Watch this space…
Turnover is swifter than stroppy short order cooks in a pancake kitchen

Details of competitions and opportunities just in (and generally verbatim).
And out again; information received is often so last minute, some items are posted
for a couple of days only.

UK, Multi-Genre

July 21
First Retreat then Advance!! is open to three to five mid career
artists from any discipline, either North West or England based, with
an interest in critical thinking, self-reflexivity and dissent.
To apply please write up a short piece of 250 words max which includes
the term `dissent’ in the text. This short piece can be either
fiction, non-fiction, poetry, dialogue, manifesto, performance text,
academic essay etc… Please include a 250 words bio. Mail your
submission to theinstitute@twoaddthree.org.
‘First Retreat then Advance!! A four-day cultural activist
intervention into Liverpool08, Capitalism of Culture with The
Institute for the Art and Practice of Dissent at Home.
Thursday 11 and Friday 12 September 2008, Retreat at The Institute
for the Art and Practice of Dissent at Home, Liverpool;
Saturday 20 September 2008, Advance in Liverpool; and
Sunday 21 September 2008, Show and Tell at Nuffield Theatre,
Lancaster.
Deadline: Monday 21 July 2008.

The Project
First Retreat then Advance!! is a four-day cultural activist
intervention into Liverpool08, Capitalism of Culture. The base for
the event is The Institute for the Art and Practice of Dissent at
Home in Liverpool, with the `Show and Tell’ taking place at the
Nuffield Theatre in Lancaster. First Retreat then Advance!! comes in
two phases: Retreat then Advance.
The Retreat will involve two days of critical self-reflection: a
personalised mapping of Liverpool and its Capitalism of Culture. With
all expenses paid, the participants will explore Liverpool’s high and
low points, enjoy a cultural night out, have a morning swim at
Everton Leisure Centre, fry-up at the local café and share each
others impressions in order to generate `tactics for advance’. The
Advance will take place a week later, in the form of cultural
activist interventions in the city. The final phase of the event will
be a `Show and Tell’ at Nuffield Theatre. Basic accommodation
provided at the Institute on 11 and 20 September.’

Italy, Residency
August 13
For nearly fifty years, the Rockefeller Foundation has hosted scholars, creative artists, and practitioners at Bellagio for concentrated work on major projects. Talented professionals use time at Bellagio to advance work that has impact across disciplines, while interacting daily with an active and diverse intellectual community. Artists and scholars stay for one month of work at Bellagio, away from their usual daily demands, and flexible schedules are available for practitioners working at non-profit or NGO organizations. Residents at the Bellagio Center in 2007-2008 represent a diverse group of more than 20 countries, including: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Macedonia, Poland, Russia, the United Kingdom, Israel, Lebanon, Canada, the United States, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Togo. Applicants from outside the United States and Western Europe are particularly encouraged to apply, as are individuals working on projects aligned with the Foundation¢s objective to expand opportunities for poor or vulnerable people. The Bellagio residency provides room/board and high-speed internet access to all residents free of charge. Please note that financial assistance can be made available to successful applicants whose limited means might otherwise prevent them from accepting a residency.

The selection process for Bellagio is very competitive, and will ultimately favor professionals with significant experience and strong project proposals. The Bellagio opportunity is not a grant, but rather a time to interact with a professional community while working toward tangible personal achievement.
The deadline for applications to the spring 2009 residency period is August 13, 2008. To learn more about Bellagio, and to view the online application, please visit http://www.rockfound.org/bellagio/bellagio.shtml. You are also welcome to direct any questions you may have to the Institute of International Education Bellagio Office at bellagio_res@iie.org or (212) 984-5537.

