Perseverance

When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."

~Author Unknown

Acclaim Film Television and Screenwriting Competition

The annual Acclaim Film Television and Screenwriting Competition is accepting submissions through June 15, 2009. The film contest includes pilots, movie of the week, and tv spec scripts.

Visit the official web site for complete submission guidelines.

Final Draft Big Break Screenwriting Competition

The Final Draft Big Break Screenwriting Competition is back with an extended deadline of June 14, 2009. Submit your dream screenplay for a chance to be discovered.

Visit the official web site for complete submission details.

Glimmer Train Short Story Award for New Writers

This is a last minute posting with a deadline of May 31, 2009. Glimmer Train is accepting submissions for new fiction writers for their Short Story Award for New Writers. Stories should not exceed 12,000 words. First prize is $1,200.00 and publication in Glimmer Train plus 20 copies.

Visit the official web site for complete details

BWW Returning

Black Woman Writing will be returning to the blogging world this spring. Stand by for the latest writing opportunities for 2009. Namaste.

Congratulations Barack Obama

Congratulations to Barack Obama the newly elected 44th president of the United States of America. Congratulations America for rising above to be the best we could all be, and for seeing clearly without seeing color. The Inauguration of Barack Obama is scheduled for January 20, 2009.

New Beginnings

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.”

- Seneca

Bellevue Literary Review Poetry and Prose Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Bellevue Literary Review for prizes in Poetry and Prose in fiction and creative nonfiction. The selected winners will receive $1000.00 and publication.

The deadline for submission is August 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

American Literary Review Literary Awards

Submissions are currently being accepted for the American Literary Review Literary Awards in the categories of poetry, short story, and essay. Prizes of $1000.00 per category will be awarded to the selected winning pieces.

The deadline for submission is September 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Fear and Moving On In Life

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

- Eleanor Roosevelt

Walt Disney Studios/ABC Writers Fellowship

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Walt Disney Studios/ABC Writers Fellowship Program. The programs is designed to seek out and employ culturally and ethnically diverse new writers.

The deadline for submission is August 8. 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Narrative First-Person Story Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted by Narrative for their First-Person Story Contest. $7000.00 in prizes will be awarded.

The deadline for submission is July 31, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Surrender

"The creative process is a process of surrender, not control.”

- Julia Cameron


“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.”

- Confucius

Camber Press Poetry Chapbook Award

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Camber Press Poetry Chapbook Award. The winning chapbook will receive publication by Camber Press and a $1000.00 prize.

The deadline for submission is August 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Storylink Pitch Your Story Contest

Here is the opportunity to pitch your story for a full length feature screenplay during the Storylink Pitch Your Story Contest. Not only do you have the opportunity to have a chance at having the right eyes on your screenplay, but also the opportunity to compete for a host of prizes.

The deadline for submission is August 31, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Writers on Creating

"Let your eyes transform what appears ordinary, commonplace, into what it is, a moment in time, an observed fragment of eternity."

-Philip Levine (Hirsch 11)

"Verbal passivity is a close relative of passivity of action ... 'I will change my life' means something different from 'my life is going to change.'"

-Kirk Nesset

"Fundamental accuracy is the sole morality of writing."

-Ezra Pound

"Menial work at the expense of all true, ardent, creative work is a sin against the Holy Ghost."

-Brenda Ueland from If You Want To Write (99)

Wordstock Short Fiction Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted by the Wordstock Short Fiction Competition. The winning short story will receive publication in Portland Monthly Magazine and a prize of $1000.00.

The deadline for submission is July 31,2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Sean O'Faolain Short Story Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted by the Munster Literature Centre for the Sean O’Faolain Short Story Competition. The winning story will receive publication in Southward Literary Journal and 1,500 euros or $2,344.00 (this is an approximate based on the daily bankers buying rate). The winner will also read the O'Connor Festival in Cork, Ireland in Septemeber.

The deadline for submission is July 31, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Recovery

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to just try one more time."

- Thomas Edison

"Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget about everything except what you're going to do now - and do it."

