March News & Events

Compiled by Shannon Lawrence, Managing Editor


PPW Events

Note: More information can be found on each of the below events on our Events tab, above.

Early bird pricing for PPWC 2014 has been extended through March 22 due to our website having been down for several days. Be sure to get in while the price is $395! Pricing goes up to $455 after that.

The March Write Brain will be a Q&A with an Agent, that agent being Eddie Schneider, of JABberwocky Literary Agency. He will give a short presentation then take questions after that. Tuesday, March 18, 6:30-8:30 PM, this Write Brain is online only. You must RSVP in order to attend. To do so, go to www.delvewriting.com/rsvp.

Open Critique is Wednesday, March 19, 6-8:30 PM, at Cottonwood Center for the Arts. Get the first 8 pages of your manuscript critiqued. RSVP required for those wanting a critique. 

Writer's Night is Monday, March 24, 6:30-8:30 PM, at Ivywild. Open forum. Come discuss whatever writerly topics you'd like. Food and drinks available for purchase at the venue. 

Other "Local" Events

Delve Writing is holding an online workshop entitled Say it Like a Pro: How to Talk About Your Book Articulately and Enticingly at PPWC or Anywhere. Chris Mandeville will be teaching this course. Price is $20 if you register before February 8. This is a 2-session camp, to be held Saturday, April 5 and Saturday, April 12, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM MT. It is online only and live. While this is not a February event, the discounted price ends tomorrow, so we wanted to pass it along to you.

Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers has a lot going on! Their monthly free programming will be Think You're Ready for the Colorado Gold? It will be presented by Chris Devlin, March 15, 2:30-4:30 PM. They are holding an online class via Yahoo Groups entitled RMFW Screenwriting 101, presented by Trai Cartwright, March 4 through April 22. They are taking submissions for their anthology through March 14. They are taking conference workshop proposals through March 31. Their retreat is March 16-21.

Colorado Springs Fiction Writers has various meetings throughout at the month at different locations. Visitors are welcome. 

The Rocky Mountain Mystery Writers of America will host Kirk Mitchell, as he presents Cold Cases. Thursday, March 13. Doors open at 6:30 PM. $25 for non-members, dinner and program included in price.

Pikes Peak Pen Women will host Nancy Jurka, who will present Getting to Know You, an intermingling of autobiography and music, March 15, 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, at Blue Sage Cafe. $23 for non-members, lunch and program included in the cost. RSVP required.

Friends of Pikes Peak Library District is holding their annual Mountain of Authors program, Saturday, April 5, 12:00-6:00 PM, at their East Library branch, on Union Blvd. This event is free.

Springs Writers will be presenting How to Write Back Cover Copy That Sells, with speaker Shelley Ring., Tuesday, March 11, 6-8 PM, at Woodmen Valley Chapel.

Metropolitan State University is holding their Auraria Writers Week, starting Monday, March 10, with On Writing With Jamaica Kincaid. Tuesday there will be a panel: The Publishing Curve: Staying Ahead of it Before You're Thrown One. Wednesday is the Denver Writer's Spotlight.

If there is a local writer's group you'd like to see included in this listing, please feel free to let me know in the comments!

About the Author: Shannon Lawrence enjoys writing mainly urban fantasy and horror, examining the darker side of life. Her flash fiction piece, “The Family Ruins,” is included in the anthology Sunday Snaps: The Stories, andBeyond the Binding, an anthology including her piece, "Spes et Libertas," was just released in e-book only. While her main focus is fantasy and horror, she is working on a Young Adult fantasy novel and also enjoys photographing Colorado scenery, wildlife, and her children. She is also the NCE Director for Pikes Peak Writers, and the managing editor of Writing From the Peak. You can find her atwww.thewarriormuse.com and on Twitter as @thewarriormuse.

February News & Events

Compiled by Shannon Lawrence


PPW Events

Note: More information can be found on each of the below events on our Events tab, above.

Write Your Heart Out is a free half-day conference preview, tomorrow, Saturday, February 8, 1-5 PM, at the Colorado Springs Marriott. Our speakers are Cindi Madsen, Tom Adair, DeAnna Knippling, Aaron Ritchey, Todd Wallinger, and Becky Clark. RSVP is required (rsvp@pikespeakwriters.com).

