Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Huntington Writers Showcase

Arts Resources for the Tri-State is hosting its first Writers Showcase, highlighting the region's writers. This will be a performance based event held quarterly. Their vision for this project is to foster the growth of writers in the field of performing arts and provide venues for the performance of their original works.

The Herald Dispatch newspaper has an article with details on how writers can submit their work. Find the article HERE.

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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Twelve Secrets to Being a Super Prolific Short Story Writer

Sci-Fi blog io9.com has an article called Twelve Secrets to Being a Super-Prolific Short Story Writer by Charlie Jane Anders.

Check it out HERE.

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Sunday, January 24, 2010

Becky Conrad, guest columnist for Gazette

WV Writers' own Becky Conrad was a guest columnist for the Charleston Gazette on Sunday.

Find her article at the following link...

http://wvgazette.com/Life/lifecolumnists/201001220729

Arts Day at the Capitol

West Virginia Writers will have a table at Arts Day at the Capitol 2010, distributing conference preview flyers and contest entry forms o' plenty. We'll also be performing, with live readings from Tim Armentrout, Cat Pleska and Eric Fritzius starting at 1p.

Come on by and see the show and us.

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Friday, January 22, 2010

Glimmer Train Very Short Fiction contest, deadline approaching

VERY SHORT FICTION AWARD
Deadline: January 31

Prizes:
1st place wins $1,200, publication in Glimmer Train Stories, and 10 copies.
2nd-place: $500 and possible publication.
3rd-place: $300 and possible publication.
Results post on March 31. Winning story will be published in Issue 79.

Other considerations:
Open to all writers.
Length not to exceed 3,000 words. Any shorter lengths are welcome.
Reading fee is $15 per story.

Submit your story HERE.

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Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Morgantown Poets Winter Series Reminder

(This news courtesy of George Lies of WVW and Morgantown Poets fame)

Three authors will launch Morgantown Poets winter/spring 2010 series at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21, at Monongalia Arts Center (MAC).

T.W. (Terry) McNemar of Stonewood and poets Matt Anserello of Morgantown and Isaac Pressnell of Keyser will share their talents. Adam Atkinson, co-director and literary editor of Open Thread, a regional arts service organization, will introduce the poets.

The reading is free and open to the public. The MAC is at 107 High Street, downtown Morgantown (beside Hotel Morgan).

McNemar is a humor, short story and novel writer. His writing reflects the humanity, humor and conscience of everyday life, often in a strong Appalachian style. McNemar’s work has been featured in The Johns-Hopkins University ‘ScribblePress,’ the drama textbook, Young Women’s Monologues from Contemporary Plays, MountainEchoes, and Traditions, the literary journal of Fairmont State University. His novella, “Ragdoll Angel” (Booklocker, 2007), tells the story of a kidnapping in a small mountain village in 1952. McNemar is also the current president of West Virginia Writers, Inc.

Anserello holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from West Virginia University and lives in Morgantown with writer Emily C. Watson and two retired greyhounds. His poems have appeared in Bat City Review, Phoebe, Smartish Pace, and Versal, among others. Anserello is the West Virginia winner of the 2009 Open Thread Tri-State Chapbook Contest for his chapbook, “Cloud Shaped Room.”

Pressnell earned his Master of Fine Arts in poetry from WVU. His poems have appeared, or are forthcoming, in Tar River Poetry, Ninth Letter, DIAGRAM, Opium, Bravado, Lake Effect and OTQ: Open Thread Quarterly. He lives in Keyser where he teaches English at Potomac State College.

IMPORTANT NOTE: During winter months, Morgantown Poets schedules featured authors on a WEATHER-PERMITTING basis. If weather conditions are poor, Morgantown Poets does not guarantee any and/or all scheduled authors will be able to attend. In fact, Morgantown Poets discourages anyone (featured authors included) from attempting to drive in poor weather conditions, snow or ice. We urge everyone to exercise utmost caution during winter driving season. DO NOT attempt to drive to any event if road conditions are (or may become) hazardous.. Safety first!

Public parking is available near the MAC in the parking garage at the corner of Pleasant and Chestnut streets and at the city lot behind 142 High Street (enter off Spruce). The MAC is accessible to individuals with special mobility requirements; schedule ahead at least seven days prior to the event by calling 304-292-3325, or write to info@monartscenter.com.

