by educating and empowering them (and their family members) to take control of the course and management of their disease. RSN values people with kidney disease and helps them become self-sufficient through education, advocacy and the hope for a better tomorrow through its many educational and support programs, including the RSN HOPEline, KidneyTalk, and the Live & Give newsletter. Visit RSNHope.org for more information.

Nationally Known Authors Headline Fall 2013 Hillerman Writers Conference

2013 TONY HILLERMAN WRITERS CONFERENCE:

NATIONALLY KNOWN AUTHORS TO TEACH AT GATHERING

SANTA FE, NM –A handpicked faculty of award-winning published authors, who are also accomplished teachers, will headline the 2013 Tony Hillerman Writers Conference.

Established to honor author Tony Hillerman, the conference keeps Hillerman’s legacy alive and welcomes writers of all genres and abilities. The 2013 conference will be Nov. 7–9, 2013  in Santa Fe at the Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza.

The event features faculty members such as:

·      Margaret Coel, award-winning author of the Wind River Mysteries and the Catherine McLeod Novels

·      Kirk Ellis, Emmy-award winning writer of the HBO mini-series John Adams

·      Craig Johnson, New York Times’ best-selling author of the Walt Longmire series that inspired the hit TV drama on A&E. His newest honor is The Rocky for the best mystery novel set in the west. His writing has also been honored with the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award; Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, and Library Journal as the Best Mystery of the Year.

·      David Morrell, winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel and the ThrillerMaster Award from the International Thrillers Writers.

·      James McGrath Morris, recipient of two New Mexico Book Awards and the Eagleton-Waters Book Award for his biographies

·      Anne Hillerman, winner of the independent booksellers Mountains and Plains Book Award and first-place honors from the National Federation of Press Women

The conference features workshops on getting published and marketing books, as well as on the craft of writing. It opens with two half-day hands-on workshops for authors on “Perfect Plotting,” facilitated by Margaret Coel, and “Great Openings and Endings,” taught by James McGrath Morris.

The Tony Hillerman Writers Conference is intentionally designed as an intimate event, where writers have the opportunity to interact with and get feedback from faculty members and their fellow writers. “The small size of the conference enables students to interact informally with each other and our faculty at nightly book signings and during our flash critique session with thriller master David Morrell and literary agent Liz Trupin Pulli,” says Anne Hillerman.

“We’re also proud to offer an opportunity for our participants to talk about their work at the ‘New Book/New Author Breakfast’,” says conference co-founder Jean Schaumberg.

The Tony Hillerman Writer’s conference began in 2004. Tony Hillerman offered ideas and encouragement to Schaumberg and co-founder Anne Hillerman until his death in 2008. In selecting faculty, Hillerman and Schaumberg focus on highlighting the wealth of literary talent in New Mexico and the Southwest, of which Tony Hillerman was always a fan.       

For further details, please visit http://www.wordharvest.com/registration.php

10 Classic Books All Teens Should Read

Young Adult literature is enjoying an almost unprecedented explosion in popularity, moving more and more teens to lose themselves in the wonderful world of books. While the shelves of the local big-box retailer may be weighted down with plenty of offerings from bestselling authors, there are also a plethora of classics that no teenage bookworm should miss. These ten classics are among the most moving, inspiring and thought-provoking out there, giving today’s YA lit a run for it’s proverbial money.

Visit the website: http://www.babysittingjobs.com/blog/10-classic-books-all-teens-should-read/

HARD TIMES WRITING CONTEST

Deadline: Postmarked by June 30, 2013

Awards:

1^ST PLACE:  Your choice of a 3 night stay at The Mountain Muse B&B in Asheville; or 3 free online workshops; or 100 pages line-edited and revised by our editorial staff

2nd PLACE: 2 night stay at the B&B; or 2 free workshops; or 50 pages line-edited

3rd PLACE:  One free workshop, or 25 pages line-edited

10 Honorable Mentions

Guidelines:

Write about a difficult experience in your life, how you overcame this obstacle, and how you were changed by it. Winning stories will be chosen for originality and creative writing style. Stories should be previously unpublished, and should not exceed 4,000 words (double-spaced, 12 point font). Multiple entries are accepted.

Your name, address, email, phone and title of work should also appear on a cover sheet. Enclose a self-addressed, self-sealing stamped envelope for critique and list of winners, and the reading fee of $25 (or $20 for Workshop members) per entry. Please make check or money order payable to Writers’ Workshop, and send to: Hard Times Contest, 387 Beaucatcher Road, Asheville, N.C.  28805.

Emailed submissions may be sent to writersw@gmail.com, with “Hard Times Contest” in the subject. Entry fee is payable online at www.twwoa.org.

Visit the website: http://www.twwoa.org

Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival – Poetry Contest

Former US Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky will judge the 4th Annual Poetry Contest. A prize of $1,000 and publication in Louisiana Cultural Vistas is given annually for a group of poems. The winner will also be invited to give a reading at the 2014 Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival. Poets who have not yet published a poetry collection may submit two to four poems totaling no more than 400 lines with a $20 entry fee by August 15, 2013. Send an SASE or visit the website for complete guidelines.

Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival
Poetry Contest
938 Lafayette Street, Suite 514
New Orleans, LA 70113.
contests@tennesseewilliams.net

Visit the website:

www.tennesseewilliams.net/contests/poetry-contest

Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is now accepting entries!