The February Write Brain will be Sex is Not a Four-Letter Word: Tearing Down the Taboo Walls of Sexuality to Create More Interesting Primary and Secondary Characters in All Genres, presented by NYT and USA Today bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones. Tuesday, February 18, 6:30 to 8:30 PM. It will be held at Penrose Library, but in a different room than usual, the Adult/Children's meeting room. This event is free.

Open Critique is Wednesday, February 19, 6-8:30 PM, at Cottonwood Center for the Arts. Get the first 8 pages of your manuscript critiqued. RSVP required for those wanting a critique. 

Writer's Night is Monday, February 24, 6:30-8:30 PM, at Ivywild. Open forum. Come discuss whatever writerly topics you'd like. Food and drinks available for purchase at the venue. 

Other "Local" Events

Delve Writing is holding an online workshop entitled Say it Like a Pro: How to Talk About Your Book Articulately and Enticingly at PPWC or Anywhere. Chris Mandeville will be teaching this course. Price is $20 if you register before February 8. This is a 2-session camp, to be held Saturday, April 5 and Saturday, April 12, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM MT. It is online only and live. While this is not a February event, the discounted price ends tomorrow, so we wanted to pass it along to you.

Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers has a lot going on! Their monthly free programming will be Write Your Life as Fiction, presented by Anne Randolph, February 22, 11-1 PM. They are holding an online class via Yahoo Groups entitled Editing & Revision for Fiction Writers, presented by Cindi Myers, February 3 through 23. They are taking submissions for their anthology through March. They are taking conference workshop proposals through March. 

Colorado Springs Fiction Writers has various meetings throughout at the month at different locations. Visitors are welcome. 

The Rocky Mountain Mystery Writers of America will host Deb Courtney, as she presents Publicity and Promotion. Thursday, February 13. Doors open at 6:30 PM. $25 for non-members, dinner and program included in price.

Pikes Peak Pen Women will host Jane Rigler, who will present Interpresence: The Process of Bringing Art and Writing Together, February 15, 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, at Blue Sage Cafe. $23 for non-members, lunch and program included in the cost. RSVP required.

Pikes Peak Library District is holding A Novel Evening: TheGreat Gatsby at Briarhurst Manor, Friday, February 28, 6 PM, to benefit the Manitou Library. 3-course dinner, silent auction, dancing, period costumes welcome.

Springs Writers will be presenting The Flip-Side of a Writer, with speaker Susan Mathis, Tuesday, February 18, 6-8 PM, at Woodmen Valley Chapel.

If there is a local writer's group you'd like to see included in this listing, please feel free to let me know in the comments!

About the Author: Shannon Lawrence enjoys writing mainly urban fantasy and horror, examining the darker side of life. Her flash fiction piece, “The Family Ruins,” is included in the anthology Sunday Snaps: The Stories, and Beyond the Binding, an anthology including her piece, "Spes et Libertas," was just released in e-book only. While her main focus is fantasy and horror, she is working on a Young Adult fantasy novel and also enjoys photographing Colorado scenery, wildlife, and her children. She is also the NCE Director for Pikes Peak Writers, and the managing editor of Writing From the Peak. You can find her at www.thewarriormuse.com and on Twitter as @thewarriormuse.

July News, Events & Links

PPW News

The July Write Brain will be presented by David Corbett, award-winning author of The Art of Character and four suspense novels, including Done for a Dime (a NY Times Notable Book) and Blood of Paradise (nominated for several awards, including the Edgar). He'll be presenting The Outer Limits of Inner Life: Bringing Characters to Life by Looking Within, a workshop on creating memorable characters by forming an intuitive connection with them using your own past to do so. This will be a free event, and is exclusively online, live, on Tuesday, July 16, from 6:30 to 8:30 PM. To get the link for the presentation, you must RSVP to rsvp@pikespeakwriters.com. You can find more information on the "PPW Events" tab above.

The recording for the June Write Brain, Facebook and Twitter for Authors, is available online for viewing. You can find this link and the one to the May Write Brain, under the "PPW Events" tab above.

Writer's Night will be held at Lofty's on Monday, July 22, 6:30 to 8:30 PM. Come enjoy wine, coffee, sandwiches, and various other goodies, and chat about writing. Open to topics of discussion and question. More on the Events tab.

