Interview with Barbara Altamirano: Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Runner Up

Barbara’s Bio:

After leaving the insurance industry to become a stay-at-home mom, Barbara Altamirano discovered her love of using the written word to create art. Several years back she entered her first fiction contest on WOW and was amazed to receive an honorable mention. She was also thrilled when WOW published her essay about finding writing inspiration. A graduate of the Institute of Children’s Literature, she has also been published in Guideposts, Indiana Voice Journal, Pittsburgh Parent, and others, and has been a finalist in Writer’s Digest annual contest. She is hoping to publish her first book, The Mommy Clique, a work of women’s fiction, and she is currently working on several young adult novels. She lives in Connecticut with her husband and three children where she finds writing inspiration in all sorts of places, even household chores like sorting socks.

If you haven't already done so, check out Barbara's award-winning story "Imperfectly Matched Socks" and then return here for a chat with the author.

WOW: Congratulations on placing in the Creative Nonfiction Q3 Contest! How did you begin writing this piece and how did it and your writing evolve as you wrote?

Barbara: As I was matching my husband’s socks, my mind started to wander—no doubt because it’s such a boring activity. I started thinking about the connection between pairing off socks and finding romantic partners for humans. After finishing with the socks, I typed up the ideas. (In fact, I might have taken a break from the sorting to jot down some notes.) After editing it, I sent it to a couple places without finding a home for it. Then I decided to try WOW and last quarter the essay received an honorable mention. I had also purchased the critique, and Chelsey Clammer gave me great feedback which was very supportive in terms of saying what she liked about it, but also clearly explained how I could make it better. Basically, the ending needed some work to better show what insight I had gained from the sock sorting. (Insight from socks. Who knew?)

WOW: I love that you turned an everyday “boring” activity into a story, into art. You never know when inspiration might strike! What did you learn about yourself or your writing by creating this essay?

Barbara: A reaction of one of the first readers of this essay was, “Socks? Why are you writing about socks?” This was also my husband’s reaction. But even though I knew the topic was kind of quirky, I thought it had potential. So, I learned to trust my gut feelings and keep trying. Writing is subjective so just because one person (or two) doesn’t get your work, it doesn’t mean no one will. The essay also reaffirmed the idea that romantic pairings can work even if not perfect, as in the case of my husband and me.

WOW: I’m glad trusting your gut feelings and your persistence was rewarded with success! Which creative nonfiction essays or writers have inspired you most, and in what ways did they inspire you?

Barbara: Some of my favorite nonfiction authors are Maya Angelou, Elizabeth Gilbert, Jeanette Walls and Cheryl Strayed. What inspires me most about these writers is their honesty, and the beautiful way they tell their often difficult or challenging true life stories. Although not really known for nonfiction, I am also inspired by Sue Monk Kidd especially because she didn’t begin her writing career until later in her life.

WOW: Can you tell us more about the books you’re writing—The Mommy Clique and the young adult novels?

Barbara: I would describe The Mommy Clique as Big Little Lies meets Mean Girls. After reading Queen Bees and Wannabes, the nonfiction book that Mean Girls is based on, I decided to explore what would happen if there were a group of mothers acting out the roles that were found to exist in real life teenage girls. The story is told through multiple viewpoints from the queen bee, sidekick, banker, wannabe, and the target, with the women jockeying for position and power within the clique.

The first young adult novel I wrote was a project for a writing class. That book is about a shy, insecure girl who daydreams to escape her so-so reality and her daydreams become increasingly hard to control. I wrote a sequel to this while shopping the first novel but when I didn’t find an agent, I focused on other projects. One of these is a YA novel about a girl who has taken a purity vow. I also have a futuristic YA novel involving two opposing groups—the egotists and the evolutionists, with the main difference being that the evolutionists have a more advanced spiritual consciousness. But, although the setting is futuristic, the novel deals with many of the same issues as my other novels like fitting in, popularity, and, of course, romance.

WOW: What great descriptions and story premises. Thank you for sharing those with us! If you could tell your younger writing-self anything, what would it be?

Barbara: I would tell her to keep trying, and to not take rejection so personally but try to learn and grow from it. Sometimes obstacles exist just to test our perseverance, so we need to have faith and not lose hope.

WOW: Thank you for your wonderful writing and thoughtful responses. Happy writing! 

