Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

  • 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.
  • Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

  • ‘Tis the season to be preparing those financial aid applications for the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference: “Thanks to the generous support of Middlebury College and to an endowment fund established by past Bread Loafers and other donors, we are able to offer financial aid in three categories: fellowships, tuition scholarships, and work-study scholarships. Financial aid is awarded in recognition of published work or literary promise; financial need has no bearing on our decisions. Awards must be used in the year they are granted.” Deadline: March 1; early application is “strongly encouraged.” No application fees.
  • In case you missed it, last week’s Friday Find was a resource list for writers of flash nonfiction/micro-essays.
  • Over on The Writer magazine’s website, they’ve posted an online version of my article on “niche contests” and awards. A slew of no-fee competitions in poetry and prose for you over there.
  • “Booktrust and the BBC’s annual showcase of outstanding short fiction [has launched] with an expanded worldwide quest to find the best international short story of 2012 to mark the Olympic year. The judging panel for the one-off BBC International Short Story Award will be chaired by broadcaster and comedy writer Clive Anderson and the winner announced on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row. For the first time since it launched in 2006, the BBC Short Story Award will see stories from home and abroad going head-to-head for the £15,000 cheque for first place. For one year only authors from across the globe will be eligible to enter alongside UK practitioners.” There will be a runner-up award of £2,500 and eight awards of £250 for the other shortlisted stories. Note that all entering authors “must have a record of prior publication in creative writing in the United Kingdom.” Be sure to read the detailed guidelines for further specifications. No entry fee. Deadline: February 27, 2012. (via @SarahSalway)
  • “Adelphi University’s (N.Y.) English Department is seeking applicants for a Visiting Assistant Professor position to teach undergraduate and graduate courses in literature and creative writing during academic year 2012-13, replacing a fiction writer on leave. 3/3 teaching load with thesis advising duties. Published fiction writer with publications in additional genre preferred.”
  • “Mercy College’s (N.Y.) School of Liberal Arts is seeking faculty in Creative Writing, tenure track or multiple year track, rank open. This position involves teaching at all levels of the composition sequence. It includes teaching prose fiction and non-fiction as well as poetry.
  • The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (Washington) is looking for a Senior Officer, Executive and Internal Communications; the Duke University Development Office (N.C.) seeks a Senior Writer; and Milwaukee Magazine (Wisc.) invites applications for a position as Assistant Editor.
  • Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

  • From The Glen Workshops: “We’re thankful for another generous grant from the Davis Foundation that will enable us to continue to increase our scholarship opportunities in 2012. Full and partial scholarships are available for both Glen West and Glen East, to be awarded based on both need and quality of work. You may apply to any class, even if it’s closed for registration. However, if you wish to guarantee a spot in a workshop, even if you do not win a scholarship, you must register for an available workshop and pay the $150 deposit. All writers, visual artists, and songwriters are invited to apply! **No scholarships are available for seminar classes.” Deadlines are January 15 for Glen East and March 15 for Glen West.
  • This list of nonfiction competitions is worth a look, especially for UK & Commonwealth writers.
  • “During the month of January, Matter Press will be open for submissions of a prose collection (prose poetry, fiction, and/or creative nonfiction). During the submission period, please use Submishmash to submit your 25–40 page manuscript, each piece under 600 words to us. Individual pieces in your manuscript may have appeared in journals, both in print and online, as long as the entire collection itself is unpublished.” There is no reading fee. “Matter Press will have a one-time only print run of 300 copies of the winning chapbook. The author will receive $500 and 25 copies.” (via CRWROPPS-B)
  • “Grub Street [Boston] seeks a part-time, temporary Communications Assistant to assist in planning our annual literary conference, The Muse and the Marketplace, in May of 2012. The Communication Assistant will work closely with the Muse team, helping to post and organize information on the website, generate email communications, and create and organize conference materials. The ideal candidate will have superb web, office, and design skills, with strong experience with HTML, Microsoft mail merge, and online databases. A passion for creative writing and a sense of humor are also appreciated! The Conference Communications Assistant will work approximately 10 hours/week for 15 weeks total, broken down as follows: December: 1 week January: 4 weeks February: 4 weeks March: 4 weeks April: 4 weeks Start date is flexible, but we’d like the position to start as soon as possible.” Apply by noon on Wednesday, December 14.
  • From Western Washington University: “The Department of English invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Creative Writing position beginning September 2012. M.F.A. or Ph.D. in Creative Writing, Screenwriting, English, Film Studies, or related field required by August 2012.”
  • “The University of South Dakota invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of English with specialization in fiction writing. Expertise in a second genre is highly desirable. Expertise in Native American literature is desirable but not required.
  • “The English Department at St. Lawrence University [N.Y.] invites applications for a one-year, full-time position in fiction writing beginning Fall 2012. The successful candidate will teach both levels of our introductory and advanced fiction writing courses, and will also be expected to offer a section of the department’s research methods/theory course.”
  • “Hofstra University [N.Y.] seeks a writer of literary nonfiction for an anticipated tenure-track assistant professor of English. Interest in disability studies, a second genre, or a second area of concentration is desirable. Strong record of publication and teaching required.”
  • From the University of Central Oklahoma: “The Department of English invites applications for a one-year, full-time, non-tenure-track appointment as Writer in Residence for the 2012-13 academic year. We are seeking an individual with a strong publication record in poetry and creative nonfiction who has demonstrated excellence in teaching at the college level.”
  • The University of Iowa seeks a Writer/Editor, Cardinal Stritch University (Milwaukee) is looking for an Interactive Media Writer/Editor, the ASPCA (New York) invites applications for a position as Manager, Media & Communications.
  • Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