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The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who loves expressing innermost thoughts and feelings into the beautiful art of poetry or writing a story that is worth telling everyone! And welcome to all having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story for a chance to win cash prizes. All works must be original. http://www.dreamquestone.com

Guidelines:

Write a poem, thirty lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand printed.

And/or write a short story, five pages maximum length, on any subject or theme, creative writing fiction or non-fiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries and screenwriting). Also, must be typed or neatly hand printed.

Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.

Postmark deadline: July 31, 2013

All contest winners will be announced on September 9, 2013

Prizes:

Writing First Prize is $500. Second Prize: $250. Third Prize: $100.

Poetry First Prize is $250. Second Prize: $125. Third Prize: $50.

Entry fees:

$10 per short story, $5 per poem.

To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) or poem(s), along with your name, address, phone#, email, brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to: “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”

Mail to:

Dream Quest One

Poetry & Writing Contest

P.O. Box 3141

Chicago, IL 60654

Visit http://www.dreamquestone.com for details on how to enter!

 

No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One

M Writer Residencies Open to Applications 2014-15

M Writer Residencies Open to Applications
—————————————–
Applications for the 2014-5 M Writer’s Residencies are now open. The Programme funds three-month residencies in Bangalore, India and Shanghai, China for writers of fiction, nonfiction, poetry or dramatic prose. (The residency in India is at Sangam House, which can also be applied to separately at http://www.sangamhouse.org )

The M Writer’s Residencies have been established to disseminate a broader knowledge of contemporary life and writing in India and China today and to foster deeper intellectual, cultural and artistic links across individuals and communities.

Applications close on June 1, 2013.

Visit the website:

http://www.m-restaurantgroup.com/mbund/Ms_residency.html

Virginia Beach Writers’ Conference to Connect Writers with Literary Agents, Editors, and Publishers

Hampton Roads Writers, Inc. (HRW), a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating opportunities for writers to achieve publication success, will host its fifth annual conference in Virginia Beach, September 19-21, 2013, at the Westin Town Center hotel.  The multi-day conference will provide opportunities for attendees to hone their writing craft, pitch their book manuscripts to New York literary agents actively seeking clients, and network with writers and other writing professionals.
“We are proud of the expansive selection of workshops offered this year,” said Lauran Strait, HRW founder and President of the Board of Directors. “There’s something for all writers at the conference.”

In total, attendees will be able to choose from twenty-eight workshops, covering topics such as poetry, screenplays, fiction, nonfiction, memoir, and the business of getting published.  “Since most of the craft workshops will be interactive, we expect that attendees will depart the sessions with short works-in-progress in hand,” said Strait.

The conference kicks off the evening of September 19 when attendees may choose from four workshops.  One workshop designed to help writers pitch their manuscripts to a literary agent is expected to fill to capacity as more and more writers take advantage of the free ten-minute agent pitch sessions that have come to be a popular feature of the HRW conferences.  “Last year, of the more than seventy-five conference attendees who pitched,” said Strait, “a few were subsequently asked to submit full manuscripts.”  This year’s agents include Ethan Vaughan, from Kimberley Cameron and Associates, and Jeff Ourvan, of the Jennifer Lyons Literary Agency.

Friday’s keynote speaker will be Lisa McMann, New York Times bestselling author of the WAKE Trilogy, the VISIONS series, and the UNWANTEDS series.  Kevin Maurer, award-winning reporter and New York Times bestselling co-author of No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden will deliver the keynote on Saturday.  McMann and Maurer also will lead several one-hour workshops.

Other workshop presenters include fiction writers Clifford Garstang, Lydia Netzer, Jeff Andrews, and Chantelle Aimée Osman, Pulitzer Prize winning investigative journalist Mitch Weiss, author and Certified Public Accountant Jack Downs, and poet Jeanne Larsen.

Three writers’ contests offered as a free component of the conference allow attendees an opportunity to win cash prizes.  Anyone who registers for the conference on or before July 26 may submit a short story, a nonfiction piece, and/or a poem for competition.  Winners will be announced and awarded prizes at the conclusion of the conference on September 21.  Prizes range from $100 to $250, and it’s possible for entrants to win something in all three categories.

One of the most eagerly anticipated segments of past conferences, the First-10-Line Critique sessions, will occur again this year on Friday and Saturday mornings.  Agents and bestselling authors who make up the critiquing panel aren’t afraid to say what they think about the work and whether they would continue reading or not, and often they offer suggestions for improvement.

“Each year we lengthen the critique sessions to accommodate as many first-ten-line submissions as possible,” said Nancy Blumenberg, HRW’s Vice President and Publicity Director. “Since attendees aren’t told ahead of time if their work will be read, everyone who submitted something sits poised in anxious anticipation, wondering if their work will be picked for critique.”

A book store that features books on writing craft and the business of publishing and also books written by HRW members attending the conference will be available for attendees.

An optional networking social with silent auction will occur from 5 – 7 PM on Friday, September 20.  Proceeds from the auction will be used, in part, to provide full and partial scholarships to HRW’s Traveling Pen Series workshops and to the conference.  New York Times bestselling authors, Michael Palmer and Lisa McMann, as well as a host of other local and not so local writers and businesses, have donated items to the auction.

