Happy Halloween

My Son's Pirate Ship Pumpkin and my Daughter's Vampire Pumpkin

Check out Paul Schmit's Mystery Novel in the Gather Contest

Coffee and Critique member Paul Schmit has entered the first chapter of his mystery novel, Memory Stick over at Gather.com's mystery novel contest.

You'll need to join Gather to read it and vote. Voting starts November 15, 2007 and ends on December 9th.

The top 25 chapters will move on to be whittled down to a final five, and then to one grand prize winner. Contest judges for the last stage include Davis Baldacci, Harlan Coben, and Sandra Brown, plus additional people from Borders Corp.

Horror Stories Anthology Seeks Submissions

D.L. Snell's Market Scoop has the insider info on submitting to the upcoming anthology Unspeakable Horror: From the Shadows of the Closet. He interviewed the editors to get details on exactly what they're looking for - horror stories from the closets of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals.

• Deadline May 15, 2008
• Pays: 5 cents per word
• Story length: 1,000-7,500 words

What's in your closet?

Pitching Your Novel - Pubrants Blog Pitch Workshop

Hello, all. Sorry my posts have been sketchy lately. The plague visited my house (cough, cough), I just got a few new writing jobs with fast turnaround times (not that I'm complaining), and I have so many stacks of papers to grade, I'm thinking about opening an Office Depot on the side.

Anyhoo, literary agent Kristin of the invaluable Pubrants blog is doing an enlightening Blog Pitch Workshop on how to write an enticing pitch for your novel. Check it out.

Blog Pitch (Part I--young adult)
Blog Pitch (Part II--young adult)
Blog Pitch (Part III--young adult)
Blog Pitch (Part IV--literary fiction)

Sonora Review Short-Short Contest, American Short Fiction Contest, and a New Magazine

Thanks to Tricia S. for these announcements. Both contests have December 1st deadlines and the second one has major prize money and a correspondingly large entry fee.

Sonora Review Short-Short Contest
Prize: $250 and publication. Ten finalists will also be considered for publication.
Judge: David Means

Quoted from their Guidelines:
"For our purposes, "short-short" means 1,000 words or less. Stories over 1,000 words will not be considered. No previously published works, or works forthcoming elsewhere. A $10 fee is required; entrants may submit up to three stories (each 1,000 words max.) with each $10 fee, payable by check or money order made out to Sonora Review. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable, but fees are non-refundable. Cover letter must include name, address, phone number, and title(s) of stories submitted."

Postmark deadline: December 1, 2007.

Send entries to:

Sonora Review Contest
Department of English
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 85721

American Short Fiction Contest
The Literary Magazine American Short Fiction invites submissions for its Short Story Contest.
Length: Stories up to 6,000 words
Entry Fee: $20
First Prize: $1,000 and publication
Second Prize: $500
Deadline: December 1, 2007

New Magazine Looking for Writers, Stories

NOW ME! A Magazine for Women is looking for inspiring stories from women who've overcome "impossible odds."

They are also seeking writers for this soon to debut magazine. Submit your resume and published writing samples for consideration.

Congratulations, Claudia

Congratulations to Claudia Shelton on her third place win for her adult short fiction story, "Westward With Hope" in the Abilene Writers Guild Contest 2007.

Me Write Funny Someday- Erma Bombeck Workshop Audio Available for Preorder

The Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop is extremely popular and sells out fast each year. So if you didn't get your shoe leather in the door or couldn't afford the trek to Ohio, preorder the audio versions of the 2008 workshop and get the 2006 recordings absolutely free! (Why do I suddenly feel like one of those home furniture commercials?) They come as MP3 files on a CD rom.

It costs $89 dollars, which is not a pittance, but if you consider the price of going to two conferences to hear these, it's reasonable. The special that includes the 2006 recordings expires on April 2, 2008 and the price increases to $99 and you only receive the 2008 workshops starting April 3rd.

Writing Topics include:
HUMOR WRITING
HUMAN INTEREST WRITING
BOOK PUBLISHING
NEWSPAPERS
MAGAZINES
OTHER MARKETS
MARKETING & PROMOTION

Reminder: Saturday Writers Workshop This Saturday

You can still register at the door for the Saturday Writers Workshop this Saturday featuring Gail Galloway Adams. Lunch is provided.

