Write On...

Mark Your Calendars for Michigan Writing Retreats

If you're looking to spark some creativity and find a fabulous way to connect with other Michigan writers, attend a retreat. The following are a few upcoming writer's retreats in 2014.

Peninsula Writer's Winter Retreat - February 2014

Retreat from Harsh Reality - April 2014

Interlochen Writer's Retreat - June 2014

Bear River Writer's Conference - June 2014

The answer to all writing, to any career for that matter, is love.

Ray Bradbury 

The Many Perks to Writing Contests

I have to be honest, I don't participate in many writing contests. Life has taken me on a journey that seems to plummet toward and then dramatically swerve away from the public world of writing. I've gone from blogging daily and submitting several stories or articles to contests monthly, to working at a Digital Marketing Agency and Writing Copy, to focusing solely on writing and marketing my novel Ula published in 2012, to these days, journaling and slogging through my sequel while also substitute teaching and teaching yoga. It's an unpredictable life - something I love about it - but writing is always alive within me. It transforms, finds pools of thriving life and then recedes and dries in the desert sun. Despite the changes that my writing has undergone in my life, I return to it in one form or another and I am grateful when a unique opportunity to share my perspective, or craft a new story, comes along.

Several months ago, I submitted a very short piece of writing to Spirituality and Health Magazine as they were offering a contest to win a trip to Maui. Essentially, they asked readers to write about a spiritual practice and I wrote about nature. Nature is near and dear to my heart and I am never lost for words when it comes to waxing poetic about the trees and flowers and lakes that surround me. Much to my surprise and delight, I won the contest. Thus a few weeks ago, I spent an absolutely majestic ten days in Maui with my boyfriend. The prize included a five night stay at the tranquil, yoga-retreat center Lumeria and offered us a wonderful opportunity to relax, unwind and get centered during our visit. I wrote about meditation in my previous post and the powerful affect it can have on our writing. I felt this even more strongly as I pondered the winding path that life takes us on and how writing had taken me to a community designed to help us connect with the consciousness that lives beyond our individual identities. For me, it was evidence that my writing is most poignant when it is truly a reflection of my heart, and the writing contests that I have won have nearly always reflected this.

My good friend Jon loves science fiction. He began writing just a couple of years ago and hesitantly at first. A single father, in his late thirties, he did not necessarily feel capable of entering the mysterious and oft frightening world of writing. Despite his apprehensions, he began to write. He wrote science fiction stories and submitted them to flash fiction contests online. He got a few rejections and then he started winning. Suddenly, every time I talked with him, he told me about his latest contest win. The prizes ranged from $10 to $50, but ultimately the joy for Jon had nothing to do with winning some cash and everything to do with realizing his dreams and knocking down the walls he'd built around them. Since then he has written stories for published anthologies and in November he participated in NaNoWriMo (National novel Writing Month) and completed 50,000 words to a future novel.

When we open ourselves to the possibilities of where our writing might guide us, the whole world becomes available. There is no telling who will be touched by your words and what dark path, that you'd never gazed upon, might suddenly become illuminated. If you're searching for an opportunity, a contest, an inspiration, anything - try out one of the contests below; perhaps you will discover a new path awaiting you.


Inspiration Travel Writing Contest - No Entry Fee - Deadline: 2/14/14

Disquiet Fiction, Nonfiction and Poetry Prize - $15 Fee - Deadline: 2/15/14

Penny Fiction Flash Fiction Writing Competition - No Fee - Deadline: 2/17/14

SF/LFA Short Fiction Contest - No Entry Fee - Deadline: 3/4/14

theNewerYork Press Kissing Flash Fiction Contest - Fee ? - Deadline 2/28/14

Shanti Arts Inspired Stories Competition - $15 Fee - Deadline 3/1/14

Phoebe Winter Writing Contest - $17 Fee - Deadline 3/8/14

Ginsoko Flash Fiction Contest - $5 Fee - Deadline 3/1/14

Lunch Ticket Creative Nonfiction - No Fee - Deadline 3/30/14

Writing criticism is to writing fiction and poetry as hugging the shore is to sailing in the open sea.

John Updike 

Stillness First: Mediation and Writing

Writing may seem like a relatively silent endeavor. However, we need only tune into the mind's internal dialogue to recognize it is anything but. When we are brainstorming ideas, writing an article, researching or simply chastising ourselves for not reaching our 1,000 word goal today; our brains are talking a mile a minute. In a half hour, we can move from complete confidence in our project to abject fear and failure. Despite the frightening swings of our thoughts, they are not our reality. Arriving at a deeper space of knowing shows us how to find freedom in stillness, which ultimately crumbles the many walls (or blocks) that prevent us from touching our authentic creativity.

Meditation is a process that guides us out of the chitta vrtti, as we call it in yoga, which is a sanskrit term meaning chatter of the mind, and into a space of peaceful awareness. It is not in our experience of meditation that we sit down to write, but merely to exist. Here the incessant growling recedes to a gentle murmur and then, if you really let go, ceases all together. Gone are the to-do lists, the feelings of laziness, the fears of failure and even all that existed before and all that might exist at some future point. When we connect to the infinite now in a mindful way and consciously choose to allow thoughts to merely be one ebb in an endlessly flowing tide - here and now gone - we reach the self that lives deeper than our material world. It is this self that is freed of the limitations of our dense form, our constructs of reality and our attachments to this identity whether that be a job, a hobby or even an image in the mirror. It is learning to hear the voice that is voiceless and when you return to the world of thought, the world within is much richer and more prepared to discover writing anew.

