CONTEST: Unpublished Manuscript Contest 2012

The staff of Glass Tower Press would like to announce our first annual Unpublished Manuscript Contest.

From our desk:

Ever wonder why your novel’s not getting any bites in the market?  Glass Tower Press will help you find out why.  In our soon-to-be annual Unpublished Manuscript Contest, GTP editors will take a look at your query letter and manuscript to see what’s not up to par.  While all entries will receive a one-page letter with feedback, the top three winners will receive something more: a full line-by-line critique, chapter-by-chapter critique, and a partial line-by-line or full copyedit.

We are accepting completed and unpublished manuscripts of novels 60,000 to 120,000 words. To be eligible, entries must contain the following:

• Full and completed manuscript in standard format
• Query letter (see queryshark.blogspot.com for examples)
• Cover letter detailing genre, word count, other pertinent information, and attachment list

Most genres will be accepted.  However, we will NOT accept erotica, vampire-related fiction, high fantasy, Christian fiction, or nonfiction manuscripts.

The first prize winner will receive a full line-by-line edit on a physical (paper) version of the manuscript. Second prize winner will receive a full chapter-by-chapter critique. Third prize winner may choose between a full manuscript copy edit and a one-third line-by-line edit. All entries meeting the entry requirements will receive a one-page letter of feedback.

Entries will be accepted until August 31.  Entry fee per manuscript is $5, and there are no limits on number of entries.

To enter, please click here to go through our online submission manager.

Local Writers Fair 14 April 2012

GTP staff members Feliza Casano and Alan Beyersdorf will be at the Local Writers Fair at the Wood County District Public Library in Bowling Green, Ohio on April 14.

The event, which lasts from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., features writers from Northwest Ohio discussing the various methods of publishing. After the panel discussion, local authors will be available for book sales and signings.

Feliza will be selling and signing copies of The TECH Project, a young adult sci-fi/action-adventure novel published in 2010.  All visitors are encouraged to attend the event to meet local writers and learn more about the literary community in Northwest Ohio.

Learn more about The TECH Project at the book site and learn more about the author on her blog.

If you are also planning to attend the event as a local author, please feel free to stop by and meet us both.  We always love to meet new people, especially authors, and make sure to drop off a business card or even a few pages of your work.

Learn more about the Wood County District Public Library on their website.

National Poetry Month: Poetry Prompt #1

Today’s prompt is based on the current Christian holiday: Good Friday.

Consider the concept of salvation.  What is salvation?  Religious, personal, community, or something else?  How do you define it – and how would you describe it?

Check back next Friday for another prompt.

The Literary Month of April

April isn’t usually considered a very special month.  It’s not like December, which is chock-full of holidays, or even like May or July with their barbecue holidays.  Yet April is a very literary month, hosting both National Poetry Month and the Script Frenzy writing challenge.  Today, we’ll discuss National Poetry Month.

National Poetry Month was inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996.  According to the FAQ page on the AAP’s NPM site, the mission of National Poetry Month is to make poetry – and those who write it – more visible.

The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage, and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern. We hope to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.

There are many ways to celebrate National Poetry Month, and the AAP has even started you off with a small list of possibilities.  Here are a few suggestions from Glass Tower Press.

• Read your favorite book of poetry.  If you don’t have a favorite, try something new.  I would suggest my own favorite book of poetry, Dread by Ai.
• If you are financially able, donate a book of poetry to your local library or school system.  Library systems face cuts all the time, especially in this economy, so the donation of a single tome means another book to fill your favorite library’s shelves.
• Learn more about your local literary community.  Most regions have literary communities, though they could be difficult to find.  Toledo has the Northwest Ohio Writers Forum, PRIZM, the regional branch of Romance Writers of America, and much more.
• Attend a literary event – regardless of whether or not it’s related to National Poetry Month.  Many organizations host literary events, including universities and libraries, so check your local paper or library events page to find out what’s going on in April for you to attend.
• Support your literary community: attend events, readings, or signings hosted by local groups.  You don’t even have to spend any money: many literary groups hold free public events.  Of course, any financial support is appreciated, so if possible, try to purchase a book or make a small donation.  Even a tiny bit helps!

No matter what way you celebrate National Poetry Month, don’t keep it to yourself!  Bring a friend with you to an event, pass along your book to a family member, or read a poem out loud to your kids.  Poetry is made to be shared, and National Poetry Month is the perfect time to share it.

