Don't Miss this One: The All Write Now! Conference at SEMO July 16

SEMO
All Write Now! Location

If you haven't signed up for the All Write Now! Conference already, you still have time.

This year's Conference at SEMO in Cape Girardeau, MO, will be July 16. Conference organizers have scheduled a variety of speakers including agents, editors, publishers, and award-winning writers. Other highlights include several contests, one-on-one critiques, a slush-pile workshop, on-site book sales, and door prizes!

The contest deadline is quickly approaching.

Writers of poetry, short stories, essays, middle grade, or flash fiction works have until May 15th to submit.

The good news is:

You don't have to attend the conference to submit and win!!!

The entry fee is modest (only $10 per entry).

And . . . previously published works are eligible to win!

Read complete guidelines here.

Here are the AWN! deadlines to watch:  

May 1st - June 27th - Standard registration is $85

May 15th - Last day to submit writing contest entries

June 15th - Last day to receive the group discount rate at the Pear Tree Inn. 

June 20th - Last day to submit sponsor ads (need setup time for the brochure)

June 25th - Last day to submit critique pieces, which cost an additional fee. 

June 27th - Last day to register for the conference and sign up for free pitches. 

July 1st - Last day to request the bookstore order your books.

July 16th - Last day to have pieces copied and ready for the Slush Pile Workshop.

For complete information, including names of faculty and schedule, visit the AWN website.

Family Circle Fiction Writing Contest 2010

It's time, once again, for the Family Circle Fiction Writing Contest.

Entries are being accepted now through September 8, 2010. Submit a fiction story, 2500 word maximum.
It must be unpublished, and you cannot have received a prize or award for it. No foul language, porn, or ritual animal sacrifice. (Go figure, it's Family Circle, people).

Check out the previous year's winners for more info on what they are looking for.

I think they own the story if it wins, so be aware.

Glimmer Train Contest for Unfinished Stories: Best Start Fiction Contest

If you're like me, finishing a short story can seem an almost insurmountable challenge. The pressure to get it all done perfectly can be paralyzing. But Glimmer Train has a contest for the story stuck among us.

Their Best Start Fiction Contest asks for an excerpt from your story. It doesn't have to be a finished work! Send in the part you have perfected. I have no more excuses. Damn you, Glimmer Train.

This is an outstanding literary magazine, and if you're a short story writer, I heartily recommend you subscribe to see the great work out there today. I'm off to renew mine.

Contest Deadlines are Midnight Pacific Time:
1st Contest Period: September 1 - September 30
Next Contest Period: December 1 - December 31

Length: 1,000 words maximum

Reading Fee: $10 per story

Prize: $50 for the best 50 story excerpts

From the website:
"Best Start is meant to encourage new writers to tackle that story!
This category is different from our others in that the piece should be an engaging and coherent narrative, but it does not need to be a complete story; it needs to be an important part of a story in progress. You could think of it as a writing sample, but we hope you'll feel free to reach a bit. Maybe you're experimenting with a new voice, developing a character, working on clarity in a complex bit of plot or trying to make your dialogue believable and significant. You could be playing with point of view, working to build tension, or looking for a satisfying ending. Or you might be two pages into something brand new.

What we want is to read is an engaging slice of a story you're excited about writing.
All pieces should be original fiction and not have appeared in a print publication.
No fiction for children, please.
It's fine to submit more than one piece."

Start your submission here.

Amazon and Penguin Group: Second Annual Breakthrough Novel Competition

Pencils by The Trial Creative Commons

Amazon.com and the Penguin Group have announced their second annual Breakthrough Novel Competition searching for new voices in fiction. Polish your manuscript for the February 2, 2009 start date.

From the article:
"Between Feb. 2 and Feb. 8, 2009, writers with an unpublished English-language novel manuscript can submit their work at www.amazon.com/abna. Up to 10,000 initial entries will be accepted, from which Amazon editors will select 2,000 to advance to the next round. Expert reviewers from Amazon will then review excerpts of these 2,000 entries and narrow the pool to 500 quarter-finalists. Reviewers from Publishers Weekly will then read, rate and review the full manuscripts, and 100 semi-finalists will be selected. Penguin editors will evaluate the manuscripts from this group of 100 and choose three finalists. A panel of esteemed publishing professionals -- including mega-bestselling authors Sue Grafton and Sue Monk Kidd, literary agent Barney Karpfinger and Penguin Press Editor-in-Chief Eamon Dolan -- will read and post their critiques of the top three manuscripts on www.amazon.com. Amazon customers will then have seven days to vote for the Grand Prize Winner.The winner will be announced on May 22, 2009, and will receive a publishing contract with Penguin, which includes a $25,000 advance."

Many of the Top Ten Finalists also received writing contracts, so it's worth checking out.

Fiction in February

Crazy busy. Here is a link to About.com guide Ginny Wiehardt's list of fiction contest deadlines coming up in February.

It never occurred to me to actually plan ahead to February instead of writing in a frenzy a week before the deadline. It probably still won't occur to me. My mind is a last-minute kind of place.