Collective Update!

Introducing our new Programming Coordinator, Karen!

 

I’d like to introduce myself
Hi everyone! I’m Karen Emilson, the new Programming Coordinator with the Writers’ Collective of Manitoba
As many of you already know, our former Coordinator, Michael Van Rooy, passed away suddenly on January 27, 2011. Michael’s death left a huge hole in the writing community and here at the Writers’ Collective. We are just now beginning to pick up the pieces and appreciate your patience during this difficult time. Your Board has worked diligently to try and keep things running smoothly here at the Collective – not an easy task since there is so much to do. Now that the baton has been passed on to me, I plan to take off running. But first, proper introductions are in order.

Some of you may already know me, but for those who don’t, I am a long-time member of the Collective who has been involved with a number of organizations over the years including the Icelandic Connection, Lögberg-Heimskringla and most recently, the Manitoba Beef Producers. I know a little bit about self-publishing, traditional publishing and desktop publishing. I’ve been a community newspaper reporter and freelance writer, enjoy writing columns, editorials, features and can take a decent photograph if I can get my subject to stand still long enough . . .
I’ve written and self-published three non-fiction books that have been somewhat commercially successful. I’ve always wanted to write fiction and currently there are a handful of partially finished manuscripts, all in the re-writing stage on my hard drive. Sound familiar anyone?

Having written, currently writing and wanting to write is something that we all have in common.

Don’t be shy!
I want to hear from you. I’m quite excited about my new role here at the Collective and look forward to getting to know you all better. Give me a call, drop by or send an email – and I hope to see you at our next event.


Announcing . . .

The 2011 Marie Barton Postcard Fiction Contest
The Writers’ Collective is pleased to announce this year’s Postcard Fiction Contest in honour of the late Marie Barton, a dedicated local writer, teacher, and former member of the Canadian Authors’ Association. The contest is open to everyone. The entry fee is $5 for non-members, free to WC members.
PRIZES:

First ($100 and an annual membership to the Writers’ Collective), Second ($50 and one free workshop in the 2011/2012 season) and Third ($25). All winning entries will be published in The Collective Consciousness, the quarterly journal of the Writers’ Collective.

RULES:
  1. Send us a postcard—good quality photocopies are acceptable—along with a story that relates to the image. The relationship between the story and postcard can be as tangential as you like, so long as there is some clear connection to the image or place.
  2. All entries (from non-members) must include the $5 entry fee and postcard. Cheques should be made payable to: The Writers’ Collective.
  3. Please submit four (4) copies of each story and postcard. Stories should be typed, double-spaced, printed one-sided on 8.5 x 11 paper, and stapled individually. Stories must be original, unpublished works of fiction of 100 words or less.
  4. Author’s name should not appear on the manuscript. Please complete the form below and include it with your entry.
  5. To receive a list of winners, please include your email address. Manuscripts/postcards will not be returned, so please retain a copy of your work.
  6. All entrants not complying with these rules will be disqualified. Winners will be notified in June. One prize is awarded per writer.
  7. Stories must be postmarked by Wednesday, May 4th.
If you have any questions please call (204) 786-9468.
Winning entries will be published in The Collective Consciousness, and winners will be asked to supply a digital copy of their work.
FOR AN ENTRY FORM, email: [email protected]
Send all entries to: Marie Barton Postcard Fiction Contest, c/o The Writers’ Collective, 4th Floor Library, University of Winnipeg, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9
The Writers’ Collective acknowledges the support of Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism, The University of Winnipeg, The University of Winnipeg Library, and The Winnipeg Free Press.

THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS/WRITERS’ COLLECTIVE 2011 SHORT FICTION CONTEST
THREE DIVISIONS:
Junior student: (Grades 7-8) Senior student: (Grades Senior 1-4) Adult: (ages 18 and over).
PRIZES:

Prizes in junior and senior student divisions are: First ($150), Second ($75), Third ($50). Stories in junior and senior student divisions are also eligible for a $100 prize for a story best celebrating the human spirit. Prizes in the adult division are: First ($200), Second ($150), and Third ($100). Winners will be published in The Collective Consciousness, the Collective’s quarterly journal.

