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14 years ago
Showing posts with label gratitude. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gratitude. Show all posts
Martindale Literary Prize for Short Fiction
Remember that short story contest I mentioned a little while back? Well, somehow---I won! For a short story I first wrote in 2007, called "Wet Season."
I still can't quite believe it. My first writing prize! And the first time I've actually made money through my writing. I totally got all teary and shaky when they called me up to the little podium last night, even though I'd promised myself that I wouldn't.
They made the announcement at the opening reception for the 2009 Pima Writer's Workshop. A reading by Peter Turchi, (the judge for 2009 and a faculty member at the workshop), was the main event.
Linda Lyons won second runner-up for her story "Footsteps." Tom Printsner (sp?) won first runner-up for his story "Leonard and Martha," but unfortunately he was out of town.
Peter Turchi was nice enough to sign my copy of his short story collection, Magician, even though I was all mumbly and nervous.
Meg Files was super-sweet, and she signed my copy of her craft book, Write from Life. (Laura Van Etten, my workshop instructor from this past semester, gave that to me as a going-away-to-Minneapolis present! If you're ever looking for a writing class in Tucson, check out one of Laura's, it was great. And she recommends Meg Files' class highly. Judging by this book, I absolutely agree, and I'm sorry I never had the chance.)
Nancy Wall gave me the call to tell me, last Tuesday. She was really nice. I cried. She made me promise not to tell anyone until after the announcement---it was so hard to keep my mouth shut!
Nancy Wall, reading Peter Turchi's comments about "Wet Season." Meg Files, taking a picture.(PLEASE disregard my terrifyingly bad posture, eesh.)
Peter Turchi was the judge for 2009. Here he is reading his work. (Pardon the craptastic photo quality.)
Linda Lyons getting her certificate from Nancy Wall
Meg Files, Chair of the Pima English Dept. and Pima Writer's Workshop founderIt's called the Martindale Literary Prize. It's an annual prize for short fiction, it began in 1988. The rules are that you can only submit one unpublished story, you can't have won before or be Pima faculty, the story has to be between 5,000 and 10,000 words AND you have to be taking at least one class at Pima Community College---so the applicant pool is pretty much limited to people in Tucson.
And the award is $1000! I'm still hyperventilating. I can't even explain how much this will help with my move to Minnesota. Things have been looking really grim on my financial front, lately.
As much as the money saves the day for me, this really does mean even more to me on an emotional and professional level. I feel SO grateful and so lucky. I hope this post doesn't come off as braggy, because that's not what I want. I'm just really happy---the MFA, and now this? It's like the world is telling me: Go ahead, do this. I've got your back. (And I go: Well, I was going to go for it anyway, but this really helps!)
The prize is a bit obscure, I have to admit. You'll have trouble finding information about it on the internet---apparently they don't have a website set up for it. (I'm tempted to ask them if they'd like me to make one for them! But I know that's crazy talk.)
So please forgive me---I'm going to indulge myself a bit here, and tell you everything you'll ever never want to know about the Martindale Literary Prize.
I'm warning you ahead of time. I'm going to blab and blab, so feel free to skip this. Okay? Okay.
Kaleidoscope, published by Pima Press in 2007.
Hey, wanna know who won the Martindale in 2000? Tayari Jones! Remember when I read Leaving Atlanta and loved it? She did her MFA at ASU, and she's fiction faculty at Rutgers-Newark now. The Untelling is on my list of must-read-soons.
Here's the flier that started this whole thing:
Wanna know what's funny? Peter Turchi and Charles Baxter (faculty at Minnesota) edited a book on craft together! It's called Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life. Turchi was the director of the Warren Wilson MFA program from 1993-2008, and Baxter still teaches there, I think.
In case you're thinking, Hey, that sounds fishy!, let me assure you that this is just a wonderful cosmic coincidence. Check out the flier: They didn't say who the judge would be, and Turchi never saw my name. Even if he had, I can promise you that at this point I've said about seven words to Charles Baxter, (Hello, it's so good to meet you), and he has no idea what I'm doing with my insignificant little summer, or what kinds of longs shots I'm shooting for. Turchi did his MFA at the University of Arizona, so really it's not so strange that he's here to do the Workshop. But I just love unexpected connections like this.
What about the story? "Wet Season" was part of my MFA application portfolio. I wrote it for a summer fiction workshop taught by the excellent Rachel Yoder. At the time she was an MFA student at the University of Arizona. It was my first creative writing workshop, and she was just such a really engaging, dedicated, supportive teacher. Please, please go check out NewPage's review of Alligator Juniper, Prescott College's literary journal---she edited this issue!