Businesses interested in advertising, exhibiting, or distributing samples or premiums during the conference, or donating products or services for the silent auction are welcome to contact HRW at HRWriters@cox.net.  “The conference bags given to all attendees offer Blockbuster and Award-Winner sponsors the perfect opportunity for advertisement,” said Blumenberg.  “Their logos emblazoned on the bags will be seen throughout the conference and then beyond since the bag is perfect for carrying around books and other things.”

Early bird registration for the conference is $175 for HRW members and $215 for nonmembers and will conclude July 26.  The fee climbs to $215 for HRW members and $255 for nonmembers after that.  Conference fees include lunch both days, the conference bag filled with goodies, and a complete set of handouts from every workshop.  Annual HRW membership — which can be had for as little as $35 — confers substantial price reductions for all HRW fee-based activities.

Hampton Roads Writers, 150 members strong and growing, supports Virginia’s established and emerging writers.  For additional information about HRW or the conference, visit hamptonroadswriters.org or email Lauran Strait at HRWriters@cox.net, or call Donna at  757-639-6146 .

$10,000 Walton Sustainability Solutions Best Creative Nonfiction Essay Award

Deadline: May 31, 2013

Creative Nonfiction and Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability are looking for remarkable true stories that illuminate and present the human side of environmental, economic, ethical, and/or social challenges related to the state of the planet and our future.

$10,000 Walton Sustainability Solutions Best Creative Nonfiction Essay Award

We welcome personal essays or stories about extraordinary individuals or communities, and stories about innovative solutions to sustainability. We seek essays on topics that range from global to local, from “big” (e.g., Resilience after natural disasters; New technology solutions vs. common sense; Energy harvesting) to “small” (e.g., Personal decisions about consumption; Reuse, recycle, up-cycle, bicycle?; Green, clean—what does it mean?; What can we learn from past generations?). Whatever the subject, we want to hear about it in an essay that blends facts and research with narrative—employing scenes, descriptions, etc.

Your essay can channel Henry David Thoreau or Henry Ford, Rachel Carson or (a literary) Rush Limbaugh; but all essays must tell true stories and be factual and scientifically accurate.*

All essays submitted will be considered for publication in a special “Human Face of Sustainability” issue of Creative Nonfiction magazine. One writer will be awarded the $10,000 Walton Sustainability Solutions Best Creative Nonfiction Essay Award.

The prize recipient will be invited to a special launch event hosted by Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability.

Guidelines: Essays must be previously unpublished and no longer than 4,000 words. There is a $20 reading fee (or send a reading fee of $25 to include a 4-issue subscription to Creative Nonfiction—U.S. submitters only); multiple entries are welcome ($20/essay) as are entries from outside the United States (though due to shipping costs we cannot offer the subscription deal).

You may submit essays online or by regular mail:

By regular mail Postmark deadline May 31, 2013
Please send manuscript, accompanied by a cover letter with complete contact information including the title of the essay and word count; SASE or email for response; and payment to:

Creative Nonfiction
Attn: Sustainability
5501 Walnut Street, Suite 202
Pittsburgh, PA 15232

Online Deadline to upload files: 11:59 pm EST May 31, 2013
To submit, please click the appropriate link:

Reading fee only ($20)
Reading fee + 4-issue subscription ($25; U.S. submitters only)

Visit the website: https://www.creativenonfiction.org/submissions/human-face-sustainability

*A note about fact-checking: Essays accepted for publication in Creative Nonfiction undergo a rigorous fact-checking process. To the extent your essay draws on research and/or reportage (and it should, at least to some degree), CNF editors will ask you to send documentation of your sources and to help with the fact-checking process. We do not require that citations be submitted with essays, but you may find it helpful to keep a file of your essay that includes footnotes and/or a bibliography.

Summer Blockbuster Contest

Summer is the season of movie blockbusters. Action, speed, explosions, sequels. The more the better! For our summer writing contest, we would love you to pitch us your best idea for a summer blockbuster movie. But if you come up with an idea that’s really great, why would you give it to us for free?
 
So, instead, pitch us your worst idea for a summer blockbuster. Put your pitch in the form of a logline–a pithy one or two sentence description.
 
Some examples of loglines:
 
Jaws
When a man-eating shark terrorizes a small New England resort town, and the mayor refuses to close the beaches, the Police Chief sets out to slay the killer beast.
 
Die Hard
A New York cop visiting L.A. is the only one who can stop the terrorists who have invaded a high-rise and taken the people inside hostageincluding the cops wife. 
 
Heres an example of a bad blockbuster logline:
 
Going Nowhere
A Medieval Studies professor at Sarah Lawrence College tries to decide where to take a summer vacation, but he cant decide and so he stays home and watches television.
           
But you can probably do worse than this. We don’t just want bad. We want pitches so bad, they make us laugh. Winner won’t get a studio deal, but will get a free writing class.
 
All entries must be received by midnight July 16, 2013.

Visit the website:  http://www.writingclasses.com/ContestPages/SummerBlockbuster.php

> CLICK HERE TO ENTER <

Summer Literary Seminars: call for submissions for an upcoming anthology

A collection of your favorite and soon-to-be-favorite writers and photographers, courtesy of Summer Literary Seminars.