Interviewed by Anne Greenawalt, who keeps a blog of journal entries, memoir snippets, interviews, training logs, and profiles of writers and competitive sportswomen.

Read More »

Leave a Comment Anne Greenawalt, Barbara Altamirano, Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest

Interview with Linn Wilder, Runner Up in Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest

Lin Wilder has been writing since high school, but only recently began sharing her writing with others. She won 3rd place in the Fall 2014 WOW Flash Fiction Contest, her first placement in a writing contest, and is thrilled to once again be in the top 10 of a WOW contest! While her career in public health, her family (one husband, three teenagers, too many pets) and her love of outdoor adventure often preclude time for writing, the written word keeps demanding to be part of her life. She sometimes writes things in her head while commuting to work on her bike because it’s the only time she can find.

Lin is also a certified Spellbinder oral storyteller and often tells children stories from her life. She has published several adventure travel essays, and is working on writing a collection of stories about growing up poor in rural Maine with a remarkable mother whose mental illness was both a daunting force and an inspiration. Lin lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.

Visit her webpage and links to other published writing at http://wilderwomn.wixsite.com/wilderweb. Lin’s photography pages can be found at http://wilderwomn.wixsite.com/photography or look for @wilderwomn on Instagram.

interview by Marcia Peterson

WOW: Congratulations on your top ten win in our Q3 Creative Nonfiction essay competition! What prompted you to enter the contest?

Lin: I had entered and won 3rd place in a WOW contest before (Flash Fiction) but was excited to see that you have an essay contest open because I write more essays than fiction. I love reading WOW entries so it was another opportunity to be part of that.

WOW:  Your entry, “Nostalgia” is something many will relate to. What inspired you to write this essay?

Lin: I was in Maine for my older sister’s memorial and the whole trip was, understandably, full of emotion. It was like every emotional nerve ending in my body and soul was vibrating at a very high level – I was so very present in the moment and just feeling everything at an exaggerated level – grief, nostalgia, joy…everything. I had to do something with that energy and those emotions. Writing, for me, is often the best therapy. So I sat down at the kitchen table of my friend’s house while she went to work and it just all poured out of me. All of that emotion went onto the page, and I was left so full of peace and gratitude and connectedness when I was done – truly therapeutic. It was only afterwards when I re-read the essay that I realized that my relationship with Maine and my relationship with my sister had many parallels over the years – both were complicated and both found me being more closed off for a long time because of fear and hurt. So this coming to a place of joy and gratitude and acceptance was something very new and this essay was what cemented that into something palpable and real.

WOW:  You’ve also placed in one of our flash fiction contests, so you’ve done well with both fiction and nonfiction. Do you find one type of writing more challenging than the other? Are you drawn to one form more than the others?

Lin: I tend to find fiction more challenging to write. Real life is so fascinating and so full that I want to bring that alive for others. I love the ability that essays have to elucidate real life and connect with others on universal themes like love, loss, and overcoming challenges to name a few.

WOW:  Your bio indicates that you are a certified Spellbinder oral storyteller. Can you tell us about that?

Lin: Yes, I am trained as an oral storyteller, which is a wonderful complement to writing stories. I think that one of the things that make us human is our propensity to tell stories, and to love to hear or read or watch stories.

When you tell a story rather than read it aloud, you must really focus on making it come alive for the audience. You have to paint the picture and invite them to walk into it. We do this in writing too, with descriptive words about the setting and characters but you do it differently in oral storytelling. You are more of an actor, and you use your facial expressions and your body to tell much of the story. And you must use your interaction with your audience to reel people in.

The thing I love the most about telling stories to children is that they all want to tell their stories too. So I tell them, “Every single person in this room is a storyteller.” They look at me quizzically, and I tell them that everyone has a story to tell, and they should tell those stories to each other. They might not be earth shattering, or intense (they don’t have to be like what you see on TV). But they can share a moment of sadness, or a moment of glee with another person. It could be the funny story about what your cat did this morning, or the story about how you thought a rope was a snake and screamed so loud you woke the neighbor.

Along the lines of whether I prefer writing fiction or non-fiction essays, one thing I have noticed is that audiences almost always react more intensely to the real-life personal stories I tell than to the myths and legends and tall tales. They love them both, but it’s the personal stories that stick with them and that they are most likely to remember when they see me in the grocery store and recognize me as the storyteller.