RULES:
  1. Submit four (4) copies of each story, typed, one-sided, double-spaced, individually stapled, on 8.5 x 11 paper. Stories must be original, unpublished works of fiction between 800 and 1,000 words for the junior student division and between 1,000 and 1,500 words for senior student and adult divisions.
  2. Author’s real name should not appear on the manuscript. Each entry must come with a $10 entry fee, or $5 for Writers’ Collective members, payable to: The Writers’ Collective. Only one prize awarded per person.
  3. Complete the form below and include it with your entry. Multiple entries are accepted, but each story must include a form and entry fee.
  4. A written evaluation of your entry is available for an additional fee of $25; cheques made payable to the Writers’ Collective. Please allow 10-12 weeks from deadline date for evaluations. Include an email address to receive a list of winners. Manuscripts will not be returned. All entrants not complying with these rules will be disqualified.
  5. Stories must be postmarked by Wednesday, May 4th.
Winners will be notified by phone in early June. Winning entries will be celebrated at an awards evening to be announced.
FOR AN ENTRY FORM, CLICK HERE AND IT WILL BE EMAILED TO YOU AS A PDF ATTACHMENT.
Send all entries to: Fiction Contest, c/o The Writers’ Collective, 4th Floor Library, University of Winnipeg, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9
The Writers’ Collective acknowledges the support of Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism, The University of Winnipeg, The University of Winnipeg Library, and The Winnipeg Free Press.

Thinking of entering our Fiction Contest?
Then you might want to consider attending Melissa Steele’s workshop “Craft of Short Fiction”
Saturday April 2nd – 2:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Millennium Library, Anhang Room
The workshop will include a discussion of the elements of short fiction such as plot, diction, character, setting, point-of-view and tone. Also included is an exercise component and participants will discuss and share their exercise results. Suitable for emerging fiction writers, preferably those who have written at least one short story.
Call 986-6779 to register. Space is limited! 


Manitoba Writers’ Guild: Manitoba Book Awards Shortlists Announced
MANITOBA BOOK AWARDS SHORTLISTS ANNOUNCED
The Manitoba Writers’ Guild and the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers are pleased to announce the Manitoba Book Awards shortlists for 2011. The awards will be presented at the Manitoba Book Awards gala, on Sunday April 17th at the Centre Culturel Franco-Manitobain and hosted by Catherine Hunter.  Cocktails are at 7:00 p.m., with the ceremony beginning at 8:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The shortlists and recipients are selected by a variety of juries, comprised of writers, publishers and other book industry personnel from across Canada.
And the nominees are…
McNally Robinson Book of the Year

  • A Cycle of the Moon by Uma Parameswaran, published by TSAR Publications
  • Curiosity by Joan Thomas, published by McClelland and Stewart Ltd.
  • Out of Grief, Singing: A Memoir of Motherhood and Loss by Charlene Diehl, published by Signature Editions
  • This Hidden Thing by Dora Dueck, published by CMU Press
  • Walking to Mojâcar by Di Brandt, published by Turnstone Press

Alexander Kennedy Isbister Award for Non-Fiction

  • Andy De Jarlis: The Life and Music of an Old-Time Fiddler by Joe MacIntosh, published by Great Plains Publications
  • Out of Grief, Singing: A Memoir of Motherhood and Loss by Charlene Diehl, published by Signature Editions
  • When the Other Is Me by Emma LaRocque, published by University of Manitoba Press
  • Winnipeg’s Great War: A city Comes of Age by Jim Blanchard, published by University of Manitoba Press
Aqua Books Lansdowne Prize for Poetry/Prix Lansdowne de poésie
  • Attenuations of Force by Lori Cayer, published by Frontenac House
  • Clockfire by Jonathan Ball, published by Coach House Books
  • Hump by Ariel Gordon, published by Palimpsest Press

Best Illustrated Book of the Year

  • The Imagination Manifesto – Book Two by G.M.B. Chomichuk, with James Rewucki and John Toone, cover design and illustrations by G.M.B. Chomichuk, published by Alchemical Press Ltd.
  • The Mosaic Village: An Illustrated History of Winnipeg’s North End by Russ Gourluck, cover design by Relish Design Studio, published by Great Plains Publications
  • Nanabosho and the Butterflies by Joe McLellan and Matrine McLellan, illustrated by Jackie Traverse, design by Relish Design Studio, published by Pemmican Publications
  • Winnipeg Art Gallery: Guide to the Collections edited by Stephen Borys, design by Lisa Friesen, photography by Ernest Mayer, published by Winnipeg Art Gallery

Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award

  • A Criminal to Remember by Michael Van Rooy published by Turnstone Press
  • Baldur’s Song by David Arnason published by Turnstone Press
  • The Matter with Morris by David Bergen published by Harper Collins
  • Winnipeg Art Gallery: Guide to the Collections published by the Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Winnipeg’s Great War: A city Comes of Age by Jim Blanchard published by University of Manitoba Press

Eileen McTavish Sykes Award for Best First Book

  • Black Bottle Man by Craig Russell, published by Great Plains Teen Fiction
  • Broken Circle: The Dark Legacy of Indian Residential Schools by Theodore Fontaine, published by Heritage House Publishing
  • Gaze by Keith Cadieux, published by Quattro Books
  • High Speed Crow by Sheila McClarty, published by Oberon Press
  • Hump by Ariel Gordon, published by Palimpsest Press
John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer
  • Michelle Elrick
  • Ken Kowal
  • Kerry Ryan
Manuela Dias Book Design of the Year
  • A Dog’s Breakfast: A Chef’s Guide to Healthy Home Cooking for Your Favorite Pooch by Jess Young, design by Relish Design Studio, published by Great Plains Publications Maple Leaf Rag by Kaie Kellough, cover design by Branden Douglas, design by Relish design Studio, published by Arbeiter Ring Publishing
  • Winnipeg Art Gallery: Guide to the Collections edited by Stephen Borys, design by Lisa Friesen, photography by Ernest Mayer, published by the Winnipeg Art Gallery
The Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction
  • Autumn, One Spring by Patti Grayson, published by Turnstone Press
  • Baldur’s Song by David Arnason, published by Turnstone Press
  • Curiosity by Joan Thomas, published by McClelland & Stewart
  • The Matter with Morris by David Bergen, published by Harper Collins
  • This Hidden Thing by Dora Dueck, published by CMU Press
Mary Scorer Award for Best Book by a Manitoba Publisher
  • Autumn, One Spring by Patti Grayson, published by Turnstone Press
  • I Still Don’t Even Know You by Michelle Berry, published by Turnstone Press
  • Walking to Mojâcar by Di Brandt, published by Turnstone Press
  • Winnipeg’s Great War: A city Comes of Age by Jim Blanchard, published by the University of Manitoba Press
McNally Robinson Book for Young People Award – Older Category
  • Black Bottle Man by Craig Russell, published by Great Plains Teen Fiction
  • Ortega by Maureen Fergus, published by Kids Can Press
  • Queen of Hearts by Martha Brooks, published by Groundwood Books
  • Winter Shadows by Margaret Buffie, published by Tundra Books
Le Prix littéraire Rue-Deschambault
  • L’arbre aux cœurs, texte: France Adams, illustrations: Serge Salvador, Les Éditions des Plaines
  • La belle ordure par Simone Chaput, Les Éditions du Blé
  • La forêt du langage par Jean Chicoine, Les Éditions du Blé
  • Lointaines: nouvelles par Lise Gaboury-Diallo, Les Éditions du Blé

News . . .

MacIntyre Purcell Publishing launches new Kids’ Book division
MacIntyre Purcell Publishing Inc. (MPP Inc.), publisher of the national bestselling Book of Everything/Book of Musts series, has announced that it is launching a new Kids’ Book division.  In addition to children’s books, MPP Inc. will also be publishing three new books of non-fiction. “We wanted to give ourselves the latitude to publish books other than travel or destination titles,” says publisher John MacIntyre. 

In 2011 the Lunenburg based publishing company will release nine titles in total, six of those titles will be children’s books and thX-AntiAbuse: Original Domain – uwinnipeg.caree are works of non-fiction.  These nine titles are the first books outside of the bestselling Book of Everything and Book of Musts series.

Of the six children’s books, three are written by first time Atlantic Canadian authors. “We were simply presented with manuscripts that we couldn t turn down,” says MacIntyre.

On the non-fiction side, MPP Inc. is also publishing books in Manitoba with well-known Winnipeg Free Press writer Bill Redekop and a national title with Ottawa writer Arthur Montague. “We ve got a great line-up,” says MacIntyre. “It is exciting working with titles and authors that you believe in and that you can help bring to a wider audience.”