Hi, we’re Summer Literary Seminars -  www.sumlitsem.org  And we want to make a book. We want to make a book because, after years of hosting some of the world’s finest writers and so many phenomenally talented students, we’re restless and want to feel nostalgic. Because there is too much talent here not to make a book — our past faculty/students includes George Saunders, Adam Levin, Stephen Elliott, Dawn Raffel, Dave Eggers, Denis Johnson, Mary Gaitskill, William T. Vollman, Padgett Powell, Robert Coover, Eileen Myles, Sam Lipsyte, Chuck Klosterman, and others. We’re going to get ‘em all to contribute (well, we’re going to try). They owe us. We bought them beer and plane tickets.

What is the book about? It’s about Lithuania, where SLS has been running its world-class writing workshops and seminars. It’s even about not-Lithuania. It’s about diaspora, about longing, about belonging; it’s about what the book ends up being about.  We know that’s not very precise. Apologies. But what we can promise you is loosely-themed but outstanding prose & poetry — a very, very special anthology — and exceptional photographs from Gregory Talas, who, with your help, we can finally bring to Lithuania to work his magic and teach our students.

We’ve reached out to many, many writers about contributing, and the response so far has been phenomenal. SLS has run some of the most popular writing contests in the country, and we are very excited about finally collecting those winners in one place. We’re going to update the table of contents as we go along, and even post excerpts of stories/poems/essay. (Donors will get previews of entire stories.)

Your money will help pay for design, printing, and marketing. (The editors and writers are contributing their time and material for free.) 

If you are interested in submitting to LITVAK: for a $15 donation (or more) we will read your work and consider it for publication.

Submission Guidelines: 

• multiple submissions by an author accepted 
• no minimum length 
• please submit in Word (.doc, .rtf, or .docx) or PDF format
• $15 donation fee (minimum)
• maximum 20 pages per entry 
• online submissions only, please send work to litvaksubmit@gmail.com

Visit the website:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/76650736/litvak

NERDWALLET’S ROTH IRA WRITING CONTEST

NERDWALLET’S ROTH IRA WRITING CONTEST

NO ENTRY FEE

Deadline May 12, 2013.

Do you have an opinion on saving for retirement
using a Roth IRA? We’re looking for short pieces showcasing views on
Roth IRAs. The pros, the cons, and everything in between.

First Place: $500
Second Place: $300
Third Place: $200

NOTE: NerdWallet Investing will publish all submissions that we
deem relevant to our readers; not all submissions will be selected
for publication or payment. Open to all states except Rhode Island.

http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/investing/2013/roth-ira-writing-contest-competition-2013-win-prize/

ROOM’S ANNUAL CONTEST

Room Magazine’s Annual Contest

DEADLINE: JULY 15, 2013

Calling all women writers: Sharpen your pencils or fire up your laptop and send us your fiction, poetry, or creative non-fiction contest entries.

Deadline: Entries must be postmarked or submitted online no later than July 15, 2013.

Entry Fee: $30 per entry. Non-Canadian entries: $42 Canadian dollars.

Each submission includes a complimentary one-year subscription to Room. Writers who submit more than one entry will get a multiple year subscription.

Prizes: 1st prize in each category – $500, 2nd prize – $250. Winners will be published in a 2014 issue of Room. Honourable mentions will be featured on Room’s website.

For more details: visit: www.roommagazine.com/contest

 

Judges

Fiction: Yasuko Thanh
Poetry: Jane Munro
Creative Non-Fiction: Betsy Warland

4 Keys to a Killer Book Cover Design—a free webinar

INTRODUCING the 4 Keys to a Killer Book Cover Design—a free webinar!

Your book cover is often the most powerful and sometimes the best marketing tool to help grab attention at bookstores and online. So you want to make sure you know the keys to designing a great cover.

In this free webinar, hosted by Archway Publishing, Jason Heuer, Assistant Art Director at Simon & Schuster will reveal the keys to creating eye-catching covers for fiction and non-fiction books. Whether you plan to pay a designer or do your own design, you don’t want to miss this event.

Time:

Thursday, May 2, 2013 – 12:00 pm EST

Registration Link:

https://simonandschuster.webex.com/simonandschuster/onstage/g.php?t=a&d=680132791

Last Call: Crow Woods Publishing: New!! 1st Art Inspired Story Writing Contest

New!!! 1st Art-Inspired Story Writing Contest
A short story inspired by a work of art in the Crow Woods art books

Submission Guidelines

Deadline:
Entry deadline – April 30, 2013

Results Announced – June 30, 2013

Prizes
First prize – $500
Second prize – $300
Third prize – $200

Judge
Tony Ardizzone, originally from the North Side of Chicago, is the author of eight books of fiction, including the novel The Whale Chaser (2010) and the recently completed interconnected collection, The Calling of Saint Matthew: Stories of Rome. He is a winner of the Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction, and a Chancellor’s Professor of English at Indiana University.

The decisions of the judge are entirely his own, and are final. Winners will be notified by email.

All entries will get feedback. Winning short stories will receive a short paragraph from the judge and will be published.

Signing Up
Sign up at this site. A $35 reading fee includes a complimentary copy of one of the Crow Woods art books: The Chicago Art Scene, or Living Artists. Payment is handled through Paypal or by mail.

Visit the website for details on how to enter:   http://www.crowwoodspublishing.com/contest.html

Last Call: BookBaby’s Mega Book Launch Sweepstakes

Enter to win $16,000 in prizes!

This is our most amazing grand prize package ever! Featuring everything an indie author could possibly need to publish, promote, and sell their book, this grand prize is positively packed with goodies.

Deadline for entries is 04/30/2013!

