Open Mic Every Wednesday Evening ~

If you're inclined toward being on stage to share your work with a live audience, and/or enjoy being there while others do so, then you're sure to enjoy Open Mic Wednesdays at Sunset Junction in Silver Lake. Sign-ups are from 7:30 - 7:45 for a show-time of 8:00. The $3.00 cover charge includes a free drink (of the same or less value), and all proceeds go to a good cause: The Sunset Junction Youth Program. Poetry and comedy performers get 5 minutes of stage time, while musical acts can play 2 songs.

Have You Been Redeemed?

Have you been redeemed, either in a spiritual or secular sense? Has anyone you know? Your cat or dog? (I don't know about you, but some evil kitties I know -- ahem -- could stand a little redemptive intervention). In any case, the Georgetown Review is sponsoring a writing contest with a theme of -- you guessed it -- redemption, and they are very flexible as to how the use of that word is interpreted. Your story, poem or essay may deal with those who find redemption or those who don't. First prize is $1000 and publication. Submissions must be postmarked by November 15, 2007. There's an entry fee of $10 for your first entry, and $5 for each entry thereafter.

Are You Interested in Seeing Your Work Get Published?

The Sun Magazine accepts submissions year-round for it's magazine, and: THEY PAY! $300 to $1500 for essays and interviews, $300 to $1000 for fiction, and $50 to $250 for poetry. Contributers also receive a complimentary one-year subscription to their magazine.

Brewery Art Walk this Weekend

Go check out all the fabulous artists at the Brewery Art Walk this weekend. It's a super fun day and many a famous LA artist have live/work space there!

Novel Contest

First 5000 submissions only!

Amazon Launches Debut Novel Contest
Amazon is getting into the author-writing contest arena, launching the
first Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award today in cooperation with
Penguin and Hewlett-Packard. Amazon will accept submissions through
November 5 and the winner will have his or her novel published by
Penguin, which is also offering a $25,000 advance. PW will serve as
preliminary judges of the material as well.

The contest is free and open to unpublished authors in 20 countries
who have English-language manuscripts (complete contest rules and
requirements are available at www.amazon.com/abna). Amazon, which will
accept up to 5,000 entries, is assembling a panel of customers who
have posted the most, and best, reviews on its site to serve as the
judges for the first round. After the submissions have been cut to
1,000, a team put together by PW will give a full review to each
manuscript, and the review and excerpt will be posted on the Amazon
Web site where customers can read, rate and review the offerings. The
PW team -- of existing and new reviewers -- will be paid to administer
the reviews, and reviewers will remain anonymous. Amazon is paying
PW's administrative costs only.

More Writing Contests!

Our Echo sponsors many writing contests, all of which have no entry or reading fees of any kind. One of these is offered each month for a $100 prize. Winners are selected from posts on their website. Check it out: you literally have nothing to lose!

Let The Writer Beware!

We've all heard of the many scams that target the elderly. Surprisingly, there are also scam artists whose aim is to target the literary-inclined. Those of us interested in earning a little money or gaining a little recognition for our written words should be careful about selecting which contests to enter. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. provides a webpage well-worth reading for poets and short-story writers alike.