Archive for December, 2010

Call for Entries: Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest

17 December 2010

The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who loves arranging words into the beautiful art of poetry or writing a short story that is worth telling everyone! And to all who have 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 poetry and short story entries are accepted.

Deadline: July 31, 2011

Prizes:

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

Poetry Contest 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 further details, to print out an entry form or to enter online.

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

New Exposure Opportunity for Children’s Authors… For Free

17 December 2010

HOBOKEN, NJ (12/14/10) —  There are countless tips for children’s authors at the beginning of their careers, as well as those looking to grow a career that has recently taken off.  These tips all center around the importance of exposure for the authors work.  In the past this important exposure has relied on the author investing in marketing, but there are new avenues for exposure that do not cost anything such as online publication with freechildrenstories.com.

FreeChildrenStories.Com is visited regularly by thousands of parents, teachers and children around the globe.  The website, www.freechildrenstories.com was founded with the goal of making access to new and original stories as easy as possible for children regardless of whether their family could afford costly hardbound books.  The site is always accepting submissions from children’s authors, in any language, to be selected by the review team for publication at no cost.  The level of exposure provided by the website can be leveraged when trying to obtain a literary agent, and included in submissions to publishers.   FreeChildrenStories.com publication can also be used for transfer to ebook publication.

The Short Story Competition

17 December 2010

The competition is open-themed and run on a quarterly basis.

The closing dates are 31 March, 30 June, 30 September, 31 December. If you miss a closing date you will be entered into the following quarter’s competition.

Stories received now are for inclusion in the competition closing on 31 March 2011.

Entry fee is £5 for the first story, £3 for additional stories.

Critiques are available for £5 per story.

First Prize is £250.

Second Prize is £100.

Third Prize is £50.

Winners will be notified within 4 weeks of the closing date.

Winners will be announced, and winning stories published on this site, within 6 weeks of the closing date.

For competition rules and details of how to enter visit: http://www.theshortstorycompetition.com

Naming Contest

12 December 2010

The contest takes place on www.iamasource.com, has a value of 800 € for the winner and the deadline is scheduled for December 21st.

 The contest is about the creation of a name for a new startup, headed by an Italian multinational company, that sells a new Business Intelligence Product (data analysis, reports…) in an innovative way: a service that can be used via web through pc, smartphones and devices.

You can find the complete breef on http://www.iamasource.com

Win a compatible eReader!

9 December 2010

iwritereadrate.com is a new, exciting online community for unpublished writers that gives you a place to publicise and sell your work direct to readers who love to find new voices and explore new ideas.

As an unpublished writer myself I understand the trials, tribulations, and disappointments of sending your hard work off to agents and other people within the industry only to receive a standard reply – it can be a very frustrating experience for budding authors.  Our website is about building a constructive community where unpublished writers can upload, sell, and receive valuable ratings & reviews on their work to help them improve their writing. 

The final goal, in our opinion, of any aspiring writer is to be published in the traditional manner, however sometimes we all need some support in getting there…(There’s more information to look through about our mission in the FAQs section of our website).

We’re also running a registration competition to win a compatible eReader at the sites full launch – more details on the site at:

http://www.iwritereadrate.com/

You’ll receive constructive feedback so you can prove and improve your writing with the ultimate objective of being published. We encourage you to read the FAQ’s section to find out more.

Register interest today to receive regular updates and to gain access to the site pre-launch. Be among the first iwritereadraters!

By registering now you will be entered into a competition to win a compatible eReader at the site’s full launch.

Visit the website: http://www.iwritereadrate.com/

 

The Writer’s Wish List Sweepstakes

9 December 2010

ENTER TO WIN AN iPAD, KINDLE, OR ONE OF MORE THAN 50 OTHER PRIZES! 