The Grand Prize includes:

• BookBaby – Premium eBook Publishing Package (A $249 value!)
• BookBaby Print – 300 Books, Deluxe Cover Design, Interior Formatting (A $3,000 value!)
• HostBaby – 12 Months Web Hosting (A $199 value!)
• BEA Trip – BEA Passes, Transportation, Hotel, Book Signing (A $4,000 value!)
• IndieReader.com – Interview & Review (A $500 value!)
• Circle of Seven Productions – Book Trailer Production/Distribution (A $2,000 value!)
• Smith Publicity – Press Release, Media Blast (through Net Galley), Publicity Consultation (A $3,000 value!)
• BookDisplays.com – CityStand Book Stands (A $80 value!)
• JKSCommunications – 15-Date Virtual Book Tour (A $1,750 value!)
• PR Newswire – Web ReachPLUS Press Release Distribution (A $400 value!)
• PR by the Book – Social Media Consultation (A $900 value!)

Total Prize Value: $16,078

There’s no cost to enter. Hurry! Deadline for entries is 04/30/2013.

Void where prohibited by law.

View complete sweepstakes rules here.

Write Reality: The Reality Show Idea Contest

Write Reality is a competition dedicated to finding the next hit reality show idea.

Entrants are asked to write a short summary of their idea for a chance to win cash prizes totaling $2200 and consideration by top reality production companies such as MPH Entertainment (The Dog Whisperer), 44 Blue Productions (Lock Up), GRB Entertainment (Intervention), Buck Productions (Cake Walk), T Group Productions (Storage Wars) and Paper Route Productions (Yukon Men).

The deadlines and fees are as follows: Early: May 31/$30.  Regular: August 31/$40. Late: Oct 31/$50. Final notification for winners will be December 30^th.

For more info, please visit: writerealitytv.com. Contact: info@writerealitytv.com.

Last Call! for Personal Stories of Survival, Inspired by Gloria Gaynor’s Song “I Will Survive”

Deadline: April 30, 2013

Have you survived an illness, personal tragedy, abusive relationship, financial ruin, or other life experience that brought you to your knees? Did the song “I Will Survive,” by Grammy Award-winning songstress Gloria Gaynor, inspire you to rise, survive, and move forward? If so, we’d love to share your story in a new book of personal narrative essays that tell the story of how you survived the experience and how the song influenced your life (essential). We’re looking for real-life stories that read like fiction—similar to the stories in the Cup of Comfort book series, compiled and edited by Colleen Sell. The book will include 50 stories of 1,000-1,500 words each. For each essay selected for publication in the book, the author will receive $75, a complimentary copy of the book signed by Gloria Gaynor, and a signed photo of Ms. Gaynor.

Submit by April 30, 2013, toglolo2004@me.com or susancarswell@aol.com

Mystery Short Story Competition 2013

Mystery Times 2013

Last year, we received over 100 submissions from new and established authors alike. Never before published, they were gathered together in our Second Annual Mystery Times collection. Each story was read and rated on the same set of parameters; each judge brought his or her own unique talents and tastes to the task at hand.

The quality of the stories was outstanding and the 2012 book rode the #1 and 2 spot on the Amazon Hot New Mystery Release List for FOUR weeks!

So, yep, we’re doing it again!

Our 2013 Showcase Mystery Times 2013 seeks new mystery short stories.

Submission Guidelines:

Theme: Mystery–It can be it murder, cozy, paranormal, soft-boiled, hard-boiled, police procedural, suspense, thriller, or amateur detective.

What is a mystery? In a mystery, the main character must track down the truth about an event, often a murder. If the protagonist is in any danger, it usually becomes a problem only as the detective/protagonist approaches the truth. That’s your base, how it plays out is up to you!

No gratuitous sex or violence.

The competition is open to all writers in English except current employees of Buddhapuss Ink LLC.

Submissions will be accepted from April 1, 2013 to July 15, 2013.

You must be 18 or older to enter.

No previously published work(s)

Simultaneous submissions are not permitted.

Entries should be between 3000-7000 words in length.

Send your submissions via email with the subject line “Submission for MYSTERY TIMES TEN” from <your name> with your story as an attached file in .doc or .docx (Word) format PLEASE INCLUDE in the body of the email:

Your name and contact information

A brief author bio (2-5 sentences)

Entry should be single-spaced in at least a 12 pt. readable font. We suggest Times New Roman, Courier, or Arial.

Send emails to: Submissions@Buddhapussink.com

NOTE: You will receive an email acknowledging our receipt of your entry within 24 hours. If you do not receive this email: (check your junk/bulk/spam folder first!) please re-submit your entry and change the subject line to: “RESUBMISSION for MYSTERY TIMES TEN”.

Submissions that do not follow these guidelines will not be considered.

Notifications will be sent to finalists via email August, 2013.

There is no limit on the number of entries you may submit. There is no fee to enter.

Buddhapuss Ink LLC reserves the right to close or extend the competition if not enough suitable entries are received.

Winning Selections:

The Winning entries will be published in the 2013 Showcase titled Mystery Times 2013  to be published by Buddhapuss Ink LLC.

FIRST and SECOND PLACE winners will receive a new Kindle, featured placement in the book, and Buddhapuss Ink swag.

THIRD PLACE winner will receive a $25 Gift Card, featured placement in the book, and Buddhapuss Ink swag.