WOW:  Thanks so much for chatting with us today, Lin! Before you go, do you have any tips for our readers who may be thinking about entering writing contests?

Lin: My advice to people about entering writing contests is “do it!” Its wonderful to get feedback on your writing even if you don’t place or win. It motivates you to work on your writing to polish it or to respond to a prompt that you might not have written about before. And while winning or placing is very exciting, the anticipation of the wait to learn how you did is a lot of fun in and of itself!

****

For more information about our quarterly Flash Fiction and Creative Nonfiction Essay contests, visit our contest page here.

Read More »

4 comments Contestant interview, essay writing, Lin Wilder, Marcia Peterson, Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest, writer advice, writer inspiration

Interview with Diane Reukauf, Runner Up in Q3 Creative Nonfiction Essay Contest

As a mother of young children, Diane Reukauf co-authored Commonsense Breastfeeding and The Father Book: Pregnancy and Beyond. Years later, she received the Outstanding Dissertation Award at the Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, for The Mother’s Voice in the Progressive Era: The Reform Efforts of Kate Waller Barrett.

Her work has appeared in the print versions of Skirt! Magazine, Lamaze Parents’ Magazine, and Parenting.

As coordinator of international students a t a local community college, she developed The Writing Project to help immigrant students tell their stories. She has conducted expressive writing sessions for female college faculty and pediatric oncology nurses.

She has now returned to her own writing and is currently working on a collection of pieces about grieving. She lives with her husband in Alexandria, VA, just outside Washington, DC. She frequently leaves this place she loves to be with her adult children and grandchildren who love living out west.

Read Diane's award-winning essay "Carpet Promises" here and then return to learn all about what inspires Diane in her writing life.

Interview by Renee Roberson

WOW: Congratulations, Diane, and welcome! You have an impressive writing background and list of credits. I'm interested to learn more about Kate Waller Barrett--the topic of your award-winning dissertation. Can you tell us a little about why you chose her as your focus?

Diane: I discovered Kate Waller Barrett accidentally. I used to volunteer to teach a unit on childbirth and breastfeeding in Family Life classes at our local junior high. In a conversation with the teacher of that class, I learned that her great-grandmother had worked with unwed mothers at the turn of the last century and that some of her papers were in our local library. I headed to the history wing of the library and spent a few hours reading about her. I was hooked and wanted to know more.

Over a hundred years ago, this southern woman from Virginia, the mother of six and the wife of a minister, was writing and speaking boldly about controversial issues such as sex education, sexually transmitted diseases, and the double standard as it applied to marriage, divorce and prostitution. She had the ear of presidents, pastors and politicians and was in high demand as a speaker in army camps, women’s groups, and universities.

Barrett traveled around the world setting up homes for unwed mothers. Following her policies, the homes served young women for 6 to 12 months after they gave birth, providing safety and support for them while they breastfed their babies, learned some skills, and prepared to head out into the world as competent and employable mothers.

Kate Waller Barrett rejected religious and moral systems that condemned and isolated some categories of women, especially unmarried mothers and their children. She held tightly to her own convictions, but she also believed that folks on both sides of an issue could make valuable contributions to society. She focused her energies on persuading people to do just that.

I wish more people knew about this remarkable woman. Thank you, Renee, for asking the question and giving me the chance to talk about her.

WOW: You're welcome! I love learning more about amazing women throughout history. She sounds like a great person to study. Having conducted expressive writing sessions with different groups of people (including immigrants and oncology nurses), what are some of the experiences you've had watching people write down memories that can sometimes be painful to process?

Diane: I’ve been most affected by the work I did at a local community college with immigrant students, primarily refugees or asylees. They were in the process of learning to write in the English language so I typed their words as they recounted their stories of escape from danger, of separation from family, of loss and yearning. They talked about their childhoods, the rituals of their homelands, and the parents and grandparents they left behind. There were times I quietly cried as I typed. One young woman later told me that she was satisfied that I cried when she told me her story because it meant that she had managed to make me see her own sorrow.
It was a privilege to work with these students.

WOW: Your essay, "Carpet Promises," revolves around the loss of a family member. What was the writing and revising experience like as you worked through the experience while crafting such a poignant essay?