I've revised the story a few times already, and I plan to keep working on it. After taking Laura Van Etten's awesome short fiction workshop this past semester, I realize that what I probably need to do is go back and cut, cut, cut. She has this way of saying things that really made stuff make sense to me in all kinds of new, sparking and/or comforting ways.
If you check out my earlier post, you'll see that I submitted this story to a few other contests/journals, and struck out. I guess it goes to show---just keep trying! You never know.
While I'm at it, I'd like to thank:
Rachel Yoder, Emily Lundin, Alison Hawthorne Deming, Manuel Muñoz, Laura Van Etten, Carlos Gallego, Tenney Nathanson, Judy Blunt, Terry Woronov, Praise Zenenga, Bridget Radcliff, Wendy Burk, Susan White, Ilham Khuri-Makdisi & Ron Grant. Thanks for being such inspirational (& dedicated!) writers, teachers and advisors. Your classes & workshops/story-essay-poem comments/advice, guidance & encouragment/recommendation letters/help ETC! have made such a huge huge difference in my life. Many of you probably have no idea what a big impact you've had on me---I really ought to do something about that.
There are SO many more wonderful teachers I'd like to mention here, but it would take miles...I hope you know who you are.
Not that most of these folks are likely to see this : )
And the award is $1000! I'm still hyperventilating. I can't even explain how much this will help with my move to Minnesota. Things have been looking really grim on my financial front, lately.
As much as the money saves the day for me, this really does mean even more to me on an emotional and professional level. I feel SO grateful and so lucky. I hope this post doesn't come off as braggy, because that's not what I want. I'm just really happy---the MFA, and now this? It's like the world is telling me: Go ahead, do this. I've got your back. (And I go: Well, I was going to go for it anyway, but this really helps!)
The prize is a bit obscure, I have to admit. You'll have trouble finding information about it on the internet---apparently they don't have a website set up for it. (I'm tempted to ask them if they'd like me to make one for them! But I know that's crazy talk.)
So please forgive me---I'm going to indulge myself a bit here, and tell you everything you'll ever never want to know about the Martindale Literary Prize.
I'm warning you ahead of time. I'm going to blab and blab, so feel free to skip this. Okay? Okay.
Kaleidoscope, published by Pima Press in 2007.
Kaleidoscope is an anthology of nineteen winning stories from a yearly contest at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona.
The competition, sponsored by the Martindale Educational Foundation, awards an annual prize of $1000. As Mr. Robert C. Martindale explained in 1987 at the first meeting to discuss this competition, his foundation was offering a substantial award, and he therefore expected substantial stories.
The judge for each year's competition is a well-known fiction writer, and all of the judges have commented on the unusually high quality of the work submitted. Several of the authors appearing in Kaleidoscope have had short story collections or novels published, while the work of others has appeared in serious literary journals, some publications containing the stories from this anthology.
Hey, wanna know who won the Martindale in 2000? Tayari Jones! Remember when I read Leaving Atlanta and loved it? She did her MFA at ASU, and she's fiction faculty at Rutgers-Newark now. The Untelling is on my list of must-read-soons.
Here's the flier that started this whole thing:
Wanna know what's funny? Peter Turchi and Charles Baxter (faculty at Minnesota) edited a book on craft together! It's called Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life. Turchi was the director of the Warren Wilson MFA program from 1993-2008, and Baxter still teaches there, I think.
In case you're thinking, Hey, that sounds fishy!, let me assure you that this is just a wonderful cosmic coincidence. Check out the flier: They didn't say who the judge would be, and Turchi never saw my name. Even if he had, I can promise you that at this point I've said about seven words to Charles Baxter, (Hello, it's so good to meet you), and he has no idea what I'm doing with my insignificant little summer, or what kinds of longs shots I'm shooting for. Turchi did his MFA at the University of Arizona, so really it's not so strange that he's here to do the Workshop. But I just love unexpected connections like this.
*
What about the story? "Wet Season" was part of my MFA application portfolio. I wrote it for a summer fiction workshop taught by the excellent Rachel Yoder. At the time she was an MFA student at the University of Arizona. It was my first creative writing workshop, and she was just such a really engaging, dedicated, supportive teacher. Please, please go check out NewPage's review of Alligator Juniper, Prescott College's literary journal---she edited this issue!
I've revised the story a few times already, and I plan to keep working on it. After taking Laura Van Etten's awesome short fiction workshop this past semester, I realize that what I probably need to do is go back and cut, cut, cut. She has this way of saying things that really made stuff make sense to me in all kinds of new, sparking and/or comforting ways.
