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SC Academy of Authors increases prize money for awards, adds student category

scacademyof authorslogo Apply for fiction and poetry awards by Dec. 1 The South Carolina Academy of Authors has expanded its annual award competitions to include a separate category for student writers of fiction and poetry and an increase in prize money. Thanks to a recurring grant from the Penelope Coker Hall and Eliza Wilson Ingle Foundation, the SCAA now sponsors two prizes in both fiction and poetry. The Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Fellowship in Fiction and the Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Student Prize in Fiction offer winning authors $1,500 and $1,000, respectively. The grant honors the memory and literary legacy of the late Elizabeth Boatwright Coker (1908-1993), who was herself an SCAA inductee in 1991. Likewise, the Carrie McCray Nickens Poetry Fellowship and SCAA Student Prize in Poetry offer winning authors $1,500 and $1,000, respectively. The entry deadline for all awards is Dec. 1, 2016. Applicants for the Fellowships in Fiction and Poetry must be full-time South Carolina residents. Applicants for the Student Awards in Fiction and Poetry must be 18 to 25 years old at the time of submission, legal residents of South Carolina and enrolled full time at a private or public South Carolina institution of higher education. Complete submission guidelines can be found at www.scacademyofauthors.org. Fellowship winners in fiction and poetry will be invited to the SCAA induction ceremony and awards brunch in Florence, S.C., in April 2017. The winning entries will be published in “Fall Lines, “an annual literary journal published by Muddy Ford Press in Columbia, S.C. Student award winners in each category also will be invited to the SCAA Awards brunch. Questions about the fiction prizes may be directed to Tim Johnston at editors@shortstoryamerica.com; questions about the poetry prizes may be directed to Daniel Cross Turner at dturner@coastal.edu. About the South Carolina Academy of Authors The SCAA was founded at Anderson College in 1986. Its purpose is to identify and recognize the state’s distinguished writers and their influence on our cultural heritage. The Academy board selects new inductees annually whose works have been judged culturally important. Each inductee, whether living or deceased, has added to South Carolina’s literary legacy by earning notable scholarly attention or achieving historical prominence. Entry fees help support the SCAA in its mission to preserve and promote South Carolina’s literary legacy.