Diane: Originally this was a single paragraph in another essay, and it was a pretty lifeless paragraph, although I didn’t recognize that two years ago. Back then I believed I had accurately reported the facts as I remembered them. I thought that was all I needed to do. It’s satisfying to see that I’ve learned a few important things over the past two years. A major leap in that learning took place at IOTA, a short prose conference held over a long weekend on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada.

Towards the end of that weekend, I wrote about those carpet-installation days again. As a result of sessions with Abigail Thomas and Debra Marquart, the two faculty at IOTA that summer, this time I started writing down sensory images from the event. I was stunned by the flood of details I was able to recall. I don’t know why those details didn’t show up the first time. As I revised the piece later, I started to see entire sentences that did nothing and needed to be cut. I was trying to convey a sense of how somber and fragile and full of generosity those days felt.

WOW: Your bio says you are working on a collection of pieces about grieving. Can you share some more information about that project with us?

After my granddaughter died, I had no idea what came next. The loss felt too big, and I was afraid of what it would do to my daughter, her husband, and their two young sons. My most intense grief was attached to their pain.

In the years after Louisa’s death, I read several books written by mothers whose babies had died. The books were a life-line for me, connecting me to my own daughter’s experience. What I didn’t find anywhere, though, was the perspective of my generation, not as grandmother but as the mother of the grieving parent.

I lost a sweet granddaughter and that loss still takes my breath away, but the pieces I have been writing are primarily about being a witness to my daughter’s sorrow—a sorrow I could not relieve. It’s from that perspective that I am writing about the grief and the goodness I’ve observed over these past four years.

WOW: What advice would you give writers who are just starting to explore the world of creative nonfiction? What do you think makes for a compelling draft?

Diane: I’d suggest that aspiring writers read books about the craft of writing. The books I have in mind are not tedious how-to books; they are pleasures.

I love reading about writing, maybe especially when I’m not writing myself. It makes me feel as though the empty writing times are not wasted times. Plus, I like the feeling of being in the company of the authors. Years ago, I read and loved Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg. More recently, I have learned lessons from these books:

Beth Kephart’s Handling the Truth
Mary Karr's The Art of Memoir
Kate Hopper’s Use Your Words
Dani Shapiro’s Still Writing
Laura Oliver’s The Story Within, and
Robin Black’s Crash Course.

I highly recommend all these books. And there are many more out there . . . and on my book shelves! It’s also a good idea to read the kinds of pieces or books you’d like to write yourself.

I think it can be inspiring to put yourself in the company of other people who think the words matter. You can do this by attending local literary events - book signings, book readings, one-day conferences. If you’re lucky, you might find short writing courses through libraries or book stores. You can even connect with the non-fiction writing community without leaving home through regular postings from online sites like Hippocampus, Brevity and, of course, WOW.

I’m not exactly sure what makes for a compelling draft, but I can offer two pieces of advice that I use as I aim to write one.

First, don’t over-explain. Years ago as an English teacher, I took a trip with some urban junior high students. As we drove down rural roads, I pointed out cornfields and cows and windmills and silos. One of the students finally turned to me and said, “You don’t have to keep telling us what to look at.” Oh, right.

I try to remember that now when I find myself telling the reader what she should be noticing or thinking as she is reading. My early drafts always have too many words so I spend a lot of time deleting annoying sentences.

Second, I recommend reading your own writing out loud. Sometimes when I do this, I almost cringe as I hear a sentence—a clear sign I need to fix or eliminate something. Other times, I decide to skip over an entire paragraph, telling myself I already know what’s there. Usually the truth is I am skipping the paragraph because it’s flat. Boring.

Really, though, the most important thing is to start writing. You do not need to know the purpose of your writing when you begin. You don’t have to know the structure. I find this to be unsettling, but I think it’s just part of the deal. You suspect you have something to say so you start. Weeks or months later, you find yourself with pages of words, and some of what you’ve written will want to be more—will want to be a story or essay. Then the real can writing begin.