MacIntyre Purcell Publishing Inc. is a Lunenburg based publishing house. The Book of Everything has been published across the country and has been the bestselling title in every market it has entered. In 2009, the company introduced the American version of the Book of Everything series called the 101 series that began with the release of Rhode Island 101 and Maine 101. In 2010, based out of South Korea, the Book of Everything series went international with the release of the Seoul Book of Everything. The company also publishes the award winning Book of Musts series.

On Writing with Jennifer Still
Jennifer Still talks to Open Book about her remarkable second collection of poetry, Girlwood, and the expectations — at once liberating and debilitating — that she places on herself as both poet and mother. CLICK HERE TO WATCH


UPCOMING EVENTS . . .

Winnipeg Public Library, Arbeiter Ring Publishing and the Manitoba Editors’ Association are proud to present a panel discussion on Jila Ghomeshi’s
“Grammar Matters: The Social Significance of How We Use Language.”
Please join moderator Jenny Gates; Jila Ghomeshi; Morley Walker, journalist at the Winnipeg Free Press; and Bev Phillips, editor and member of Manitoba Editors’ Association for a lively discussion and debate about grammar and the politics of language.
Millennium Library
Carol Shields Auditorium
251 Donald Street
Thursday, April 14 – 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Doors open at 6:45 p.m.
Elementary, My Dear Writers
Demystifying the Publishing Process
From the first sentence to the proudly displayed finished book – what happens in between and how do you get there? For new and established writers, editors, and publishers
Saturday, May 14th, 2011
Keynote Speaker: Mary-Ann  Kirkby
author of I Am Hutterite
Panel Presentations:
Choosing the Process – Traditional and Self-Publishing
The  Beginning – Researching the Market, Writing, and Editing
The  Next Steps – Printing, Promoting, and Distributing
Earlybird prices:  March 7th to April 14th
For more information, go to the Manitoba Editor’s Association Website. Brought to you by the Manitoba Editors’ Association, in partnership with the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers, the Manitoba Writers’ Guild, the Society for Technical Communication (Manitoba), and the Editors’ Association of Canada (Prairie Provinces Branch).

Workshops . . .

Story as a Function of Desire and Choice
A Fiction Workshop with Dave Margoshes

May 7th – 11:00 am to 6:00 pm
Location: Aqua Books (274 Garry Street, between Graham and Portage)
The workshop is limited to 12 people.
Bring a notebook and pen.

Cost: $75 plus GST. Contact [email protected] or 943-7555 to register.

A talk and hands-on workshop focusing on the role of desire in fiction. “Desire,” in this context, is not a code word for sexuality, but rather an indication of what the characters in a story, primarily the main character or characters, want: what do they want, what’s standing in the way, how will they go about getting it? When you’ve figured that out, your story’s half done.

Dave Margoshes is a Saskatoon-area poet and fiction writer whose stories and poems are widely published in literary magazines and anthologies throughout North America, including six times in the Best Canadian Stories volumes. In 2009, he was a finalist for the Journey Prize. His Bix’s Trumpet and Other Stories was named Book of the Year at the 2007 Saskatchewan Book Awards. He published two new books of poetry in the last two years: The Horse Knows the Way (BuschekBooks, 2009) and Dimensions of an Orchard (Black Moss Press, 2010), which won the Anne Szumigalski Poetry Prize at the 2010 Saskatchewan Book Awards. He’s given numerous workshops and taught creative writing in a number of settings, for writers at varying levels of experience. He was writer in residence in Winnipeg in 1995-96.


Readings at Aqua Books . . .
274 Garry St., between Graham and Portage

Aqua Books  /  Lansdowne Prize for Poetry Nominees Reading
Thursday, March 31st – 7:00 p.m.
Featuring: Jonathan Ball, Ariel Gordon & Lori Cayer
Cost: FREE!

Jonathan Ball, Ariel Gordon and Lori Cayer have been shortlisted for this year’s Aqua Books Lansdowne Prize for Poetry/Prix Lansdowne de poésie.

Aqua Books  /  Speaking Crow Open Mic
Tuesday, April 5th – 7:00 p.m.
Featuring: Adam Kroeker
Cost: FREE

Aqua Books is pleased to be the permanent home of the venerable poetry series Speaking Crow.

