Get Inspired!

Tom Becker, has won the 2007 Waterstone prize in Britain for his novel Darkside. Read the article in the Guardian newspaper to find out more.

Why should you feel inspired?
** He's a first-time novelist
** He's only 25 years old

Don't ever think you are too young to write or too old. There is never a more perfect time to start then now. Below are some contests geared towards professionals, amateurs and young people. I bet one of them is just right for you.

So get out there, get inspired and Write!
---Patrizia

Contests!!!!

Here's another round of contest information to get your writing skills going. Check them out and good luck!

Patrizia

Short Story Contest for the Heinlein Centennial
Length – 1,500 to 7,500 words. Deadline February 15, 2007.

Professional Division
Professionals are defined as those writers who have sold 3
stories to a professional publication (defined as one paying
3 cents/ word or more) or 1 novel.

Winning Story: $175.
Honorable Mention: $75.

Amateur Division
Authors 16 years or older who do not meet the definition of
professional as listed above.
Winning Story: $175.
Honorable Mention: $75.

Young Writer Division
Authors 16 years or younger who don't meet the definition of
professional as listed above.
Winning Story: $175.
Honorable Mention: $75.

Additionally all stories will be awarded prize certificates
during a special event at the Centennial as well as publication
in the Centennial program and/or other related publications.

* * *

Northeast Texas Writers' Organization Short Story Contest
ENTRY FEE $8 FOR ADULTS/ $5 FOR STUDENTS 18 AND UNDER.
Entries must be short stories between 1,000 and 2,500 words
to be considered. Deadline February 20, 2007. First Place
Award is $100; Second Place is $50; Third Place is $20 and
Fourth Place is $10. Winners, and Honorable Mentions, will
receive certificates suitable for framing.

* * *
Knoxville Writers' Guild Writing Contests
FOR YOUNG WRITERS IN POETRY (Tennessee residents)
NO ENTRY FEE
Deadline: February 28, 2007. Entry consists of three poems of
no more than 100 lines total. Please, only one entry per contestant.
No restrictions as to style or content. Open to all secondary
school students in Knox or neighboring counties. First, $150.
Second, $100. Third, $50.

* * *
Write a Story for Children Competition
ENTRY FEE £2.10 (US$5)
Open to all amateur writers over the age of 18. There are cash
prizes of £2,000 for the best story submitted, £300 for second
prize and £200 for the third placed story. Independent judges
will be looking for such qualities as originality, imagination
and flair. Most importantly, they will also consider how the
story will appeal to children. The story must not exceed 2,000
words in length and can be suitable for children of any age group
up to teenage. Deadline March 31, 2007.

Hey Girl! This One's For You!

If you haven't heard about SD Girl, now is your chance to check out this cool ezine, the teen spin-off of SD Magazine. They offer a mix on fashion, beauty, dating, music and even writing. It's a magazine for you. About you.

Why am I posting about a teen mag on a blog for writers? Because they are open to articles that matter to young women. You have an idea for an article? Pitch it. And if you like to write short stories or poems, well, there is a special place reserved for that too. Check out the Write On corner where you are invited to showcase your work.

I should point out that there is no compensation offered. In general, I'm a believer that you should be paid for your writing if it's being published. However, for a young writer starting out, getting exposure and experience matters. Take a chance.

Patrizia

Top 1000 Library Picks

The Online Computer Library Center has released its list of the top 1000 children's book purchases made by libraries in 2005. Can you guess what are the top ten books bought and stocked in libraries around the US? If you guessed Harry Potter, you'd be wrong. Find out who did make the top ten and check out where your favorite reads and authors rank. You can find the list here.

Patrizia

Submissions Call for YA Anthology

I hope one of your New Year's resolutions was to write and aim to be published. We'll try to keep you posted on contests, publishers and other markets where your writing might find a home. To start off the new year we've heard of a call for submissions for a YA anthology. Details are below.

All the best
Patrizia

Sumach Press is delighted to announce a new YA story collection about mothers and daughters and body image, to be published in 2008. The working title is Cleavage, and we're looking for stories of 2000 - 3500 words about eating disorders, cosmetic surgery, implants, clothing choices, hair, waxing, makeup, piercing, tattoos etc. Point of view should be thirteen and up, but the issues can be hers, her mother's, or both. We're especially interested in quirky, humourous stories that capture the bizarreness of body image along with defining mother-daughter moments. We welcome submissions from new, emerging and established writers by June 15 2007. For details, please go to: Sumach Press

Deb Loughead and Jocelyn Shipley, co-editors
www.debloughead.ca
www.jocelynshipley.com

2007 YA Releases

Happy New Year Everyone! Hope the new year has started off with a bang and that you've set yourself some writing resolutions to shoot for during the year.

Expect another hot year for YA. Here are only a few of the books you can look forward to, but these authors are sure to keep you glued to the page:

2007 YA Releases

March

Paula Chase, SO NOT THE DRAMA, Kensington/Dafina
0758218591

May

Shannon Greenland, THE SPECIALISTS: MODEL SPY (Puffin)
987-0-14-240849-0

July

Stephanie Hale, REVENGE OF THE HOMECOMING QUEEN,
(Berkley Jam) 0425216152

August

Caridad Ferrer, IT’S NOT ABOUT THE ACCENT (MTV Books)
1416524916

Bev Katz Rosenbaum, BEYOND COOL (Berkley Jam)
13-978-0-425-21563-0

Linda Joy Singleton, FATAL CHARM (Flux) 0738711535

September

Linda Gerber, THE FINNISH LINE, (SASS)

----Patrizia