February Member Meeting

February 17, 2011 @7:00 P. M.

Chinook Middle School cafeteria

2001 98th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004

Topic: Six Marketing Musts for Today's Authors

Speaker: Ingrid Ricks

Ingrid Ricks's author marketing presentation is an invaluable guide to publicizing and creating a platform for any book - fiction or nonfiction. Ingrid provides a comprehensive plan for using all forms of media - print, electronic and social - to maximize the sales and visibility of your title.  Publishers are increasingly asking authors to help market their books; this workshop will give you the skills and strategies needed to give your book traction in a very competitive marketplace.

Literary Contest Deadline

Don't forget that all entries for the 2011 PNWA Literary Contest must be received at our office by February 18 to be considered.  For full contest details, including submission guidelines, please visit our website's contest page. 

www.rosealleypress.com/manytrails.html

CONTESTS/SUBMISSIONS:

PNWA 2011 Literary Contest

Our 2011 contest is an opportunity for you to showcase your unpublished work.  Submit entries in any of twelve categories:

1. Mainstream

2. Historical

3. Romance (this year accepting electronic submissions only) 

4. Mystery / Thriller

5. Science Fiction / Fantasy / Horror

6. Young Adult

7. Nonfiction / Memoir

8. Screenwriting

9. Poetry

10. Short Story

11. Children's Picture / Chapter Book / Middle Grade

12. Adult Short Topics: Article / Essay / Short Memoir

Finalists are judged by an agent/editor/industry professional to determine the top two in each category.  $700 First Prize per category; $300 Second Prize. 

Entries are $35 per entry for current PNWA members and $50 per entry for non-members.  Simultaneous entries are accepted ONLY in different categories; that is, you may not submit more than one entry to a single category.  All entries must be received by February 18, 2011.

Entry forms and detailed guidelines are available at www.pnwa.org.

Oregon Humanities

Oregon Humanities magazine is seeking submissions for the Summer 2011 issue on the theme "Belong." We're interested in nonfiction writing that explores what it means to be a part of a group: in particular, what are the benefits and challenges of homogeneity, inclusion, and tribalism? Writers may wish to consider the role membership in and association with social, religious, and cultural groups play in American life. We are especially interested in writing that explores this theme in history, literature, art, politics, and other disciplines of the humanities. We appreciate submissions that include Oregon sources, stories, and locales, but will also consider work that explores this theme in broader and more universal ways.

We welcome all forms of nonfiction writing, including scholarly essays, personal essays, and journalistic articles. We accept proposals and drafts of scholarly and journalistic features, which range between 2,500 and 4,000 words in length. We accept drafts only of fully developed personal essays that consider larger thematic questions; essay submissions should run no

longer than 2,000 words. All contributors receive an honorarium. Currently the magazine is distributed to more than 12,000 readers. Essays from Oregon Humanities have been reprinted in the Pushcart Prize Anthology, Utne Reader, and Best American Essays.

If you are interested in contributing to this issue, please visit our website to read the current issue and the Guidelines for Writers (see www.oregonhumanities.org). Then submit a proposal or draft by Monday, February 14, 2011, by email to k.holt@oregonhumanities.org (preferred) or by post to Kathleen Holt, Editor, Oregon Humanities magazine, 813 SW Alder Street, Suite 702, Portland, Oregon, 97205. No phone calls, please.

Ghost Story Contest

The Scare the Dickens Out of Us Ghost Story Contest is entering its third year with the 2011 contest. First place prize of $1000.00, second place prize of $500.00 and third place prize of $250.00 will be awarded this year for the best original, previously unpublished ghost stories that are submitted. Length must be 5000 words or less. For younger writers, the Junior Scare the Dickens Out of Us Contest, which follows the same rules, offers $250.00 for first place for writers aged 12-18.

These contests are fundraisers for the Friends of the Dr. Eugene Clark Library in Lockhart, Texas. The main contest requires a $20.00 entry fee and the Junior contest a $5.00 entry fee. The contest is privately funded. All entry fee money goes directly to the Friends where it is donated to the library for library projects.

Entries are accepted beginning July 1. The contest postmark deadline is October 1, 2011. Full rules are at www.clarklibraryfriends.com.

No publication is involved. Writers retain full rights to their stories. The contest is open to published and unpublished writers and to local, national and international writers as well.

Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition

Writers of short fiction are encouraged to enter the 2011 Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition. The competition has a thirty-year history of literary excellence, and its organizers are dedicated to enthusiastically supporting the efforts and talent of emerging writers of short fiction whose voices have yet to be heard.

Lorian Hemingway, granddaughter of Nobel laureate Ernest Hemingway, is the author of three critically acclaimed books: Walking into the River, Walk on Water, and A World Turned Over.

Ms. Hemingway is the competition's final judge.

The first-place winner will receive $1,500. The second and third-place winners will receive $500 each. Honorable mentions will also be awarded to entrants whose work demonstrates promise.  For submission guidelines and further information, visit www.shortstorycompetition.com/.

Field's End Writing Class

Registration is underwayfor a Winter Writing Class offered by Field's End, a regional writers' community affiliated with the nonprofit Bainbridge Public Library.  

Bainbridge Island native Suzanne Selfors will be leading a four-session class to be held in February and March on the topic, "Writing the Teen Novel".

Walk into any bookstore and you'll notice the young adult section has doubled. Teenagers are reading! And there's a variety of styles and subjects - it's not just about vampires. While stories vary, at the heart of every teen novel is the coming-of-age theme. Using popular YA novels as examples, this class will explore the unique aspects of writing for teens. We'll discuss concerns such as "Do I have to sound like a teenager?" "Should I worry about trends?" and "How do I get in touch with my inner teen?"

Each class will be a blend of lecture and workshop. Writers of all levels are welcome, but a first chapter of a work-in-progress is required. Course cost is $160.00. The class will be held on Thursdays, February 24 and March 3, 10, and 17, from 7:00 to 9:00 P. M. at the Library Meeting Room, Bainbridge Public Library. More details about preparation for the class are available online at www.fieldsend.org.

Author-Editor Clinic 2011

Will 2011 be the year to get your novel, memoir, or nonfiction manuscript in shape? The Seattle-based Author-Editor Clinic has been helping authors revise and polish their books-in-progress since 2004. One reasonable rate for a complete read and thorough editorial critique. Clinic sessions begin January 28 (applications due January 12) and May 6 (Applications due April 20). See our website at www.authoreditorclinic.com or contact administrator Kyra Freestar for details (info@authoreditorclinic.com, 206-300-2601). 

"I would recommend Barbara Sjoholm's editing clinic to any writer at any stage in his or her career. I was very pleased with the insightful, thorough critiques I received on a how-to writing text and an adventure novel. The quality of the development editing was high and the price was very low-a great combination."  

 -Nick O'Connell, writer for Outside, Gourmet, the New York Times; author of On Sacred Ground: The Spirit of Place in Pacific Northwest Literature.