July 11, 2007

Open call for Philippine Speculative Fiction Vol. 3

Dean Alfar is now accepting submissions of short fiction pieces for consideration for the anthology Philippine Speculative Fiction Vol.3.

Speculative fiction is the literature of wonder that spans the genres of fantasy, science fiction, horror and magic realism or falls into the cracks in-between.

1. Only works of speculative fiction will be considered for publication. As works of the imagination, the theme is open and free.

2. Stories must cater to an adult sensibility. However, if you have a Young Adult story that is particularly well-written, send it in.

3. Stories must be written in English.

4. Stories must be authored by Filipinos or those of Philippine ancestry.

5. Preference will be given to original unpublished stories, but previously published stories will also be considered. In the case of previously published material, kindly include the title of the publishing entity and the publication date. Kindly state also in your cover letter that you have the permission, if necessary, from the original publishing entity to republish your work.

6. First time authors are welcome to submit. In the first two volumes, there was a good mix of established and new authors. Good stories trump literary credentials anytime.

7. No multiple submissions. Each author may submit only one story for consideration.

8. Each story’s word count must be no fewer than 2,500 words and no more than 5,000 words.

9. All submissions must be in Rich Text Format (.rtf – save the document as .rft on your word processor) and attached to an email to this address: dean@kestrelimc.com. Submissions received in any other format will be deleted, unread.

10. The subject of your email must read: PSF3 Submission: (title) (word count); where (title) is replaced by the title of your short story, without the parentheses, and (word count) is the word count of your story, without the parentheses. For example - PSF 3 Submission: How My Uncle Brought Home A Diwata 4500.

11. All submissions must be accompanied by a cover letter that includes your name, brief bio, contact information, previous publications (if any).

12. Deadline for submissions is September 15, 2007. After that date, final choices will be made and letters of acceptance or regret sent out via email.

13. Target publishing date is December 2007/January 2008.

14. Compensation for selected stories will be 2 contributor’s copies of the published anthology as well as a share in aggregrate royalties.

Kindly help spread the word. Feel free to cut and paste or link to this on your blogs or e-groups.

Tag: PUBLICATIONS

June 27, 2007

Premio Tomas Arejola para sa Literaturang Bikolnon

RULES of the CONTEST

1. Open to all Bicolano writers writing in any of the Bikol languages. There shall be no discrimination on the basis of age, gender or religion. Contestants under 18 years of age are, however, required to submit a certificate of parental consent.

2. The 2007 Premio is open in the poetry, fiction, essay, drama and the novel categories.

* Entries in poetry must consist of at least 10 poems but not more than 15 poems.
* Entries in fiction should be at least 7 pages in length but should not exceed 9 pages. Entries in the children’s fiction should be at least 5 pages in length but should not exceed 8 pages. Entries with a plot and narrative suitable for an illustrated storybook of at least 30 pages are preferred.
* Entries in the one-act play must be of sufficient length to approximate a performing time of at least thirty minutes. Full-length plays should have a performing time of at least an hour and a half. Entries in the play categories may be intended for children and/or adults. Plays for children, however, should be directed principally to promote Bicolano values and traditions in the grade school level, ages 7 to 12.
* In the essay category, entries should be at least 5 pages in length but should not exceed 8 pages.
* Entries in the novel may deal with any subject, provided it is tackling issues relevant to Bikol realities.

3. Only new and unpublished works are acceptable. A work that has been awarded a prize in another contest is not qualified for the awards.

4. Entries should be written originally in Bikol and not a translation of a work written in another language. The works must show literary merit and social significance.

5. Contestants may join in all categories but can submit only one entry per category.

6. All entries must be submitted in four copies, double spaced on 8 1/2 X 11 inches bond paper with one inch margin on all sides and the page number typed consecutively, e.g., 1 of 8, 2 of 8 and so on. Font must be Arial and font size must be 12. Entry must be submitted with pseudonym only and not the author’s real name. Author’s name and pseudonym must be submitted in a separate sealed envelope together with a bio-data containing the author’s literary background, an ID picture, and contact information. A notarized declaration of originality and authenticity of authorship must accompany the entry.

