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Wednesday’s Work-in-Progress: Eduardo Halfon’s “The Polish Boxer,” a Giveaway, and the Return of the “Is-It-Really-a-Novel?” Question

by Erika Dreifus on
12

If you’ve made it past the ridiculously long post title, maybe you’ll bear with me a moment longer.

Remember back in July, when we were talking about the categories of novels and (linked) short-story collections? Remember that I described some difficulties that I had encountered reading Shani Boianjiu’s novel, simply because it was being presented and marketed as a novel–and I saw it more as a story collection?

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. Or somewhat the same thing. My latest book review, published last week in The Jewish Journal, discusses Eduardo Halfon’s The Polish Boxer (translated, as I note in the review, by a group of translators: Daniel Hahn, Ollie Brock, Lisa Dillman, Thomas Bunstead and Anne McLean).

The review begins: (more…)

Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write (especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction).

  • Launching this week: the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) Emergency Relief Fund. “The Andy Warhol Foundation, Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and Lambent Foundation (a project of the Tides Center) have established an Emergency Relief Fund, administered by NYFA to assist artists with damages and losses as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Eligible artists can be working in any discipline and reside in Connecticut, New Jersey or New York. Damages are broadly defined and include, but are not limited to: damage to physical work; damage to homes/studios/other facilities; loss of equipment or supplies; loss of income, and reimbursement for cancelled performances/appearances/engagements. We anticipate the overwhelming majority of grants will range between $1,000 and $5,000, but there may be extraordinary circumstances in which slightly smaller or larger grants might be made.” Applications will be made available on November 21.
  • “Bethesda Magazine and the Bethesda Urban Partnership are partnering to sponsor a short story and essay contest.” Cash prizes, publication, and other goodies will be awarded in each genre (and for high-school age writers and writers 18 and over “and finished with high school”). There’s no entry fee, and the deadline is January 25, 2013. Note that essay submissions (500 words, maximum) may come from writers resident in Maryland, Virginia, or Washington, DC; short-story submissions (4,000 words, maximum) are limited to residents of Montgomery Country, Maryland, and Upper NW, DC (ZIP codes 20015 and 20016).
  • From the U.K.: “Booktrust is looking for paid freelance reviewers to write book recommendations for our site on books from contemporary fiction to Young Adult fiction to crime to translated fiction to short stories to non-fiction. We cover a wide range of books.”
  • “Mediabistro is looking for a dynamic, spirited instructor to teach a food blogging class online this March. Class meets over 6 weeks and will teach students how to design, promote, and maintain a blog dedicated to food.” (NB: Site registration required to view full ad.)

    • Please keep reading for college-level teaching jobs. (more…)

    Wednesday’s Work-in-Progress: How to Pitch a Book Review

    by Erika Dreifus on
    5

    You were all so incredibly kind about and interested in my previous “case study” post. So when my latest book review (of Damion Searls’s translation of Life Goes On, the first novel by Hans Keilson), appeared in The Forward last week, I thought that you might similarly welcome some potentially instructive background. That’s why I’m sharing the text below, which reproduces most of my initial e-mail message seeking the assignment.

    I say “most” because when I sent this pitch last summer, The Forward‘s arts coverage was in transition. Ultimately, I sent this pitch to both the managing editor (the former arts & culture editor) and the newly assigned arts & culture editor. I’d corresponded with both of these individuals before, so there were some personalized greetings that I’m omitting in the text below. (more…)

    Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    7

    Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write (especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction).

  • News from Robert Lee Brewer, who edits a slew of books for the Writer’s Digest folks: “I want to announce that we’re planning to put together a new Market Book: 2014 Guide to Indie Publishing. This guide will be loaded with listings for self-publishing companies, freelance editors, freelance designers (books, e-books, and websites), and great expert advice on the business of indie publishing. This is where you may enter the picture. We need pitches for articles that would be relevant to people looking to self-publish books, whether in print, digitally, audio, or some other crazy new-fangled way.” (I apologize for getting this to you so late: Pitches are due Wednesday, October 24. Good luck to all!)
  • I wish I’d had the chance to apply for this one! “The Posen Foundation is pleased to announce the Posen Society of Fellows, which recognizes eight outstanding doctoral students and fiction writers from around the world. Fellows will be awarded $40,000 over the course of two years and invited to attend an annual meeting led by senior scholars and writers. The Fellowship supports doctoral students who are writing their dissertations on modern Jewish history and culture, and fiction writers working on a Jewish-themed novel or short story collection. Eligible scholars must have completed their comprehensive exams before the award date; eligible writers should not yet have published their first book.” No application fee. Deadline: January 13, 2012. (via @NaomiDanis)
  • Attention, Virginia poets (defined as those born in or currently residing in Virginia). It’s time for submissions for this year’s Graybeal-Gowen Prize from Shenandoah and the Virginia Poetry Center. This is an annual prize of $500 (plus publication) for a single poem. No entry fee. Deadline: November 15, 2012.
  • Next, something for the Georgians among us: Creative Loafing‘s 2013 Fiction Contest has as its theme “The Meaning of Life.” Cash prizes ($500/$100/$50) and publication for the winners. No entry fee. Deadline: November 16, 2012. (via CRWROPPS-B)
  • And an opportunity for our Canadian friends: Canadian Women in the Literary Arts (CWILA) “seeks to support a female Canadian writer (poet, novelist, storyteller, scholar) as its resident critic for a calendar year. The aim of the residency is to foster vital criticism that promotes public awareness of women’s literary and critical presence in Canadian letters. Specifically, the critic-in-residence will work on critical essays and/or book reviews and submit them to one or more Canadian review venues (print or web)….The residency is virtual, so the writer will be free to work from home.” Stipend: $3,000. No application fee. Deadline: November 1, 2012. (via fundsforwriters.com)
  • From WritersWeekly.com: “We’re out of features! We pay $60 for around 600 words; non-exclusive electronic rights only. Our guidelines are here: http://www.writersweekly.com/index-markets.htm.”
  • “We need a full-time managing editor at The Sun, a nonprofit, ad-free magazine in its thirty-ninth year of publication. This position is in our editorial office in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.”
  • “The College of Humanities at the University of Arizona is seeking exceptionally well-qualified applicants for the position of Executive Director of the Poetry Center, one of the nation’s leading centers for the study and celebration of poetry.”

    • Want to check out some recent teaching-job announcements? Keep reading! (more…)

    Wednesday’s Work-in-Progress: A Bit About My Latest Book Review

    by Erika Dreifus on
    3

    If you look at my list of published reviews you’ll see that I’ve written repeatedly for certain publications. There’s no question that I value and appreciate those long-standing relationships and the relative ease with which the editors of those publications and I exchange review ideas and assignments.

    But it’s also nice to establish new connections. And that’s what I’ve done with the Jewish Review of Books, whose current issue contains my byline for the first time.

    The quarterly isn’t new to me. I’m a subscriber, and I’d pitched a couple of times before I sent the April 30 email that resulted in the assignment to review Munich 1972: Tragedy, Terror, and Triumph at the Olympic Games, by David Clay Large (Rowman & Littlefield, 2012). I submitted the draft in July; editorial correspondence and revisions continued in August; and my contributor copies arrived over the Labor Day weekend. The JRB website was updated last week. (Alas, my review, briefly accessible to all, now appears to be behind the subscriber paywall.) And my payment arrived a few days ago.

    So that’s a quick summary of one of my summer projects. I’m proud of this work–and most grateful for the opportunity to undertake it.

    P.S. If you’re desperate to read my review–and all of the other “locked” content–you might consider the JRB‘s free 30-day online trial.