Read More »

2 comments Contestant interview, Diane Reukauf, essay contest, Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest, writer inspiration

Interview with Joanne Lozar Glenn: 3rd Place Winner in Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest

Joanne’s Bio:

Joanne Lozar Glenn is a freelance writer and editor, teaches writing in adult education programs, and leads destination writing retreats. Her books include Memoir Your Way: Tell Your Story Through Writing, Recipes, Quilts, Graphic Novels, and More (co-author, Skyhorse Publishing, 2016); No One Path: Perspectives on Leadership from a Decade of Women in Technology Award Winners (editor-in-chief, Women in Technology, 2009); Applying Evidence-Based Laboratory Medicine: A Step-by-Step Guide (coauthor, AACC Press, 2009); 25 + 1: Communication Strategies for Business Education (co-author, NBEA, 2003); and Mentor Me: A Guide to Being Your Own Best Advocate in the Workplace (NBEA, 2003). Her poems and memoir essays have been published in Ayris, Brevity, Beautiful Things (River Teeth), Peregrine, Under the Gum Tree, and other print and online journals. She is currently working on a book-length memoir.

If you haven’t done so already, check out Joanne’s award-winning story “Apologies” and then return here for a chat with the author.

WOW: Congratulations on winning 3rd place in the Creative Nonfiction Contest! How did you begin writing this piece, and how did it and your writing process evolve as you wrote?

Joanne: "Apologies" is the fusion of two pieces I was working on that I couldn't get to work as individual essays. Each essay had started with a prompt. (I belong to a monthly neighborhood writing-to-prompts group founded by novelist Leslie Pietrzyk.) I've lost track of how many revisions I did on each of the essays. Then, I'm not sure why, I decided to explore combining them. I had read something during that time that led me to experiment with a different cadence, so I tried that and it felt like maybe, just maybe, it could work. At the time I was teaching a class on “writing memoir that matters,” which asked students to take risks in their writing to tell a story that was perhaps uncomfortable and pushed some boundaries but that was important to them. I wrote, too, and shared an early draft of this essay with them. I believe that we shouldn't ask anything of students we wouldn't ask of ourselves, and I wanted them to know that I was willing to take the same risks I was asking them to take. I kept working at the essay after the class ended, saw the notice for the WOW! contest, and took a chance.

WOW: And we—WOW and your readers—are glad you took that chance! What did you learn about yourself or your writing by creating this essay?

Joanne: I learned—again—to dig, to look at my own complicity even if it means telling a story I’m afraid to admit. And that it wouldn’t kill me. But I am a little nervous about how those who know me in other "more favorable" circumstances will feel about the "I" in this essay.

WOW: I admire your courage to create and publish a piece that makes you a little uncomfortable. Which creative nonfiction essays or writers have inspired you most, and in what ways did they inspire you?

Joanne: So many! I love the essays in Brevity, such as Randon Billings Noble's “The Heart as a Torn Muscle"—the variety of forms and topics those essays explore are both an inspiration and a challenge. Writers Abigail Thomas, Rebecca McClanahan, Roxanne Gay, Maribeth Fischer, Terry Tempest Williams, and Dinty Moore inspire and challenge me to speak truth, and to “tell the story only you can tell in the way only you can tell it.” The voice in Dina Honour's "1001 Nights" (Hippocampus Magazine), the narrative persona in Adriana Páramo's "Let's Kill Your Grandfather Together" (WOW! Q2 CNF), and the poetry of Susan Wadd's "Once We Were Sad" (WOW! Q3 CNF) reinforce the importance of that lesson.

But I also take inspiration from fiction writers. The storytelling and craft in Leslie Pietrzyk's novel Silver Girl push me to be more disciplined, more attuned to elements such as setting and conflict, and more of a risk-taker. The lyricism and attention to detail in Susan Muaddi Durraj's short story collection A Curious Land inspire me to pay attention to every sentence, every word in every sentence, and the “intertwingling” of themes and images to create unity. The depth of Octavia Butler’s speculative fiction (Fledgling; Kindred; Bloodchild) is spurring me to explore connections between my memories and the socio-cultural context in which I lived, to see if I can write an “outward-facing” rather than “navel-gazing” memoir. (I’m not sure if I can, but I’m going to try.)

WOW: I love hearing about the number of way you challenge yourself through your writing. It’s very inspiring! Can you tell us more about the book-length memoir you’re writing?

Joanne: The memoir’s about growing up as the oldest daughter of a mother who’s chronically depressed and trying to piece light out of that darkness. Right now it’s a pile of papers and I’m doing my sixth revision (in baby steps). I want to say something smart here about revising, but the truth is that after I thought I was “done” (revision #5) I kept writing more pieces that made the original material feel “not yet good enough.” Now I’m revisiting all that content, waiting for the “click” inside me that says yes, this!