– Feliza Casano is the editor in chief of Glass Tower Press.

Call for Contest Submissions: Refuge

When was the last time you needed time alone? Did you scream it out in your car or tuck yourself away in your bedroom for hours?  Think of a time and place when you needed to get away. Were you able to?

Stained Glass Books, the poetry imprint of Glass Tower Press, is issuing a call for submissions until June 30th. Poets are encouraged to submit their own original poetry focusing on the theme of “Refuge.”

Prizes of $30, $20, and $10 will be awarded to the top three submissions, respectively. A reading will be held in late August or early September to honor the contest winners and runners-up. There will be no print or online publication, and as such all publication rights will remain property of the author.

Poems must be fully developed before submission; workshopping poetry before submitting is encouraged. The entry fee for contest submissions is $3 for up to 3 poems per entry. There is no limit on entries.

Thank you for submitting. I look forward to reading your work!

– Alan Beyersdorf is the poetry editor at Glass Tower Press and the imprint Stained Glass Books.

Meet the Editors: Poetry Editor Alan Beyersdorf

Last month, GTP announced a new submissions manager and a new staff member.  Today, we’re introducing that staff member – Poetry Editor Alan Beyersdorf – and his project within Glass Tower Press.

– Feliza Casano is the editor in chief of Glass Tower Press.

Changes – and New Staff

If you’ve been paying attention to the Glass Tower Press blog site, you may have noticed quite a few changes over the past few months.  We’ve made plenty of changes and hope these changes will help us grow.

Since starting our reboot in November, we’ve had a number of structural changes to our website.  Our submissions and guidelines pages have changed dramatically, and we have added a page of submissions we will not accept that is separate from our guidelines page in order to make the guidelines page more streamlined.

We have also added a new submission managing program through the site Submishmash.  Submishmash offers a great submission system separated into categories.  Accounts to submit are totally free, and you can use it to submit to any of a number of publications on their site.  Eventually, we plan to expand our use of Submishmash to include contest entries and other types of submissions.

Many of these changes are thanks at least in part to our new staff member.  If you head on over to the Staff page, you’ll find we have a new poetry editor.  Welcome to Alan Beyersdorf, who will now be accepting poetry chapbook submissions for Glass Tower Press!

In the future, Glass Tower Press may be looking for more staff as submissions increase.  Please stay tuned to get more information, particularly upcoming information about GTP accepting potential high school and college interns.

– Feliza Casano is the founder and editor in chief of Glass Tower Press.

Call for Submissions: Theme 2013

Glass Tower Press is issuing a call for submissions from now until March 1, 2013.  Authors and poets are invited to submit poetry collections of at least six poems and individual stories of at least 1,500 words related to the Theme 2013, “Lucky Number 13.”

Submissions of all genre will be accepted, excluding genres and submissions outlined on our dedicated page.

Manuscripts will be considered for publication during GTP’s 2013 publishing year.  We hope to publish up to 5 chapbooks of both poetry and fiction.

Poems must be fully developed before submission; workshopping poetry before submitting is encouraged.  Please submit query, two sample poems, and full collection outline for poetry.  For short stories, please submit query and full text.

Novel and novella submissions will also be accepted.  Please follow Glass Tower Press’ general submission guidelines for novels, which can be found here.

Submit digital copy in PDF format to gtp.editor@gmail.com.  You can also contact the editor at that address with any questions or other inquiries.

New Feature: Facebook page store

Glass Tower Press products may now be accessed directly from our Facebook page.

Those interested in buying copies of any GTP title or merchandise can purchase it directly from our Big Cartel application on our Facebook page.

Please note purchases will include shipping and handling costs.

Current Poetry Topics: August 2011

While we’re on the topic of the 2012 theme Hope and Hopelessness, here are some of the topics we are most interested in for submissions of poetry chapbooks, including those not related to this year’s theme:

• We’re always looking for interesting and thought-provoking Asian-American poetry collections.  We are looking for poetry about the AsianAm experience as well as the experience of immigrants from all nations.
• Currently interested in poetry about the Arab-American and Muslim American experience.
• We are also currently interested in the “hometown America” style of poetry.  An example of this, though it’s not poetry, is Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio short story collection.
• Lyrical poetry with whimsical language
• Collections of several haiku centering on a very specific theme

Currently, we are not interested in the following:

• Experimental or explicit poetry collections
• “Romantic” love poetry

Please refer to our Submissions page to find out how to submit a poetry collection to Glass Tower Press.