I have been meditating for several years and though I believe it's important to not approach meditation with a goal in mind - such as being a better writer - I know in my heart that our endless determination to improve ourselves is often what leads us to meditation. The same holds true for many writers. We want to be better, more devoted, more in touch with our characters, our narrative and our audience. All in life is connected and when you integrate mediation into your daily life, connection begins to permeate elsewhere. Connection unfolds in your writing, your relationships and your interactions with the world.

So I ask only that you consider it with an open mind. Perhaps you ask the question: How might meditation affect my writing? Maybe take it further: How might meditation affect my entire life? And then try it. Find a quiet place (I love the woods) and sit comfortably, palms up if it''s comfortable and bring your awareness to your breath. Other stuff will come at you - sounds, thoughts, physical discomforts - acknowledge them and then let them go. I like to imagine encapsulating thoughts in a  bubble and blowing them off of my fingertips, letting them drift away. Maybe try this for five minutes a day, more if you're feeling adventurous. Perhaps that is as far as you go or maybe you sit down to write after your meditations - a journal entry or just a half hour on your writing project of choice - and see what new ideas appear. When we meditate, we find openings that were previously closed, inspiration that before was dormant.

Meditation is the tongue of the soul and the language of our spirit. - Jeremy Taylor

2013 Writing Contests

Writing contests are a fantastic way to discover new genres and reveal your writing to both the reading and writing communities. When searching for a writing contest, consider submitting something in a genre outside of your norm. It helps you to broaden your skills as a writer and also allows you to flex your craft and discover other interests beyond your typical stories or poetry. Many writing contests have specific themes, which can also bring focus where otherwise you might feel conflicted about what story to write. Choose a few contests below and make it your personal writing goal to be more open, more intuitive and more flexible with your writing. And perhaps most importantly don't take it too seriously. Writing is an inward journey so be gentle with yourself and allow the words to flow...

2013 Autmumn House Poetry Contest: Deadline 6/30/13

2013 Lois Cranston Memorial Poetry Prize: Deadline 6/30/13

Hunger Mountain Howard Frank Mosher Short Fiction Prize: Deadline 6/30/13

Literal Latte Short Fiction Contest: Deadline 6/30/13

Teachers and Writers Collaborative 2013 Bechtel Prize Essay: Deadline 7/1/13

Bard Fiction Prize for Published Authors: Deadline 7/15/13

The Cincinati Review Robert and Adele Schiff Awards in Poetry and Prose: Deadline 7/15/13

The 2013 Rattle Poetry Prize: Deadline 7/15/13

The 2013 Wasafiri New Writing Prize: Deadline 7/26/13

Dream Quest One Poetry and Writing Contest: Deadline 7/31/13

2013 Northwind Short Story Contest: Deadline 7/31/13

Subito Press Book Prize: Deadline 8/16/13

When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature.

Ernest Hemingway 

You Have to Start Somewhere

Writing can be an intimidating process especially when you first start out. The naysayers are many often detailing how difficult it is to get into an MFA program, get published, write something worthy and, of course, make a living doing so. However, if you love to write, you must abandon other peoples' opinions of the obstacles and go forward with a singular focus on doing what you love and making it work as best you can. This means beginning in a space that's reasonable and accepting where you are right now, irrelevant of where your writer friends are or where you feel like you should be.

A little over a year ago, I moved back to Lansing and struck up a friendship with a neighbor who loved to read and enjoyed writing, but had never really felt confidant taking the plunge. Over a series of months chatting about writing, he started to pen short stories. He would carve out time in the mid-day when his son was at school and before he went to his overnight shift at work. He wrote short stories and then began submitting them to small flash fiction contests and various websites. Within a month or two of writing his first story, he won a small contest and received a $10 gift card and publication online. His enthusiasm was contagious and he thanked me profusely for inspiring him to believe that he could do it. It reminded me of how hugely gratifying every step of the writing process can be. Where ever we are, we can discover the joy and satisfaction of living our craft. Whether you're writing a journal so that you can better reflect on your life or completing and selling your latest manuscript, allow gratitude into your life so that you can celebrate every victory regardless of its perceived value.

If you've been writing every day or never written a word, but really have wanted to, begin today - now - this moment. You have to start somewhere...

 

Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose or paint can manage to escape the madness, melancholia, the panic and fear which is inherent in a human situation.
Graham Greene

Inspiration and Vulnerability in Writing

The video that I'm posting is not specifically about writing, but it is about creating, being vulnerable and asking for what you need so that you can sustain yourself doing what you love. I found it extremely inspiring and know that in my own creative process, the fear of asking and ultimately the fear of rejection have prevented me from many things. We put so much time, effort and ultimately love into our work, we must implore ourselves to share it with the world and be unafraid to ask for help in return. I hope this moves you as it did me this morning. Thank you for visiting and keep writing!
-Jacki

 

Video: Amanda Palmer - The Art of Asking