4 writing opportunities for you

Whether you’re an unpublished writer or a well-established one, here are four writing opportunities for you. Don’t miss the last one!

Narrative Writing Magazine’s writing contest is open to memoir and all forms of literary nonfiction. The submission deadline is July 31, 2014. The first-place prize is $2500, second place $1000. There is a $22 entry fee. Check submission guidelines at this link.

Stoneboat Literary Journal is also accepting submissions (memoir and nonfiction, up to 5,000 words) until August 1, 2014, from both emerging and established writers. Stoneboat is an independent journal dedicated to publishing quality literature.

Anchor and Plume welcomes submissions of creative nonfiction (which includes memoir) and “seeks work that is a celebration of language and place.… We want to explore your landscapes, your universal yet distinct themes and characters in work that brings something of that place and what it means to be human to the surface.… We accept work from unpublished voices and from those who already have an established voice and publication history.”

From their website: “Anchor and Plume publishes Kindred a lit magazine that celebrates the power of story to bring people together. Kindred embraces the idea of home, we celebrate the messy, the meaningful, the people, and places we hold near and dear to our hearts.” (I just ordered the current issue of Kindred. It promises to be a delightful read.)

At this link, scroll down to “Anchor and Plume’s next open reading period will run August 1 – September 30.”  Also be sure to read submission guidelines.

Click on these links for earlier SM 101 blog posts about the importance and power of place:

The power of your place

Hiraeth: You’ve probably experienced it

That place: Why does it still call to you?

Where are you from?

Look over your rough drafts, 

polish and perfect one of them, 

check submission guidelines carefully, 

and submit your manuscript to one of these publications.

And here's your fourth opportunity:

Application for the 2015 residency season is now open for the Hedgebrook retreat for women writers. Hedgebrook is on Whidbey Island, about thirty-five miles northwest of Seattle, on 48 forested acres facing Puget Sound and Mount Rainier. That's my home territory and, believe me, it's gorgeous. The retreat hosts women writers from all over the world for two to six weeks, at no cost to the writer. Application for the 2015 residency season closes September 3, 2014.

Three writing opportunities for you

In writing vignettes for your memoir, some of you have written stories worthy of a broader audience.

Others might be looking for ways to strengthen your platform.*

If so, today I have three opportunities for you.

Dena Dyer, writer, editor at The High Calling,* and lover of all things literary, is collecting 500-word stories from contemporary women who've been healed in various ways—emotionally, spiritually, physically, or mentally. Based on “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds,” (Psalm 147:3), the book—and a companion women’s retreat—will be released in 2013 from Kregel Publishing.

Dena says, “We need LOTS of material from others. I'd love to see anything you want to send. You don’t have to be a great writer—I can adapt and edit your story while keeping your thoughts and voice.…” Read more at Help Me with my Book (please?) at

http://denadyer.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/10/a-writing-opportunity-help-me-with-my-book-please-.html

Over at 1^st Writes, Pam encourages submissions to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books. She credits the enormous success of these books to “writers like you and me, who contribute wonderful stories of ‘inspiration, hope, overcoming life’s challenges, and realized dreams.’” Find out more at http://1stwrites.blogspot.com/2011/10/1st-mentions_29.html

Here’s an opportunity for—ahem—seasoned folks to participate with David Brooks, currently with the New York Times and the PBS Newshour. In his recent New York Times article, he writes:

“If you are over 70, I’d like to ask for a gift. I’d like you to write a brief report on your life so far, an evaluation of what you did well, of what you did not so well and what you learned along the way.…

“…I’ll write a few columns about them around Thanksgiving and post as many essays as possible online.

“I ask for this gift for two reasons.

“First, we have few formal moments of self-appraisal in our culture. Occasionally, on a big birthday people will take a step back and try to form a complete picture of their lives, but we have no regular rite of passage prompting them to do so.

“More important, these essays will be useful to the young. Young people are educated in many ways, but they are given relatively little help in understanding how a life develops, how careers and families evolve, what are the common mistakes and the common blessings of modern adulthood. These essays will help them benefit from your experience.…” Continue reading The Life Report at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/28/opinion/brooks-the-life-report.html?_r=1&emc=eta1

Please pray about these opportunities.

Remember, your stories are important! *

You have stories only you can tell.

Your stories are not your own. They have been entrusted to you by God.

People need to hear them.

Be sure to check out Cecil Murphey’s new 50-part series on writing. He’s a hugely successful author with a wealth of expertise. You’ll find a link to his blog here in the right column.

*Resources:

What is a platform?  http://womensmemoirs.com/memoir-writing-book-business/memoir-marketing-your-platform-and-the-statue-of-liberty

Your stories are important:  http://spiritualmemoirs101.blogspot.com/2011/05/are-your-stories-important.html

The High Calling: http://www.thehighcalling.org/