Do You Like to Cut It Short?

Memoirists and essayists, here's your chance to say it all in just a few words. This year, Talking Writing will award the first TW Prize for Flash Nonfiction. The judge is Dinty W. Moore, editor of Brevity Magazine.

Length: 500 words or less.

Deadline: October 1, 2014.

Submissions: Click here to enter today. [3]

Topics: Creative nonfiction, a mini-essay, or a tiny memoir on any theme. The key is "flash." Dinty says the following will catch his eye:

Tight language, vivid description, strong nouns and verbs, a sense of urgency, and the voice of the author.

Award: The winner of the 2014 TW Prize for Flash Nonfiction will receive $250 and publication in Talking Writing. In addition, TW editors will consider all contest entries for publication.

Judge: Dinty W. Moore is editor of Brevity [4], the online journal of flash nonfiction. A professor of nonfiction writing at Ohio University, he's the author of The Mindful Writer: Noble Truths of the Writing Life and a memoir, Between Panic & Desire.

Q: Is there another prize category this year?

A: Yes. You can also submit entries for the 2014 TW Prize for Writing Advice [5], judged by Emily Toth ("Ms. Mentor" of the Chronicle of Higher Education).

Q: Where will I find more information about TW's annual contests?

A: Go to the TW Contests page [6] or to Talking Writing at Submittable [3].

Q: Why does TW run writing contests every year?

A: To spotlight wonderful digital literature and first-person journalism—and to support Talking Writing. TW is an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit run by dedicated volunteer editors and board members. Your contest submissions allow them to continue publishing a very unusual digital journal. Thank you!

 

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Art Information

• [7] "Friendly Little Clouds" [8] © D Sharon Pruitt; Creative Commons license.
• The sketch of Dinty W. Moore [9] is from his website and Brevity's Nonfiction Blog.

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