From the Saturday Writers' Website:

Saturday Writers Annual Workshop Presents
Gail Galloway Adams
Winner of the Flannery O’Connor Award
Saturday, October 27, 2007
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Spend the day at the St. Peters Community & Arts Center with Gail Galloway Adams. An exciting combination of lecture and “pen to paper” on-site writing that will send you home with knowledge, inspiration, and the beginning of your next masterpiece.

Lunch Provided

“I’ve heard Gail, and she’s a real hoot. Great energy, great teacher, with a great story—from hippie commune to University professor and winner of the prestigious Flannery O’Connor Award. Don’t miss this great workshop!”~~Saturday Writers Treasurer, David Kirkland

“It’s been my pleasure to know Gail for over a decade, and each time I hear her read or attend her workshop, I’m newly amazed at her talent, wealth of literary knowledge, and her unmatched ability to light a fire for writing in everyone around her.”
~~Saturday Writers President, Amy Burle

Saturday Writers Member: $50
Full-time student or full-time teacher: $50
Missouri Writers’ Guild Chapter Member (not Saturday Writers): $60
General Public: $75

St. Peters Community & Arts Center is located at 1035 St. Peters Howell Road (just off of Mid Rivers Mall Drive) St. Peters, MO. Phone 636-397-6903 for directions.

Genre Definitions from Editor of Novel and Short Story Writer's Market

So what kind of novel are you writing? A paranormal with romantic elements? A steampunk? A suspenseful murder mystery? Women's fiction? What defines any of these?

With so many genres combining elements, it's getting a little crazy out there folks. Trying to identify your book in a cover letter is like Russian roulette with all the chambers loaded. Most agents say we always get it wrong anyway.

So here are some definitions I've found in various locations. Opinions vary, but hopefully these can give you a general idea.

• Check out these general genre definitions from the editor's blog at the Novel and Short Story Market.
• 
  
• Look at the Romance Writers of America website for a breakdown of the different romance genres.
• Check out Writing-World.com for a list of science fiction sub-genres.

• Mostlyfiction.com posted some definitions of mystery sub-genres.

Call for Stories Appreciating Black Fathers

The Appreciating Black Fathers website is seeking positive stories about black fathers.

Stories must be true and between 350-1,500 words. They prefer new stories but will consider previously published material.

Deadline: November 15, 2007

Selected stories will be published in a book, and authors will receive a $25 honorarium.

A future call for stories on black mothers is in the works.

New Magazine Launches - Alternative Brides, Luxury Outdoors, Loft Living

The wedding website Bridal Wave has announced the launch of Black Meringue, a new bridal magazine aimed at brides who'd rather go goth than cross champagne flutes. The focus in on the exotic and edgy wedding ideas rather than traditional nuptial rituals. No website yet.

And Earthtimes.org reports that APG Media is starting two new magazines. Lodges is for those who like granite counter tops with their roughing it. The magazine has luxury outdoors information and travel features.

The other magazine, Lofts, is aimed at loft living urban dwellers, their lifestyle and design sensibilities.

These publications join Romantic Homes, Victorian Homes, and Cottages and Bungalows (premier issue this month, no website yet) in APG Media's stable of niche shelter magazines.

Guideposts Expands Book Division

The Book Standard is reporting Guideposts has expanded their retail book line.

Guideposts has writers' guidelines posted for their children's book division, Candy Cane Press, which publishes picture and board books on a variety of biblical themes.

As they expand, them may post more guidelines at their Ideal Books website. Check out the site listings for the types of books they currently publish.

Call for Holiday Tradition Stories

It's the time of year when the holiday gauntlet begins. Before reality sets in and destroys misty, romantic memories of Christmas past, write a story about a family Christmas tradition and submit it to this call for Holiday Stories from the LAWritersGroup.com.

Stories should be between 700-1,200 words and the deadline is November 15, 2007.

They pay $75 upon publication and a contributor's copy.

Seventeen Magazine Fiction Writing Contest for Teens

Seventeen Magazine is hosting a fiction writing contest for its readers. The task is to finish a Meg Cabot story with 350 words that represent your personality and preserve the story line.

Deadline: Entries must be postmarked by January 2, 2008 and arrive by January 7.

According to Meg Cabot's website, the prize is $2,500, possible publication in Seventeen, and your name used for a character in her next book.

