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	Home    Editor's blog   print this page .......... May 4, 2008 Poetry Anthology invites submissions With the deadline only weeks away, shake off the summer heat and get cracking on your poems... Peacock Books, the poetry imprint of Frog Books, Mumbai, India, will be bringing out an anthology of poetry, 'Indian Women Writing in English', in July 2008. Meena Kandasamy will be guest-editing the volume. "Urban poetry is the overall theme that we have chosen for this collection of verse," Meena says. "Seventy per cent of the country's population lives in its five lakh villages, but as a nation we are characterised by our big-city dreams. We are seduced by its slickness. We are shocked by its shadiness. And, as always, this powerful love-hate relationship with the exterior cityscape transforms into poetry. Hysteria, insomnia, chaos, confusion… it is difficult not to become possessed. So, open up the belly of the beast. Share your best city poem. It doesn't matter if it has been published before. It doesn't matter if you had not meant it for publication all along." I am working with a deadline," she continues. "A publisher with flaming feet and an illustrator; so I would love it if you could send your submission (along with a 100 word bio) by 30 May 2008 to me (meena84@gmail.com.) Please send a cc copy of your poem to Sunil K Poolani, Publisher and Managing Editor, Frog Books (poolani@gmail.com) 0 Comments .......... April 15, 2008 From the NY Times "NEW DELHI — Of all the flattering headlines that greeted the release this month of the first Pakistani film to be shown in India in four decades, one stuck in the mind of its director, Shoaib Mansoor. “We didn’t know that Pakistan had such good houses,” the headline said, Mr. Mansoor recalled in an interview here. It was a striking reminder of how little people in India know about their neighbors across the border." Read More... 0 Comments .......... April 9, 2008 Pratilipi This bi-lingual, bi-monthly literary e-magazine was recently brought to my attention and what a find it is! The team at Pratilipi is headed by Rahul Soni and Giriraj Kiradoo, whose first published poem won the prestigious Bharat Bhaushan Agrawal Smruti Puruskar in 2000. Their website is gorgeous, easy to read and packed with articles on the Hindi literary scene. Not everything is translated, however...So brushing up on your Hindi before tackling any of the articles is recommended. Of particular interest this issue are excerpts from Geetanjali Shree's novel Khaali Jagah (Empty Space). 0 Comments .......... April 2, 2008 Check out our Recommended Reading for April! Fear of Flying By Erica Jong Vintage Books Rs 430 "Show me a woman who doesn't feel guilty and I'll show you a man," says Isadora, the protagonist of Erica Jong’s groundbreaking novel Fear of Flying originally published in 1973. The brazen novel follows Isadora, a 29-year-old Jewish, unhappily married woman as she wanders across three continents on an existential odyssey that is ripe with sexual and emotional revelations. Still considered one of the most pioneering books of the 70s and a feminist classic, Fear of Flying is a gripping, no-holds-barred look at a woman’s sexuality. Essential reading for anyone with a vagina (and even for those without one). Posted by AW 0 Comments .......... March 31, 2008 'The Foremost Short Story Prize for Unpublished Women Writers' 'The Foremost Short Story Prize for Unpublished Women Writers' Name: The Asham Award Eligibility requirements: Entrants must be female and can be of any nationality and from any country providing that they are over 18 and currently resident in the United Kingdom. They should not have had a novel or book of short stories for adults previously published. Stories should not be more than 4000 words in length. Deadline: September 30th 2008 The Prize: First prize: £1,000; Second prize: £500; Third prize: £300; Runners up £100 each. All winning stories will be published in a collection by Bloomsbury along with special commissioned pieces by Yiyun Li, Esther Freud and Alison MacLeod. Entry Fee: £15 To read reviews of the last collection (2006) put together by the Asham Award entitled Is This What You Want? click here. Posted by AW 0 Comments .......... March 27, 2008 Osians Literary Agency Getting a good book deal in India, like getting a well-paid job here, is all about negotiation. How well can you sell yourself? How confident are you that you are the next Arundhati Roy? Who's your father? Do you fall into some quirky socio-cultural niche? Blah blah. The larger publishing houses take full advantage of this - especially the biggest one who shall remain nameless. They intimidate you, manipulate you and bully you until you wonder why you're writing at all. 