We’ve assembled dozens of unique prizes to appeal to writers including:

  • 10-week Gotham Workshop (Online or in NYC)
  • $50 Barns & Noble Gift Card
  • Apple iPad and Amazon Kindle
  • New Yorker 2011 Desk Diary
  • Books for Writers Young and Old
  • Four-week How to Get Published and How to Blog seminars (Online)
  • Gear from the Gotham Shop including a Sweatshirt, Baseball Hat, and Book Bag
  • Subscriptions to The Writer, Script, Poets & Writers, All-Story, or Bookmarks

One entry per person. Multiple entries will disqualify entrant. No purchase necessary. Entry deadline is midnight, January 1, 2011. Only online entries will be accepted. Void where taxed or prohibited. Valid for residents of Canada and USA only. Must be 18 years or older to enter.

No purchase required.

For Contest Rules & to Enter Visit: http://www.writingclasses.com/ContestPages/WishList.php

THE CHOICE ONE-ACT FESTIVAL

9 December 2010

The Complete Theatre Company is seeking submissions for The Choice One-Act Festival. Each one-act will receive a table read, six hours of rehearsal, and a day of tech at no cost to either the playwright or the director. In addition, producers provide lighting, sound equipment, actors, and the theater itself. Each night audience members will vote for a prize to be awarded at the end of the run.  $100 prize awarded to Best Playwright and $100 prize awarded to Best Director.

Annie Ward, prod. Festival runs one week, tentatively the last week of March to the first week of April 2011 at the ArcLight Theatre, a 99-seat space in NYC.

Seeking—One-Act Plays: 8-9 minutes minimum length, 10-12 minutes maximum length, settings should be simple or suggested. Note: Only royalty-free works will be accepted. Submission fee is $10 per script (cash, check, or PayPal). Playwrights may make multiple submissions.

To submit, send scripts and checks/payments to Annie Ward, Attn: “Choice One-Acts,” 175 W. 79th St., Apt. 6A, NYC 10024, or email scripts to completetheatre@yahoo.com. Each script should be accompanied by a cover page which should include title, author, address, phone number, and email address. Scripts that include a self-addressed stamped envelope will be returned. Make checks out to The Complete Theatre Company. To use PayPal, visit www.thecompletetheatre.com/Productions.html.

Website: www.thecompletetheatre.com

The 2011 Third Coast Fiction & Poetry Contests

9 December 2010

The 2011 Third Coast Fiction & Poetry Contests

EXTENDED DEADLINE: January 15, 2011

Fiction Prize: $1,000 & Publication 

Poetry Prize : $1,000 & Publication

Final Judges

Fiction: Brad Watson         Poetry: Natasha Trethewey

 Complete Guidelines: www.thirdcoastmagazine.com/contests

1. Submit one previously unpublished story of up to 9,000 words or three (3) previously unpublished poems with a $15 reading fee payable to Third Coast.  Please send each entry separately and clearly mark whether it is a poetry or fiction entry. 

Send entries and reading fee to:

Third Coast 2011 Fiction or Poetry Contest

Department of English

Western Michigan University

1903 W. Michigan Ave.

Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5331

2. Each $15 entry fee entitles entrant to a 1-year subscription to Third Coast, an extension of an existing subscription, or a gift subscription. Please indicate your choice and enclose a complete address for subscription.

3. All manuscripts should be typed (fiction entries should be double-spaced), and accompanied by a cover letter with the author’s name, contact information (address, telephone, and email address), and entry title(s). Please include entry title(s) and page numbers on all manuscript pages.  The author’s name and  identifying information should only appear on the cover letter; identifying information must not appear anywhere on the manuscript itself.

4. Simultaneous submissions are permitted; if accepted elsewhere, we ask that work be withdrawn from the contest immediately. If a poem or story is chosen as a finalist, Third Coast requires that it be withdrawn from any other publication considerations until the winner is selected. If the poem or story is scheduled to be published elsewhere before September 2011, please do not submit it.

5. Winners will be announced in March 2011 and published in the Fall 2011 issue of Third Coast.  All contest entries will be considered for regular inclusion in Third Coast.