- William Durant

"Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time."

- Og Mandino

Robert Frost Place Residency

Submissions are currently being accepted for a two-month residency at the former home of poet Robert Frost. The selected recipient must have published at least one poetry collection.

The deadline for submission is July 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Crab Orchard Series in Poetry

Submission are currently being accepted for the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry. A price of $1000.00 and publication will be given to the winner. The contest is open to U.S. poets who have not previously published a collection of poetry. More information is provided at the official Web site including information on additional awards.

The deadline for submission is July 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Camber Press Poetry Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted by Camber Press for the annual Poetry Chapbook Collection Contest. The winning chapbook will receive $1000.00 and publication by Camber Press.

The deadline for submission is August 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Astounding Beauty Ruffian Press Poetry Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Astounding Beauty Ruffian Press Poetry Contest. The press is seeing a chapbook-length poetry collection by a U.S. Poet. The prize to the winning chapbook will be $1000.00.

The deadline for submission is September 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

The Past

"Do not brood over your past mistakes and failures as this will only fill your mind with grief, regret and depression. Do not repeat them in the future.”

- Swami Sivananda

Blue Mountain Center Artists Colony Residency for Nonfiction

Submissions are currently being accepted for a monthlong residency at the Blue Mountain Center located in Blue Mountain Lake, New York. The residency recipient of nonfiction/creative nonfiction work will also receive a $5000.00 stipend. All submissions should be designed to recall the work of Richard J. Margolis who focused on those who voices would otherwise not be heard.

The deadline for submission is July 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Barrow Street Press Poetry Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Barrow Street Press Poetry Contest. $1000.00 will be presented to the winning book length poetry collection.

The deadline for submission is June 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Dreamquest One Poetry and Short Story Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Dreamquest One Poetry and Short Story Contest. The contest is open to anyone, however all submissions must be the original work of the artist entering. Prizes range from $50.00 up to $500.00.

The deadline for submission is July 31st, 2008.

Please visit the official Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Perception

“If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear as it is - infinite.”

- William Blake

Autumn House Press Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted to Autumn House Press for a work of fiction from 200 up to 300 pages long. The winning submission will receive $1000.00, publication, and a travel grant to attend and participate in the Master Authors Series sponsored by Autumn House Press.

The deadline for submission June 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

American Literary Review Annual Writing Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the American Literary Review in the genres of poetry, fiction and nonfiction. Prizes include $1000.00 to each winning category and publication in the American Literay Review.

The deadline for submission is September 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submissin guidelines.

Rejuvenation

“Every living faith must have within itself the power of rejuvenation if it is to live.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

20/20 Screenplay Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted for the 20/20 Screenplay Competiton. Take advantage of the opportunity to break into the industry by submitting the first 20 pages of your screenplay. Submitted screenplays will be read by Script Surgeon and Let's Do Lunch/Screenbrokers' screenplay analysts, all of which are rated highly by Creative Screenwriting Magazine. A 20-point criteria checklist of "musts" for a production-ready script will determine who will be entered in Round Two for reading of the entire script. Additionally, all 20 criteria must be met in both rounds.

The deadline for submission is June 20, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Final Draft Annual Big Break Screenwriting Contest

Submissions are still being accepted for the annual Final Draft Big Break International Screenwriting Contest, which offers writers over $30,000 in cash and prizes. Other prizes include Hollywood meetings and a one-year mentorship. Previous winners and finalists have had their screenplays optioned and produced and have secured high-profile representation as well as lucrative writing deals.

The extended entry date is June 15, 2008.

For more information visit the Final Draft Big Break Contest Web site.

Isolation

“Being solitary is being alone well: being alone luxuriously immersed in doings of your own choice, aware of the fullness of your won presence rather than of the absence of others. Because solitude is an achievement.”

- Alice Koller

Alehouse Press Happy Hour Poetry Award

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Alehouse Press Happy Hour Poetry Award. The winning poet will receive $1000.00 and publication in Alehouse Press.