Contest for St. Louis Area Poets - Poetry in Motion on Metrolink

St. Louis's Metro Arts in Transit and the Poetry Society of America are sponsoring the Poetry in Motion contest for poets living within 50 miles of St. Louis, MO. The contest is open to children and adults.

Fifteen poems will be selected, paired with images, and displayed on Metrolink's trains and buses for one year.

Winning poets receive $50 and a year's subscription to Poets and Writers Magazine - and get their poetry read by all those zombie bored commuters.

The submission deadline is January 15, 2008. A postmark won't do for this one guys - it must be there by that date. The poem must come from an address within 50 miles of St. Louis, MO.

Butcher Shop Anthology Seeks Horror Stories

D.L. Snell's Market Scoops has info on an anthology seeking supernatural and horror stories, including an interview with the editor, Scott T. Goudsward on what kind of writing this market likes. The anthology, Butcher Shop Quartet: Volume 2, wants epic, dark stories that disturb readers.

Submit unpublished novellas between 15,000 and 40,000 words by January 31, 2008. Payment is 1 1/2 cents per word and contributor's copy.

D.L. Snell's Market Scoops publishes interviews with anthology editors for insights that help authors create stories to submit. Looks like a great website for researching anthologies.

Sauce Magazine Seeks Food Essays

Thanks to Donna V for this notice.

Sauce Magazine , the St. Louis Metro Area's Restaurant Guide, is seeking food essay submissions for a new column. So if you can carry on about cheese, wax rhapsodic about rutabagas, or write drool-worthy prose about your favorite food experiences/memories, write an essay and submit it to Sauce.

Essays should be around 900 words and 12 will be featured in a monthly column published over the next year in the magazine. The deadline for essay submissions is November 15, 2007.

If they get enough gastronomic essays, they may continue the column after 2008. See the editor's letter below for details.

Letter from the Editor of St. Louis's Sauce Magazine:

Hello wordsmiths and friends of Sauce!

I'm really excited to tell you about a new column we'll be starting in Sauce in January: a column made up of personal essays (aka narrative nonfiction or creative nonfiction), featuring an essay written by a different author each month. Having food in the mix somewhere is the reason such essays will fit in Sauce, but the real goal here is to spotlight great stories, exceptional storytelling and beautiful writing. This is one of my favorite writing forms, and I'm convinced that you'd all be great for this.

The essays can be about *anything* (really!), as long as food factors in somewhere -- either directly, as a main character or the main focus of the story -- a description of the first time the author ate an exotic ingredient, for example, or perhaps a story about experiencing the food in Italy -- or indirectly, as a component of the story or as a background element. A look at a family's kooky dynamic as told through a typical family dinner hour is an example; so is the chapter in Ruth Reichl's "Tender at the Bone" where she hints at her mother's mental illness by describing her mother's "quirk" of serving dangerously old food to guests. Absolutely any story is fair game here, as long as it's personal, real and original.

As great writers with diverse and interesting experiences, I'm hopeful that you'll want to contribute an essay to the column. But I'll have to ask you to bear with me a bit. Since this is a new column for us, and a kind of writing that we don't typically publish, I've been working out the best way to collect enough essays (12) to be sure we'll be able to publish a year's worth of columns. I'm casting a wide net, with the hope that enough of you will be interested in sharing your food memories, thoughts and insights that this new column will be a go. I hate to call this a contest, but I guess it sort of is...

So I'd like to invite all of you to contribute a personal essay that has something to do with food to Sauce by November 15, 2007. We'll publish the best 12, one per month throughout 2007 (and beyond, if we get enough responses!). We'll choose those 12 blindly; authors will be paid for published essays (and this column will be an exception to our normal practice of paying upon publication -- since we'll be collecting column content so far in advance, the selected writers will be paid in advance). Word count is 900 words. Please email (or mail) submissions to me, with "essay" in the subject line.

I hope you're as excited about this new project as I am. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call or e-mail me. Now, go dig up your favorite food memory/story and get writing!!
PS-- feel free to extend this invite to other great writers you know!

Cheers,
Katie O'Connor
Senior Editor

Sauce Magazine
1820 Chouteau Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63103

Writing Acronyms - Fiction and Freelance

Last month I posted a primer on novel writing acronyms. Now Linda Formichelli at The Renegade Writer has posted a helpful list of freelance writing acronyms and linked to my fiction acronym list.