6. Writers associated with the judges or Third Coast are not eligible to submit work to the contest.

7. No money will be refunded. Submissions will not be returned. Send SASE for results only.

About the Judges

Brad Watson won the Sue Kauffman Award for First Fiction from the American Academy of Arts & Letters for his first collection, Last Days of the Dog-Men. His first novel, The Heaven of Mercury, was a finalist for the 2002 National Book Award. Watson’s most recent collection of stories is Aliens in the Prime of Their Lives (2010).

Natasha Trethewey is the winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for her book Native Guard. Her first poetry collection, Domestic Work, won the Cave Canem Poetry Prize, and her second collection, Bellocq’s Ophelia, was named a Notable Book for 2003. Trethewey’s most recent work is a book of creative non-fiction, titled Beyond Katrina: A Meditation on the Mississippi Gulf (2010).

Complete guidelines can be found at www.thirdcoastmagazine.com/contests

Chapters of Glory! Writing Contest

9 December 2010

Write A 12+ Chapters Ebook in 2 Months… Earn Glory… WIN $US200!!

Chapters of Glory! is a FREE writing contest designed to kick the brains of genius authors into overdrive. Frantic, coffee-fuelled days and nights pit authors one against the other – all within a supportive, vibrant and creative literary community of ‘Facebooking/Twittering-types’ – and the chance to win $US200! Entrants are challenged to write a complete, 12+ chapters ebook in 2 months – and get as much feedback on their writing as possible! Choose a topic you’re passionate about – you keep FULL copyright – AND YOU CAN SELL YOUR EBOOK at the end of it all! Cast your fears aside, Dear Writer, it’s time to publish your passion… write an epic ebook… have heaps of fun… and WIN GLORY!

Entries close Midnight (EST), January 15, 2011

The Rules are Simple

  1. Frantically write and post a complete, 12+ chapters (min. 25,000 words) ebook to Publishizer before midnight EST, January 15, 2010
  2. Earn ‘glory points’ in the form of comments, likes, tweets and star ratings on your chapters. Each comment, like, tweet and star ratings is worth 1 point!
  3. Spread your chapters mercilessly to friends, family and colleagues to win ‘Glory Points’!
  4. The author with the most amassed ‘Glory Points’ across their posted chapters WINS!

Visit the website for details: http://publishizer.com/chapters/chapters-of-glory-writing-contest-rules.html

The Disable Shop Blogging Contests

9 December 2010

 Enter now and win the chance to become a paid blogger writing about disability and disability products AND £250 in cash.

Runs from: 19th November – 18th December.

Prizes:
1. £250.00 in cash
2. The opportunity to become a paid blogger.

The Disabled Shop is looking for talented bloggers to write about disability and disability products. To find them, we are holding a blogging contest.

What you can win:

  • £250 in prize money.
  • Publicity in our press releases and newsletter.
  • The chance to become a professional (paid!) blogger.

The Judges

We are delighted that Disability Writes, an organisation that seeks to assist and encourage Disabled Writers, will be selecting the best blog post.

The website is based in the UK but anyone can enter, and the prize is £250 ($400) – all details are here:
http://www.thedisabledshop.com/Blog/the-disabled-shop-blogging-contest/

The Modern Dickens Project

9 December 2010

The concept is simple. Authors review the previous chapters, then craft the chapter for the next month. One winner is selected
from the submissions. In December 2011, we’ll publish the book.

Details:

-Although the story is set in Iowa and involves Iowa themes, you do not have to live in Iowa to participate. In fact, it might
be more interesting if you don’t.
-No entry fee for submission.
-The winning author receives a $100 honorarium.
-If an author’s chapter isn’t selected as the winner for a particular month, he or she may submit again.

For detail, visit the MDP website: http://www.moderndickens.org/

Write Christmas Competition

8 December 2010

Write Christmas Competition

Comp Page: http://bestforfilm.com/community/write-christmas-competition/

Run by film reviews site Best For Film. Write a review of the greatest Christmas film never made. Shortlist judged by panel of 3 famous judges including the film editor of The Metro (3.5 million readers a day). As well as a cash prize of £100, winner gets unique poster, publication and critique from judges. Two runners-up get £50 and publication.

