This year’s JRW Conference poetry reading on Saturday, October 12, 2019, will showcase several poets from the conference, including Mary Bonina, Michelle Dodd, Jon Pineda, and host Wendy DeGroat. For more information about these poets, visit: 2019 JRW Conference Speakers and Moderators.
Admission to the poetry reading and exhibits at The Edgar Allan Poe Museum (during the time of the reading) is free and open to the public.
JRW is proud to be a part of artoberVA.
Poe has been a major influence on authors as diverse as Arthur Conan Doyle and Neil Gaiman, and he continues to inspire new generations of artists. Has he been significant to your own development as a writer? Please send us poetry and flash fiction that demonstrate his influence, whether you’ve been inspired by Poe’s use of the grotesque, his theory of the unified effect, or his pioneering work in science fiction and the detective story. No matter what he wrote, Poe imbued his work with a relentless creative spirit—that’s what we’re hoping to find in your submissions.
Show how Poe has inspired you!
The Fine Print
Theme: Poe Inspires
Contest Opens: November 1, 2018
Contest Closes: November 30, 2018, at 11:59 pm EST
Winners Notified: The first week of January 2019
Rules:
There is no age restriction and no entry fee.
All rights for the work remain with the author.
One entry per person. (You must choose either fiction or poetry.)
All entries must be 250 words or less and submitted using this form.
Board Members and Employees of James River Writers and the Poe Museum may not enter.
Prizes: One fiction and one poetry winner will each receive a coveted Golden Poe. Final entries will be displayed at the PoeMuseum’s annual Birthday Bash celebration on January 19, 2019, and winners and select entrants will be invited to read their work. Additionally, winners will be published in Get Your Word On (circulation of 4500+) and on the James River Writers and Poe Museum websites.
The form to enter can be found here: 4th Annual Poe Inspires Contest Entry.
There are more publication paths than ever before, but don’t overlook the power of the anthology. Whether you’re a new writer or an experienced author, submitting to an anthology can expand your publishing resume, enable you to reach new readers, and even give you an excuse to experiment in different genres. Building your own anthology can allow for literary collaboration unlike any other creative form. Discover the possibilities with this exciting panel of writers and editors. No matter whether you write fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, there’s an anthology for you if you only try.
Date: Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Time: 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm (Meet & Greet at 6:00; program starts at 6:45)
Location: Firehouse Theatre 1609 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA, 23220
Price: $12 – Members; $15 Non-members ($5 for students)
Heather Weidner’s short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series and 50 Shades of Cabernet. She is a member of Sisters in Crime – Central Virginia, Guppies, and James River Writers. The Tulip Shirt Murders is her second novel in her Delanie Fitzgerald series.
Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.
Heather earned her BA in English from Virginia Wesleyan College and her MA in American literature from the University of Richmond. Through the years, she has been a technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She blogs regularly with the Pens, Paws, and Claws authors. Heather can be reached on the web at
http://heatherweidner.com and on Twitter @HeatherWeidner1
Derek Kannemeyer is a South African-born, London-raised Richmonder, whose poems, stories, and non-fiction essays have appeared in dozens of publications from Fiction International to Rolling Stone. So far in 2018, he has seen published a book of light verse (An Alphabestiary) and The Blue Nib Chapbook 1, featuring his winning group of poems from Blue Nib’s inaugural chapbook contest. His collection What Got Us Here is due out later this year.
Deirdra McAfee and BettyJoyce Nash co-edited Lock & Load: Armed Fiction, the only book in America today that helps us talk about guns. McAfee\’s prizewinning fiction has appeared in Shenandoah,The Georgia Review, The Diagram, and elsewhere. McAfee received fiction residencies at McDowell, the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Oberpfälzer Künstlerhaus and elsewhere. A trained editor and experienced teacher, McAfee earned an MFA in fiction from the New School and an MA in literature from Georgetown.
Lana Krumwiede began her writing career by creating stories for children’s magazines. Her first novel, Freakling (Candlewick, 2012) was named a finalist for SCBWI’s Crystal Kite Member’s Choice Award and an honor book for the International Reading Association’s Intermediate Fiction Award. Freakling was followed by two more novels, Archon (2013) and True Son (2015), and a picture book Just Itzy (2015). Lana is also the editor of River City Secrets: Stories from Richmond (2016).
The Shann Palmer Poetry Contest is a partnership between James River Writers and Richmond magazine to encourage Virginia poets to share their best work. Submissions will be accepted from January 1, 2018 through February 28, 2018. All 2018 submissions are electronic.
The contest is named after Shann Palmer, a long-time JRW volunteer and board member, beloved poet, and a wild- and wise-hearted creative who shared her spirit and talents freely, inspiring and encouraging others in the literary community. She passed away in December 2013, and the contest (formerly “Best Poetry Contest”) was renamed in her honor the following year.
First prize: $500, publication of winning poem(s) in Richmond magazine, and a ticket to the annual James River Writers conference.
The 2018 judge was Tarfia Faizullah.
For more information, visit The Shann Palmer Poetry Contest