49 Writers Weekly Roundup - 49 Writers, Inc.

Summer has flown by; as everyone gears up for the State Fair, we’re finalizing the details of our fall program. Be sure to check back here next week for information about upcoming creative writing classes, reading & craft talks, and Crosscurrents events.

Ron Carlson, photo by Tracy Hall

Sept. 4, 7-8:30pm, Anchorage Museum (7th Ave. entrance): Our first Crosscurrents event of the new season features Tutka Bay Retreat leader Ron Carlson (Return to Oakpine, The Signal) and local author Don Rearden (The Raven’s Gift). “Surviving the Story” will address the questions, “Where do stories come from?” and “How does a writer find and survive a story?” Join us for a stimulating onstage conversation about the process of discovery in writing fiction. Q&A and book signing to follow. Admission free, donations welcome!

Ode to a Dead Salmon contest: We have a winner! Check the people’s choice here. Thanks to everyone who entered and voted, and to Running Fox Books for organizing this year’s contest.

Last weekend’s 2013 Sledgehammer 36-Hour Writing Contest was a hit! The organizers express their appreciation to everyone who supported this event and helped to spread the word. With the new virtual option, they received a total of 39 stories – nine by Alaskans. It will take the judges a few weeks to deliberate; in the meantime, you can submit your votes for the Readers’ Choice Award. It’s easy! Just visit their website to read the stories and vote for your favorite three. The poll closes Sept. 21, and winners will be announced Sept. 30.

Aug. 23, 6:30-9pm, Woosh Kinaadeiyi will partner with Juneau’s middle and high schools to host a Back to School Poetry Slam at the Thunder Mountain High School Library. The event is free and open to the public. Students and families are especially encouraged to attend. More details at www.facebook.com/wooshpoetry.

Aug. 23, 7pm, New Renaissance Bookshop, Portland, OR: A Cirque reading will be held by the journal’s contributors, with a staged reading of “I Teach Out of Love: A tribute to Theodore Roethke.” Alaska editor and poet Sandy Kleven will be there too! Note that Cirque is accepting submissions for the 2013 Winter Solstice issue, deadline Sept. 21. Please send inquiries and submissions to cirquejournal@yahoo.com, and visit their website for more information.

Aug. 24, 3pm, Ninilchik Community Library: Bestselling Alaska author Eowyn Ivey and Pulitzer Prize nominee for her book, The Snow Child, will do a question-and-answer session and book signing. Sponsored by the Ninilchik Traditional Council, the evening offers a chance to join Ivey for an intimate discussion on her break-out novel and its Alaska-inspired themes. A limited number of copies will be available for purchase, with proceeds benefiting the Ninilchik Community Library.

Last chance to meet the Aug. 30 deadline for applications for the Connie Boochever Fellowship. This opportunity only comes around once every four years!

Sept. 6, midnight, registration for the Alaska Writers Guild/SCBWI Fall Conference closes. No walk-in registrations will be accepted. Still deciding whether or not to attend? Download a copy of the conference schedule here.

Sept, 12, 7pm, Anchorage Museum: Renowned climber and writer Nicolas O’Connell discusses the firsthand experience that brings his novel The Storms of Denali to life. Book signing follows. Free admission.

Nominate an Outstanding Community Leader for AWP’s George Garrett Award
Do you know someone who has shown exceptional generosity to the next generation of writers? Nominate him or her for the 2014 George Garrett Award for Outstanding Community Service in Literature. The winner receives a lifetime AWP membership and a $2,000 honorarium, along with travel, accommodations, and registration to attend AWP’s annual conference in Seattle, where the award will be publicly conferred. We welcome letters of nomination postmarked between Aug. 1 and Sept. 15.

Nominate a Lit Mag for AWP’s Small Press Publisher Awards
Are you a fan of an innovative, creative, and industry-leading literary magazine? Nominate your favorite for AWP’s Small Press Publisher Award. The award includes a $2,000 honorarium and a complimentary exhibit booth, including two complimentary conference registrations, at our Annual Conference & Bookfair in the year following the recipient’s recognition. Submit a PDF letter of nomination to bookfair@awpwriters.org between Aug. 1 and Sept. 15.

Congratulations to Deb Vanasse, whose book Lucy’s Dance has been selected to represent Alaska at the Pavilion of the States at the National Book Festival in Washington, DC (Sept. 21-22). Each year, the Center for the Book creates a passport that participants use to navigate the Pavilion of the States. On the passport is a book featured from each state. Lucy’s Dance was selected as the Alaska title for fall, 2013.

Kodiak writer Nancy Lord has a new website – check it out here.

Sept. 28, 7pm, the Big Read Kodiak kicks off its celebration of the works of Edgar Allen Poe! Check their Facebook page for more information at www.facebook.com/pages/The-Big-Read-Kodiak/135087230029296.

The open reading period at Fourth Genre: Explorations in Nonfiction, has begun. You are invited to submit notable, innovative work in creative nonfiction. Submissions must be postmarked between Aug. 15 and Nov. 30. Visit www.msupress.org for complete submission guidelines and to see other submission opportunities, such as “Writer as Reader Essays” and the Fourth Genre Steinberg Essay Prize.

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