7. Entries must be addressed to the Premio Tomas Arejola para sa Literaturang Bikolnon 2007 at the above address not later than July 31, 2007. Entries sent by mail or courier must be postmarked /invoiced not later than July 16, 2007.

Entries submitted via e-mail must be a Word Document file and sent as an attachment together with the contestant’s bio-data containing his/her literary background and a notarized certification or authenticity of authorship of the entry. The original copy of notarized certification and ID picture must then be sent to 2007 PTALB thru mail. Entries submitted via e-mail must be submitted not later than July 31, 2007.

8. Failure to comply with any of the requirements shall result in disqualification from the awards.

9. Copies of winning entries shall remain with and become property of the Premio. Copyright of the works remain with the author but the latter grants, assigns and transfers into PTALB the right without necessity of any payment other than the prize which may have been awarded to publish the winning entry or portion thereof as it may at its discretion.

10. The Premio has the right of action against the author if it may later on discovered that the contestant is not the creator or owner of the copyright to the winning work. The Premio shall not be liable to any court action if a third party files a case against the winner and/or contestant who plagiarized the work of the said third party.

11. Finalists from each category shall each receive the Premio Tomas Arejola Diploma of Merit. A top winner will be chosen from among the finalists who shall then receive the Premio Tomas Arejola medallion and P2, 500 cash prize. All of the said category winners is eligible for the Grand Prize, the winner of which shall receive the cash prize of P10, 000 and will be named Parasurat kan Taon (Writer of the Year). The winners shall be responsible for the payment of government taxes.

12. Names of the finalists will be announced in local weeklies and radio stations around mid-August 2007.

13. The Board of Judges shall have the discretion not to award any prize, if in its judgement, no meritorious entry had been submitted.

14. The Premio has the sole right to designate the persons who shall constitute the Board of Judges. The decision of the majority of the Board shall be final.

15. The names of the winners and members of the Board of Judges shall be announced on or before Sept 18, 2007, Tomas Arejola’s 142nd birth anniversary, in a gala awarding ceremonies in Naga City.

16. Send your entries to "Pang-Apat na Premio Tomas Arejola para sa Literaturang Bikolnon, The Arejola Foundation for Social Responsibility, c/o Museo de Caceres, Elias Angeles St. Naga City, Philippines" or email PTALB through PremioTomasArejola@gmail.com.

Tag: CONTESTS

June 25, 2007

UP Centennial Commission launches literary contest

The UP Centennial Commission is formally launching the Gawad Likhaan: The University of the Philippines Literary Prize on Friday, June 29, 2007, 3:45 pm at the Bulwagang Recto, Faculty Center, UP Diliman. This Contest is administered by The UP Institute of Creative Writing (UP-ICW) as part of the celebrations of the UP Centennial in 2008.

There are six awards, each one worth P200,000, for original, book-length works in 3 genres in either English or Filipino: the novel or short story, poetry, and creative nonfiction or sanaysay. Only one prize per genre in either language will be awarded.

The complete rules are available at the UP-ICW office in UP Diliman. They will also be uploaded on the UP-ICW website and on www.panitikan.com.ph, the literary portal hosted by the UP-ICW.

All entries to the contest are to be submitted to the Board of Judges, Likhaan: The UP Institute of Creative Writing, Faculty Center, UP Diliman. Deadline for submission is Monday, March 31, 2008 at 5 pm. The names of the winners and the members of the board of judges will be announced in June 2008.

The UP-ICW is also sponsoring two other events taking place on the same day as the launch. First is the inauguration of the UP Likhaan Centennial Lecture Series, commencing with the lecture of Dr. Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo, titled “Fiction as Response to History: Philippine Fiction in English.” At 6 pm on the same day, the UP Press will launch at Balay Kalinaw, UP Diliman, among ten other titles, The Children’s Hour, a two-volume anthology of stories on childhood by Filipino writers in English, edited by Gémino H. Abad and Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo.

