English Position at Hotchkiss School

Responsibilities generally include teaching four sections of the discipline. Applicants should expect to be actively involved in multiple aspects of the School's programs through, for example, service as a residential advisor in a dormitory and as a coach. A BA is required and a MA is preferred. A minimum of five years' teaching experience at the secondary level is required, and experience at boarding schools is preferred. Salary is competitive and compensation includes year-round housing plus utilities and meals when school is in session, as well as excellent health benefits and funding for professional development and travel.
Interested candidates should first review specific job descriptions on the school's Web site

(http://www.hotchkiss. org/abouthotchkiss/employment.aspx) and then submit a cover letter and résumé (including three references) to:


Kevin M. Hicks
Associate Head of School, Dean of Faculty
The Hotchkiss School
P.O. Box 800
Lakeville, CT 06039-0800

teachingjobs@hotchkiss.org

Starve Better up for pre-order!

Starve Better, my writing advice pamphlet on writing short commercial fiction and feature essays, is available for pre-order and looking good. See?




“Mamatas offers up a no-nonsense guide that should be required reading for all writers. Prepare to have some illusions shattered… because you need them shattered. A great resource from a guy with the experience to back up the advice.”
–Jeff VanderMeer, author of City of Saints and Madmen and Finch


Publisher Apex Publications is taking direct pre-orders. Pre-order copies will be signed and happy consumers will also receive the ebook version for free.


To whet your appetite, you can read the introduction for free.

Free Registration at AWP

The AWP Conference is February 3-6 in Washingtong, DC. I have from 1-4 free registrations for the conference available, depending on how many of those are taken by the folks I've offered them to already. If you're going to the conference and haven't yet registered, or if getting a free registration would convince you to go, please let me know ASAP; I need to send the names to AWP soon.

Elizabeth Alexander at WCSU February 23rd

POETRY READING

On Wednesday, Feb. 23rd, Elizabeth Alexander, inaugural poet for President Barack Obama, will speak at 7 p.m. in White Hall on the WCSU Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. There will be a booksigning after the talk. The event will be free and the public is invited. For more information, call 203-837-8486.

Blog, reading, and publication

I've created a blog that I will use for occasional updates about publication, events, and other good news.

http://alexisfedorjaczenko.blogspot.com/

It currently has information about a reading next Saturday at the Parsons Hall Project Space in Holyoke, and a series of poems just published in Sentence: a Journal of Prose Poetics!

Spring 2011 Internship / Practicum Students

Internship/Practicum students, please be sure to ask your on-site mentor (not your faculty mentor) to send a letter or email message to me at azevedoh@wcsu.edu confirming the nature and timing of your internship or practicum this semester. Please let them know also that we will need them to write a brief narrative evaluation of your performance at the end of the semester. If your practicum involves being a GA on campus here, you do not need to do the above.
 
Thanks,
 
Holly

Enrichment Project Proposals Due January 31st

A reminder that enrichment project proposals are due on Monday, January 31st. 

1st semester students should submit a proposal, and 2nd semester students need to submit one if you did not do so earlier.

You can download the Enrichment Project Proposal Form from this form link .

Scholarships for 2011 - 2012 - Feb. 1 Application Deadline

The application deadline for WCSU graduate scholarships for the 2011 - 2012 academic year is February 1st.  Please visit http://www.wcsu.edu/scholarships for more information and the online application form.

Essay in Creative Nonfiction / Reading at KGB Bar

My essay "Killing Starlings," which some of you may remember, (and which became quite notorious among a certain crowd...), just came out in the winter issue of Creative Nonfiction. I submitted it for an "Animals" theme, which the issue is devoted to. Creative Nonfiction was the first literary journal dedicated solely to the publication of literary creative nonfiction, and is still one of the biggest venues for it, so I was pretty excited when they accepted this essay. There should be info on the link if you want to check it out.