WOW: Good luck, and keep at it! If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Joanne: Get started, girl—you have a lot of lost time to make up for! Trust your instincts. Go in the door that is open. Always have something to look forward to. And if that door's not open yet, open it yourself. You can make a path where none yet exists.

WOW: Great advice from which many of us can benefit! Thank you for your wonderful writing and thoughtful responses. Happy writing!

Interviewed by Anne Greenawalt, who keeps a blog of journal entries, memoir snippets, interviews, training logs, and profiles of writers and competitive sportswomen.

Read More »

4 comments Anne Greenawalt, Joanne Lozar Glenn, Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest

Interview with Susan Wadds, 1st Place Winner in Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest

Winner of The Writers’ Union of Canada’s 2016 short prose contest for developing writers, Susan Wadds’ award-winning short fiction and poetry have been featured in literary journals and anthologies, including Room and carte blanche magazines. The first two chapters of her novel, What the Living Do, won Lazuli Literary Group’s writing contest, and was published in Azure’s winter 2017 issue.

A graduate of the Humber School for Writers, Deepam is also certified in the Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA) method of writing workshop facilitation. Annually, she hosts international writing and yoga retreats.

Susan divides her time between Sebright, Ontario and Victoria, British Columbia.

Visit her website at http://deepamwadds.com/writer/, and connect with her on Instagram @deepamwadds.

interview by Marcia Peterson

WOW: Congratulations on winning first place in our Q3 Creative Nonfiction essay competition! What prompted you to enter the contest?

SW: I'm always on the prowl for contests and calls for submissions that fit with pieces I have written, but WOW has a special place for me because of its supportive mandate. Since the bones of this piece were already in place I was delighted when I received the newsletter announcing this contest.

WOW: Your entry, “Once We Were Sad,” is powerful and poetic from the first lines. What inspired you to write this particular story?

SW: I'd been observing with stark clarity how when either I or my partner try to spare each other our heavy emotions the more distant we become. Of course, my first observations pointed the finger at him, but on reflection I recalled being accused of that very tendency. As I wrote, the story unfurled itself. The shock of being told that I didn't know how to share has reverberated through me since 1979. This was an opportunity to explore what that meant and means.

WOW: You host several writing workshops, including a yoga and writing retreat in Greece, which sounds fabulous. What would you say are the main benefits of attending a writing retreat?

SW: Writing retreats offer an opportunity to dive deep into one's practice without having to disrupt the momentum. The supportive environment helps to develop trust which enables participants to cut closer to the bone; to write what presses on their hearts. Also, there is the magic of the collective energy which seems to bump up the quality of everyone's work.

We like to balance the structure of gentle yoga and guided writing with free afternoons to give participants the benefit of deep restoration while developing their craft.

WOW: Can you tell us what projects are you currently working on? What can we plan on seeing from you in the future?

SW: Thank you for asking! Currently, I'm struggling with a memoir that I tried to write as a novel, but it made even less sense as a novel than the real-life story.

It's called, "The Soft Ones" about the fallout after my ex-husband was convicted of molesting our son's babysitter. I thought it would be easier as a memoir since it's my story, but I keep stepping on buried mines. I'm determined to write my way to the end, though, as the thread I hope to pull through, fragile as it is, is one of forgiveness and redemption.

I've got two completed novels doing the rounds of literary agencies, so hopefully you will see them on a bookshelf in some happy future.

WOW: Best of luck with those projects, including diving into some difficult subject matter. Let us know when the novels become available to read!

Thanks so much for chatting with us today, Susan! Before you go, do you have any tips for our readers who may be thinking about entering writing contests?

SW: Just keep entering. You won't win if you don't enter. Also, paying small entry fees is a way to support those magazines and journals we so need. I like contests because they put you out of your misery within a time frame, whereas with general submissions it may take up to a year to find out your work has been rejected. Enter often and forget about the entries. You'll go mad if you constantly check. Then, if you do place, it's a wonderful surprise. If you don't place, then scan through your submission to make sure you didn't screw up, and send it out again pronto.
And... contest wins look pretty on your CV.

****

For more information about our quarterly Flash Fiction and Creative Nonfiction Essay contests, visit our contest page here.

Read More »

2 comments Contestant interview, essay contest, first place winner, Marcia Peterson, Q3 2018 Creative Nonfiction Contest, Susan Wadds, writer inspiration