Tag: CONTESTS, EVENTS

June 25, 2007

First National Conference on Literature for Children

The UP Departamento ng Filipino at Panitikan ng Pilipinas (UP DFPP) will be sponsoring the first-ever Pambansang Kumperensiya sa Panitikang Pambata (National Conference on Literature for Children) with the theme “Tungo sa Gintong Panahon ng Panitikang Pambata” (Towards the Golden Age of Literature for Children) on July 25-27, 2007 at the Claro M. Recto Hall, Faculty Center, UP Diliman. The national conference will feature paper presentations by both established and young literary critics, creative writers, and visual artists for children led by renowned UP scholar Dr. Rosario Torres-Yu. Topics include interpretation and interpellation of Filipino aesthetics, historical and regional narratologies, educational and informational praxes, the culture of reading, media, diaspora, sexual politics, folklore, ethnography, peace talks, and poverty and revolution, – all in relation to literary production for children. Keynote speech will be delivered by critic and National Artist for Literature Virgilio S. Almario. The said conference will also feature workshop talks by illustrator Jose Miguel Tejido, Adarna House publisher Ani Rosa Almario, and renowned writer for children Prof. Rene O. Villanueva. For inquiries about conference fees, reservations and the like, contact Dr. Eugene Y. Evasco (eugene.evasco@gmail.com) and/or Prof. Will P. Ortiz (bilogangbuwan@gmail.com). You may also contact UP DFPP (9244899).

Tag: EVENTS

June 23, 2007

2007 NCCA Writers' Prize guidelines

The NCCA Writers’ Prize is a biennial grant awarded to six (6) writers, one for each of the following categories: novel, short stories (including children’s stories), poetry, drama, essay (English) and literary biography (English/Filipino). The grant, in the amount of TWO HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND PESOS gross, will assist the grantee during the writing stage of the project. The grant is good for one year, after which a manuscript of the writing project will be submitted to the NCCA for possible publication or staging.

The NCCA, in line with its mission to “encourage the continuing development of a pluralistic culture by the people themselves,” will be creating the opportunity to have a direct hand in the development of Filipino literature. With the grant, the NCCA Writers’ Prize winners will be freed from the demands of their work and shall be able to focus on the writing of the project for one year.

ELIGIBILITY

The grant is open to Filipino writers, of legal age, except the officers and members of the NCCA Secretariat and the officers of the NCCA Committee on Literary Arts and Committee on Dramatic Arts.

MECHANICS

For the 2007 NCCA Writers’ Prize competition, the following shall be the requirements in the submission of entries:

1. Applicants must submit an accomplished application form, available at the NCCA Project Management Division, curriculum vitae, and a 3 – 5 page concept paper discussing the rationale and significance of the project. Initial output of the project which shall be submitted in four (4) printed copies along with the concept paper. For 2007, the categories and the expected initial output are:

All the sample works shall be in typewritten form. Manuscript and concept paper shall not bear the name of the applicant in any of the pages.

2. Applicants are allowed to apply in only one (1) category.

3. Applications will be evaluated by an Ad Hoc Screening Committee selected by the Committee on Literary Arts and the Committee on Dramatic Arts. There will be three members of the screening committee per category.

4. The grant will be released in four tranches, with the first tranche at the beginning of the writing period and the succeeding tranches upon submission of the following:

2nd tranche - 50% of the writing project
3rd tranche - 75% of the writing project
4th tranche - 100% of the writing project

5. The writing grant is good only for one year. The NCCA will allow maximum extension of six (6) months only with written justification by the grantee.