I hadn't seen some on her list, so I'm linking back for all my fellow writers who are also writing freelance. My original fiction writing acronyms post is below. FYI - NaNoWriMo is fast approaching! Start your finger physical therapy so you don't strain anything, and sign up for the craziness of writing a novel in a month.

Original Post:

When I first started participating in online writing activities, I noticed a strange secret code in effect. I knew many of the acronyms used in chat - like LOL and such. But novel writing has its own special acronyms, so I thought I'd share some I've learned. I know I've forgotten some, so if you notice any I missed, remind me in the comments and I'll add them to the list.

• WIP - Work in Progress (Your current writing project, usually a novel)
• MC - Main Character
• POV - Point of View
• ARC - Advanced Reader Copy (The copies authors and reviewers receive before the book is actually available to the public)
• HEA - Happily Ever After (Used by romance genre to indicate a happy ending)
• HFN - Happy For Now (The characters end up together, but no indication it's a forever relationship)
• H/H - Hero/Heroine (A couple in a romance novel)
• M/F - Male/Female (Romance between a male and female character)
• GLB - Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual
• het - Heterosexual
• YA - Young Adult
• SF - Science Fiction
• NanNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month (Participants who join this website complete a 50,000 word novel in a month, toiling along with their fellow writers: November 1 - November 30th).
  

Normal School Literary Magazine Seeking Submissions

Thanks to Tricia S. for this announcement - and thanks to Donna for everything she sends for the blog.

Normal School, a new literary magazine, is seeking submissions of creative nonfiction, stories. poem, critique, experiential recipes (works arising from life experiences) for its debut issue and beyond. Their website is www.thenormalschool.com, but it's still under construction.

From the announcement:

Quirky. Boundary-challenging. Energetic. Innovative in both form and focus.

We're the equivalent of the kid who always has bottle caps, cat's eye
marbles, dead animal skulls and other treasures in his pockets.

Trust us. We're Normal.

Contributing Editors include Steve Almond, Tom Bissell, Beth Ann
Fennelly, Duncan Murrell, Laura Pritchett, Steve Yarbrough, and MORE.

Are you Normal School material?

Send us your work:

The Normal School
5245 N. Backer Ave.
M/S PB 98
California State University, Fresno
Fresno, CA 93740-8001

OR as an attachment in .doc or .rtf format only to
submissions@thenormalschool.com
Please include an email address in your contact information and
indicate genre to the best of your ability.

WOW, the Women on Writing Site, Seeking Submissions

Online Writing Jobs says WOW (Women On Writing) is seeking submissions on several topics for upcoming issues:

• December - Platform Building
• January - reading groups, literary guilds, libraries
• February- Romance Writing
• March - Small Press Publishing

Check their submission guidelines and the announcement on Online Writing Jobs for details.

Poetry Contest - Burning the Midnight Oil

Burning the Midnight Oil Poetry Contest
Sponsored by The Write Helper

Submission Guidelines:

Every poem receives a free critique!

1) Any style, any subject, any form allowed. Poem should fit on one page.
2) No identification should appear on the entry. Attach a separate coversheet with title, name, address, e-mail, and phone number.
3) Entry fee: $5 per poem, maximum of three entries.
4) Poems must be unpublished at time of submission, original work of contestant.
5) Deadline: October 31, 2007, postmarked.
6) Prizes: 1st place - $100, 2nd place - $50, 3rd place - $25.
7) For free critique, include a business size, self-addressed envelope or provide email address. Optional: For a thorough line edit, include $2 per poem.
8) Winners will be posted on the website by November 30, 2007. Cash prizes will be mailed the following week.
9) Mail entries flat, not folded, to:

Burning the Midnight Oil Poetry Contest
c/o Amy Harke-Moore
104 Harke Lane
Old Monroe, MO 63369.

Do NOT send by certified mail!
10) Checks payable to: The Write Helper
11) Now accepting online entries on our website: www.thewritehelper.com.
Contest is open to all poets. Prize-winners will be given the opportunity to have their poems published on our website: www.thewritehelper.com.

For a list of winners, include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Or check out our website for the top 25.

Decision of judges is final. Not responsible for lost or misdirected entries. Poems will not be returned.

About the Coffee and Critique Writing Group

Membership:
We are a critique group comprised of both fiction and non-fiction writers. We have reviewed novel excerpts, essays, query letters, contest entries and book synopses. We don't do poetry because we don't feel qualified to critique it. Many of our members have been published, and some are still working toward publication.