They also asked me to read at the KGB Bar in the East Village, which is apparently quite the legendary old Russian/Communist bar. If anyone happens to be in the area, I'd love to see you there. Info from the CNF newsletter:

We're also pleased to announce An Evening with Creative Nonfiction, a three-part reading series at the legendary KGB Bar in New York City. The first will be held Tuesday, February 8, 2011 at 7 p.m. and will feature animal-themed readings by select contributors to #40:

Jennifer Lunden, "The Butterfly Effect" - Winner of the Robert Fragasso Animal Advocate Award for the Best Creative Nonfiction Essay about Animals
Randy Fertel, "A Triumph of Preservation"
Kateri Kosek, "Killing Starlings"

Internship / Enrichment Opportunity

Writer in Residence Dan Pope is looking for three or four students for this Spring semester to intern for his own start-up publishing venture, focusing on literary book publication.  Seeking student energy and expertise in such areas as web design, marketing, funding, distribution, etc. Office based in West Hartford. We will begin the press from the ground up, with heavy intern involement.

If interested, contact Dan directly at dan.pope@comcast.net

Battle Runes: Writings on War

Hey all - the war anthology that my peotry appears in is available for purchase. The editors write:

We are happy to announce the publication of Battle Runes: Writings on War. Read about it here: www.ebibliotekos.com

Parts of the book are shocking and horrifying, but in the end there is hope. While there is blood in the pages, the emphasis is on the complex psychological dimensions of war.

Please help support us by making a purchase or by recommending this book to someone you know.

We are truly grateful for the support of our contributors - many very talented authors, indeed! Congratulations to them, and we trust that we can continue our hard work in the future.

Sincerely,
~~ Fredericka and Gregory
--
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Editions Bibliotekos
www.ebibliotekos.com
publisher@ebibliotekos.com

Online Workshop 579-01 Syllabus Posted

The syllabus for the Online Multigenre Workshop 579-01 is posted.  Please read the announcement when you log on, and let me know if you have any questions.

Holly

WRT583--OMG!

Hello, 583-ers,

The syllabus is now up, so check it out. The discussion threads, which you won't need for a couple weeks, will be posted some time in the coming week. Let me know if you have any questions about the syllabus.

bc

Query: Enrichment Project

Hello everyone!

I'm currently struggling with ideas for the enrichment project, and was wondering if I could ask those of you who have already completed this project for help?

Simply: What was your project?
I have a few ideas for my own, and insofar, they have less and less to do with writing as I continue to mull everything over...

I sincerely appreciate any assistance on this. I've spoken with Holly about the purpose of this project and I understand it (I think); I'd just like some more examples than the few given on the MFA website.

Thanks~
Marj

Syllabi Due Tuesday, January 18th

A reminder that your course syllabi are due by Tuesday, January 18th. Your mentor must send the approved syllabus to me.

The Online Multigenre Workshop syllabi will be posted by the 18th, as well.

The MFA office will be closed on Monday, January 17th, for the Martin Luther King holiday.

Holly

Student Communications to go to WestConn IDs

Now that the residency is over and we've begun work for the Spring semester, note that I will send all future student email correspondence to your WestConn id, starting with syllabus approvals.  Please check your WestConn email accounts frequently.

Holly 

Black Orchid Novella Award contest

The Wolfe Pack, the literary society that celebrates all things Nero Wolfe, has partnered with Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine to sponsore the Black Orchid Novella Award. Details of the mystery novella contest (the winner receives $1,000 plus publication in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine) are on the Wolfe Pack's site:
http://www.nerowolfe.org/htm/neroaward/black_orchid_award/BO_award_intro.htm  The deadline for submissions is May 31, 2011.

AWP Award Series Competition

AWP sponsors an annual competition for the publication of excellent new book-length works—the AWP Award Series. The competition is open to all authors writing in English regardless of nationality or residence. The Donald Hall Prize for Poetry is an award of $5,000 and publication for the best book-length manuscript of poetry. This competition is open to published and unpublished poets alike. The Grace Paley Prize for Short Fiction awards the winner $5,000 and publication. Winners in the novel and creative nonfiction categories receive a $2,000 cash honorarium from AWP and publication.

For details and entry requirements, go to www.awpwriter.org/contests/series.htm

Hudson Valley Writers' Center Play Reading Series

John Roche let us know about the following:

The Hudson Valley Writers' Center is pleased to announce the inaugural HVWC New Play Reading Series for 2011, consisting of three new works presented at the Writers' Center in Sleepy Hollow (Westchester), NY. Full submission guidelines and deadlines are available online at http://www.writerscenter.org/ or http://bit.ly/HVWCPlayReading or by calling the Writers' Center. Winners will receive a cash prize of $1,000 and a public reading at the historic Writers' Center overlooking the Hudson River.