ALL WINNERS will receive: two (2) copies of the finished book and the opportunity to “fast track” their next manuscript with our Editorial staff. “Fast track” does not mean you will receive a publishing contract, but we will guarantee that your manuscript is given a priority reading.

Some winning entries will also be featured on our website, blog, and/or Facebook page.

JUDGING
Buddhapuss Ink is all about our readers and all entries will be read by an independent panel of readers and rated on the same scale and parameters. The top 20 entries-based on the aggregate scores-will go on to the final round where they will be read and scored by our Editorial Review Panel made up of publishing professionals. The decisions of the judges will be final

No manuscripts will be returned.

Winners will be notified & announced in August 2013.

Publication is scheduled for October/November 2013.

Send your best words our way! We publish newcomers and established writers alike.

Key dates: Contest ends: July 15, 2013
Winners announced: August 2013
Publication: October/November 2013

Send entries to: Submissions@buddhapussink.com

Visit the website: http://www.buddhapussink.com/index.html

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Fiction Writing Bootcamp May 3-5, 2013

Two Publishing Pros to Offer Fiction Writing Bootcamp May 3-5 in Santa Barbara

Two literary insiders team up to help budding authors craft novels that will catch the eye of agents and publishers. Shelly Lowenkopf and Toni Lopopolo began the bootcamps in 2010 in the Santa Barbara/Ventura area. The latest edition is “Bare Knuckles Bootcamp” which brings their accumulated knowledge and street creds as Executive Editors with Macmillan, St. Martins, Bantam and Dell, along with Ms. Lopopolo’s literary agency work, to help writers achieve their dreams of publication.
“We’re looking for a few good writers who have the stamina and imagination to reach the level of marketable authors,” Ms Lopopolo said. “We wanted to hone the skills of more talented area writers.” The camp is a three-day intensive limited to ten writers who must submit up to ten pages and a synopsis in advance to be accepted.

The bootcamp will delve into: your opening page (velocity vs. set up); refining point of view; how to avoid fatal story errors; and an area where many writers never do enough, revision, revision, revision. Other areas covered include: creating charged dialogue; how to create your character’s defining moment; how to make your story win every round; and, much more.

“So many people dive into writing without understanding that novel writing is not like a thesis for an English Lit class,” Shelly Lowenkopf said. “To be published, a writer must meet a high standard, one that is achievable IF you know where the bar is. Toni and I have been raising that bar for years and will now pass on our experience to new writers.”
Shelly Lowenkopf has held major editorial positions with Sherbourne Press (Editor-in-Chief); Dell Publishing (Director, Los Angeles office); Clio Books (Editor-in-Chief); Ross-Erickson (Editor-in-Chief); and, Capra Press (Advisory and Acquisitions Editor). He has seen over seven hundred books and hundreds of short story and essay projects through the publishing process.  Currently a freelance consultant and teacher, his clients include novelists, retired and active academics, and the humorist creator of one of the most popular television series of all time.  For over 30 years, he was a fixture at the Santa Barbara Writers Conference, running his famous nightly Pirate Sessions.

Lowenkopf taught courses in short story, novel, dramatic writing, editing, genre fiction, and revision at the graduate level in one of the most prestigious writing programs in America at University of Southern California, where he was given a Lifetime Teaching Award.  He is a past regional president of the Mystery Writers of America. His most recent book, The Fiction Writer’s Companion, is a guide to terms, concepts, and forms related to storytelling.

Literary Agent, Toni Lopopolo, brings a book publishing resume that began in 1970 in the publicity dept of Bantam Books, where she helped publicize authors such as Philip Roth, Barbara Cartland, Isaac Asimov, and Louis L’Amour.

She next served as Library Promotion Director at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, until Houghton Mifflin offered her a position in Boston as Marketing Manager, Paperback Books. Her big campaigns included Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins.  When Macmillan offered Toni the title of Executive Editor, she moved back to New York City and published Judy Mazel’s Beverly Hills Diet, Elvis 56 by Al Wertheimer, among other hits. Next St. Martin’s Press made an offer she couldn’t refuse and Toni became Executive Editor from 1981 to 1990. She published Hot Flashes by Barbara Raskin and Rich and Famous by Kate Coscarelli plus Elsa Lanchester, Herself, by Elsa Lanchester, On The Other Hand by Fay Wray as well biographies of Lillian Hellman, Mary McCarthy, and many other titles. She has taught fiction and narrative non-fiction writing at Temple University in Philadelphia.

In 1991, Toni opened Literary Management and has sold books for authors Sol Stein, Lee Silber, Lillian Glass, Steve Duno, Nancy Baer, Flo Fitzgerald, Judith Smith-Levin, Howard Olgin, Jeanette Baker, Larry Seeley, Shelly Lowenkopf, and many others.

To learn more about the bootcamp curriculum or how to submit pages for acceptance, visit:  www.writingbootcamps.com or email Toni Lopopolo at LopopoloBooks@aol.com.

The bootcamp is presented by the Pacific Institute for Professional Writing, a California 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit,
CALENDAR INFORMATION: WHAT:  Bare Knuckles Bootcamp
WHEN: May 3-4-5

TIME: Friday: 5:30 to 8:30 pm – Saturday and Sunday: 9:30 am to 4:30 pm

PLACE: Private home in Santa Barbara

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Last Call: The Producer’s Club Short Play Contest

About
The Producer’s Club Short Play Contest is to encourage emerging writers and find original shows we can produce. There is no fee to submit your play to the contest. We select the best of 5 plays from the submissions we receive. Once you are accepted, a $300 refundable deposit will be required. The deposit will be returned as long as your play sells 20 tickets in total to all three performances assigned to your show.

