Ashe County, NC, sponsors new contest for fiction, nonfiction & poetry

Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina

I'll be visiting the North and South Carolina this September and will be leading a writing workshop in Charlotte, SC, so I thought I'd put in a plug for this writing contest. (And if you're wondering why I'm visiting the Carolina's, you haven't seen photos of the Blue Ridge Mountains.) Besides, it's the first year for this contest, and the great thing about new contests is that they tend to get relatively few entries....
- Brian

Ashe County’s Literary Festival, On the Same Page, now in its fourth year, has for the first time announced a writing competition as part of the Festival. In association with the 2011 Festival, which will take place September 14-17 in Ashe County, North Carolina, the Page Crafter’s Prize will recognize writers of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry with cash awards.

The writer’s competition is designed to encourage and acknowledge emerging writers and to reinforce the annual theme of the On the Same Page Literary Festival. In 2011, the festival’s theme is “Family Matters.”

Page Crafter’s Prizes will be awarded for first, second, and third place in fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Prize money totaling $1,200 will be presented: $250 for first place, $100 for second place, and $50 for third place in each category.

Deadline for submissions is July 8, 2011, (postmarked snail mail or email submissions).

Entries must be centered on the 2011 festival theme “Family Matters.” There is a 1,000-word limitation for prose and no more than 50 lines of poetry.
A non-refundable entry fee of $10 (U.S.) per submission is required.
There is no limit to the number of entries per person.
Only previously unpublished entries qualify; winning entries will be published on the On the Same Page Literary Festival website. Authors will retain all rights to submitted works; winners need not be present to win, but are encouraged to attend the Festival and read their work.

Complete contest rules and instructions for submitting here.
Visit the festival website here. 

See my schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.