6. Completed manuscript must be submitted in two forms: one (1) printed copy and one (1) electronic copy in MSWord format in a diskette. The project output shall be as follows:

7. The grant is non-transferable. All privileges shall be enjoyed by the grantee himself/herself based on the successful evaluation of the work in progress. A reader from the screening committee of each category shall be assigned to evaluate the succeeding materials to be submitted by the grantee. Upon submission of the positive evaluation of the reader for the second and third tranches, the corresponding amounts shall be released immediately to the grantee. However, for the fourth tranche, the same will be released only upon completion of evaluation of the completed manuscript by the Reader. Revisions, however, may be recommended by the Reader. Only upon final approval of the completed manuscript shall the final tranche be released to the grantee.

8. Deadline of submission of application together with the curriculum vitae of applicant and other requirements shall be on December 31, 2007. All applications shall be addressed to:

2007 NCCA WRITERS’ PRIZE Secretariat
Project Management Division-Special Projects
National Commission for Culture and the Arts
NCCA Building, 633 General Luna St .
Intramuros, Manila

9. Applicants shall include a self-addressed stamped kraft envelope in case the materials shall be returned to the applicants who were not selected.

COPYRIGHT AND OWNERSHIP RIGHT

1. The Grantee hereby grants the NCCA the first option to publish the output of the Grant. The NCCA will have the right to produce or authorized to be produced, for staging, telecasting, broadcasting, or cinema or other forms of exhibition from time to time any output of the writing grant. The NCCA will also be allowed to include the output of the Grant in the NCCA Website. The first option to publish of NCCA expires one year after completion of the Grant.

2. It is understood that the literary material submitted has not been submitted to any other award body or has not received any prize and is not a completed manuscript but a work in progress. Any violation of the guidelines shall mean withdrawal of the grant and any amount paid to the grantee shall be returned to the NCCA. The award then will be transferred to the person who garnered the second highest vote during the Screening of the materials.

Download the Official Entry Form

Tag: CONTESTS

June 17, 2007

Milflores flash fiction anthology deadline extended

Vicente Garcia Groyon, editor of the projected anthology of flash fiction/sudden fiction (to be published by Milflores Publishing) announces that the deadline for submission has been extended to July 15. All interested writers are therefore invited to send their stories for consideration to the address below.

Stories may be in English or Filipino, and from 500 – 750 words.. Our preference is for stories which have not been previously included in books. Stories published on line or in magazines/journals are acceptable, but please indicate where and when upon submission.

This invitation goes out specially to writers who have been a part of earlier Miflores anthologies (like Sleepless in Manila, and A Book of Maladies edited by Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo and Sawi edited by Ada J. Loredo, BJ A. Patino and Rica Bolipata Santos) or have published books of their own with Milflores. But newcomers are welcome (provided they write well).

Submissions should be sent to flashfic.milflores@gmail.com.

Queries may also be addressed to Vince at that address.

Tag: PUBLICATIONS

June 12, 2007

Portrait of the City: The Literary Imagination and the City We Live In

A literary exhibit of places in the city that have inspired great works of literature

“To begin with, it is impossible to write of Pasay without feeling — one thinks of it with love and repulsion and sorrow.”-Kerima Polatan from The Rise and Fall of Pasay, Author’s Choice, Selected Writing of Kerima Polotan

See how words can take you to places and make you feel the city throb with emotion; realize the beauty in the bustling chaos. Experience the works of Philippine authors come alive in this unique exhibit.

As part of the celebration of the 11th Philippine Book Development Month, the National Book Development Board (NBDB), in partnership with the Filipinas Heritage Library (FHL), is mounting a literary exhibit entitled, “Portrait of a City: The Literary Imagination and the City We Live In”. The exhibit will feature the places around the metropolis that have inspired great works in Philippine literature, from Rizal all the way to young contemporary writers. The exhibit is free at the Glorietta III Park, from June 27 to July 1, 2007, and at the Trinoma Mall from July 4-8, 2007.

To further enhance the literary experience, on June 30, there will be a Portrait of the City tour, wherein an actual tour will be held visiting the places in Makati, Pasay, and the City of Manila. Starting and ending at the exhibit at the Glorietta Park, participants will experience the written word come alive in this one-time, one-of-a-kind tour. The tour will be guided by reading enthusiast Ms. Joanna Abrera Del Prado.