Our members have published in: Babble.com, Cuivre River Anthology I, II and III, Cup of Comfort, Fiery Foods & BBQ, Great American Outhouses Stories: The Whole Truth and Nothing Butt, Missouri Life, Ozark Mystery Antholgy, Sweetgum Notes and The StoryTeller Magazine.


Meetings:
We meet every Tuesday at the Barnes and Noble Bookstore in St. Peters, MO from 10 a.m. to around noon.

Method:
We critique a maximum of five typed, double-spaced pages to the meeting, including at least 6 extra copies for members to read (7 copies total).

We chat for the first twenty minutes or so, and then each author reads his or her work while the rest of the group follows along and edits/writes comments on the copies. Each group member presents comments as we proceed around the table. There is a lot of "ditto," so we don't beat you over the head with it if we all spot the same grammar error. We mention if we agree with previous content criticisms, so the author can get an idea how many readers share the opinion. The copies are returned to you at the conclusion of the critique.

We are honest but diplomatic when we comment. We do not eviscerate, rip, or maim in any way. Some of us have had negative experiences with critique groups tearing authors apart and making them feel as if they can never be writers. We want to build you up while giving honest commentary that helps improve your writing. Persistent authors who continue to build their skills will get published in some form.

We aren't always able to critique everyone's writing in a meeting, but if you don't get to read at one meeting, your name goes to the top of the list for the next meeting. Everyone signs up to read on our official notebook paper :) upon arriving.

Tricia Grissom

African American Teen Magazine Launches

Mahogany Visions is a new magazine aimed at african americans teens age 13-18. According to the press release:

"Features will include current events, education, business, health and fitness, college news, and teen lifestyles. The Magazine was created to uplift and motivate the young African American community."

You can see their first issue at MahoganyVisions.com. They are looking for writers to contribute to the magazine.

Chicken Soup Wants Stories From Stay-at-home Moms

The Mommy Life website reports that Chicken Soup is asking for stories from Stay-at-home Moms. Submit your stories of 1000 words or less about being a SAHM to the Chicken Soup website. Scroll down their list of books to find the book description.

Chapters include:

A Mother's Love

Insight and Lessons

On Gratitude

On Sharing and Giving

Through the Eyes of a Child

Overcoming Obstacles

Letting Go

Time for Me

They don't want the kind of mom stories I write - they involve children with milk-filled shot glasses and keeping one eye open at night so the kids can't get me. That's what the voices tell me to do anyway. . .

What to Put in Your Author's Bio for Query Letters

Agent Nathan Bradsford referred his intrepid readers to Agent Jonathon Lyons post on what authors should include in their query letter bios. They want to know me! They really, really want to know me!

It falls into three major categories:

• Publishing Credentials


• Professional Career


• Personal Details

You'll find his examples in the the blog post.

Of course, agent tastes differ. Some agents tell you not to put anything if you don't have any good credits. But all the advice I've read says you should put things relevant to your book. So if you're an astronaut writing books about astronauts, it might be good to include that.

For example, Patricia Wood, author of Lottery, writes about a mentally challenged character who wins the lottery. She is a P.h.D candidate studying education and disability, and her father won the Washington State Lottery, so I'm sure those experiences helped her write the book and might have helped sell her query on the novel. My book review of Lottery appears earlier on the blog.

Don't include all regional contest wins - focus on awards with national reputations unless you won the award at a conference the agent/editor attended.

But most of all - you must send out your query. After you've done your homework and refined it, set it free. It doesn't matter what credits you have if no one ever sees your letter.

Harlequin and Audible.com Team Up To Offer Romance Novels

Harlequin is really getting out front in the new technologies. In addition to getting on board with ebooks by launching eHarlequin, they've now joined Audible.com in offering a subscription for two Harlequin audio books per month for $9.95.

You can download these to an MP3 player and listen to books wherever, whenever. Audible.com is even offer a nice quality MP3 player for just $29.99 for those who sign up for Harlequin's subscription. If you already have one, you're golden.

My hubby had a subscription to Audible when he was logging a lot of hours in the car for work, and he loved it. It's great for long commutes, too. I do still prefer to read actual pages in a book, but this isn't a bad alternative. Though I'm still lusting after the Sony ebook reader.

Technology marches on.