The Crow starts at 7pm and is followed by two open-mic sets and short breaks in between. Come take up the mic and wax poetic about life, the universe and everything!

Adam Kroeker is a Winnipeg poet and creative M.A. graduate. His recent works include Tales from Old Colony (a collection of fake Mennonite folk stories), Killing the Pot (a poetry/pottery installation featured at Winnipeg’s Estudio Luna), and Deep Dipper (poems around an alliterative roller coaster in old Fort Rouge). His writing explores nostalgia, ruins, interactivity, and commonplace mysticism.

The CreComm Reading Series
Wednesday, April 6th – 7:00  pm
Featuring Jonathan Garfinkel with Daniella Ponticelli
Cost: FREE

Red River College’s Creative Communications (“CreComm”) program is the training ground for Manitoba’s professional communicators.
The CreComm Reading Series, curated by K.I. Press, brings writers of all genres to Winnipeg. Opening acts are current and former CreCommers with creative works-in-progress.
*
Daniella Ponticelli is a first-year Creative Communications student at Red River College. Aside from  writing courses at university, most of her writing comes from late night inspirations and Sunday afternoon surprises. Visit her blog Cre.ature Feed, where she posts poetry, fiction, and quirky insights.

Jonathan Garfinkel is the author of a book of poetry, Glass Psalms, (Turnstone Press, 2005) and several plays, including Walking to Russia, The Trials of John Demjanjuk: A Holocaust Cabaret and House of Many Tongues. His memoir, Ambivalence: Crossing the Israel/Palestine Divide (Penguin Canada 2007), has been published in five countries, and his plays have been produced across Canada and Germany. He is the recipient of numerous residencies, including a year-long fellowship at the Akademie Schloss Solitude in Stuttgart, Germany. He also won the KM Hunter Award for Emerging Artists in 2008. Jonathan currently divides his time between Toronto and Berlin.

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts which last year invested $20.1 million in writing and publishing throughout Canada.

Aqua Books / Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction Nominee Readings
Thursday April 7th – 7:00 p.m.
Featuring: Dora Dueck, Patti Grayson, David Arnason, Joan Thomas & David Bergen
Cost: FREE!

Dora Dueck, Patti Grayson, David Arnason, Joan Thomas and David Bergen have been shortlisted for this year’s Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction.
The prize will be awarded at the Manitoba Book Awards on April 17, but in the meantime, Aqua Books is continuing its tradition of hosting nominee readings.
Bookstore owner Kelly Hughes will host.
* * *
Dora Dueck is author of the novel Under the Still Standing Sun and co-editor of Northern Lights: An Anthology of Contemporary Christian Writing in Canada. Her stories have been featured on CBC Radio, and in journals such as Room, Prairie Fire, Rhubarb, and Journal of Mennonite Studies. She lives in Winnipeg.

Autumn, One Spring is Patti Grayson’s first novel. Her short fiction collection, Core Samples, garnered nominations for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer and the Eileen McTavish Sykes Award for Best First Book. Patti has worked as a school librarian, advertising copywriter, puppeteer, and actor. She lives near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

David Bergen is the author of five novels and a collection of short stories. A Year of Lesser was a New York Times Notable Book and The Case of Lena S., a finalist for the Governor General’s Award for Fiction. In 2005, he won the Giller Prize for The Time In Between . Bergen is the winner of the 2009 Writers’ Trust Notable Author Award.

Readings at The Library downtown . . .

National Poetry Month Reading
Tuesday, April 12, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Featuring Charles Leblanc & Alison Calder
Where: Main floor, Millennium Library (251 Donald Street)
Cost: FREE!

Every spring, the League of Canadian Poets celebrates National Poetry Month, which is dedicated to reading, writing, speaking and promoting poetry.
In 2011, the League of Canadian Poets will also celebrate 25 years of the Public Lending Right in Canada, which attempts to both nurture poets and provide free access to their work. This spring, explore Poets + Libraries = PLR for National Poetry Month!

* * *
Charles Leblanc is a St. Boniface translator, writer, actor and poet. He is a founding member of the Collectif post-néo-rieliste, and helps to create the Foyer des écrivains, the Winnipeg International Writers Festival’s francophone programming. He won Manitoba’s Prix littéraire Rue-Deschambault in 2005 for l’appétit du compteur. Last title: des briques pour un vitrail (collected works) (2008).

