Genre: Fiction

Don’t I Know You?

The Time Is Now
6.17.15

You know that weird notion that sometimes surfaces when you meet new people—that feeling that you already know them, but can’t remember why or how? Write a scene for a story about two people who both experience the same déjà vu upon meeting, with a plot driven by their need to figure out how they know each other. Use this opportunity to add an element of magical realism to your story. Perhaps they were married in a past life, or maybe they met in a dream. Once they solve the puzzle, how does this impact their lives going forward? Do they even believe the answer, or do they agree it’s too far-fetched?

The Savvy Self-Publisher: Clayton Smith

by
Debra W. Englander
The Practical Writer
July/August 2015
6.17.15

Clayton Smith has self-published several books, including his latest novel, Apocalypticon, and used his experiences to cofound Dapper Press, a company that provides essential services like editing, design, and promotion to self-published authors. Editor Kim Bookless and publicist Lissy Peace weigh in on Smith’s process, and such self-publishing necessities.

Tags: 
marketing | self-publishing | fiction

Edith Wharton–Straw Dog Writers Guild Writers-in-Residence Program

September/October 2023

The Edith Wharton–Straw Dog Writers Guild Writers-in-Residence Program offered one-week residencies during the month of March to nine emerging poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers at the Mount, Edith Wharton’s former home in Lenox, Massachusetts. Residents were provided a $500 stipend; dedicated private work spaces at the Mount, a 1902 Georgian revival mansion; and lodging at a nearby hotel with private bedrooms and bathrooms.

Type: 
RESIDENCY
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
no
Event Date: 
March 1, 2024
Rolling Admissions: 
ignore
Application Deadline: 
May 2, 2024
Financial Aid?: 
no
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
May 2, 2024
Free Admission: 
yes
Contact Information: 

Edith Wharton–Straw Dog Writers Guild Writers-in-Residence Program, The Mount, P.O. Box 974, Lenox, MA 01240. writersinresidence@edithwharton.org

Contact City: 
Lenox
Contact State: 
MA
Contact Zip / Postal Code: 
01240
Country: 
US
Genre: 
Poetry
Fiction
Creative Nonfiction

Unfamiliar Acquaintances

The Time Is Now
6.10.15

Every so often, we run into people we recognize but can’t quite place. Perhaps you catch sight of a strangely familiar face at your favorite coffee shop, and then later at a diner while visiting family out of town, and are puzzled by the coincidence. Write a story in which two of your characters keep crossing paths, either accidentally or because of particular circumstances. What keeps them from properly introducing themselves? Could they become good friends, or will they become adversaries?  

Deadline Approaches for Bard College Fiction Prize

G&A: The Contest Blog
6.8.15

Submissions are currently open for the Bard College Fiction Prize, given annually to a fiction writer under the age of 40 who has published at least one full-length work of fiction. The winner will receive $30,000 and a one-semester appointment as writer-in-residence at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The recipient must give at least one public lecture and meet informally with students but is not expected to teach traditional courses.

Submit three copies of a published book of fiction, a cover letter, and a curriculum vitae by June 15. There is no application fee. Submissions can be made via postal mail to P.O. Box 5000, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Established in 2001, the Bard Fiction Prize is “intended to encourage and support young writers of fiction to pursue their creative goals and provide an opportunity to work in a fertile and intellectual environment.” Recent recipients include Laura van den Berg for her second story collection, The Isle of Youth (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013); Bennett Sims for his debut novel, A Questionable Shape (Two Dollar Radio, 2013); Brian Conn for his debut novel, The Fixed Stars (Fiction Collective 2, 2010); and Benjamin Hale for his debut novel, The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore (Twelve, 2011).

The Bard College Written Arts department offers an undergraduate major but no graduate degree in creative writing. Core faculty members include Benjamin Hale, Michael Ives, Porochista Khakpour, Ann Lauterbach, Joseph O’Neill, Susan Fox Rogers, and Mona Simpson.

Jacqueline Woodson

Caption: 

"Brown Girl Dreaming is in verse because that's the way memory comes." Jacqueline Woodson speaks about her autobiographical novel, published by Nancy Paulsen Books last August, winner of the 2014 National Book Award in young people’s literature. Woodson was named the new young people’s poet laureate by the Poetry Foundation last week.

Genre: 
Fiction
Tags: 
National Book Award
Brown Girl Dreaming
Jacqueline Woodson
Nancy Paulsen Books

Specialty Dishes

The Time Is Now
6.3.15

Cooks usually have a specialty dish that is made with pride—one that is requested by friends and family for special events and holiday gatherings. This week, write about a character who is known for his or her specialty dish. It could be as basic as chocolate chip cookies, or perhaps he or she has invented an original dish with unheard-of ingredients. Has this character's culinary genius been influenced by a family member? Is this cook a raw talent?

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