I hope you enjoy Barbara Stahura’s essay “Fallow Time” from her book What I Thought I Knew. Let us hear your thoughts on the essay and its message.

“COMPLETING YOUR BOOK”

Writing It Real contributor Barbara Sjoholm, a prize-winning author of many books of travel, memoir, and fiction, including The Palace of the Snow Queen: Winter Travels in Lapland, is offering a class on finishing your book:

For writers beginning or in the midst of a novel, memoir, travel story or other personal narrative. This class is for those who’ve written portions of their book and need critique and encouragement to finish it. In this on-going class, limited to six participants, we’ll read and respond to each other’s work, do writing prompts to explore technique, and discuss strategies for staying on track, keeping the flow, and making time for long projects.

Seven Monday evenings in Port Townsend.
Beginning January 12, 2009. 7:00 – 9:00 pm
To sign up or for questions, e-mail Barbara Sjoholm at seaisland@seanet.com

Her essays and reviews have appeared in American Scholar, Orion, The New York Times, and Smithsonian. She has taught at Hugo House and Field’s End as well as the Port Townsend Writers’ Conference. See her web site for more www.barbarasjoholm.com.

SHORT STORY AWARD for NEW WRITERS
Deadline: November 30, 2008

Prizes:
• 1st place wins $1,200, publication in Glimmer Train Stories, and 20 copies.
• 2nd-place: $500 and possible publication.
• 3rd-place: $300 and possible publication.

Reading fee: $15 per story.

To submit, go to www.glimmertrain.org, and click on the yellow submissions tab.

Results post on January 31, 2009. Winning story will be published in Issue 74.

Other considerations:
• Open only to writers whose fiction has not appeared in any publication with a circulation over 5,000. (Entries, of course, must be unpublished.)
• Stories not to exceed 12,000 words.

http://www.youtube.com/grdodge

In this article, author Barbara Stahura answers questions about her turn to personal essay writing and success publishing them. If you have experience publishing personal essays or questions about doing so, make your comments here!

The Complete Correspondence Between Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell, edited by Thomas Travisano with Saskia Hamilton, Farrar, Straus & Giroux

According to Dan Chiasson in The New Yorker, “Like Victorians hungry for the next installment of a serialized novel, the two looked to each other’s letters for sustenance.”

After it airs Thursday, Nov. 20, at 9:40 Pacific Time on KUOW 94.9, you’ll be able to hear it online at kuow.org. Elizabeth Austin talks with Merwin about his newest collection, THE SHADOW OF SIRIUS (Copper Canyon Press, 2008) and the role of memory in his poems.  Merwin reads several poems from the book over the course of their conversation–a gorgeous reader – not to be missed.

Essay Contest Guidelines
www.tiny-lights.com
15th Annual Contest Deadline: February 14, 2009

Tiny Lights invites entries that feature a distinctive voice, discernible conflict and an eventual shift in the narrator’s perspective. We are looking for writers who weave the struggle to understand into the fabric of their essays. This year, we offer 3 “Flashpoint” prizes for essays of no more than 1,000 words.
We can only consider unpublished work or previously published material for which the author holds rights. Rights revert to author after publication in Tiny Lights.

Each essay must be accompanied by an entry fee: $15 for first essay, $10 each additional essay. Make checks payable to:

Essays may be submitted in one of two categories:
STANDARD (no longer than 2,000 words) or
FLASHPOINT (no more than 1,000 words)
Please indicate preferred category on ms.

Entries should be typed and double-spaced.

Cover letters are optional, but ideally the title page of the manuscript should include author’s name, complete address, e-mail, phone number, and essay word count. Essay title and page number in header or footer OK. Author name should not appear there.

MAIL TO: Tiny Lights Publications, P.O. Box 928, Petaluma, CA 94953.
SASE (self-addressed, stamped envelope) recommended for feedback/contest notification. One envelope for multiple submissions OK.

Personal essay requires writers to communicate the truth of their experiences to the best of their abilities. While no theme restrictions apply to this contest, we will
not consider essays that celebrate brutalitiy or gratuitous violence. Tiny Lights does not accept poetry, short stories, or material written for children. Entry fees for inappropriate submissions may not be returned.

Entries must be postmarked by Feburary 14, 2009.

Prizes will be awarded as follows:

First Place: $350

Second Place: $250

Third Place: $150

Two Honorable Mention Prizes: $100 each.

Three FLASHPOINT prizes of $100 are also offered. Awards will be determined by a panel of judges. Final authority rests with the Editor-in-Chief, Susan Bono.

Winners will be posted at www.tiny-lights.com by April 11th, 2009

Winning essays may be edited before publication. Final copy must be approved by writer. No essays published without author’s permission.

All contestants will receive a hard copy of Tiny Lights’ contest publication featuring the winning entries.

Inquiries may be addressed to <editor(at)tiny-lights.com> (replace (at) with @)

Freshwater
DEADLINE: December 15, 2008
Asnuntuck Community College’s poetry magazine is accepting admissions for our landmark tenth anniversary. The issue to be published in May 2009. $200 Editors Prize for Outstanding Poem.

Submit no more the 5 poems, with name, address, and email
address on each poem, together with a brief biographical note, and a stamped self-addressed envelope for
notification only to:

Freshwater
Asnuntuck Community College
170 Elm Street
Enfield Ct 06082

Or submit by email

to freshwater(at)acc.commnet.edu (replace (at) with @)

Notification by March 2009

Questions: 860-253-3105