If you check out my earlier post, you'll see that I submitted this story to a few other contests/journals, and struck out. I guess it goes to show---just keep trying! You never know.
*
While I'm at it, I'd like to thank:
(Well, my family, of course, and S. But those are givens! Always.)
Rachel Yoder, Emily Lundin, Alison Hawthorne Deming, Manuel Muñoz, Laura Van Etten, Carlos Gallego, Tenney Nathanson, Judy Blunt, Terry Woronov, Praise Zenenga, Bridget Radcliff, Wendy Burk, Susan White, Ilham Khuri-Makdisi & Ron Grant. Thanks for being such inspirational (& dedicated!) writers, teachers and advisors. Your classes & workshops/story-essay-poem comments/advice, guidance & encouragment/recommendation letters/help ETC! have made such a huge huge difference in my life. Many of you probably have no idea what a big impact you've had on me---I really ought to do something about that.
There are SO many more wonderful teachers I'd like to mention here, but it would take miles...I hope you know who you are.
Not that most of these folks are likely to see this : )
*
Phew! It's ridiculous how long I've rambled on. Goodnight, world!
Like Me?
This photo made little cartoon hearts swirl around my head.
From the Official White House Photostream:
PS---Love, love.
From the Official White House Photostream:
President Barack Obama bends over so the son of a White House staff member can pat his head during a family visit to the Oval Office May 8, 2009. The youngster wanted to see if the President's haircut felt like his own.(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
PS---Love, love.
Secret Identities
So---I've decided to blow my cover. I feel like I've gotten over some of my initial embarrassment, largely thanks to those of you who keep visiting, those of you who've taken the time to say a few words. So thanks for that.
Yes, I get pretty silly here, and no, it's nothing fancy. But it's me, or at least it's a little bit of me. Why be ashamed about that? I can put together a more professional-ish site if I ever get to the point where that's necessary.
My other concern was about privacy. The internets frighten me, to be honest---and that's weird, because I tend to be a bit of an internet addict. But I've been delving into the world of blogs more and more lately, and there are plenty of real people out there who use their real names to blog, and they seem none the worse for wear. My friend S. does, and she hasn't had any problems. Same with Twitter---apparently it's no big deal. I guess I'm just more old fashioned than I thought.
I want to be able to share stuff, and sometimes that means I can't be anonymous. Like now: Look, the Minnesota MFA program is welcoming our incoming class! Me, right there, it's real! *happiness*
I'll try it out for a while. If the sky doesn't come crashing down, I guess I'll stick with it.
Here we go (knock on wood):
Yes, I get pretty silly here, and no, it's nothing fancy. But it's me, or at least it's a little bit of me. Why be ashamed about that? I can put together a more professional-ish site if I ever get to the point where that's necessary.
My other concern was about privacy. The internets frighten me, to be honest---and that's weird, because I tend to be a bit of an internet addict. But I've been delving into the world of blogs more and more lately, and there are plenty of real people out there who use their real names to blog, and they seem none the worse for wear. My friend S. does, and she hasn't had any problems. Same with Twitter---apparently it's no big deal. I guess I'm just more old fashioned than I thought.
I want to be able to share stuff, and sometimes that means I can't be anonymous. Like now: Look, the Minnesota MFA program is welcoming our incoming class! Me, right there, it's real! *happiness*
I'll try it out for a while. If the sky doesn't come crashing down, I guess I'll stick with it.
Here we go (knock on wood):
Hi, I'm Wahida. It's nice to meet you!
PS
PS, an update.
I asked around. Apparently I'm the last 25-year-old on earth to start graying. Who knew? It must be my strong Armali (Armenian-Somali) blood.
My grandmother wrote me a letter, I got it yesterday. She's always so sweet and supportive, in a strange and wonderful way:
I love you too, Gramma.
Happy Mother's Day, Mamas.
I asked around. Apparently I'm the last 25-year-old on earth to start graying. Who knew? It must be my strong Armali (Armenian-Somali) blood.
My grandmother wrote me a letter, I got it yesterday. She's always so sweet and supportive, in a strange and wonderful way:
We will be okay and pray that all of our loved ones will also be okay.
(I'm sure we all will as we have strong Armenian constitutions.) xxxoooo
I love you too, Gramma.
Happy Mother's Day, Mamas.
Minneapolis
Lind Hall, home of the Creative Writing Program and the English Department
A Waitlist from Outerspace
So----I'm waitlisted at Cornell. I found out today, J Robert Lennon emailed me after I called the office to ask for an update on my status. I'm so (very very) low on the list that there's no chance I'll get in, but I just feel really really happy to have made the list at all, and it feels really good just to know.
Who Am I Kidding...