The purpose of the series is to help develop and bring attention to great new plays. The open and blind submission policy demonstrates the Centers' commitment to finding the best scripts by established and/or emerging writers. The reading committee consists of active NYC producers. Finalist scripts will be read and the winning selections made by Jane Dubin, (Tony Award-winning producer), Craig Lucas (Two-time Pulitzer Prize and two-time Tony Award nominee), as well as, Howard Meyer, (founding Artistic Director of Axial Theatre) and Josh Hecht (Drama Desk award-winning director). Each public reading will be followed by a panel discussion with the artists involved in the production to assist in the play's further development.

Producers, theatre companies and writers are invited to submit new works that are commercial as well as "non-traditional" or experimental. The plays will be selected through a nation-wide blind search process. There will be a $25 application fee for each entry. The deadline for submissions is February 15, 2011.

The Hudson Valley Writers' Center - advancing the art and craft of writing for over twenty-five years!

Read more: http://broadwayworld.com/article/The_Hudson_Valley_Writers_Center_Announces_#ixzz1ANCJtqcs

My New CD

Hey folks,
For anyone interested in buying my CD, "Dogs, Clowns & Belles" -- here is the link for CDBaby who is carrying it. It will also be on iTunes in about a week or so. DigStation has it as well. Just search my name or title. Hope you like. Feel free to let me know what you think.
Best wishes,
Don

Staff Writer position, Fairfield County

http://jobs.fairfieldcountyjobs.com/c/job.cfm?site_id=611&job=7529400

Firewheel Editions Seeks Managing Editor

Much thanks to Mary Ann Campbell for her service to Firewheel! With her departure, we need a new Managing Editor. Please spread this announcement far and wide to anyone you think might be interested, or might know someone who might be interested.

bc

Firewheel Editions—publisher of Sentence: a Journal of Prose Poetics, of the forthcoming Kugelmass: a Journal of Literary Humor, of books, and of fine chapbooks—seeks a new Managing Editor. Duties include: overseeing the submissions process via our online submission manager for both journals, for the Sentence Book Award, and for the Firewheel Chapbook Award; managing the subscription/order tracking and distribution processes; working with the editors and the layout designers of Sentence and Kugelmass to prepare each issue for publication; working with the Firewheel editor to prepare new books and chapbooks for publication; working with the web designer to upgrade and provide content for the web site. Training for all of these duties will be provided by the Editor as needed. Ideally, the Managing Editor would also be able to lead Firewheel into a new e-publication phase. Some work can be done off-site, and some work requires presence at the Firewheel office in Danbury, CT. Time required in the office will vary according to publication schedule; the typical week will require 3-5 hours in the office, and some weeks will require 8-10 hours.

Firewheel Editions is an independent, 501(c)(3) organization with low revenue. All staff members work on a volunteer basis so that the organization’s funds can go toward high-quality publications. We are looking for a Managing Editor who can make at least a 2-year commitment and who is personally invested in Firewheel’s mission and success. This is an excellent volunteer position for a recent graduate looking to build a portfolio, or for a young faculty member looking to build tenure credentials.

Firewheel is a member of CLMP.

Interested candidates should contact Brian Clements, Editor and Executive Director, at editor@firewheel-editions.org. Please send a letter of interest, a c.v. or résumé, and 3 relevant references (no letters of recommendation, please). Queries welcome. We expect to contact interested and qualified candidates to schedule interviews no later than March 11.

Summer 2011 Residency Dates

In case you just didn't have enough last week, mark your calendar for the Summer 2011 residency:

July 30th through August 6th, 2011

Saturday, July 30th, is the arrival date with the New Student Orientation and the Welcome Dinner the only events scheduled.

Saturday, August 6th is a travel day only.

Don Snyder Wins Gold Prize in Travel Journalism Competition

Congratulations to Don Snyder for winning a gold prize in the Special-Purpose Travel Category of the  Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition for his article "Clubbed," which appeared in Outside. Sponsored by the Society of American Travel Writers, the awards are for work published in 2009 - 2010.

