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Friday Find for Writers: Robert Lee Brewer’s April Platform Challenge

by Erika Dreifus on
2

“One of the most important tools for a writer trying to find success in today’s media environment is a strong platform. That’s part of the reason I devote so much time to the topic on MNINB. However, I’ve been thinking about how to get even more hands on with helping writers build their online platforms, and I think I know the solution: A month-long platform building challenge.”

April begins this weekend! So go on over to Robert’s blog and see what he had in mind for this challenge. I’ll be following along, that’s for sure.

And if a platform challenge isn’t your thing, maybe a poetry challenge is!

Have a great weekend. See you back here on Monday.

The Wednesday Web Browser for Writers

by Erika Dreifus on
2

  • Coming soon: the perfect stamps for your SASEs. “With the issuance of Twentieth-Century Poets, the U.S. Postal Service® honors ten of our nation’s most admired poets: Elizabeth Bishop, Joseph Brodsky, Gwendolyn Brooks, E. E. Cummings, Robert Hayden, Denise Levertov, Sylvia Plath, Theodore Roethke, Wallace Stevens, and Wil­liam Carlos Williams. The many awards won by this illustri­ous group include numerous Pulitzer Prizes, National Book Awards, and honorary degrees. Each stamp features a photograph of one of the ten poets. Text on the back of the stamp sheet includes an excerpt from one poem by each poet. The art director was Derry Noyes. The stamp will go on sale nationwide April 21, 2012.”
  • And on a not-unrelated note: Do you save your rejection slips?
  • Several tech-y items to share: five ways to keep up with tweets, how to monetize a blog, and simple SEO for authors. (I’ve bookmarked all three to return to for closer study.)
  • Cathy Day asked MFA faculty and students this question: “Should we make it our business to teach the business of being a writer?” And here’s how they responded. I haven’t yet weighed in, but there are lots of comments accruing on Cathy’s blog.
  • Midge Raymond, on Jane Friedman’s definition of “author platform.”

    • Friday Find: Philip Levine Reading

    by Erika Dreifus on
    2
    Photo credit: Geoffrey Berliner

     

    Unfortunately, I was not in the audience back in October when U.S. Poet Laureate Philip Levine gave a reading (and participated in a Q&A session) with Nicole Cooley at Queens College of The City University of New York. Luckily, though, the event was recorded.

    I’ve just had the pleasure of listening, and if you have time this weekend, you might, too.

    Enjoy the weekend, everyone. See you back here on Monday.

    Quotation of the Week: Julia Alvarez

    by Erika Dreifus on
    4

    “For me, the writing life doesn’t just happen when I sit at the writing desk. It is a life lived with a centering principle, and mine is this: that I will pay close attention to this world I find myself in. ‘My heart keeps open house,’ was the way the poet Theodore Roethke put it in a poem. And rendering in language what one sees through the opened windows and doors of that house is a way of bearing witness to the mystery of what it is to be alive in this world.”

    –Julia Alvarez, quoted in 1998 in The Writer magazine, with the quotation republished in “Great Writing Tips from 125 Years of The Writer,” in the magazine’s April 2012 issue.

    Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    Disabled
  • Birds & Blooms magazine is running a “Backyard Blunder Contest”: “Do you have a funny birding or gardening story to share from your backyard? We want to hear it! Send us your best “backyard blunder,” and the winning story will receive $500.” Deadline is coming up on March 15, 2012. No entry fee. (via @femministas)
  • Great news from Slice: “We are pleased to announce that for the first time we will be offering a small monetary award for all contributors. Over the course of five years, Slice Literary has evolved from a struggling magazine to a celebrated publication. We have always been committed to bridging the gap between emerging writers and the professional publishing world. In fact, many agents and editors have connected with writers after reading their work in our semi-annual magazine. From the outset, we have also worked toward the goal of paying writers. We feel that an award, even if it is small, demonstrates an appreciation for the art of writing. We are thrilled to announce that all contributors of Slice will be paid ($100 for stories and essays and $50 for poems) beginning with issue 12, which will launch spring 2013. The issue 12 reading period will run from July 1 – August 31. The theme for that issue is ‘Obsession.'”
  • From the Online News Association (ONA): “Students, are you looking for a great opportunity to cover digital media and learn from top leaders in the industry? Apply to be a part of the all-expenses-paid ONA12 Student Newsroom at the Online News Association’s annual conference, Sept. 20-22, in San Francisco.” Open to college students and graduate students. No application fee indicated. (via @NiemanLab)
  • Assistant Professor of Creative Writing sought: “The Humanities Division of Lesley College [Mass.] is seeking a full-time, 9-month faculty member to teach courses in creative writing (poetry or fiction), literature and Humanities Internship Seminars.”
  • “The Department of English at Franklin & Marshall College (Penn.) invites applications for a one-year position at the Visiting Assistant Professor level, beginning Fall 2012. We are looking for a creative writer specializing in nonfiction. A commitment to undergraduate teaching, significant publications, including preferably at least one book, and a terminal degree in creative writing required. The 3/2 teaching load will include creative writing and literature offerings but no composition.
  • From Whitman College (Wash.): “Visiting position in Creative Writing (Poetry) at the rank of Assistant Professor; effective August 2012. MFA or PhD in Creative Writing and substantial poetry publications required. The successful candidate will offer Introduction to Creative Writing (a multi-genre course), Intermediate Creative Writing-Poetry, and Advanced Creative Writing-Poetry, and may also be asked to teach a section of first year composition or a 100-level Introductory to Poetry. Ability to teach an upper-division literature course on Victorian Poetry desirable.”
  • Poetryfoundation.org (Chicago) is looking for a part-time Assistant Features Editor: “The goal of poetryfoundation.org is twofold: To use the Internet to reach and engage a broad audience for poetry, and to support the Foundation’s other initiatives and programs. The Assistant Features Editor helps achieve these goals by providing the editorial expertise necessary to publish smart, lively and relevant journalism about poetry, and the publishing expertise necessary to ensure a smooth web publishing process. The Assistant Features Editor must be a talented editor with an extensive background in journalism and literature, including English language poetry and poetry in translation. Successful candidates will also be knowledgeable about popular and web culture.”
  • PEN American Center (New York) seeks an Associate Editor for the PEN website.