It stings a bit.
I honestly don't feel hurt about not getting into Michigan, and I won't feel hurt when I get the rejection letter that I'm expecting from Cornell. A little bit jealous, yes, in a harmless way. But I never had high hopes about my chances at those programs, so it's not that much of a blow.
---Also, I was feeling kind of ambivalent about 2 year MFAs, given the current state of the economy. Blech, ptooey on this economy! Also also, I think the prestige of those programs would have put a pressure on me that I was dreading. Like I would have been afraid to just follow my gut, when decision time came around. I'm almost positive that that's not just sour grapes talking.---
A strange little part of me almost feels relief each time another door closes. It makes it less likely that I'll have to make a tough decision, in the end.
But Amherst! Part of me was really thinking I'd make it into Amherst, especially after I got the invite from Minnesota. I'm in love with Minnesota, really and truly. I was really hoping to have an option in the northeast, though. Just so I could weigh things. I have family in Boston and New York. (I really miss living in Boston.)
I know it's not over yet, and no matter what happens I'm incredibly grateful, and I feel incredibly lucky. 3 years, full funding, amazing program, cool city. I honestly feel guilty that I haven't just said yes already, that's how grateful I am to Minnesota.
And I feel guilty for whining when I should just be sitting around all day thanking the stars that I somehow managed to get into one of my top programs. I do spend some of my time doing that. When I started this process, I really had no idea if I would get in anywhere. That's why I applied to nine programs, and I would have applied to more if I'd had the money (or the room on my credit cards.)*
Times like right now, I have to admit that rejection does sting, even though I don't have much of a right to say so.
Okay, slapping myself. Shut up already!
*By the way, for future applicants:
I'd like to mention that Michigan, UT Austin/Michener and UMass Amherst will waive their application fees if you send in the proper request form, along with documentation of financial need. This was a big help to me.
If you got a GRE waiver from your school (knocked the price of the GRE in half!) a copy of this waiver will usually serve as proof. That's the easiest way. If you didn't get a waiver, a letter from your financial aid office stating that you're a financial need student (very low EFC, received x percentage of need-based aid, etc.) will do the trick.
Ask the financial aid office at your school about GRE waivers, well ahead of time. As with the application fee waivers, you have to have a significant amount of documented financial need to qualify. And don't forget to always fill out that FAFSA!
I honestly don't feel hurt about not getting into Michigan, and I won't feel hurt when I get the rejection letter that I'm expecting from Cornell. A little bit jealous, yes, in a harmless way. But I never had high hopes about my chances at those programs, so it's not that much of a blow.
---Also, I was feeling kind of ambivalent about 2 year MFAs, given the current state of the economy. Blech, ptooey on this economy! Also also, I think the prestige of those programs would have put a pressure on me that I was dreading. Like I would have been afraid to just follow my gut, when decision time came around. I'm almost positive that that's not just sour grapes talking.---
A strange little part of me almost feels relief each time another door closes. It makes it less likely that I'll have to make a tough decision, in the end.
But Amherst! Part of me was really thinking I'd make it into Amherst, especially after I got the invite from Minnesota. I'm in love with Minnesota, really and truly. I was really hoping to have an option in the northeast, though. Just so I could weigh things. I have family in Boston and New York. (I really miss living in Boston.)
I know it's not over yet, and no matter what happens I'm incredibly grateful, and I feel incredibly lucky. 3 years, full funding, amazing program, cool city. I honestly feel guilty that I haven't just said yes already, that's how grateful I am to Minnesota.
And I feel guilty for whining when I should just be sitting around all day thanking the stars that I somehow managed to get into one of my top programs. I do spend some of my time doing that. When I started this process, I really had no idea if I would get in anywhere. That's why I applied to nine programs, and I would have applied to more if I'd had the money (or the room on my credit cards.)*
Times like right now, I have to admit that rejection does sting, even though I don't have much of a right to say so.
Okay, slapping myself. Shut up already!
*
*By the way, for future applicants:
I'd like to mention that Michigan, UT Austin/Michener and UMass Amherst will waive their application fees if you send in the proper request form, along with documentation of financial need. This was a big help to me.
If you got a GRE waiver from your school (knocked the price of the GRE in half!) a copy of this waiver will usually serve as proof. That's the easiest way. If you didn't get a waiver, a letter from your financial aid office stating that you're a financial need student (very low EFC, received x percentage of need-based aid, etc.) will do the trick.
Ask the financial aid office at your school about GRE waivers, well ahead of time. As with the application fee waivers, you have to have a significant amount of documented financial need to qualify. And don't forget to always fill out that FAFSA!
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