Words Alive Literary Festival Short Story Competition

Here's the Call for Submissions for the Words Alive Literary Festival's upcoming writing contest. Founder and chair Vali Stone says that fiction based on memoir will be accepted. The festival takes place September 21, 2008, in Sharon, Ontario. I will lead a workshop from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., "Banish Those Excuses: Why You Can (and Should) Write Memoir."

Check out www.wordsalive.ca. If you have further questions, please contact vstone@wordsalive.ca.

Call for Submissions: Words Alive Literary Festival Second Annual Short Story Competition

ADULT SUBMISSIONS (ages 17 and over)


Contest Rules:

1. Entrants must be commercially unpublished writers.
2. Entries must be original, unpublished, non-contracted works of fiction.
3. Length of entry must not exceed 2000 words (including a, an, the, etc.) Only one entry per person.
4. Entries are confidential and non-returnable.
5. All work submitted remain the property of their authors.


Submissions:

1. Work must be uploaded to the website at www.wordsalive.ca under Contests and correct age category or mailed to the address on the website.
2. The title of the story must be typed at the top of the first page along with your name, address, phone number and “Adult Submission” – otherwise your entry is disqualified.
3. Be sure of your word count! Type the word count under your title.
4. Every entry will be read by judges. Judges’ decisions are final.
5. DEADLINE: August 15th, 2008.
6. Top three winners will be notified by phone by September 15th, 2008.
7. Prize winners will be announced at the Words Alive Literary Festival on Sunday, September 21st, 2008 in the Sharon Temple.

Bernie Kuntz to Launch "Limericks to Save Planet Earth" in Fall 2008

Workshop participant Bernie Kuntz shares the news that his creative poetry-for-charity project, a self-published book titled Limericks to Save Planet Earth, is written, and production is well underway. Limericks will be available for purchase in Fall 2008. Bernie is also a member of the WALRUS Club, a writing group that he and several other enthusiastic writers -- Celine Kessler, Margaret Nosworthy, Sonia Goodman and Stan Stevenson -- created after meeting in my June 2007 North York Central Library workshop series.

Here's the preface to his book, along with his bio.


Preface

This book is an endeavour to support three worthy charitable organizations involved in cancer, heart and climate change. None of these organizations were involved in, or have in any way endorsed, the contents of this book.

I plan to donate one-third of the profits from the sale of this book to each of the organizations. Regarding the first two causes, I have lost family and friends who have succumbed to cancer and heart related problems at too young an age.

As for the third cause, before the environmental issue caught on in a big way with the public, business community, politicians and media in 2006, I was involved in several initiatives to try and spread awareness and support action against global warming and climate change. Much of this work was done with the help of a friend, Prodyot (PK) Lala.

Hopefully, most readers will find that by buying this book they will share the same good feelings that I experienced, knowing that they have supported one or more causes they can identify with through their life experiences.

***

Readers may even enjoy some of the poetry as an unexpected bonus!!!

While many of the limericks are based on real people, places and events, names have been changed to preserve anonymity.

***

WARNINGS:

Please don’t operate heavy machinery for at least 4 hours after reading any limericks…!

While most of the poems are about nature, people, etc. a few actually deal with "mature content"!!! (Readers who shun the traditional “naughty” genre of limericks should refrain from reading the chapter titled “Mature” in Part 1.)

Bernie Kuntz

About the Author/Poet

Bernie Kuntz grew up in South Africa where he qualified as a Chemical Engineer. He then worked for many years in a variety of industries in South Africa and England. He later qualified as a Chartered Accountant in South Africa – and Canada, after his emigration there.

He has held management positions in industry, public accounting, the public sector and consulting. He has also been active in volunteer activities.


His interests include, but are not limited to, activities involving words and creativity, e.g. reading, writing, theatre, music, poetry, puns, Scrabble, cryptic crossword puzzles, inventions and the like.

He maintains that his time spent in England and the special attributes of his two professions helped to provide the interest and structure required to write limericks! That may be a stretch…

Bernie is married and lives in Toronto, along with his two married children and three grandchildren.

Call for Submissions: 2008 Lake Country Literary Lapses

This just in ...

Attention Writers!

2008 Call for Submissions

Lake Country Literary Lapses

The Mariposa Writers’ Group is seeking submissions for its annual Lake Country Poetry and Short Story Competitions (for commercially unpublished writers) to be held in conjunction with the 2008 Lake Country Literary Lapses Festival.

This year’s Festival (the fourth annual) will take place on Friday August 15 on the grounds of the Leacock Home and Museum, in Orillia. A variety of events (workshop, readings etc.) will take place throughout the day and the Manticore Book Awards (and cash prizes) for the competitive Short Story and Poetry submissions will be presented at an evening Gala.

We are interested in works, real or fictional, which evoke emotion and/or comment in some way on the human condition. We are also accepting submissions for our (non competitive - no fee) “Summer Readers” feature as well.

For full entry guidelines (Poetry, Short Story or Summer Reader), please contact

Heather Gosein at heather_gosein@hotmail.com or call 705- 484-5644

John Forrest at johnforrest@rogers.com 705 -325 - 9403