Closing: 24 December 2010

Prizes: £100, £50, £50, unique poster made by famous design team who brought you film posters for THE HURT LOCKER, THE LOSERS, ORPHAN, TETRO, IN THE LOOP and a million more.

Entry Fee: £0.

Comp Page: http://bestforfilm.com/community/write-christmas-competition/

Montana Prize in Fiction, Montana Prize in Creative Nonfiction, Patricia Goedicke Prize in Poetry

2 December 2010

Montana Prize in Fiction, Montana Prize in Creative Nonfiction, Patricia Goedicke Prize in Poetry

Open December  1 – February 28

Go to www.cutbankonline.org for more information

 Description:
CutBank is pleased to announce the 2011 Montana Prize in Fiction,  Montana Prize in Creative Nonfiction, and the Patricia Goedicke Prize in Poetry.
Submissions are accepted December 1, 2010 through February 28, 2011. Winners receive $500 and publication in CutBank 75. All submissions will be considered for publication in CutBank. The contests’ $17 entry fee includes a one-year, two-issue subscription to CutBank, beginning with the prize issue, CutBank 75.
Please send only your best work.  With all three of these awards, we are seeking to highlight work that showcases an authentic voice, a boldness of form, and a rejection of functional fixedness.

Guidelines:
Submissions are accepted December 1 through February 28. Submissions are accepted through our online submission manager only. The $17 contest entry fee includes a one-year subscription to CutBank and covers the reading of a single submission in a single genre. Prose writers, please send only a single work of no greater than 40 pages. Poets may submit up to five poems. We cannot consider submissions that exceed these guidelines. Please submit only once per genre – writers are permitted to submit in multiple genres.
Please include a short cover letter that mentions your address, phone number, and email address, as well as the title of your work. Please include the author’s name on the manuscript—names will be removed from the pool of submissions that goes before our contest judges. Current subscribers may submit for the same $17 fee—subscriptions will be extended by one year. Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please withdraw your submission via Submishmash immediately should it be accepted elsewhere. We are unable to offer refunds.

Entrants will be notified of their submission status no later than May 15, 2011. One winner in each genre, as chosen by our guest judges, will receive a $500 award and publication in CutBank 75, our summer 2011 issue. Winners will be required to complete a W-9 form to receive payment. All manuscripts are considered for publication in CutBank. All rights to selected manuscripts revert to the author upon publication. The author grants their permission to have their work electronically archived as part of CutBank 75 in EBSCO International’s subscription-based research database. Current University of Montana students and faculty and former CutBank staff are not eligible for the awards.

Judges:

Montana Prize in Fiction Judge – Eileen Myles
Eileen Myles’ THE INFERNO/A POET’S NOVEL came out in October 2010, and THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ICELAND (MIT Press, 2009) is a talkative prose collection in which she describes her travels and explores art criticism. She’s published more than 20 volumes of fiction, poetry, articles, plays and libretti including HELL (an opera with composer Michael Webster, 2004), SKIES (2001), ON MY WAY (2001), COOL FOR YOU (a novel, 2000), SCHOOL OF FISH (1997), MAXFIELD PARRISH (1995), NOT ME (1991) and CHELSEA GIRLS (stories, 1994). With Liz Kotz, she edited THE NEW FUCK YOU/ADVENTURES IN LESBIAN READING (Semiotext(e), 1995). Eileen conducted in 1992 an openly female write-in campaign for President of the United States. In the 80s, she was Artistic Director of St. Mark’s Poetry Project. In ’94 and again in 2007, Eileen toured with Sister Spit. She is a Professor Emeritus of writing at UCSD. In 2007, she received The Andy Warhol/Creative Capital art writing fellowship.