The judge's comments on Don's article:

Gold: Don J. Snyder, “Clubbed,” Outside

You don’t have to be a golfer to appreciate the value of a well-trained caddie. Don Snyder’s “Clubbed” illustrates with demanding detail what it feels like to shadow a professional caddie and endure 15-hour days picturing every hole in his mind. Snyder takes you on a caddie’s “blind date” outside legendary St. Andrews, the home of golf. What began as a midlife crisis turns into a fun yet serious story of love and respect. While reading about the duties of a professional caddie, we come to understand the brotherhood of caddies, the respect for a struggling golfer and the love of a father for his son. Against this backdrop readers experience what Snyder describes as Scotland’s stunning physical beauty and fairways swept along the windy North Sea. Don Snyder, an acclaimed novelist and screenwriter, earns a hole in one and the gold for “Clubbed.”

See the full list of winners here.

Michael Gilday's Open Mic Reading

Michael Gilday sent along his reading from the Open Mic on Saturday evening, which had us all laughing. Thank you, Michael!

Dan Pope and the Strange Occurrence in the Washington Room

By Michael Gilday

The ceiling burst open. Bathwater rushed out, followed by the waterlogged body of Mark Sundeen. Dan Pope fidgeted in his chair. Would they know?

A nervous glance about the room confirmed that he was in the clear, at least for now. Shock, awe and the crisis control efforts of John Roche played out just as he’d hoped.

As Holly motioned for the students and faculty to exit in an orderly fashion, he couldn’t help but feel proud of his perfect crime. With the help of Elizabeth Cohen, his murderous muse, he’d forged emails from Mark announcing his false intention to skip this winter’s residency. This assured Sundeen wouldn’t be missed, and a phony vertigo diagnosis for Pope served as the perfect alibi. Just as he’d taken care of Aunt Helen and plundered her finances $500 at a time, he had forever silenced Sundeen’s fecal memoirs, leaving him free to plunder the affection of Mark’s protégés at his leisure.

As the MFA attendees filed out one by one, Pope felt relief swell as he realized a few more steps meant he’d have gotten away with it. There was just one problem: Jane Cleland had stepped in front of the exit and barred it with her arms.

“Stop,” said Jane. Her face was fierce, determined. “This was no accident. This was murder.”

Sarah Lewis gasped. Bill Friskey fainted. Vinnie launched into a fifteen minute monologue about when he’d committed his first murder on a trip to Thailand in the mid 80’s.

“Look closely,” said Jane. Her instincts had been honed to perfection from years of writing mysteries, mysteries which she had never told a soul at Westconn were based on her real life experiences solving murders in the antique world.

“Check his hand,” ordered Jane.

Daniel Asa Rose rose to check the body. He removed a small container from Sundeen’s hand. Pope grew pale. Daniel examined the container and removed his hat, a sign of great shock. To many it was as if the Earth had been cloven in two.

“It’s vertigo medication,” Daniel whispered.

Pope sat in silence. The perfect crime came apart before his eyes. He could only watch as the police were summoned. Over and over he listened to Lizzie Ferris’ cries of:

“Why, Dan Pope? Why?”

For Those Interested re: Scrimgeour's Lecture

The link:

http://people.wcsu.edu/scrimgeourj/

takes you to Scrimgeour's WCSU page, under the "Teaching" link/tab, he has provided a Word document regarding the salient points of his lecture, "Evaluating Poetry" from Winter 2011 residency.

cheers

vk

Submissions for New Anthology / Y2K – The Big Nothing!

Happy New Year! It’s 2011. Next year it will be 2012, and while we here at Miranda firmly believe that the Mayans stopped their calendar on December 21, 2012 because they just kind of got lazy, we have decided to quell any lingering doubts by reminding ourselves of the last apocalypse that never was, Y2K. That is why we are proud to announce Miranda Literary Magazine Presents: Y2K. Give us your best fiction, creative non-fiction, or poetry about the cataclysm or lack thereof due to the Y2K computer glitch.

This is an opportunity for all of you who were disappointed because there was no nuclear holocaust or because we weren’t enslaved by machines (except the iPhone) to tell us what could have happened. Similarly, you can help us sleep at night and talk about what a big letdown it was. Be creative. I mean really, do we have to write it for you? We’re all busy doing other stuff, like editing this anthology and paying tribute to our iPhone overlords.

Oh, yeah, and there’s a $100 prize for the best piece (“best” being determined completely subjectively by us and a panel of judges/people we can con into doing it for free). Send your submissions to norlumas@gmail.com with the subject line title: Y2K – The Big Nothing Anthology. Submissions will remain open until sufficient material is collected.