Powerbooks is the official bookseller of the exhibit. The books will be on display for sale during the literary exhibit at the Trinoma Mall.

To join the Portrait of the City tour, please call the Filipinas Heritage Library at 892-1801, look for Ms. Sheila Cayton. The Portrait of the City tour costs five hundred pesos (P500) per head to cover transportation and meals. Limited seats available. Guided tours of at the exhibit itself will be available on June 28 to 29 at the Glorietta III Park and July 5 and 6 at the Trinoma Mall at these times: 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

For schools and teachers interested in guided tours of the exhibit itself for their students, or for the schedule of events during the Portrait of the City exhibit please call the NBDB at 928-0048 and look for Mr. Jun Briola.

Tag: EVENTS

June 12, 2007

Call for submissions for the 7th Ateneo National Writer’s Workshop

The Ateneo Institute of Literary Arts and Practices (AILAP) is now accepting applications for the 7th Ateneo National Writer’s Workshop to be held on October 22-27, 2007.

Each applicant should submit a portfolio of any of the following works: five poems, three short stories, or two one-act plays, written in Filipino or English, with a title page bearing the author’s pseudonym and a table of contents.

The portfolio must also be accompanied by a diskette/CD containing a file of the documents saved
in Rich Text Format.

All submissions should include a sealed envelope containing the author’s name, address, contact numbers, and a one-page resume including a literary curriculum vitae with a 1x1 ID picture.

Twelve (12) fellows will be chosen from all over the country. Food and lodging accomodations will be
provided.

Please address entries to: Marco A.V. Lopez, Acting Director, AILAP, c/o Filipino Department, Horacio de la Costa Hall, Loyola Schools, Ateneo de Manila University, Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

Deadline of submissions is on August 3, 2007.

For inquiries, please contact workshop coordinators Ms. Bong Oris and Mr. Yol Jamendang at 426-6001 local 5320-22. You may also e-mail Mr. Lopez at mvlopez@ateneo.edu.

Tag: WORKSHOPS

June 12, 2007

14th Iligan National Writers Workshop successful

Fifteen writing fellows selected from 85 aspirants from all over the country completed the 14th Iligan National Writers Workshop. The workshop was held at the Elena Tower Inn in Iligan City last May 21 to 24.

A distinguished panel of writers critiqued the fellows’ works in poetry, drama, and fiction.

The Iligan Workshop administered by the Mindanao Creative Writers Group (in cooperation with the MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology) is one of three institutionalized writing workshops in the country. It is distinguished as the only workshop that publishes its proceedings, a documentation of writing in progress by the fellows in interaction with the panelists. It accepts works in the regional languages, besides English and Filipino, to draw its true national character. It is also the only workshop that honors its graduates with the invitation to have them keynote the opening. This year’s keynote speaker was poet Rebecca Anonuevo.

Last year’s proceedings are collated in the book Writing Against the Current (ed. Christine Godinez-Ortega) launched during the culminating program.

ighlight of the program was the Jimmy Y. Balacuit Awards named after the late Vice Chancellor for Research who assured by his support the continuance of the workshop. The awardees were:

Fiction

Rommel B. Rodriquez
Short Story “Phil”

Douglas James L. Canadano
“A Reply to a Query”

Poetry

Peter Paul D. Villasin
“Hi Demetria Ngan An Adlaw”

Play

Joshua L. Lim So
“Portraits”

Honorable Mention:

Mary Louise G. Dumas
"Kilometro Biente Sais" (Poetry)

Raquel Tomasa R. Ho
"El Mensajero" (Fiction)

Ma. Celeste F. Coscolluela
"No Umbrella" (Fiction)

Bernadette V. Neri
"Parada ng mga Alingawngaw" (Fiction)

The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) supports the workshop with an annual endowment.

Tag: WORKSHOPS

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