PPW Open Critique will occur on Wednesday, July 17, 6:00 to 8:30 PM, at the Cottonwood Center for the Arts. The first 8 to RSVP may bring 8 pages of their manuscript to critique. More information on the Events tab.

Other "Local" Events

Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers will host A Discussion About Investigations, presented by David Keil, Saturday, July 13, 1:00 to 3:00 PM, at the Lakewood Public Library. Also, don't forget that registration is open for their Colorado Gold Conference, held in September.

Colorado Springs Fiction Writers has various meetings throughout at the month at different locations. Visitors are welcome.

Black Cat Books and the BAC, located in Manitou Springs, have lots of programs for readers and writers alike.  Even knitters!  Check out the events page for more information.

The Pikes Peak Romance Writers of America will have a pot luck on Sunday, July 14, from 2:00 to 4:00 PM at the BAC. 

The Pikes Peak Branch of the National League of American Pen Women and Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America are both on hiatus for the summer. Programming for each will continue in September.

Publications Open for Submissions and Contests:
Please note: Inclusion of links in this post does not equal sponsorship by Pikes Peak Writers or a relationship between the two entities.  Please always be sure to pursue due diligence before submitting anything to a publication or contest.

Burial Day Books is seeking short stories set in one of the following places: cemetery, funeral home, morgue, haunted house, active or abandoned hospital/mental institution, active or abandoned juvenile or adult correctional facility/prison. These stories will be in a Gothic Blue Book, similar to the follow-up to chapbooks back in the day. Deadline July 19. $25 token payment and 2 contributor copies.

Long Hidden is a speculative fiction anthology being funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign. They're still seeking short stories through July 31. They welcome writing from anyone, but are especially interested in writing from those in marginalized groups. Pays 5 cents per word.

Dark Opus Press is seeking short fiction submissions based on Grimm's Fairy Tales for their Tell Me A Fable anthology. Pays 1 cent per word, plus a contributor copy. Deadline July 31.

Alban Lake Publishing is seeking submissions for their quarterly MG magazine, FrostFire Worlds. Open submissions throughout the year. Pays $15 for original stories, $3 for original poems, $6 for illustrations, $10 for articles.

Kazka Press's 713 Flash Contest is now in its July open window. Deadline July 20. The current theme is Sax & Violins (and Other Tales of Music). Pays $10 per story.

Dark House Press is seeking novels and short story collections. They are also looking for short stories for their Exigencies anthology. It will be open until full, and pays in royalties and a contributor copy. They're looking for all kinds of things, including fantasy, neo-noir, horror, literary, crime surrealism, grotesque, etc.

Seventh Star Press has calls out on several anthologies: A Chimerical World: Tales of the Seelie Court/Tales of the Unseelie Court (deadline July 15) and Hero's Best Friend: An Anthology of Animal Companions (deadline June 30). Both pay royalties, and both take speculative fiction of any type.

Sugared Water is a new literary magazine seeking fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, and art. Pays in contributor copies.

Room Magazine is accepting submissions for their issue dealing with the word "Fashionable." Deadline July 31. Fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction.

Baird Speculative Fiction is seeking submissions for Anathema: a Bizarro Anthology. Deadline July 15. Pays by a token tier payment system. They're also seeking submissions for I, Automaton: A SteampunkAnthology. Same deadline, slightly higher tier payment system.

LampLight Magazine is open to submissions again. They seek dark fiction without cliches. Pays $150 for short stories, $50 for flash fiction. July 15th is the cut-off for their fall issue.

Barrelhouse Books open submission period ends July 15. They're looking for fiction for novels, but they also have a magazine you can submit to.

Colors of My Soul is holding a flash fiction contest. 500 word maximum. Open until June 7. $150 first prize, and publication in the e-book.

Submission and Contest links originally posted on The Warrior Muse.

About the Author:  After years of letting her writing fall by the wayside, Shannon Lawrence has recently thrown herself back into it. Her main focus is fantasy and horror and she has just finished a Young Adult Fantasy novel. She has a flash fiction piece featured in the anthology Sunday Snaps: The Stories, and her short horror story "The Blue Mist" will be in the March 2014 issue of Nightfall Magazine. She has also discovered a love of photography and enjoys photographing the breathtaking Colorado scenery and wildlife, as well as her children. She blogs about reading, writing and photography at www.thewarriormuse.com.