Local L.A. Event

Readings & Conversation: Red Hen's Monday Evenings at the Geffen

Monday, December 3 at 7:30 p.m.

The Geffen Playhouse, in an effort to reach out to the Los Angeles community, partnered with Red Hen Press to create our new series Red Hen’s Monday Evenings at the Geffen, hosted by Kate Gale and select moderators. Given the flowering of literature, music and theatre in this most auspicious city for the arts, we are pleased to give writers a stage to speak their voice. In the tangled palm trees and afternoon sun, some of us pause to pick up a pen, and with our pen to call for action. As the great Raymond Chandler so aptly put it, “When in doubt, have a man come through the door with a gun in his hand.” Sometimes that gun is a new way of looking at education, sometimes it’s an idea about poetry. Sometimes it isn’t a gun at all. We invite you to come through the door into our world of ideas. Welcome to Red Hen Press’s Monday Evenings at the Geffen.

Jennifer Egan is a novelist, journalist and short story writer. Her novel, The Keep, was a New York Times Notable Book for 2006, and Look at Me was a finalist for the National Book Award in 2001. Egan is the recipient of fellowships from the NEA and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and was a fellow at the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library. She lives in Brooklyn.

Janet Fitch is the author of the novels Paint It Black, published in 2006, and White Oleander, an Oprah Book Club selection. Her short stories have appeared in such publications as Los Angeles Noir, Black Clock, Room of One’s Own, and Black Warrior Review. She teaches creative writing at USC and the Squaw Valley Community of Writers.

Sarah Goodyear has written for the Village Voice, Time Out New York, Ms. magazine, and many other publications. View from a Burning Bridge, published by Red Hen Press in spring 2007, is her first novel. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her family.

Moderator: Jonathan Kirsch is the author of A History of the End of the World: How the Most Controversial Book in the Bible Changed the Course of Western Civilization and nine other books, including The Harlot by the Side of the Road: Forbidden Tales of the Bible He is a book reviewer for the Los Angeles Times, a broadcaster for NPR, and an attorney specializing in publishing law and intellectual property.

Geffen Playhouse
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater
10886 Le Conte Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90024
For Tickets Call: 310-208-5454
Admission: General $20
Students & Seniors $15
Seating is limited and on a first come basis.

Write To Win!

If you're a writer who doesn't always know where to begin a story, this contest is for you! Writers' Journal's Write-to-Win Contest provides starter phrases! Deadlines and starter phrases for the next 3 contests are as follows:

• December 20th, 2007: "The plane landed, but ..."
• February 20th, 2008: "Someday, your curiosity ..."
• April 20th, 2008: "They both stared at ..."

There's a maximum of 1500 words, and the entry fee is only $5. First prize is $150 and the winning entry will be published in the Writers' Journal. Honorable mentions will get one-year subscriptions.

Short Story Competition

Zadie Smith is judging a short story competition with a 5,000 pound prize (that's about
$10,000 dollars). Best of all? Entry is free. That's right, while every other contest will
charge you $15 or $20 bucks, this one doesn't cost a cent. And, if that isn't enough to get
you to apply, the winner and 10 runners up all get published in a book.

Here's the link:

http://newshortstories.homestead.com/

BlueCat Screenplay Competition

2008 BlueCat Screenplay Competition CALL FOR ENTRIES
*Grand Prize:$10,000
*Four Finalists: $1500
*Every writer who enters receives written script analysis
Early Bird Script Analysis:
All screenplays submitted by DEC 1 will receive their analysis by JAN 5
All screenplays submitted by JAN 2 will receive their analysis by FEB 1
Entry fee $50
EARLY DEADLINE: Dec 1, 2007
SUBMIT NOW: http://www.bluecatscreenplay.com

Writers Digest Poetry Competition

This just in from Writers Digest:
We're pleased to announce the only WD competition exclusively for poets, the Writer's Digest Poetry Awards! Regardless of style—rhyming, free verse, haiku and more—if your poems are 32 lines or fewer, we want them all. Submit your entries by the December 20, 2007 deadline ... and your words could be worth cold hard cash!

First Place: $500
Second Place: $250
Third Place: $100
Fourth Through Tenth Place: $25
Eleventh Through Twenty-Fifth Place: $50 gift certificate to Writer's Digest Books

Plus, the names and poem titles of all First- through Tenth-Place winners will be printed in an upcoming issue of Writer's Digest, and all winners will receive a copy of the 2008 Poet's Market. Click here for guidelines and to enter online!