Alison Calder’s poetry collection, Wolf Tree (Coteau 2007), won two Manitoba Book Awards and was a finalist for both the Gerald Lampert Award and the Pat Lowther Award. Her collaboration with Jeanette Lynes led to the chapbook Ghost Works: Improvisations in Letters and Poems (Jackpine Press 2007). She’s taught creative writing in Germany and China, and been invited to read her work in France and the United States. Alison lives in Winnipeg, where she teaches Canadian literature and creative writing in the Department of English, Film, and Theatre at the University of Manitoba.


Call for Submissions . . .

The 2012 Ken Klonsky Novella Contest
Quattro Books will publish the two best novella manuscripts (15,000 to 42,000 words) submitted to us by July 1, 2011.
Send your manuscript, neatly typed, along with a $15 reader’s fee, to Quattro Books, CSI Annex, 720 Bathurst Street, Suite 200, Toronto, ON, M5S 2R4.
Please include an e-mail address. Applicants must be Canadian citizens. Submissions will not be returned. For more information, visit http://www.quattrobooks.ca

PEIWG (CAN/NAT) ANNOUNCING LAKE’S Special Issue on Indigenous Peoples, Health, and Place
Submissions of original unpublished fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, and visual arts related to Indigenous peoples’ health
as connected to place are now being solicited for LAKE’s Special Issue on Indigenous Peoples, Health, and Place.
A deep and abiding connection between genealogy and a specific place or territory is fundamental to many Indigenous peoples’ sense of self and community and, consequently, to identity and well-being. Conversely, disruption of place and deterritorialization adversely affect the health and well-being of Indigenous peoples. Creative practice and artistic expression are two means by which Indigenous people (historically and contemporarily) have expressed connections between identity and place and, associatively, maintained sociocultural and physical health through the generations.
LAKE: A Journal of Arts and Environment is pleased to announce a special issue on Indigenous Peoples, Health, and Place. The purpose of this issue is to explore, through creative expression, Indigenous peoples’ health as connected to place. Health in this context is understood in the broadest of ways – a holistic, dynamic, and multi-dimensional state of well-being at both individual and community levels. Specifically, we are seeking expressions in various media by Indigenous artists and writers from across Canada who are concerned with health and well-being through the generations, from birth to passing, as it is related to connection with place and the environment.
LAKE is a peer-reviewed publication with both a print and online presence. This special issue will be edited in partnership and by consensus between the University of British Columbia Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies Lake Journal editorial collective (Nancy Holmes, Sharon Thesen, Briar Craig, and Gary Pearson), and special-issue editors Margo Greenwood (an Indigenous Cree woman and Academic Leader of the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health) and Sarah de Leeuw (a writer, geographer, and faculty with the Northern Medical Program, the Faculty of Medicine at UBC). Selected work will appear either in the journal’s print or online format, or both, in Issue #7 in the fall of 2011.

Deadline for submission is May 15th, 2011. Please see submission guidelines on our website:
http://www.lakejournal.ca/submissions.html

Prairie Fire Press & McNally Robinson Booksellers
2011 Writing Contests
3 contests, $6,000 in cash prizes!

Bliss Carman Poetry Award
The poetry first prize is in part donated by the Banff Centre for the Arts, who will also award a jeweller-cast replica of poet Bliss Carman’s silver and turquoise ring to the first-prize winner. (1-3 poems per entry, maximum 150 lines per entry)
Judge: Sylvia Legris

Short Fiction
(one story per entry, maximum 10,000 words)
Judge: Marilyn Bowering

Creative Non-Fiction
(one article per entry, maximum 5,000 words)
Judge: Lawrence Scanlan

1st prize $1,250 2nd prize $500, 3rd prize $250 in all categories

Contest Rules

  • Entry fee is $32 (per category). This entitles you or your designate to a one-year (4 issues) subscription to Prairie Fire. Make cheque or money order payable to Prairie Fire and enclose with your entry. You may also use all major credit cards.
  • Deadline for all contest entries: Postmarked November 30, 2011.
  • Do not identify yourself on your entry. Please enclose a cover letter with your name, address, telephone number and/or e-mail address, the title(s) of your piece(s), and word count (prose), or line count (poetry) along with your entry fee.
  • No faxed or e-mailed submissions, please.
  • Your entry must be typed on 8 1/2 x 11-inch white paper and the pages clipped, not stapled. Prose must be double-spaced.
  • Entries will not be returned. If you want to be informed of results, include a stamped, self-addressed envelope, or check our website at http://www.prairiefire.ca.
  • Each piece must be original, unpublished, not submitted elsewhere for publication or broadcast, nor entered simultaneously in any other contest or competition.
  • You may enter as often as you like; only your first entry in each category will be eligible for a subscription.
  • Winning pieces will be published in Prairie Fire magazine, with authors paid for publication.