Montana Prize in Creative Nonfiction Judge – Thalia Field

Thalia Field’s recent book of interrelated story-essays, BIRD LOVERS, BACKYARD, joins her earlier POINT AND LINE, and INCARNATE:STORY MATERIAL from New Directions Press. She also recently released, A PRANK OF GEORGES (with Abigail Lang) from Essay Press, and has written a “performance-novel” ULULU (CLOWN SHRAPNEL), published by Coffee House. Thalia’s work has appeared in Tin House, Conjunctions, Ploughshares, Chicago Review, Seneca Review, Angelaki, and other journals. She is included in The Next American Essay, edited by John D’Agata, and considers the essay to be essentially a mode or register at home and in the lineage of any genre. Thalia teaches in the Literary Arts Program at Brown University.

Patricia Goedicke Prize in Poetry Judge – D. A. Powell

D. A. Powell’s most recent collections, COCKTAILS (2004) and CHRONIC (2009), were both chosen as finalists for the Publishing Triangle and National Book Critics Circle Awards. In 2010, Powell received the California Book Award, the Kingsley Tufts Prize in Poetry and the Northern California Book Award. A former Briggs-Copeland Lecturer in Poetry at Harvard University, Powell has taught at Columbia University, University of Iowa and New England College. He is currently the McGee Visiting Writer at Davidson College in North Carolina.

Submit to Cutbank Literary Journal: http://cutbank.submishmash.com/Submit

The Quotable Call for Submissions

2 December 2010

www.thequotablelit.com
The Quotable: The Quarterly Publication of Quotable Fiction seeks original, unpublished fiction (under 3,000 words), creative non-fiction (under 3,000 words), and artwork for it’s First Issue: The Fools Issue.

“The right to be a cussed fool is safe from all devices human,
It’s common (ez a gin’ral rule) to every critter born of woman.” -James Russell Lowell

Visit our website to submit and for additional information: http://thequotablelit.submishmash.com/Submit

On the Danforth “Postcard” Fiction Writing Contest

2 December 2010

On the Danforth, the community magazine for Toronto’s Danforth neighbourhood, is holding a postcard story contest. The winning entry will receive a cash prize of $50 and will be published in the glossy, full-colour summer issue – which over 2000 people will read – as well as on the website.

Here’s the titular ‘postcard’ of the Danforth to be used as inspiration for the story. (It’s a vertical postcard, okay?)

– Open to everyone, no matter where you live

– 500 words or less, previously unpublished

Deadline: December 17, 2010

Visit the website for details: http://onthedanforth.ca/contest/

Nickelodeon Writing Fellowship

1 December 2010

NICKELODEON FELLOWSHIP
Nickelodeon is offering writing fellowships in live action and animated television to writers with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Participants will have hands-on interaction with executives writing spec scripts and pitching story ideas. The program, developed to broaden Nickelodeon’s outreach efforts, provides a salaried position for up to one year.

Deadline to submit is February 28, 2011.

For more information, visit www.nickwriting.com.

2011 Sylvia K. Burack Writing Award

1 December 2010

SYLVIA K. BURACK WRITING AWARD
The Sylvia K. Burack Writing Award is a writing contest for high school students in grades 11 and 12 in the U.S. and Canada.

The award is made in memory of Sylvia K. Burack, longtime editor and publisher of The Writer. Burack was known for her dedication to helping writers and editors.

 The winner receives $500, publication in The Writer, and more.

Entry is free at Burack. Submission deadline is March 31, 2011.

Visit the website for details: CLICK HERE!

What’s The Buzz(word)? Contest

1 December 2010

WHAT’S THE BUZZ(WORD)? CONTEST
Writing is all about words. Many writers spend time poring over dictionaries and thesauri, absorbing intriguing words into their mental database. Now we invite you to create your own word in our What’s the Buzz(word)? Writing Contest.

Tell us a new buzzword that you believe could appear in 2011 and you could win a free 10-week writing workshop.

For examples, complete rules, and a free online entry form, click Buzzword. Entry deadline is January 10, 2011.

Burner Magazine: ISSUE 03 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Writers, Artists, Photographers!

