Dec 31, 2013

Residency and Chapbook Competition - The Frost Place (Franconia, New Hampshire)

Dartmouth Poet in Residence at The Frost Place

A prize of $2,000, reading series, and a six-to eight week residence at Robert Frost's former home in Franconia, New Hampshire, is given annually to a poet who has published at least one poetry collection. 

Applications accepted through December 31, 2013. Apply online. Visit www.frostplace.org for more information or apply at https://thefrostplace.submittable.com/submit

Second Annual Frost Place Chapbook Competition


A $250 prize, publication of the winning chapbook, a fellowship at the 2014 Frost Place Poetry Seminar, featured reading, and a week-long residency residence at Robert Frost's Former Home in Franconia, New Hampshire is being awarded in 2013 by Bull City Press and The Frost Place. 

Applications accepted through December 31, 2013. Apply online. Visit www.frostplace.org for more information or apply at https://thefrostplace.submittable.com/submit

Dec 30, 2013

Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics Hiring a Professor of Creative Writing

Naropa University's Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics invites applications for a full-time core candidate advanced Assistant Professor or Associate Professor with excellent abilities in creative writing, literary scholarship, and program administration: appointment to begin fall 2014. Duties include teaching (on campus and online) undergraduate and graduate creative writing workshops, literary studies, and professional development courses; advising BA and MFA thesis students; service to the School and University; as well as program coordination of the MFA in Creative Writing and Poetics. We seek a candidate who can teach across genres, with an emphasis in innovative prose writing (fiction and creative nonfiction) and an interest in queer literature and theory. Teaching load: 3/3 plus MFA thesis advising; course release for program coordination.

Start Date: July 1, 2014

Assistant Professor: $46,000
Associate Professor: $50,000, dependent upon experience

Qualified applicants should apply online by January 31, 2014 and include:

  • A letter of interest, including primary professional qualifications and pedagogical statement.
  • Curriculum vitae, highlighting teaching experience, administrative experience, publications, and community engagement.
  • One published book of innovative prose. Upload PDF or mail to Naropa University, JKS Faculty Search, 2130 Arapahoe Ave, Boulder, CO 80302
  • Three recent course syllabi of your own design.
  • Three letters of recommendation from writers or colleagues in equal or higher academic positions, highlighting teaching, publications, and collegiality.

Apply online.

Art with Heart

Since moving to Seattle 3.5 years ago, one of the many facets of the city that I've fallen in love with is its profound compassion and social consciousness. It is, in fact, a blessing and a curse--while navigating the turbulent waters of grad school, dissecting my thoughts one by one and rebuilding this new self of intersectionalities and muddled theory, it seemed that the world around me was rebuilding itself, too. Yet any quick dive into Facebook was a shocking reminder that my cloistered, University, Social Work, Non-Profit Seattle world was often in stark ideological contrast to much of the rest of the country.

I struggled with how to express this in class. "You don't talk much" was every professor's post-class assessment, and as much as they told me to speak up more, three years later, I voice my opinions just as much as Day 1. Yet for all of my shyness, no teacher questioned who I was or what I believed in, because it came out in what I wrote. Writing was my power, a more familiar and comfortable way of connecting both with myself and others, something I had honed during the various traumas of youth and held onto as an adult because it at once allows me to connect with others and distance myself from their response. It feels safe.

Time and again, writing has been shown to help children and young adults who are coping with childhood trauma. Trauma has wide-ranging social and physiological effects, including an inability to recognize, name, and express their feelings. They may react powerfully (violence, aggression, yelling, self-harm) or they may just simply dissociate (tune out); with either, this inability to talk about their feelings and needs lasts well into adulthood, with devastating consequences on their ability to form healthy relationships. Through writing, children and teens are finally able to unburden and redefine themselves.

If you want to learn about some of the work that local writers are doing within marginalized communities and with victims of childhood trauma, I've included a list of Seattle-based non-profits below:

Writing Resistance: Part writing group, part community action, Writing Resistance is a Beacon Hill-based group for those affected by disability and ableism. It also looks like they were taking submissions for their first Zine back in March of '13, though I was unable to locate any further mention of it online.

Books to Prisoners: Okay, so it's not actually a writing-focused non-profit, but Books to Prisoners, run by Seattle's Left Bank Books, still focuses on literacy and social justice, which is all that matter to me to make the cut.

826 Seattle: If you write, you probably already know about literary non-profit powerhouse 826 Seattle. Founded by Dave Eggers, 826 Seattle offers tutoring, workshops, bookmaking and writing labs, reaching over 3,100 children throughout King County.

Arts Corps: Focused primarily on low-income youth of color, Art Corps has brought racial justice to the arts, through youth workshops, writing classes, after school programs, classroom curriculae and artists in residence, and youth poetry slams.

Art with Heart: Art therapy is a powerful tool in working with young children who are struggling with trauma. Whether they're facing the death of a parent or chronic illness, Art with Heart develops books to help children sort through their feelings and safely express themselves.

Pongo Teen Writing: This amazing organization works with teens, often homeless or incarcerated, to "express themselves through poetry and other forms of writing." They also publish anthologies of the teens' work, most of which are given away to other teens in need, but are also sold to help cover a small percentage of their publishing costs.

Dec 29, 2013

Call for submissions: THE BOILER

THE BOILER is accepting submissions in poetry, short stories, and short memoir/essays (prose under 3,500 words) for its spring 2014 issue. Submissions close February 20, 2014.

The Boiler was started online in 2011 by a group of MFA students from Sarah Lawrence College. Now publishing quarterly, it features emerging writers and established writers such as Paul Liscicky, David Hollander, Bruce Bond, Thomas Lux, Daniel Chacon, Raena Shirali, Robin Richardson, Cinthia Ritchie, Kelli Allen, Emma Bolden, Cynthia Cruz, Joseph Millar and others.

Dec 28, 2013

Visiting Assistant Professor Positions at Oregon State University


Two one-year Visiting Assistant Professor appointments in creative writing, one in fiction and one in creative non-fiction (with particular focus on magazine writing/literary journalism), beginning fall 2014.  

Over the three terms of the 2014-2015 academic year, each position will cover five courses, including one graduate-level (MFA) workshop, one upper-division craft class, and undergraduate literature and/or creative writing courses as assigned.  Each position also requires serving as thesis advisor for two MFA students and assisting with the reviewing of applications to the MFA program.  

Required: MFA at the time of appointment,  significant  publications in the genre, and a record of successful teaching.

To review postings and apply, go to http://oregonstate.edu/jobs

Dec 27, 2013

Clockhouse



Clockhouse accepts works of poetry, fiction, memoir, creative nonfiction, and dramatic works for stage or screen from both established and emerging writers.

Clockhouse is an eclectic conversation about the work-in-progress of life—a soul arousal, a testing ground, a new community, a call for change. 


Deadline: February 1