The Social Dynamics of Book Clubs, Serial Fiction Apps, and More
Harry Potter prequel story stolen; Edan Lepucki collects photos of mothers before they were mothers; Karen Kosztolnyik named new editor of Grand Central Publishing; and other news.
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
Two Dollar Radio Moving Pictures
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Author, dancer, and scholar Barbara Browning plays Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger” on the ukulele for this video to promote Two Dollar Radio’s micro-budget film division.
The Klencke Atlas Online, Books for Mother’s Day, and More
Fiona McFarlane wins £30,000 Dylan Thomas Prize; bookseller Bill Petrocelli sues California over “Autograph Law”; Junot Díaz interviews Samuel R. Delany about science fiction; and other news.
Storied, De-storied, Re-storied
“My whole life I’ve been interested in trying to rewrite both war and girl myth,” says Lidia Yuknavitch about her new novel, The Book of Joan (Harper, 2017). “I’m trying to open up an old story so we can look it over again. I believe anything that can be storied can be de-storied and re-storied, and it’s one of the only ways we can retain hope.” In “The Other Side of Burning” by Amy Gall in the May/June issue of Poets & Writers Magazine, Yuknavitch discusses what it was like to reimagine the story of Joan of Arc for the new novel. Think of a myth or a heroine whose story has resonated with you, or that connects to a certain aspect of your identity. Write an essay that actively works to de-story and then re-story, and incorporates a discovery in your own life—perhaps resulting in a new version of an old truth.
Rebecca Solnit
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“There is no good answer to how to be a woman.” At the Strand Book Store, Jia Tolentino interviews Rebecca Solnit on her new book, The Mother of All Questions: Further Reports from the Feminist Revolution (Haymarket Books, 2017).
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Joy Harjo Wins Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize, Medieval Marginalia, and More
Amazon’s new buy button sparks controversy; Karl Ove Knausgaard on curating an Edvard Munch exhibit; Claudia Rankine talks poetry and race with the Paris Review; and other news.
Craft Capsule: Loving the Rubble
Poets and writers share their notes on writing in this series of micro craft essays. In the latest installment: the memoirist’s curse.
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KFC’s Romance Novel, Pearson Announces More Cuts, and More
American Writers Museum to open next week; Bill Clinton and James Patterson pen a political thriller; the country homes of the Bloomsbury Group; and other news.
Fiction and Nonfiction Contest Deadlines
The following contests for fiction and creative nonfiction writers are open for submissions until May 15. Whether you have a short story, an essay, or a novel or memoir manuscript ready to submit, these contests offer prizes of $1,000 to $50,000 and publication.
Ploughshares Emerging Writer’s Contest: Two prizes of $2,000 each and publication in Ploughshares are given annually for a short story and an essay of up to 6,000 words. Writers who have not published or self-published a book or chapbook are eligible. Entry Fee: $24 (no entry fee for current subscribers)
Carve Magazine Raymond Carver Short Story Contest: A prize of $1,500 and publication in Carve Magazine is given annually for a short story of up to 10,000 words. Entry Fee: $15 ($17 for electronic submissions)
Zone 3 Press Creative Nonfiction Book Award: A prize of $1,000 and publication by Zone 3 Press is given biennially for a memoir or essay collection of 150 to 300 pages. Janisse Ray will judge. Entry Fee: $25
Del Sol Press First Novel Competition: A prize of $1,500, publication by Del Sol Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a debut novel of 200 to 450 pages. Hallie Ephron will judge. Entry Fee: $30
St. Francis College Literary Prize: A prize of $50,000 is given biennially for a third, fourth, or fifth published book of fiction. Story collections and novels (including self-published books and English translations) published between June 2015 and May 2017 are eligible. Jeffery Renard Allen, Ellen Litman, and Rene Steinke will judge. There is no entry fee.
Leeway Foundation Transformation Awards: Awards of $15,000 each are given annually to women and transgender, transsexual, genderqueer, or otherwise gender-nonconforming fiction writers and creative nonfiction writers in the Philadelphia area who have been creating art for social change for five or more years. Writers who have lived for at least two years in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia counties, who are at least 18 years old, and who are not full-time students in a degree-granting arts program are eligible. There is no entry fee.
Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines and submission details. Visit our Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more upcoming contests in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
Yiannopoulos to Self-Publish Memoir, the Poetry of Pop Stars, and More
Librarians meet on Capitol Hill to fight for funding; children’s book author and illustrator Peter Spier has died; David Grann on writing history and confronting the unknown; and other news.
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