1 December 2010

Burner is that girl. She’s witty, pretty, and doesn’t dumb herself down. By day, she’s a kindergarten teacher and by night, dances gogo. She’s the chick who soundtracks her days with Wagner, and goes out to see The Warlocks in a grungy downtown bar at night. She saves Bach for rainy mornings, The Beatles for sunny afternoons. She’s a muse and amusing, compelling and never complacent. She gets her greatest inspiration from the sounds, images and words that the world has produced, and certainly can’t live without music.

Burner Issue 03, set for release March 1, 2010, will be MUSIC themed. We’re interested in science, art, truth, conspiracies, naturalism, cyborgs, music, beauty, sex, and everything in between, so long as you in some way, shape or form relate it back to MUSIC: your most powerful experiences with it, how you interact with it on a daily basis, the day you heard the first song that broke your heart – go wild, dearest contributor, these choices are yours to make. We will, however, toss your submission into the proverbial wastebasket faster than you can say ‘Exile on Main Street’ if it even remotely resembles the uninspired and pretentious academia which so bored us to death we had to create our own magazine.

For Issue 03, we’re looking for you crazy, beautiful Burner girls and boys to send us your most glorious, inspired, heartbreaking, and most importantly music-related work to us at burnermag@gmail.com by no later than January 18, 2011.

Poetry: 3-5 poems that you feel fit the Burner Magazine ethos in respect to Issue 03’s theme of MUSIC. Please attach all poems in a single document with full formatting (.doc/.rtf preferred), and include the word “POETRY” in the subject line.

Short fiction/non-fiction: Submissions of short fiction and non-fiction should be limited 500-1000 words, fit into Issue 03’s theme of MUSIC, and be attached in a single document. Include the words “FICTION” or “NON-FICTION” in the subject line.

Photography/Visual Art: We need your most incendiary and inspiring visual works that are somehow related to the wide and wonderful world of MUSIC to bring our issue to life. Please send us high-resolution images and include the word “PHOTO” in the subject line.

Music: We’d love to hear from all you bands, producers and music lovers! If we absolutely adore it, we’ll find a way to slip in audio files and music-related write-ups. Please ensure the word “MUSIC” is included in the subject line.

Gak: Have you been working on something that you feel is right up Burner’s alley but doesn’t fit into any of the above categories? Send it anyways (so long as it has something to do with MUSIC)! Include the word “GAK” in the subject line.
Visit the website: http://www.burnermag.com

Happy journies darlings!
xxx.
Burner Magazine, Editorial Staff

New Writing Competition: Jane Austen Parody Contest, “Bad Austen” – winners get published, win cash!

1 December 2010

Join the esteemable company of Ms. Jane Austen! In the tradition of the Bulwer Lytton Contest and the Bad Hemingway and Bad Faulkner contests, here’s your chance to pen a scene of a “classic” novel Jane Austen never wrote.

How is it done?

* Everything is done through http://www.BadAusten.com – register, submit your scene, and spread the word to get people to vote for your entry!

* Sharpen your wit, let your imagination run wild, and write a scene (no longer than 800 words, please!).

* You are free to determine plot, characters, and setting.

* Our only requirement is that the style must parody Austen.

Deadline: The Contest entry period will begin on November 15, 2010, and continue until March 1, 2011.

* Other rules apply, which you can read about here: http://badausten.com/rules.

* WHAT YOU WIN: Our distinguished panelists (http://badausten.com/panelists) will read all of the entries on the website to decide which awful scene submissions to feature in a Bad Austen compilation that will be published in Fall 2011 by Adams Media (http://www.adamsmedia.com). The Grand Prize winner will also receive $250 in addition to being in the book. Readers can also vote for your favorite scenes on the site, and the top reader-voted scene will receive special recognition in Bad Austen.

Visit the website: http://badausten.com/write-like-jane-austen

A Very Short Story Writing Competition

1 December 2010

Monthly writing competition to provide writers with a platform to tell a tall tale in a small way.

Each story should not exceed 1000 words.

 Award: £50 and publication on the Web. 

 Entry fee: £4.

Deadline: Last day of each month; December 31, 2010.

Info: www.averyshortstory.co.uk