UK, Draw
August 29
Nielsen Book/Bookseller celebrate 150 years of service to the industry and would like publishers, booksellers, librarians and everyone connected with the trade to send their favourite book for inclusion in research into the top 150 titles as voted for by the book trade. All the submissions will be entered into a FREE prize draw to win £250 worth of travel vouchers.
‘ We would love to know your favourite book – the one book that you can return to time and again; the one that would enliven a desert-island exile or a wet weekend in February. Would it be Pride & Prejudice, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mocking Bird? Or of more recent provenance perhaps – The Book Thief, Perfume, The Time Traveler’s Wife?
To enter, simply email marketing.book@nielsen.com with the subject line ‘Favourite Book’. Please remember to include your name, organisation, contact details along with the title and author of your favourite book and the reason for your choice.

UK, Award
August 1
The Impress Non-fiction Prize For New Writers - on a registered creative writing course at a UK university or holding a teaching or postgraduate position in a UK university but no previous book-type publication.
enquiries@impress-books.co.uk www.impress-books.co.uk

August 10
Welsh-based poets: Call for Submissions:
Adele Nozedar is currently working on her third book, Birds of the Celtic Otherworld. The themes are birds, the landscape, and the celtic ’spirit’. Adele wants to use poems from Wales-based poets to illustrate sections of the book, so please submit any poems you think might be appropriate to her by Sunday 10 August 2008 at the latest. There are no restrictions on length. Adele cannot pay for any of the poems, but the writers will retain copyright and will receive a copy of the book.
Please send poems to Adele Nozedar by email: adelenozedar@btconnect.com
To read more about Adele visit her Writers of Wales entry on the Academi website.

UK, Multi-Genre
August 31
Remix Pipilotti

If you are an artist, filmmaker, musician or just a fan of Pipilotti Rist, remix her work and get the chance to see your entry on the BBC Big Screen in Liverpool city centre.
Pipilotti’s artwork is a constant remix of fantasy and the everyday. Her collection of Super 8 films, many of which like You Called Me Jackie (1990, see right) and Sip My Ocean (1996) can be seen in FACT’s Media Lounge and the installation The Room, seem like the kind of material you would see today on YouTube. She subverts the music video, merging music with the female voice and body and electronically manipulating the world around us.
This summer, watch Pipilotti’s video works online then submit your own remix to win …
1. Take one of Pipilotti’s videos from YouTube or at www.pipilottirist.net , edit it, mix it, play it backwards, chop it up, create your own soundtrack, or video yourself performing your own version of it.
2. Upload you film onto FACT’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/FACTLiverpool
3. Email the weblink to your video to: competition@fact.co.uk
4. We will profile our favourites on the BBC Big Screen.
5. The competition winner will be announced on 01 September 2008
www.fact.co.uk/news/?id=160

UK (I think), Online Competition

No deadline on website: www.charlie-bone.com
Looking for themed ideas for a new game.
To promote the UK launch of Charlie Bone and the Shadow of Badlock by Jenny Nimmo.

Workshops
North West; new writers
Application on 1st come basis; workshops start August 14, only 5 places
so get your skates on and grab a pen:

Commonword News:
One on one Writers surgeries and spoken word surgery sessions in 08

Dear North West based writer or budding writer,

(1) Writers Surgery for Page-based writers

(2) Sessions for spoken word based writers with Poetry Champion, Ben Mellor

Are you a new writer* based in the North West of England? If so, would you like a one-to-one writer’s surgery/coaching session to discuss your work and your ambitions? Commonword is launching a new bimonthly service – happening on the second Thursday of every other month – and we have five slots available for Thursday August 14th

Sessions are open to both prose writers and poets. Writers can provide up to 10 pages of prose (single-sided, minimum 1.5 spacing), or up to 5 poems (no more than 120 lines in total). To get the most out of your session, we would advise you to send this work to Commonword in advance.

Sessions will take place at Commonword’s offices, in our new, dedicated ‘writers’ pod’, and slots will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. If you think you would benefit from a surgery session, please hit reply to this email and provide the 5 poems or 10 pages of prose as an attached file. Our surgeon/coach will read through your work and assess whether or not it would benefit from one of our slots. She will then give you a time when she can meet you at our offices to look over your work, discuss your ambitions, and see if jointly you can devise a plan of action.