Audio Short Stories To Go

Sniplets is working to establishing themselves as a new short story publisher with a goal of becoming the best place to find short stories to download to your MP3 player, cellphone, or "whatever." They will pay $50 to $150 upon publication of stories between 50 and 10,000 words. They welcome the work of new as well as established authors, but don't want anything hateful, pornographic, or excessively violent. All genres, including some poetry, are welcome.

Story Quarterly Fiction Contest

The SQ Fiction Contest
FINAL WEEK — the deadline for submission is November 30.
The contest offers a First Prize of $2,500, a Second Prize of $1,500, and a Third Prize of $750.
Additionally, ten Finalists will each receive $100.
Winners will be announced by December 31.
Log in and enter at StoryQuarterly.com.

Glimmer Train Press - Contest

The November Short Story Award for
New Writers closes on November 30.
We welcome your submissions online: www.glimmertrain.org, then hit the
yellow Submissions tab.

"Read this article," he said. "Why?" I asked. "It's good," he replied.

Both fiction and news writing work better when you let your characters use their own words to tell your story. This article by Andrea Di Salvo explains why, and gives some pointers on using quotes to give a creative twist to your writing.

Los Angeles Open Mic

This just in:
On November 20th, The Valley Contemporary Poets presents Carine Topal at the :

Cobalt Café
22047 Sherman Way in Canoga Park,
(just west of Topanga Canyon)
9pm
Free – one drink minimum
Open Mic

Short Short Story Competition

Writer's Digest's 8th Annual Short Short Contest is happening now! They are looking for work that is Bold, Brilliant, but Brief: 1500 words or less, and the deadline is December 3, 2007. You may enter online or via regular mail, and the entry fee is $12 per manuscript. There will be prizes: 1st Place: $3000, 2nd place: $1500, 3rd place: $500, 4th through 10th place: $100, and 11th through 25th place: a $50 gift certificate for Writer's Digest Books.

Women: Write Your Way To Starting Your Own Business!

The Mirassou Winery, a longtime supporter of Women in Business, is sponsoring an essay contest that will net the winner $50,000 in seed money to start her own business. The deadline for their Make Your Dreams Come True With Mirassou contest is December 15, 2007. Your personal essay of 500 words or less should include 1) a description of the new business, 2) consumer appeal to the new business, and 3) a plan to implement the new business.

Dream Quest One Poetry & Short Story Contest

Dream Quest One's poetry and short story contests are open to everyone, and you may write about any subject or theme you like. Short stories should be 5 pages or less; poems should be 30 lines or less. There is a small entry fee, ($10.00 per short story, $5 per poem), and you may enter as many times as you like. Cash prizes for poetry contest winners range from $50 to $250, and short story winners will receive from $100 to $500. The deadline for both contests is December 31, 2007.

VERY Short Story Contest

If you've got a short piece that you've been concerned is not long enough to be published, here's the contest for you: Lunch Hour Stories is accepting submissions for its annual VERY Short Story Contest through December 31st of each year. Winners are considered for prizes as well as publication as part of an anthology in December of the following year. Your stories should be previously unpublished and up to 500 words. There is a $5 reading fee per story or poem, for a chance to win $25, $50, or $100.

Short Story Competition ~

Win big bucks! The L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers and Illustrators of the Future contest awards prizes every quarter, with the next contest deadline being December 31st. Each quarter prizes up to $1,000 are awarded. At the end of the year, a Grand Prize of $5000 is awarded to the Best Short Story and the Best Illustration of the year. All types of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Dark Fantasy are welcome. There's no entry fee for this contest. Simply submit your original prose, up to 17,000 words, by midnight at the end of the quarter, for your chance to win $500, $750, $1,000 and $5,000!

Where Will Love Blossom Next In Your Life?

Life coach Melissa Rosati, whose clients are writers, authors and creative artists, shares this insightful essay about her experience in discovering her own writer's voice. If you believe that "there is no end to the journey inward," you will enjoy reading the starting places she provides for that endless journey.

How to Begin? Where to Go?

Need a little help getting started on your fiction writing? Annette Beveridge-Young, a freelance writer and editor at Savannah Publishing, has compiled this list of 15 suggestions to help writers flesh out your characters and bring the settings of your stories to life.

Eliminating Obstacles ~

If you're interested in writing but just can't seem to find time to indulge in your creative outlet, this article by Mui Tsun, the creator of Inspire Software, might help you to overcome some of the obstacles life places in our way.