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Genre: Creative Nonfiction
July 31 Contest Roundup
As July comes to a close, consider submitting to the following contests in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Each contest offers an award of at least $1,000 and publication, and has a deadline of July 31.
Press 53 Award for Poetry: A prize of $1,500 and publication by Press 53 is given annually for a poetry collection. Tom Lombardo will judge. Entry fee: $30.
Masters Review Short Story Award for New Writers: A prize of $3,000 and publication in Masters Review is given twice yearly for a short story by a writer who has not published a novel (writers who have published story collections are eligible). The winning story will also be sent to agents Laura Biagi of Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, Victoria Marini of Gelfman Schneider/ICM Partners, and Amy Williams of the Williams Agency. The editors will judge. Entry fee: $20.
Munster Literature Centre Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition: A prize of €2,000 (approximately $2,400) and publication in Southword, an online literary journal published in Cork, Ireland, is given annually for a short story. The winner also receives a weeklong residency at the Anam Cara Writer’s Retreat on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork. Entry fee: $18.
Journal of Experimental Fiction Kenneth Patchen Award: A prize of $1,000 and publication by Journal of Experimental Fiction/Depth Charge Publishing is given annually for an innovative novel. Jane L. Carman will judge. Entry fee: $25.
Red Hen Press Novella Award: A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Hen Press will be given annually for a novella. Kate Gale will judge. Entry fee: $25.
New Millennium Writings New Millennium Awards: Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication in New Millennium Writings and on the journal’s website are given twice yearly for a poem, a short story, a short short story, and an essay that have not appeared in a print publication with a circulation over 5,000. Entry fee: $20.
Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.
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Parts Unknown
On the TV show Parts Unknown, the late chef and writer Anthony Bourdain traveled the world and sampled cuisines from a variety of cultures. Although the show employed food as its central component, Bourdain was more interested in exploring the customs and histories of the countries he visited and got an outsider’s glimpse of the particular magic that makes each place uniquely itself. Write a personal essay based on an experience when you left your comfort zone for a place, community, or situation that felt different from your own. Your experience could involve travel, as Bourdain’s did, but travel is not required; the unknown often exists in your own backyard.
Colette
Caption:
Keira Knightley stars in Colette, a biopic about the early-twentieth-century French novelist who published the successful Claudine novels under her first husband’s name before making a name for herself with later novels including Chéri and Gigi. The film is directed by Wash Westmoreland and costars Denise Gough, Eleanor Tomlinson, and Dominic West.
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(Not) Quitting While You’re Ahead
As it turns out, human beings aren’t the only ones allowing their emotions to cloud their judgment. In a study published last week in Science, researchers reported findings that mice are as likely as people to have a hard time letting go of a task in which they have already invested time, energy, or another resource despite receiving any potential gain. Write a personal essay about a time when you were unable to let go of something, such as a relationship with a person or a comfortable living situation, even if there was no longer a way of moving forward or your energies would have been better spent elsewhere. What emotions were at play while you made the decision to stay put in stagnant circumstances? What happened when you finally let go?
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