Book Review - Lottery by Patricia Wood

Anyone looking for something to read? I recommend Lottery by Patricia Wood.

I actually started hearing about this book before it came out from an announcement on Agent Miss Snark's blog (sadly she has retired her site). Ms. Wood was a former devotee of the Snarkmeister. I thought about reading it then, but recent book reviews on other blogs reminded me, so I bought it a few weeks ago. I read it straight through.

Perry Crandall, I.Q. 76, (which means he is one point above legally retarded, as he frequently reminds us) wins the lottery and deals with how his family and friends change - as well as how he changes - as a result.

I have a few nits to pick. There doesn't seem to be one redeemable human being among Perry's maternal relatives - you'd think at least one might be somewhat decent. But no.

The other is part of the ending - how Perry and Cherry's relationship ends up and why. It went down like peanut butter and dry crackers - not well.

But aside from that, I loved hearing about the world from Perry's point of view and especially his use of his dictionary words to process what's happening in his world. Grams has had him studying the dictionary since he was little, and his words of the day are often ironic in the context of the story. (Grams is a great character too, and though she dies early in the novel, she's very much present throughout the rest of the book).

The decision Perry makes at the end about his money could have been sugar and spice sweet, but because we've followed him through the book and hear how he changes, it makes a cliche into something authentic. I believe in Perry and his decision at the end.

It's a great read, and I couldn't put it down until I found out what happened to Perry. I think you'll feel the same way.

This review is not sponsored by anyone - just sharing a great read.

Contests, Conferences, and Submission Calls from Novel and Short Story Writers' Market

The Novel and Short Story Writers' Market has a page with free announcements about contests, writing conferences, and calls for submissions from various publications. Some I've already posted info on, such as the Amazon novel contest and the Next Great Crime Writer competition from Court TV and Gather.


There is a new announcement calling for submissions from mental health workers - basically anyone who works with emotional or mental health issues. The deadline for the anthology called, Tales from the Couch, is August 1, 2008.

Be Amazon's Next Breakthrough Author Contest

Amazon is sponsoring a Breakthrough Novel Award Contest. Enter your manuscript by November 5, 2007, but do it quickly. Only 5,000 novels will be accepted.

A panel of Amazon editors and reviewers will select the semi-finalists, who each get a Publisher's Weekly Review and a page on Amazon with an excerpt of their novel.

Based on customer feedback, Penguin will look at some semi-finalists for possible publication. The winner gets a publishing contract with Penguin, lots of electronics goodies, and help publicizing his or her book. Those who place 2nd through 10th also get some great prizes, including the opportunity to self-publish. This whole contest is to advertise Amazon's new self-publishing division.

You'll need a blurb of your book to enter. If you have a query letter, you can probably adapt it for your book description. If I can get my manuscript polished in time, I may go for it. I'm not sure, however, if they're looking for genre or literary fiction.

Contest - Your Life in Six Words

Thanks to Tricia S. for the link to this.

Smith Magazine is sponsoring a contest - tell your life story in just six words, and you may be published in SMITH'S Book of six-word memoirs, to be published by Harper Collins in 2008. You'll join the likes of Joyce Carol Oates, Mario Batali, Moby, and Dave Eggers in the book's pages.

New Magazine for Parents Who Work at Home

Literary Mama has an announcement about a new magazine for full or part-time work-at-home parents (like moi). The magazine WAHM (Work At Home Magazine) will have information on business matters, essays from parents, and tips on working at home.

They debut in January 2008, and they are looking for submissions. It looks like a great resource, and yet another place for me to visit in my quest to be procrastinating queen of the universe.

Saturday Writers Annual Workshop with Gail Galloway Adams

I'm planning on attending this one. If you haven't worked on your writing in awhile and need to goose your muse, try out a workshop or conference. For me, attending a writing focused activity knocks my word fairy on the head and tells her to get to work. St. Peters is located in Missouri, near St. Charles.

From the Saturday Writers' Website:

Saturday Writers Annual Workshop
Presents Gail Galloway Adams
Winner of the Flannery O’Connor Award

Saturday, October 27, 2007
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Spend the day at the St. Peters Community & Arts Center with Gail Galloway Adams. An exciting combination of lecture and “pen to paper” on-site writing that will send you home with knowledge, inspiration, and the beginning of your next masterpiece.