Established in 1977, West Virginia Writers, Inc. (http://www.wvwriters.org) is the state’s largest nonprofit, all-volunteer, writers' resource and service organization serving literary interests. West Virginia Writers sponsors both an annual writers’ conference and an annual writing competition.

Open Thread (http://openthread.org) is a regional arts service organization that develops frameworks for artistic discovery in Pittsburgh and the surrounding tri-state area. With an emphasis on the emerging artists, writers and performers, Open Thread has been producing arts events and small publications since 2007.

Morgantown Poets is an informal not-for-profit, all-volunteer community group that meets from 7-9 p.m. the third Thursday of each month at MAC, providing literary enthusiasts in north-central West Virginia the opportunity to express themselves, share their work, network and to connect up-and-coming writers with more established authors. New writers are welcome. Join the group on Facebook by entering “Morgantown Poets” in Facebook’s search. Or join Morgantown Poets mailing list by writing to morgantownpoets@yahoo.com or the listserve at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/motownpoetry.

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Monday, January 18, 2010

Six Questions For... blog

Writer/editor/blogger Jim Harrington has created a blog called "Six Questions For..." in which he publishes a series of interviews with editors from a wide section of the publishing field, posing to them six questions in search of the sort of details they are looking for in stories they'd be willing to publish.

Check it out for yourselves at... http://sixquestionsfor.blogspot.com/

Friday, January 15, 2010

WV Writers Podcast: Keith Pitzer Tribute with Pops Walker

Episode 24 of the WV Writers Podcast is now available. It is a special double-size episode in tribute to musician Keith Pitzer, who was a friend of WV Writers and of this podcast. Keith died after a battle with cancer on December 22 , 2009. Joining us for the episode is Pops Walker, who was a good friend of Keith's. We talk about Keith the man, the musician and the tireless servant of the ecological health of the Cheat River. We'll also hear some of the outtakes from my interview with him last June, including some of the amazing music he made alongside his wife Joan.

Find Episode 24 posted on our podcast website.

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Thursday, January 14, 2010

Members Matter: Tovli Simiryan's recent publications

Wanted to pass along some great news regarding some recent publications by WVW member Tovli Simiryan.

“Pieces of Ester—Cartography of War” was nominated for a 2009 Push Cart Prize by Raving Dove Literary Magazine

“Point of Departure” and “Biopsy”, two short stories, are included in the new volume of 6S, available at Amazon.com

An essay by Tovli, “Melodies of Old Women” was published by IDEALS—Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals.

A memoir, “Belonging”, by Tovli is included in It All Changed in an Instant: More Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure. This volume, published January 2010, is available at Amazon.com, or Smith Magazine.

“When Clouds Were Real”, a short story by Tovli, was published in the Winter edition of Raving Dove Literary Magazine.

A collection of short stories, Ruach of the Elders, Spiritual Teachings of the Silent, by Tovli is available at Amazon.com, or via Tovli’s web site.

Poetry Collections: The Breaking of the Glass and Fixing the Broken Glass are available at Amazon.com or, contact Tovli directly via her website: http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeej44z/index.html

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New Voices Original Short Play Festival Lineup Announced

The Greenbrier Valley Theatre is presenting their second annual New Voices Original Short Play Festival later this month.

The plays in the festival include "Embers" by Jeffrey C. Kanode (Lewisburg, WV), "The Unopened Valentine" by Dwayne Yancey (Fincastle, VA), "Roses" by John J. Carosella (Jeanette, PA), "...and Tigers and Bears" by Eric Fritzius (Princeton, WV), and "A Greek Fire Drill" by Christian Giggenbach (Lewisburg, WV).

This years New Voices Cast includes (in alphabetical order) Pamela Barry, Ellen Broudy, Adam Criddle, Larry Davis, Paul Detch, Meredith Donnelly, Mary Leb Foster, Eric Graves, Kelly Kemp, Brian Miluk, George Piasecki, Brennan Smith, and Derek Teaney. Directors include Kurtis Donnelly, Michael Sharp and John Holt.
Shows are January 21-23 and January 28-30 at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in down town Lewisburg.

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