The deadline for submission is July 1st, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Reel Women Script Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Reel Women Script Competition. The competition was designed to support the careers of women writers be they emerging or accomplished writers. Full length and short screenplays will be accepted.

The deadline for submission is June 1st, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Reel Realities Screenplay Competition

Submissions are being accepted for the Reel Realities screenplay competition. First prize is production of the screenplay, second prize is $2500.00, and third prize is the latest edition of the Apple Macbook.

The deadline for submission is June 1st, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Self Control

"Self-disciplined begins with the mastery of your thoughts. If you don't control what you think, you can't control what you do. Simply, self-discipline enables you to think first and act afterward."

- Napoleon Hill

The Journal Short Story Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for The Journal Short Story Contest. The winning story will receive $1,000.00 and publication in The Journal.

The deadline for submission is May 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

The Kairos Prize for Spiritually Uplifting Screenplays

Submissions are being accepted for the Kairos Prize for Spiritually Uplifting Screenplays. Prizes up to $50,000.00 will be awarded to the winning screenplays.

The deadline for submission is October 27, 2008.

Visit the Web site for an application and complete submission guidelines.

Script Pimp Screenwriting Contest

Script Pimp is still accepting submissions for the annual screenwriting competition. Prizes range from $12,000.00 in cash, and up to $20,000.00 in prizes.

The deadline for submission is May 1, 2008.

Visit the web site for complete submission guidelines.

Procrastination

"How does a project get to be a year behind schedule? One day at a time."

- Fred Brooks

"Waiting is a trap. There will always be reasons to wait...The truth is, there are only two things in life, reasons and results, and reasons simply don't count."

- Robert Anthony

Page International Screenwriting Awards

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Page International Screenwriting Awards. The grand prize to the winning screenplay is $10,000.00.

The deadline for submission is April 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Southwest Review David Nathan Meyerson Prize for Fiction

Submissions are currently being accepted for Southwest Review and the David Nathan Meyerson Prize for Fiction. The winning submission will receive $1000.00 and publication.

The deadline for submission is May 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for submission guidelines.

Spoon River Poetry Review Editors' Prize

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Spoon River Poetry Review Editors' Prize. The winning submission will receive $1000.00 and publication in Spoon River Poetry Review.

The deadline for submission is April 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

How To Write

"The act of writing
bears something in common
with the act of love.

The writer,
at this most productive moment,
just flows.

He gives of that which is uniquely himself,
he makes himself naked.
Recording his nakedness in the written word.

Herein lies some of the terror
which frequently
freezes a writer."

- Sidney M. Jourard

4th Gival Press Novel Award

Submissions are currently being accepted for the 4th Gival Press Novel Award. The award is presented for the best original unpublished literary manuscripts in English. Manuscript length must be between 30,000 to 100,000 words. The winning manuscript will receive $3,000.00 plus author's copies.

The deadline for submission is May 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

E.M. Koeppel Annual Short Fiction Award

Submissions are currently being accepted for the E.M. Koeppel Annual Short Fiction Award. The winning submission will receive $1,100.00.

The deadline for submission is April 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submissioin guidelines.

The Way To Success

"Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life - think of it, dream of it, live on the idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success."

- Swami Vivekananda

Community of Writers at Squaw Valley

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Community of Writers at Squaw Valley summer workshops for 2008. The summer workshops which are held in the Sierra Nevadas host workshops in poetry which will be offered from July 19th to July 26th and in fiction and creative nonfiction from August 2th to August 9th.

The deadline for submission is May 10, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Andrews Forest Writer's Residency

Submissions are currently being accpeted for residency slots for the Andrews Forest Writers’ Residency which offers one-week residencies to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers in March, April, or May in the Oregon Cascades, 40 miles east of Eugene. Accepted applicants will be provided with a three-room apartment, which includes kitchen facilities, and access to the forest research site. The writers selected will also receive a $250.00 stipend.

The deadline for submission is May 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Peace of Mind

"Do not overrate what you have received, nor envy others. He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind.”