Lunch Provided
“I’ve heard Gail, and she’s a real hoot. Great energy, great teacher, with a great story—from hippie commune to University professor and winner of the prestigious Flannery O’Connor Award. Don’t miss this great workshop!”
~~Saturday Writers Treasurer, David Kirkland

“It’s been my pleasure to know Gail for over a decade, and each time I hear her read or attend her workshop, I’m newly amazed at her talent, wealth of literary knowledge, and her unmatched ability to light a fire for writing in everyone around her.”
~~Saturday Writers President, Amy Burle

Highlight and Copy the REGISTRATION FORM below
onto a Word Document, Print out, and Voila you have a registration form to mail.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
REGISTRATION FORM
Mail registration form and check (payable to Saturday Writers) to:
Amy Burle, Saturday Writers
708 W. Bridge St.
Keytesville, MO 65261
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Circle One:
Saturday Writers Member: $50
Full-time student or full-time teacher: $50
Missouri Writers’ Guild Chapter Member (not Saturday Writers): $60
General Public: $75
Name: ___________________________Phone Number_______________
Address:____________________________________________________
St. Peters Community & Arts Center is located at 1035 St. Peters Howell Road (just off of Mid Rivers Mall Drive) St. Peters, MO. Phone 636-397-6903 for directions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Margie: The American Journal of Poetry's "Strong Rx Medicine" Contest

Margie: The American Journal of Poetry has announced its "Strong Rx Medicine" Best Poem Contest and it has BIG prize money.

Deadline: Entries postmarked by October 31, 2007
Grand Prize: $2,500
for Best Poem & Publication in MARGIE Vol. 6
Twelve finalists will be published in Margie.
Judge:
TROY JOLLIMORE
Winner of The National Book Critics Circle Award

Quoted from their website:
GUIDELINES:
Submit 3 unpublished poems along with a $15 entry fee payable to MARGIE, Inc. (60 line limit per poem) Additional poems may be submitted for $5 each

Enclose a single cover sheet with your name, address, phone, email (if possible) & poem titles
No names should appear on the poems themselves
Simultaneous submissions accepted
Only submit copies as poems will not be returned
All entries will be considered for publication in Margie / The American Journal of Poetry
Include a Self-Addressed, Stamped Envelope to receive notification of contest results
Send contest submissions & entry fee to:
MARGIE, POB 250, Chesterfield, MO. 63006

Questions? Please email us at: margiereview@aol.com

The Writers' Workshop Memoir Contest

The Writers' Workshop is hosting its 19th Annual Memoirs Contest. Click on the workshops and contests link at the top of their web page and scroll down to the last entry for more details.

Enter your 5,000 words or less unpublished memoir.
Entry fee: $20 or $15 for Writers' Workshop Members
Prizes: 1st $300
2nd $200
3rd $100
10 Honorable Mentions
Deadline: Entries must be postmarked by November 30, 2007

Union County Writers' Club Annual Adult Literary Contest

Thanks to Claudia for the heads up on this contest. This is the first I've seen in awhile that covers children's fiction.

Submit your short stories, poems, flash fiction and children's stories for the Union County Writers' Club Annual Adult Literary Contest. The entry fees are $3 for poems, $5 for short stories, and $4 for flash fiction. They are located in Union County, North Carolina.

The deadline is October 31, 2007. Prizes range from $30 - $10.

Court TV and Gather.com Launch Crime Writers' Contest

Gather.com is back with another novel competition. This time they're teaming up with Court TV to search for the next big crime novelist. As with previous competitions, the entry guidelines say authors can join gather and post their first chapter for judging by Gather members and a panel of judges. Winner gets a publishing contract with Borders and $5,000 advance.

First chapters should be between 2,000 and 10,000 words and must be submitted to Gather.com between October 1 - November 11, 2007. Authors must be unpublished to enter. They have the rules and more details listed on their website.

The New Writer Magazine Writing Contest

Writing World has details on The New Writer Magazine's Contest. This international contest accepts both prose (including articles and interviews) and poetry, and award prize money for the winners.

They have the rules and an entry form on their site. Submissions must be postmarked by November 30, 2007. The entry fee is 4 pounds (Can't find the pound symbol on my keyboard).

I'm not sure what the exchange rate is now. When I was over there over ten years ago one pound was equal to about $1.80, but if you pay with your credit card, they'll know how much to charge in dollars.