By Donna Campbell Smith
The Franklin County Arts Council (FCAC) Writers’ Guild is sponsoring its 8th-annual FCAC Writers’ Guild Carolina Prize for Writing Contest. The contest is open for previously unpublished works (this includes online publication):
- Poetry — no more than 30 lines per poem, single spaced (maximum five poems per contest entry)
- Prose — short story, essay, or creative non-fiction of 1,500 words or less (one per contest entry, maximum three entries)
This year, two prizes will be awarded: one for prose and the other for poetry. Each prize will be $100, plus publication in the 2021 issue of County Lines: A Literary Journal, and two copies of the journal. Up to five honorable mentions may also be named. Honorable mentions will receive publication in County Lines and one free copy.
There are no restrictions on age or residence of persons submitting to the Carolina Prize for Writing Contest.
Work cannot contain erotica, violence, hate, political editorial, or excessive profanity.
Contest entries must have a cover page with title, author’s name, and contact information. Name and contact info must not be on the body of the work. Be sure your title is on the first page of your manuscript.
All submissions must be in Word Documents, prose double-spaced, poetry single-spaced, and be emailed as attachments. Include a short writer’s bio on the cover page. Only email submissions will be accepted. Adhere to these guidelines for your submission, as entries not adhering to these guidelines will not be considered.
The deadline for submissions to the contest is August 15, 2020.
Write checks for the $10-per-entry fee to the Franklin County Arts Council with “Contest entry” in the memo. There will be no refunds. Mail checks to PO Box 758, Louisburg, NC 27549. You may also pay via FCACarts.org.
County Lines Literary Journal is an annual literary anthology compiled by the Franklin County Arts Council Writers’ Guild. The 2021 journal is expected to be printed by December 2020.
Carolina Prize Judges
Alice Osborn
Alice Osborn’s past educational and work experience is unusually varied, and it now feeds her work as a singer-songwriter, educator, and book editor. In the past 14 years, Alice has taught thousands of aspiring fiction, poetry, memoir authors, and songwriters of nearly all ages from 9 to 90 both around the corner and across continents. Heroes without Capes is her most recent collection of poetry and Searching for Paradise is her latest CD featuring crowd-pleasing originals about the elusive American Dream. Alice loves sharing her love of American history by writing folk songs that return to the themes of home, identity, and yearning. Previous poetry collections are After the Steaming Stops and Unfinished Projects.
Alice is the recipient of a United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County 2019 Professional Development Grant, and a Roads and Let’s Talk About It Scholar for the NC Humanities Council. The President of the NC Songwriters’ Co-op, she’s currently working on a novel and CD about the ill-fated Donner Party of 1846-1847. She also plays fiddle, mandolin, electric bass, and banjo. Alice lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, with her husband, two children, and four birds all named after musicians. Visit Alice’s website at www.aliceosborn.com and check out her music at www.reverbnation.com/aliceosborn.
Ware Wilkins
Jenny Luper, who writes under the pen name Ware Wilkins, has been writing since 2013 and has published over fifteen novels, 10 novellas, and a smattering of short stories during that time under various pen names and in a multitude of genres. When she isn’t writing, she can be found teaching, failing at gardening, and reading. A native of Wake Forest, NC, she’s the author of the Sadie Salt Series and lover of kittens, coffee, and Klingons.
Note: If you wish for your Carolina Prize contest entry to be considered for publication in County Lines: A Literary Journal in the event that it does not win a prize, you must separately submit the entry via email. There is no additional fee to submit your contest entry to County Lines. The submission deadline is the same: August 15, 2020.
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Ed. Note: Originally published March 22, 2020. Updated April 15 with new FCAC payment link.
