Theater for the Quick Minded

Whether you suffer from ADD (don't we all on some level?) or can concentrate for hours, or if you just need a break from all that pre-Halloween candy you've been chowing down on, the folks at ACTober Fest have put together two weekends of 10 minute plays around town that sound like they might be fun to check out, and feature several Los Angeles based writers. If you go, drop us a comment and let us know how you liked them.

Group A (Oct. 17- 19):

Carwash, or in this town, you are what you drive by Stephanie Hutchinson (Los Angeles, CA)

Directed by Wynn Marlow

Saw what you did by Kyndall Amber Brown (Washington DC) - Youth

Mountain Road by Jan Michael Alejandro (Los Angeles, CA)

Directed by Lana Ford

Call me Comrade by Ross Peter Nelson (Sunnyvale, CA)

Directed by Karanai Ravenscroft

Life is just a bowl of cellos by Ann L. Gibbs (Los Angeles, CA)

Directed by Amanda Korpitz

Bed Scene by John A. Donnelly (Portland, OR)

Directed by Kristina Lloyd

O’Henry’s Shoe by Mark Saunders (Hillsboro, OR)

Directed by Diane Christiansen

Elevator by Natasha Yim (Ukiah, Ca)

Directed by David Robinson

Group B (Oct.24 - 26):

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A Change of Plan by Dennis Jones (Powhatan, VA)

Directed by Samantha Brown

The Appointment by Jordan T. Maxwell (Los Angeles, CA)

Directed by Jonathan Hunt

Sea of Bitterness by Lauren O’Connor (Trussville, AL)

Directed by Pavel Cerny

The Basic 7 by Mark Troy (Burbank, CA)

Directed by Sal Romeo

Autodigesting by Bonnie Lake (Newburyport, MA)

Directed by Kaz Matamura

Somewhere between the Sky and the Sea by Alex Broun (Australia)

Directed by Steve Hibbert

War Letters by Umesh Yogesh Patel (Bogart, GA)

Directed by John Szura

Climb the smallest Mountain by Michael Gordon Shapiro (Los Angeles, CA) Musical

Directed by Derrel Maury

A Picture Worth Five-Hundred Words ~

Here's a picture to get you started on an entry to Tattoo Highway's current prose/poetry contest.Take a look at it, mull it over, (How do you really feel about whatever it is they're doing to those fish?) and write a 500-word-or-less short-short story, or a 15-lines-or-less poem, to send to them by "sometime in January '09." If you win, in addition to the glory, the first place winner in each category will receive a $30 bookstore gift certificate and publication in their 18th issue. Mark your entry clearly in the subject field of your email: "TH18 Contest," and send it to: submissions(at)tattoohighway(dot)org.

lunchhourbooks.com Seeks Short Stories

lunchhourbooks.com is searching for short stories for their upcoming online subscription-based publication. Also check out their Tips for Better Stories which gives some interesting insight into what they are and are not seeking.

According to their site:

"Lunch Hour Stories magazine is always seeking excellent short stories for publication. Stories should be previously unpublished, mainstream or literary in nature, 4000-8000 words in length, and formatted in common manuscript format... Genre writers: Mild suspense, mystery, fantasy, and sci-fi will be considered, as long as the story can appeal to a general audience. Please do not send children's, religious, romance or erotica, as they will not be considered... Submissions are accepted at any time of the year; however, the deadline for entry into our annual short story contest is June 30 of each year."

What Agents Hate

Here is an informative article from Writer's Digest about what agents hate to read when reading the first chapter of your novel.

Writer’s Digest - What Agents Hate

LitMatch - Literary Agent Directory, Response Times and Submission Tracking

We found another groovy site for finding agents and tracking submissions. Membership is free and they offer a matching search to find agents suitable to your work.

From their site:

LitMatch - Literary Agent Directory, Response Times and Submission Tracking: "More than just a directory, LitMatch is the FREE source for literary agent information that allows writers to organize their search for representation and track their submissions online!"

They are also currently running a one-year anniversary give-away to current and new subscribers (it's free to sign-up!) who sign and enter up by December 31st, 2008, where you can win:

1 - Grand Prize: One FREE online sales class, courtesy of Gotham Writers' Workshop (a $150 value!) Choose from the following classes:

• Nonfiction Book with nonfiction book editor Stephanie Staal
• How to Sell Your Screenplay with Hollywood insider David Title
• How To Freelance with professional freelancer Cindy Price
• How To Get Published with literary agent Stephen Barbara

2 - One of five, one-year subscriptions to The Writer Magazine.

3- One of three, one-year memberships to TheNextBigWriter.com

What's The Worst That Could Happen?

If you've been through a particularly harrowing experience, a nightmare road trip where everything that could go wrong did, the Road Junky 2008 Travel Writing Contest -- Hell Trips is the perfect contest for you! They want to hear about your worst journeys, your near-death experiences, where you were beaten up, robbed, extorted, heartbroken or brainwashed. There's no fee to enter this contest from the dark side of life on the road, and the deadline's not until December 31, 2008, so there's plenty of time to figure out the best way to approach and describe for maximum effect. Not only that, there are prizes to be won!

• First Prize: $400
• Second Prize: $200
• Third Prize: $100

Also, if they choose to print your story in an anthology, you will get paid decent royalties. Send your 800 to 1500 word non-fiction story to editor(at)roadjunky(dot)com, and be sure to put "2008 Travel Contest" in the subject. Please go to their website to check out the rest of the contest guidelines.

You Don't Have To Be Jewish ...

... but if you have insight into the Jewish culture, you might want to look into these no-fee contests sponsored by Lilith Magazine. Lilith is accepting submissions to two contests: one for fiction, one for poetry. They are looking for original, unpublished stories (3,000 words or less), with heart, soul, and chutzpah, that illuminate issues in the lives of Jewish women. FIRST PRIZE is $250 and publication of their story in Lilith Magazine. Mail your fiction submission by November 1, 2008 to:

Lilith Magazine, 250 West 57th Street, Suite 2432, New York, NY, 10107.
(They do not accept emailed submissions).

For their poetry contest, they are looking for edgy and exciting work that touches in any way on the Jewish women's experience. Winning poets will win a cash prize, publication in Lilith Magazine, and the possibility of a public reading. You may submit up to 3 poems that do not exceed 100 lines in length. Submit your poems to the same address as the fiction contest, but don't forget to put "Charlotte Newberger Poetry Prize Competition," above the name of the magazine. Poetry entries must be postmarked by November 30, 2008. Please go to their website to check out the rest of their Writer's Guideline's.