S.C. Academy of Authors announces annual awards in fiction and poetry

The S.C. Academy of Authors has expanded its annual award competitions to include a separate category for student writers of fiction and poetry and an increase in prize money. Thanks to a recurring grant from the Penelope Coker Hall and Eliza Wilson Ingle Foundation, the SCAA will now sponsor two prizes in both fiction and poetry. The Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Fellowship in Fiction and the Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Student Prize in Fiction will offer winning authors $1500 and $1000, respectively. The grant honors the memory and literary legacy of the late Elizabeth Boatwright Coker (1908-1993), who was herself an SCAA inductee in 1991. Likewise, the Carrie McCray Nickens Poetry Fellowship and SCAA Student Prize in Poetry will offer winning authors $1500 and $1000, respectively. Fellowship winners in fiction and poetry will be invited to the SCAA induction ceremony and awards brunch in Anderson, S.C., in April, 2016; their entries will be published in Fall Lines, an annual literary journal published by Muddy Ford Press in Columbia. Student Award winners in each category will also be invited to the SCAA Awards brunch. The entry deadline for all awards is Dec. 1, 2015. Applicants for the Fellowships in Fiction and Poetry must be full-time South Carolina residents.   Applicants for the Student Awards in Fiction and Poetry must be 18-25 at the time of submission, legal residents of South Carolina, and enrolled full time at a private or public South Carolina institution of higher education.  Complete submission guidelines can be found at www.scacademyofauthors.org. Questions about the fiction prizes may be directed to Jon Tuttle at juttle@fmarion.edu; questions about the poetry prizes may be directed to Libby Bernardin at libbypoet@gmail.com. The Fellowship in Fiction is now in its fifth year. Previous winners are Rachel Richardson of Spartanburg (2015), Nancy Brock of Columbia (2014), Thomas McConnell of Spartanburg (2013), and Craig Brandhorst of Columbia (2012). This year’s fiction judge is Ron Carlson, the award-winning author of four story collections and five novels, most recently Five Skies and Return to Oakpine. His fiction has appeared in Harper’s, The New Yorker, Playboy, and GQ, and has been featured on NPR’s This American Life as well as in Best American Short Stories and The O. Henry Prize Stories. Carlson is the director of the UC Irvine writing program and lives in Huntington Beach, California. Recent winners of the Carrie McCray Nickens Poetry Fellowship include Barbara G.S. Hagerty of Charleston (2015), Jo Angela Edwins of Florence (2014), Susan Laughter Meyers of Givhans (2013), and Kit Loney of Charleston (2012).  This year’s poetry judge is Joseph Bathanti, former Poet Laureate of North Carolina and the author of eight books of poetry, including This Metal, nominated for the National Book Award, and winner of the Oscar Arnold Young Award, and Restoring Sacred Art and Concertina, both winners of the Roanoke Chowan Prize. Bathanti is Professor of Creative Writing at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. About the South Carolina Academy of Authors The South Carolina Academy of Authors was founded at Anderson College in 1986. Its purpose is to identify and recognize the state’s distinguished writers and their influence on our cultural heritage. The Academy board selects new inductees annually whose works have been judged culturally important. Each inductee, whether living or deceased, has added to South Carolina’s literary legacy by earning notable scholarly attention or achieving historical prominence. Entry fees help support the SCAA in its mission to preserve and promote South Carolina’s literary legacy. For more information about the South Carolina Academy of Authors, visit www.scacademyofauthors.org.

South Carolina Academy of Authors announces Fellowship recipients

SC Academy of AuthorsThe South Carolina Academy of Authors (SCAA) has announced the winners of this year’s fellowship competitions in fiction and poetry. Rachel RichardsonRachel Richardson of Spartanburg is the winner of the fourth annual SCAA Fiction Fellowship. Richardson’s short story, “Schism” was chosen by this year's judge, novelist Ann Hood, from among 30 submissions. Hood described “Schism” as “100 percent fresh and original, a unique new voice in the world of fiction. Quirky and honest, with a keen eye toward detail and the inner machinations of the human heart and mind, ‘Schism’ completely won me over from the very beginning.” Hood described the submission pool as “mostly wonderful, and at a high level of writing skill. Many times, I got lost in the story and the writing, which made it difficult to choose just one winner.” Barbara G.S. HagertyBarbara G. S. Hagerty of Charleston is the winner of the sixth annual Carrie McCray Nickens Fellowship in Poetry. Her entries were chosen by judge Traci Brimhall, who described Hargerty’s submission as evincing “an incredible command of language. I was also struck by the poems' concision--how a word pairing could pull up a startling association or how the poet's mind could leap from one line to the next. Even more than strong images, emotion, and music in the poems, there was a deep intelligence here that had me returning again and again to the poems.” Of all the submissions, she said, “There are some truly amazing poets in South Carolina. I was really blown away by the talent in the submissions. The seven finalists were especially hard to choose amongst. There were some strong voices in there, a wide range in subject matter and aesthetics, and a compelling use of language.” (Note: Hagerty received the South Carolina Arts Commission's 2011 Poetry Fellowship.) Richardson and Hagerty will each receive a $1,000 prize at a special brunch held in conjunction with the Academy's 2015 induction ceremony in Charleston on April 11-12, at which Dorothea Benton Frank, Bret Lott, Marjory Wentworth and 19th-century playwright William Ioor will be inducted into the state's literary hall of fame. The submission period for next year’s fellowships will open next autumn. For more information about the South Carolina Academy of Authors or to make reservations for the induction, please visit scacademyofauthors.org. Via: S.C. Academy of Authors