- Buddha

5th Annual Screenwriter's Challenge

Submissions are currently being accepted for the 5th Annual Screenwriter's Challenge. The Challenge requires writers compete to see who can produce the best short screenplay on an assigned genre and subject in one week. Prizes include $15,000.00 in cash and more.

The deadline for submission is April 2, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Plastic Poetry Screenplay Search

Plastic Poetry is currently looking for writers of screenplays in the Thriller Action Genre. They are requesting writers send the Synopsis first.

No specific deadline has been mentioned.

For more information visit the Web site for Plastic Poetry. Scripts may be sent to Plastic Poetry, Inc., 749 Indiana Avenue, Venice, California 90291. The phone contact is 310-980-2523.

Diagram Chapbook Contest

Submissions are currentlly being accepted for the Diagram Chapbook Contest. Diagram will be awarding $1000.00 and publication by New Michigan Press in the categories of fiction, creative nonfriction, poetry and mixed-genre work.

The deadline for submission is April 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Meditation

"Meditation is the gateway, through which you arrive to the world of freedom."

- Remez Sasson

One Real Story Poetry Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the One Real Story Poetry Contest. Winning poems will be read via Podcast providing the poet with excellent exposure among creative writing audiences and lovers of poetry.

The deadline for submission is April 1, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Autumn House Press Poetry Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Autumn House Press Poetry Prize. A travel grant of $1500.00, a prize of $1000.00 and publication in Autumn House Press will be awarded to the winning poetry collection.

The deadline for submission is June 30, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Patience

"The greatest prayer is Patience."

- Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta, the founder of Buddhism, 563-483 B.C.)


“Life is all about timing... the unreachable becomes reachable, the unavailable become available, the unattainable... attainable. Have the patience, wait it out. It's all about timing.”

- Stacey Charter

PAGE International Screenwriting Awards

The 2008 PAGE International Screenwriting Awards are seeking the best new original Screenplays, Short Film Scripts & Original TV Pilots. The grand prize is $10,000.00.

The deadline for submissioin is March 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Story Quarterly Love Story Contest

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Story Quarterly Love Story Contest. The contest is open to fiction and nonfiction entries. Awards include a First Prize of $2,500.00, a Second Prize of $1,500.00, a Third Prize of $750.00, and ten Finalists each will receive $100.00.

The deadline for submission is March 31, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Reaching Destiny

"Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; for it becomes your destiny."

- Upanishads

Academy of American Poets Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Academy of American Poets Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize. A prize of $25,000.00 will be awarded for the most outstanding book of poems written during the previous year. Poets must be a U.S. citizen.

The deadline for submission is June 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted for the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition. First place prize is $3000.00 cash and a trip to New York City, which involves meetings with editors and agents.

Submission categories for the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition include the following: Memoirs and Personal Essay, Magazine Feature Article, Inspirational Writing, Genre Short Story, Mainstream Literary Short Story, Rhyming Poetry,Non-rhyming Poetry, Stage Play, Television/Movie Script, and Children's Young Adult Fiction.

The deadline for submission is May 15, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete contest prize details and submission guidelines.

Superiority

"There's nothing noble in being superior to your fellow men. True nobility is being superior to your former self."

- Ernest Miller Hemingway

Astrea Foundation Lesbian Writers Fund

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Astraea Foundation Lesbian Writers Fund. Two $10,000 grants are given annually to emerging lesbian poets and fiction writers. There will also be a grant of $1500.00 given to a runner-up in each category. Applicants must have published work at least once in a newspaper, magazine, literary journal, or anthology but must not have published more than one book in any genre.

The deadline for submission is June 29, 2008.

Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Creative Screenwriting AAA Screenplay Competition

Submissions are currently being accepted for the Creative Screenwriting AAA Screenplay Competition. The grand prize for the winning script is $8,400.00 of which $5000.00 is cash. The Grand Prize winner will also receive agency/production company consideration, access to producers, agents, managers, and other writers via FREE pitches at the Screenwriting Expo. There will also be a special Jury Prize for the best love story.

The deadline for submission is June 25, 2008.

For more information visit the Web site today.