All plays selected will be given a three-performance run at the Producer’s Club on 44th street and 9th Ave in Midtown Manhattan, NY.

Submission Rules
In order to submit a play, please send the following via email:
1. A 200- to 300-word synopsis of the play
2. The complete script in either a word document or PDF file
3. Your telephone number and home address
4. Your bio

Play Guidelines
1.    Entries must be submitted by May 10th 2013.
2.    All entries must the writer’s original work.
3.    The entries should be between 10 and 15 minutes.
4.    Maximum number of actors/actresses is 5 per entry.
5.    The play will be produced with minimal set/props/costuming.
6.    The judges will announce their selections on May 24th and the successful writers will be notified via email.

As soon as your play is accepted, you will be sent the festival guidelines. The refundable $300 deposit should be paid before the show rehearsals and will be refunded after the sales of the first 20 tickets; that means an average of 7 people per performance = 20 audience members in total to all three performances assigned. Each ticket will be $15.00 and will be admission to 5 short plays, that’s a full evening of great theater for $15.00 for your friends and family.

Prizes
After all plays have had their three-performance run, the first place play will receive the $2,000.00 video package. The video will be a three-camera shoot of the play with pickup shots, close ups, etc.  The video will then be edited and a DVD will be created.  The producer/submitter of the play will be given 10 copies of the DVD.  You will own the video and can use it for any legal and non-derogatory purpose.

During the course of the performances three judges will attend, one per performance, to judge the plays. This panel of judges will choose the winning play and all decisions are final decision. Winners will be announced one week after the last performance.

Again, there is no submission fee. Only those plays that are accepted will be required to send in participant deposit, which is full refunded if at least 20 people buy a ticket to see your play. (Each play will be listed separately on our website for ticketing purpose.)

Video
All plays may be filmed for a fee. There are different levels of video production ranging in price from $500.00 to $2,000.00. To know more about the services please visit our site www.cierimedia.com

Contact us at:
ShortPlays@egarage.tv

Last Call for Entries – The Cupboard’s Third-Ever Contest -

- The Cupboard’s Third-Ever Contest -

Deadline:  Tues., May 7th, 2013

Prize: $500 & publication

Judge: Kevin Wilson!

There’s still time to submit to The Cupboard’s Third-Ever Contest. The winning author receives $500, and the manuscript will be published as an upcoming volume. We’re looking for prose submissions between 4k and 10k words. In the past, we’ve published short stories, essays, collections of flash fiction and prose poems, and combinations thereof. Send us your best work. Reading fee is $10. Submissions are received and read anonymously, and all submissions are eligible for regular publication. Kevin Wilson will serve as final judge.

To submit, go to: http://www.thecupboardpamphlet.org/contest/

Please email cupboard@thecupboardpamphlet.org with any questions.

Kevin Wilson is the author of Tunneling to the Center of the Earth (Ecco/Harper Perennial, 2009), and The Family Fang (Ecco, 2011). His fiction has appeared in Ploughshares, Tin House, One Story, Cincinnati Review, and elsewhere, and has appeared in four volumes of the New Stories from the South: The Year’s Best anthology as well as The PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories 2012. He has received fellowships from the MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, and the KHN Center for the Arts. He’s an Assistant Professor in the English Department at the University of the South.

The Cupboard is published four times a year. Each volume features a body of work by a single author. Previous authors include Jesse Ball, Mathias Svalina, Courtney Maum, Joshua Cohen, and Anne Marie Rooney.

More information can be found at www.thecupboardpamphlet.org

Colony Collapse Press 2013 Novella Prize

Colony Collapse Press will award a prize of $300, publication, and 20 complimentary copies for the best novella, as judged by our editorial board.

Deadline: July 31, 2013.

Length: 15,000 words minimum and 50,000 words maximum per each individual submission. These pages must comprise a single work of fiction or novella-length narrative nonfiction.

Entry fee: $10 per manuscript. This fee is nonrefundable and must be paid by credit card from within the online submission manager.

Multiple submissions are permissible. Each additional entry requires its own separate entry fee.

Portions of the manuscript may have been previously published, but the manuscript, as a whole must be unpublished and must be available for exclusive book-length publication by Colony Collapse Press. Previously self-published works are not eligible. For excerpts published individually in journals or magazines, the writer must hold copyright. Include an acknowledgments page listing previous publication of included work, if applicable.

All submissions will be considered for publication. All themes and/or subject matters are eligible. All rights revert to the writer upon publication.

Simultaneous submissions are acceptable, but if the manuscript is published/accepted by another press while under consideration, the author must promptly withdraw the entry.

Book bundle: As a special deal to contest entrants, Colony Collapse Press offers any published book for an additional $6. For $16 total, submit to the contest and choose from a copy of the winning novella from the contest, or either of our two previously published books, Michael Sheehan’s Proposals for the Recovery of the Apparently Drowned, or Kara Weiss’s Late Lights.