'They’re right, my book does suck and is only worth Rs 10,000,' you sigh to yourself. It’s about time some systems and institutions are in place that will help local talent avoid getting coaxed into ugly book deals – pathetic advances, ludicrous options on second books and unfair claims on a book’s international rights. These are all commonplace in Delhi’s publishing scene. Which is why I welcome the year-old Delhi-based Osians Literary Agency. Protecting writers’ interests will certainly inject a much needed dose of professionalism into the industry and will help nurture new talent. And all the usual benefits of having an agent of course apply - how nice to send someone in there to deal with the sharks for you. How nice to have someone manage the endless emails, phone calls and bulls*!t that goes into signing a book deal. Run by Renuka Chatterjee, who used to work at Penguin, Harper Collins and finally at Roli, the Osians Literary Agency has already signed on fifteen writers, including filmmaker Saeed Mirza, head of Mphasis Jerry Rao and up and coming writers like Omair Ahmad and Madhulika Liddle. Writers interested in signing on with the agency should submit their MS along with a short bio to Osian’s –The Literary Agency, C/o Osians – Connoisseurs of Art Pvt. Ltd., 3rd Floor, B-35, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi – 110016 or email them at newdelhi@osians.com or kavita@osians.com for more information. Posted by AW 0 Comments .......... March 20, 2008 Call for Submissions 2 Self-portrait by Jaishri Abichandani SAWCC is now accepting submissions for its Tenth Anniversary / Annual Visual Arts Exhibition to be held from August 4–September 1, 2007 at Exit Art in New York City *** Submission deadline: May 1, 2007 *** The theme for this year's exhibitions is collaborative works and participatory projects. All visual media, including 2D, 3D, video and installation work that fall within the guidelines of this call for submissions will be considered. Participatory projects are being defined for the purposes of this exhibition as interactive artworks that engage the audience through the duration of the exhibition. We are also looking for work produced through a process of dialogue between at least two South Asian women artists, across disciplines. Meaning, this year we will also be accepting projects between visual artists and writers, dancers, musicians etc. (Following from our participation in the New York South Asian and Arab Film Festival, we will consider collaborations between South Asian and Arab/Persian women.) Artists are invited to submit multiple projects with different collaborators, provided the finished products are ready in time. If you have work that has already been produced, please send us documentation of the project. If you are initiating a project for this exhibition, initial sketches or jpegs and a proposal will be reviewed but are due on May 1st with other artworks. All selected projects must be completed and ready to review by July 15th 2007 for a final approval by the curators. Entries must be original work(s) completed within the last six years. Audio or video equipment required will be supplied by Exit Art. Please forward this call widely. The show will be juried by: Jaishri Abichandani, Founder/ Executive Director SAWCC & Jeanette Ingberman, Co- Founder / Director of Exit Art TIMELINE: Entry deadline: May 1, 2007 (received) Notification: Selected artists notified by June 1, 2007 Artist's Reception: August 4, 2007 PLEASE MAIL ALL MATERIALS BY MAY 1, 2007 to Exit Art 475 Tenth Ave New York, NY 10018 0 Comments .......... March 13, 2008 Sociopaths with literary aspirations? It seems people will do anything to get published these days. First we had Kaavya Viswanathan, who lifted entire passages, word for word, from Megan McCafferty’s books. But she was only 17, and one might argue, a victim of the corporate publishing houses behind her. But can the same be said for James Frey, whose book, A Million Little Pieces, turned out to be more fiction than memoir? Or even more shocking, the Holocaust memoir, “Misha: A Memoir of the Holocaust Years” by Misha Defonseca, which turned out to be a fake as well. This week, the US publishing industry takes another blow in the name of Margaret Seltzer, a k a Margaret B. Jones, the 33-year-old author of Love and Consequences. The memoir centers on Seltzer’s tear-jerking childhood in a “gang family in South Central Los Angeles.’ But earlier this month, after a glowing New York Times profile of the author was published along with a large picture, a woman called the Times, claiming she was Seltzer’s sister and that the whole story was made-up. Some investigation later and it was discovered that indeed, Seltzer had fabricated the entire story, was actually a white woman who had grown up in an affluent suburb in Los Angeles, had attended a private high school and had no connection to the gangs of South Central. Seltzer, AKA Jones Seltzer’s publishers, Riverhead (indicentally Riverhead, a division of Penguin USA, was also behind Frey's other novel, My Friend Leonard) and her editor, Sarah McGrath, claim they are very upset about the whole incident. But as Amy Alexander in the Nation points out this week “This is not the first time that white, upper-middle class gatekeepers at a mainstream media outfit have been undone by their lust for an "authentic" ghetto experience told by an insider with an entré into the deep, scary recesses of the inner city.” Posted by AW 0 Comments .......... March 8, 2008 Lynch the Letch Today is International Womens Day and to celebrate the fabulous team at the Blank Noise Project are organising a nationwide protest against eve teasing and sexual harrassment. Below are details of where women are getting together in your city to raise awareness and support each other in the battle to end eve teasing. Lucknow: 5.30pm in front of Barista, Hazratganj Hyderabad: 4 pm, at Eat Street Mumbai: 4 :45 pm. Barista. Bandstand Kolkata: 4. 30 pm. New Market./ NEW EMPIRE SIDE Patna: 4 30 pm. Outside Maurya Lok Delhi: 4 30 pm. Sarojini Nagar Market, near the sabzi mandi/ vegetable vendors- where ceramic mugs are sold Bangalore: 4 45pm. Java City, Church street Email blurtblanknoise@gmail.com for more information. 0 Comments .......... March 3, 2008 Its good to be a woman We bring you three women-friendly competitions this week… Name: The WOMENETCETERA! Writing Contest Eligibility requirements: Registration on their website; submit a fiction or non fiction piece under 500 words; be a woman over the age of 40 Deadline: Contest begins March 10. Deadline is midnight on April 18 The Prize: Grand prize is $500, first prize $200, second prize $100. Honorable mentions in each category will receive books authored by Women Etcetera! Writers and a Logo Tote Bag and Tee Shirt. Entry Fee: FREE Name: THE PATRICIA DOBLER POETRY AWARD Eligibility Requirements: Submit an unpublished full-length book of poetry, fiction or nonfiction ready; be a woman over 40 living in the United States Deadline: March 10, 2008. The winner will be notified by April 10, 2008 The Prize: The winner will receive the Patricia Dobler Poetry Award, in the form of round-trip travel and lodging as a participating guest of Carlow's MFA residency in Carlow, Ireland, June 13-23, 2008. Entry Fee: $20 Name: THE SUNSILK LIFE CAN'T WAIT CONTEST Eligibility Requirements: Be a "legal, female" resident of the US, including the District of Columbia, and Canada; be over 21; Registration on myspace.com; uploading an original photo of yourself; Submission of an original story under 1499 words that best captures your "life can't wait" moment. A Life Can't Wait moment, according to Sunsilk is "a time when you made an inspirational goal or dream happen." Deadline: March 7, 2008 The Prize: One US and one Canadian prize. Each Grand Prize winner will have the opportunity to have her story filmed and made into a docudrama. Twenty U.S. & five Canadian finalists receive a 4-day/3-night trip for two to New York, NY on or around 3rd of April to 7th of April 2008. Trip includes round-trip economy flights for the Finalist and guest, hotel, a styling session for the winners and $4,000 spending money. Entry Fee: FREE Posted by AW 0 Comments [Top]		Blog archive 2008    May       Poetry Anthology invites submissions    April    March    February    January 2007   Advanced Search sign up for the newsletter
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