Telling Tales: A Literary Memoir Writing Contest
TOPIC: “Any life is made up of a single moment, the moment in which a man finds out, once and for all, who he is.” --Jorge Louis Borges
"Tales from the South" radio show, in conjunction with William F. Laman Public Library and the 2011 Arkansas Literary Festival, is looking for great true stories.
Top three stories will receive $100 each, and writers will read their winning story on the internationallysyndicated radio show on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 at Starving Artist Cafe' in the Argenta Arts District of North Little Rock, AR. Judging is by a panel of writers, professors, and editors. More information on the show can be found at www.talesfromthesouth.com
Submission Guidelines
1. Writers must currently live in the South (currently limited to Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama) or be from the South originally.
2. Stories must be true and told in the first person-- recounting things that happened to you, not someone else, and they must be literary memoirs--not editorials, poems, top-ten lists, essays, or general statements of personal belief. There must be a clear narrative structure (not just chronologies: something must happen). We're looking for rising action building to a climax/epiphany. Literary memoir, not personal essay, is what we are looking for. See #5 for contest topic information. We also highly suggest you listen to past shows: www.talesfromthesouth.com/listen.html
3. If accepted, writers must read their own stories and be available to record in front of a live audience at Starving Artist Cafe' in the Argenta Arts District of North Little Rock, Arkansas, on Tuesday, April 12, 2011. Lodging provided for writers outside of the Central Arkansas area.
4. Stories must be between 1000-1200 words.
5. TOPIC: The topic for this contest is your literary memoir based on this quote: “Any life is made up of a single moment, the moment in which a man finds out, once and for all, who he is.” So, what was this moment for you? Were you a child, a young adult, an old man/woman? What was the exact experience that shows us this moment? Write it out in scenes (not summary), using sensory details to put the listeners there with you. Stay away from commentary and just let the story show us this moment and how you found out who you are. Your true story in short story form.
6. Literary devices and techniques highly encouraged.
7. Material should be G- or PG-rated. No profanity,explicit sexual content, or scatological references. Material that is overtly critical of a particular race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexual orientation will not be accepted. The FCC is very strict, and you should take this into consideration when submitting.
8. KUAR/KLRE will acquire the rights for broadcast and simultaneous live audio streaming over the facilities of KUAR/KLRE in perpetuity. Archived shows are broadcast on ITunes, the NPR website, the KUAR website, and rebroadcasted on WRN Internet and Satellite Radio. We are currently negotiating additional broadcast stations nationwide, as well as additional Internet and Satelite stations, and the Release Form will reflect any changes. You (the writer) retain all publication rights, both hardcopy and electronic.
9. Stories will be eligible to be included in yearly collections published by Temenos Publishing, as long as the author owns all copyrights. Anthology stories will be chosen by the Editor and a panel as the "year's best." Authors may choose to not be included in the anthology.
10. Winners will be notified via email and will be given editorial suggestions to adhere to the format of the show.
11. To submit: 1) In the subject line, put LIT FEST and the name of your story, the word count, and your name: EX: LIT FEST "Mockingbird" 780 words by Paula Morell, 2) Paste your submission into the body of your email (we will not open any attachments), 3)Include a brief bio, and 4) email to: talesfromthesouth@hotmail.com (If you do not include "LIT FEST" in your subject line, we will not know that you are entering the contest, and your story will be filed with our regular submissions.) We do not accept mailed submissions. Email submissions only.
12. Submission deadline is 10pm Sunday, March 13, 2011.
More information here.
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