Complete guidelines available at: http://www.colony-collapse.com/contests.html

Submissions: http://colonycollapse.submittable.com/submit

G.R.I.T.S. ANTHOLOGY CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS/

SHORT CALL FOR SUBMISSION:

 

This call for submissions is particularly for queer womyn and their allies who live in the Southern region of the United States or have a strong affinity for this locale. Submit your writing as a single document in the body of the email or as a Word attachment. Also include a short biography and a photo of your choice that reps your work.

G.R.I.T.S : Girls Raised In The South- An Anthology on Southern Queer Womyns’ Voices and Their Allies, edited by Amber N. Williams & Poet On Watch. Please submit unpublished works only. Authors retain copyrights to their work published and have the option to resubmit selected works to other publications. Compensation includes the following: one copy of the published anthology, set dates for readings and shared revenue from the book.  Please send your naughty but nice poetry, love notes, images and visual art jpegs to be considered for the G.R.I.T.S anthology. We think nerds are pretty damn hot! Submission is good..especially if you do it here: southgrits@gmail.com for detail guidelines click on our FB page. https://www.facebook.com/grits.anthology

 

Submission Deadline: June 1, 2013
Selection Notification: June 5, 2013
Book Release Brunch: Sept. 2013

For more information on the non-profit work that M.A.L.I. does, check out the website at www.malisite.org. make sure to join our Freeverse Publishing FB page for updates and details.  https://www.facebook.com/grits.anthology

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LONG CALL FOR SUBMISION INFO:

Freeverse Publishing, a division of the Media Arts & Literacy Institute, is now accepting submissions for G.R.I.T.S : Girls Raised In The South- An Anthology on Southern Queer Womyns’ Voices and Their Allies, edited by Amber N. Williams & Poet On Watch. Please submit unpublished works only. Authors retain copyrights to their work published and have the option to resubmit selected works to other publications. Compensation includes the following: one copy of the published anthology, set dates for readings and shared revenue from the book. Please send your submissions here: southgrits@gmail.com/ For more information on the non-profit work that M.A.L.I. does, check out the website at www.malisite.org to join our FB page and get into community with us please click here. https://www.facebook.com/grits.anthologySubmission Deadline: June 1, 2013
Selection Notification: June 5, 2013
Book Release Brunch: Sept. 2013Submission types:Your best G.R.I.T.S. recipes (max 2)
Poetry (70 lines and under per poem, 3 poems MAX)
Prose/Essay (500 words MAX)
Short Stories (1,400 words MAX)
Send images as jpegs, no larger than 1000 pixels in any dimension
and include medium, title and/or a short caption. Digital images of your original paintings, drawings and photographs
also accepted (3 images MAX) at 300 DPI

Send your submissions here: southgrits@gmail.com

Join our FB community: https://www.facebook.com/grits.anthologyIn the subject line, include: Last name, First name and the genre of your submission. For example: Smith,Nancy, Poetry Submission For G.R.I.T.S. 3 PoemsG.R.I.T.S. is an innovative, pioneering, trailblazing, radical and cutting-edge anthology surrounding our theme: erotica while enjoying food, what food do you gather around for substance and comfort, your connection to the south, your connection to your lover, your sister and sisterhood, your personal growth, (spiritual or otherwise) your best G.R.I.T.S recipes.

Call for Entries: Capital Repertory, Albany, NY Announces Next Act! New Play Summit 2

Submissions are now being accepted for Capital Repertory Theatre’s NEXT ACT! NEW PLAY SUMMIT 2!

 

Next Act! is an expansion of Capital Repertory Theatre’s commitment to the development of new work, and is designed to complement the Upper Hudson Valley’s recent and future growth explosion in the fields of research and technology. The summit will directly reflect the theatre’s mission, “to create meaningful theatre generated from an authentic link to the community.” Next Act! takes place November 2nd thru 4th, 2013 and will feature readings of two never-before produced plays, one musical and special events throughout the weekend.Capital Rep is particularly interested in scripts that showcase world events as they impact the individual and society, highlighting the common threads that bind the American culture together in a world that is defined more and more by diversity. The theatre will give preference to character driven scripts that showcase technology’s impact on humanity. Accepting plays and musicals.
Multi-cultural and ethnically diverse plays welcome.
Comedy and Drama welcome!
(Please do not submit plays about the theatre.)

ELIGIBILITY
Eligible plays can not have been previously produced, though previous readings are allowed. No more than 7 characters. (Please do not submit works in which actors play multiple roles, unless it is a device used to illuminate generations. Eligible musicals can not have been previously produced, though previous readings are allowed. No more than 6 characters. Accompaniment must be able to be provided by a pianist for the reading. Scripts that allow creative ways for execution in the intimate atmosphere of Capital Rep’s thrust stage are particularly welcome. (There is no limit on subject matter. Adaptations of literature welcome.) Agent and non-agent submissions accepted.

Submission Deadline: END OF DAY – Thursday May 30, 2013

HOW TO SUBMIT

Plays: Playwrights should submit a synopsis, character descriptions and the first 10 pages of their play with a photo/resume and bio. Musicals: Playwrights should submit a synopsis, character descriptions, one sample scene and 3 songs (demo’s are acceptable). Music may be sent via CD or electronically. Playwrights should include a photo/resume and bio. Email your submission to Margaret Hall, Assistant to the Artistic Director, at mhall@capitalrep.org with NEXT ACT SUBMISSION in the subject line. A small stipend and limited travel available for playwrights selected. Electronic submissions preferred. Capital Rep is a professional LORT D theatre, established in Albany in 1981.