  • “The POETRY FOUNDATION, publisher of Poetry magazine, is pleased to announce the 2012 EMILY DICKINSON FIRST BOOK AWARD, designed to recognize an American poet at least 40 years of age who has yet to publish a first collection of poetry. The Poetry Foundation seeks one book-length poetry manuscript to be published by Graywolf Press as the winner of the Emily Dickinson First Book Award. The competition is open to any American citizen forty years of age or over who has not previously published a book-length volume of poetry. In addition to publication and promotion of the manuscript, the winner will receive a prize of $10,000.” Submissions must be postmarked between January 16 and February 17, 2012. No entry fee indicated.
  • From the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP): “AWP is now accepting student volunteers for our Chicago conference. All conference volunteers receive a complimentary registration in exchange for volunteering for one four-hour shift. This offer is available only to students. AWP has openings for volunteers from Wednesday, February 29 through Saturday, March 3, 2012. Student volunteer sign-up is open while shifts are still available. Shifts fill quickly, so sign up now at http://awpwriter.org/conference/2012vol.php. Volunteers, we look forward to working with you in Chicago.”
  • Have you seen the December Practicing Writer newsletter? Click here for all the no-fee competitions and paying calls for submission within.
  • Great news for those of you in the Boston area: “Grub Street is pleased to offer $200.00 scholarships to twenty selected writers each year. Recipients may use their scholarship at any time in the year and toward any class they desire, though not for Muse and the Marketplace tuition or manuscript consulting. There are 4 application deadlines throughout the year– one in each term. We’ll give out 5 scholarships after each deadline.” The next deadline is coming up on December 19 (noon). There is no application fee.
  • And a great opportunity for those of you in the metro Detroit area, too: “Kresge Arts in Detroit provides significant financial support for Kresge Artist Fellowships annually, each consisting of a $25,000 award and customized professional practice opportunities for emerging and established metropolitan Detroit artists in the literary, performing and visual arts….In 2012, 12 fellowships will be awarded in the literary arts and 12 fellowships will be awarded in the performing arts.” The program considers “literary arts” as follows: “arts criticism in all categories (including literary, performing and visual), creative non-fiction, fiction, playwriting, poetry and interdisciplinary work within the above arts disciplines.” There is no application fee indicated. Deadline: February 1, 2012.
  • Gettysburg College has issued its annual call for an Emerging Writer Lecturer: “One-year appointment, beginning August 2012, for a creative writer who plans a career that involves college-level teaching, to teach three courses per semester, including Introduction to Creative Writing and an advanced course in the writer’s genre, as well as to assist with departmental writing activities. Mentorship for teaching and assistance in professional development provided. M.F.A. or Ph.D. with creative dissertation, required. Teaching experience and literary magazine publications are essential. Competitive salary.”
  • “McNeese State University’s [La.] Department of English and the Foreign Languages and the M.F.A Program in Creative Writing seek an Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing, Fiction.”
  • Southwest Art magazine (Colo.) is looking for an Assistant Editor, the Nature Conservancy (Va.) seeks a Senior Science Writer, and Columbia Journalism Review (New York) invites applications for a Communications Manager.
  • Monday Morning Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

  • “Hazard Community and Technical College [Ky.] is hosting the annual ‘Spooky Story Contest’….Stories should be spooky, thrilling, and macabre.” The contest is open to any writer; stories must run no longer than 4 pages or 1000 words. No simultaneous submissions. There is no entry fee, and the deadline is coming up fast: October 22. First-prize winner will receive $75; second-prize winner will receive $50. The winners and an honorable mention will be published in Kudzu. (via Kentucky Literary Newsletter)
  • Gothamist is interested in adding more long-form non-fiction features to our websites….For this round, we’re looking for a feature that will be relevant to our complete network audience of over four million readers in large American cities. We believe pitches that involve crime or other mysteries work especially well. However, we will review pitches on any subject you care to send.” Pays: initial payment of $3,500; 50/50 profit split. Pitch deadline: October 31. (via @longreads & @cnfonline)
  • Write it Sideways, a site that provides “writing advice from a fresh perspective,” is looking for two paid contributors. Extensive information available here. Applications are due November 1, 2011 (9 a.m. EST). Pays: $15/article, for 2 articles/month from January-June 2012. (via @NinaBadzin)
  • The Winter Poetry & Prose Getaway (Galloway, N.J.) offers scholarships for first-time attendees. Check the detailed guidelines for eligibility and deadlines (which vary by scholarship). No application fees indicated. (via CRWROPPS-B)
  • “Gemini Ink, the only literary arts center in South Central Texas, seeks an ardent Executive | Artistic Director who can actively build on its mission to nurture writers and readers through literature and the related arts….” Application review will begin January 16, 2012.
  • The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington is looking for a researcher to gather information and write entries for an encyclopedia project. Details on my other blog.
  • Hyde Park Art Center seeks a Marketing and Communications Manager and F+W Media, Inc. (Cincinnati) invites applications for a Content Strategy Manger — Writing Community.
  • From Emerson College (Mass.): “The Department of Writing, Literature and Publishing seeks a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor in the area of Magazine Writing and Publishing to teach a range of magazine publishing courses. The initial appointment is for the 2012-13 academic year beginning September 1, 2012.”
  • The University of Maryland-College Park is looking for an Assistant Professor in Fiction Writing (tenure-track).
  • “The English Department of Stonehill College (Mass.) seeks candidates for a three-year renewable position in creative writing with a specialization in fiction, to begin fall semester 2012. The position may be renewed for another three-year term upon satisfactory review.”
  • “The Department of English, College of Arts and Sciences, Loyola University Chicago (LUC) seeks qualified candidates for a tenure-track position as Assistant Professor of Creative Writing (Poetry), beginning August 15, 2012.” (Look for Job #8500704.)