Send entries to: Prairie Fire Press, 423-100 Arthur Street, Winnipeg, MB R3B 1H3.
For more information check out our website at http://www.prairiefire.ca call (204) 943-9066, or e-mail us at [email protected].

RHUBARB MAGAZINE CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR JEWISH, UKRAINIAN, MENNONITE
SPECIAL ISSUE

Rhubarb magazine is soliciting submissions from writers and artists who self-identify as being of Jewish, Ukrainian, or Mennonite cultural heritage for a special issue to be published in spring 2012. It’s been a century or more since our ancestors came to North America. We share much in our common history: emigration in the face of oppression, pride of community, marginalization within the mainstream. We also acknowledge tensions among our communities. This issue will explore how the writing and art we now make expresses both these commonalities and differences.
GUEST EDITORS:
Myrna Kostash – all non-fiction
Rhea Tregebov – all poetry
Rudy Wiebe – all fiction

There will be some cross-over and communication but the final decision will be made as indicated above.
DEADLINE DATE: December 1, 2011 PUBLICATION DATE March 2012
SUBMISSIONS: Only email submissions for this issue. Attachments accepted in
Word doc or docx, images Tiff or Jpeg. Email all submissions to
[email protected].

GENERAL GUIDELINES
Writing should be clear, stimulating and persuasive without being obviously didactic. Rhubarb publishes poetry of up to 30 lines, creative non-fiction and short fiction of up to 2,500 words and black and white art work including high contrast photographs that reproduce well in the magazine printing process. Some colour images may be used and we will need one for the cover of the issue.
Rhubarb also publishes humour, book reviews, commentary, issues analysis and articles related to the theme.
All submissions should include a short bio and the full name and address of the contributor.

Professional Opportunities . . .

Visual Arts News (Halifax, NS) Editor
Freelance contract position, $1700/per issue.
Applications must be received by April 1, 2011.

Visual Arts News is the only magazine dedicated to contemporary visual art in Nova Scotia, published three times a year in May, September and January. Every issue includes engaging exhibition reviews, artist profiles and in-depth features on issues facing arts professionals across the province. As one of the oldest cultural publications in Atlantic Canada, it is a well-trusted source of information for readers with a passion for its thriving visual arts scene. http://www.visualartsnews.ca
The Editor, in conjunction with the Editorial Committee is responsible for developing magazine content for features, reviews, profiles and artist pages. In conjunction with the Publisher, the Editor coordinates all aspects of publication development, and pre-press preparations including story selection, photography, and copy editing. The editor works closely with freelance writers, and is responsible for surveying and keeping abreast of significant development in the visual arts both locally and abroad.
The successful applicant will have an undergraduate degree in the arts, or equivalent experience, excellent writing, editing and speaking skills. Knowledge and interest in the visual arts in Nova Scotia, Atlantic Canada and beyond is a requirement.
As the lead individual in the production of the magazine, s/he should have strong leadership and organizational skills and able to work independently.  Knowledge of the design and related printing processes are an asset. The Magazine Editor reports to the Publisher.
Submissions should include covering letter and resume.

Please forward to submissions to: Search Committee,Visual Arts News, 1113 Marginal Road, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3H 4P7 ormailto:[email protected]


How you can help 

As you can imagine, the email inbox was quite full when I started work last week.
If you emailed asking a question prior to my arrival, but haven’t yet received an answer, please email me again at:thewr[email protected] and I’ll get you an answer right away.

Until next week,

- Karen

 

The Website Elves
The virtual elves work tirelessly in the website boiler room to keep all of its innards working smoothly and happily, and to ensure that fresh new items continue appear to amaze and amuse members and followers of The Writers' Collective of Manitoba.

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One Response to “Collective Update!”

  1. Haven says:

    Great site.Thanks ………..