If you are interested please email admin@commonword.org.uk using ‘writers surgery’ in your subject line.

* ‘New writer’, here, refers to unpublished writers, or those who have had a small number of pieces published in local/small press magazines. If you have had work published in local magazines, it would help if you mentioned this when sending us your work.

Writers Surgery Dates:

(this is not a walk-in service, you must pre-book)

Thursday August 14th
Thursday October 9th

(2)

The winner of our 2008 Poetry Slam Competition, Ben Mellor is now our poet in residence. As part of his residency he will be holding a workshop for those interested in honing their stage technique and finding fresh ways to present work before a live audience. If you are interested in working with Ben on your spoken word writing, please reply by email with ‘spoken word workshops’ in the subject line. Spoken word workshops and one to ones with Ben will happen in September and October.

USA
August 31
“Forever After” Romance Short Story Contest

(And open only to US entrants)

Arrow Publications/MyRomanceStory.com
The premise is “Don’t let something as simple as ‘The End’ get in the way of a good romance.”The contest runs from March 24, 2008 to August 31, 2008. Winners will be announced in September 2008.

Select one of MyRomanceStory.com’s romance novellas and write about what happens when happily Forever After begins. Each of our stories has its passionate ups and frustrating downs. So select the hero and heroine from your favorite novella and tell us how their love deepens and their relationship is cemented in the Forever After of their story.How it works: Submit your follow-up to one of our novellas as a 2,000 to 2,500 word short story using our online submission form. (Submissions are limited to no more than two per entrant.) The novella can be chosen from one of our free stories, member’s stories or one of the stories from our Buy E-Books section. You can find our novellas online at MyRomanceStory.com, many can be read for free, so no purchase is necessary. Your submission should focus on the challenges the couple face after our novella ends and what circumstances occur to fortify their love for each other.Our editors will judge all qualifying submissions on:1. creativity
2. faithfulness to the original story and characters
3. strength and appeal of romantic elements
4. overall writing.The contest is open to all U.S. citizens who are 18 years of age or older by the end of the day on August 30, 2008. Submissions will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. EDT on August 31, 2008. Prizes will be awarded during the week of September 30, 2008.Prizes
1st Place:
- $250 in cash
- a gift package valued at $25
- a two-year subscription to MyRomanceStory.com
- plus a written critique by one of our editors on one of your other short stories or a sample chapter from a novel (no more than 5,000 words). 2nd Place:
- $200 in cash
- a one-year subscription to MyRomanceStory.com
- a MyRomanceStory.com tote bag

3rd Place:
- $150 in cash
- a one-year subscription to MyRomanceStory.com
- a MyRomanceStory.com tote bag

4th Place:
- $100 in cash
- a one-year subscription to MyRomanceStory.com
- a MyRomanceStory.com tote bag10 Honorable Mentions (each will receive):
- $50 in cash
- a one-year subscription to MyRomanceStory.com
- a MyRomanceStory.com tote bagAll qualifying submissions will be posted on MyRomanceStory.com, so readers can vote for their favorite romance short story. The top vote getter will receive the Readers’ Favorite Prize. (Only one vote per person a day). Submissions can be awarded one of the above prizes and the Reader’s Favorite.Reader’s Favorite: - a gift package valued at $25
See www.MyRomanceStory.com for a complete list of Terms of the Contest

Canada, anthology
Open deadline
ARTS ANGELS SHORT STORIES
Submissions invited for a collection to be produced
by Arts Angel Publishing.
FREE. Length: 4000-5000 words. May be emailed, or
SEND TO: Arts Angels Publishing, P.O. Box 544, Willow Street, Chemainus,
British Columbia, V0R 1K0 Canada
artsangels@shaw.ca www.elizahemingway.com