The Talking Writing Prize
The Talking Writing Prize is an annual contest that celebrates the diversity online of original, personally driven writing.
“Double Prayer”
© Jill Slaymaker
TW 2017 Contest
How do you tackle life’s Big Questions? This year’s Talking Writing Prize spotlights essays on Writing and Faith, a popular annual theme at TW. Writers are welcome to explore a wide range of issues—mortality, belief, culture of origin, atheism—as part of a personal meditation about soul searching through words:
- Talking Writing Prize for Personal Essay
Topic: Writing and Faith
Length: up to 2,000 words
Judges: Ausma Zehanat Khan and TW Editors
Award: $500 and publication in Talking Writing.
Submission Deadline: October 16, 2017.
Guest Judge: Ausma Zehanat Khan
Ausma Zehanat Khan
“I’m interested in work that highlights both the practical and transcendent aspects of faith in daily life,” says Ausma Zehanat Khan, our guest judge for this year’s personal essay contest.
Ausma Zehanat Khan earned her doctorate in international human rights law with a specialization in military intervention and war crimes in the Balkans. She also formerly served as Editor in Chief of Muslim Girlmagazine, helping to reshape the conversation about Muslim women in North America.
A British-born Canadian and former adjunct law professor, Ausma now lives in Colorado with her husband. She writes the award-winning Esa Khattak/Rachel Getty mystery series and the Khorasan Archives fantasy series. Among the Ruins (St. Martin’s Press, 2017) is her latest novel.
As guest judge of TW’s 2017 contest, here’s what she’s looking for:
I’m interested in work that highlights both the practical and transcendent aspects of faith in daily life—from ordinary moments to extraordinary awakenings, from the painful and inconvenient to the humbling and sublime. As the editor of Muslim Girl magazine, these were the aspects of the lived reality of faith that I found most compelling in storytelling. With my mystery series featuring a Muslim detective as a lead character, I explore the intersection of faith, culture, and politics—and the impact of these issues on the lives of vulnerable communities. Essays that explore these themes will be of great interest to me.
General Contest Guidelines
Since its debut in 2010, Talking Writing has showcased personal essays and other endangered forms of literary and journalistic writing.
TW editors believe strongly in building a community that promotes literary culture all over the Web—and the world. TW features have been reprinted in Salon, Ebony, and the Huffington Post, among other online media sites. TW issues have featured interviews with Jennifer Egan, Robert Olen Butler, Terry Tempest Williams, Connie Willis, Andrew Lam, Caitlin Moran, and many others. TW also publishes poetry, fiction, and the work of visual artists and photographers.
All contest submissions are reviewed by top TW editors and considered for publication in the magazine.
Submit all entries at talkingwriting.submittable.com. The $15 fee for each entry offsets administrative costs and supports ongoing publication of TW.
Enter as many pieces as you like, although each entry requires a separate submission and contest fee. Simultaneous submissions are fine, too, as long as you notify us immediately if your piece is accepted elsewhere. We’ll consider unpublished works only, and all entries must be in English.
Include only the title of your piece and page numbers on the first page and in the header. Author names, bios, and cover letters will not be seen by contest readers or judges until the winners have been selected.
Prizewinners receive a cash award and publication in Talking Writing.
>via: http://talkingwriting.com/tw-contests