$1250 prize plus limited edition chapbook and e-publication. February 14, 2016 DEADLINE
photo by Jonathan Demme
Edwidge Danticat is the author of several books, including Breath, Eyes, Memory, an Oprah Book Club selection, Krik? Krak!, a National Book Award finalist, The Farming of Bones, The Dew Breaker, Create Dangerously , and Claire of the Sea Light. She is also the editor of The Butterfly’s Way: Voices from the Haitian Dyaspora in the United States, Best American Essays 2011, Haiti Noir and Haiti Noir 2. She has written five books for children and young adults, Anacaona, Behind the Mountains, Eight Days, The Last Mapou , and Mama’s Nightingale, as well as a travel narrative, After the Dance. Her memoir, Brother, I’m Dying, was a 2007 finalist for the National Book Award and a 2008 winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for autobiography. She is a 2009 MacArthur fellow. Her most recent books is Untwine, a young adult novel.
About the contest
Eligibility
This competition is open to any female-identified individual writing in English, regardless of nationality.
How to Submit
2016 deadline is February 14, 2016. Judge is Edwidge Danticat. Submit online here once contest opens in mid-Dec.$20 reading fee, some scholarships are available. Comment box should include:
• daytime and evening telephone numbers
• where you heard about the contest
All entrants will be notified of results via email.
Manuscripts must be:
• submitted as RTF, DOC or PDF. NO DOCX FILES.
• a minimum of 4,000 words and a maximum of 12,000 words
• double-spaced and paginated
• ANONYMOUS (do not include your name anywhere on the manuscript, and please do not include a title page with names).
• original fiction written by the applicant (translations are not eligible)
• unpublished at the time of submission (if the story is accepted elsewhere during our deliberation process, please notify us immediately)
• acknowledgments unnecessary.
The Process
Batches of manuscripts are delivered to 5-6 preliminary readers of diverse backgrounds and literary perspectives. Stories selected by these preliminary readers are ranked and then reviewed and ranked again by a second reader. The 10-20 semifinalists are then forwarded to the judge, who chooses 2-3 finalists and a winner.
ETHICS STATEMENT
We endorse and agree to comply with the following statement released by the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses:
CLMP’s community of independent literary publishers believes that ethical contests serve our shared goal: to connect writers and readers by publishing exceptional writing. We believe that intent to act ethically, clarity of guidelines, and transparency of process form the foundation of an ethical contest. To that end, we agree to:
- conduct our contests as ethically as possible and to address any unethical behavior on the part of our readers, judges, or editors;
- provide clear and specific contest guidelines — defining conflict of interest for all parties involved; and
- make the mechanics of our selection process available to the public.
This Code recognizes that different contest models produce different results, but that each model can be run ethically. We have adopted this Code to reinforce our integrity and dedication as a publishing community and to ensure that our contests contribute to a vibrant literary heritage.
For more information e-mail us or call us at 520.327.2127.