1. Use the first line they provide. No changes!
2. 300 to 3,000 word count
3. MS Word or Word Perfect–no pdfs. Attachments preferred.

And if you feel up to the challenge you can submit a four part story that uses all four first lines. But you have to submit all four stories by the February 1 deadline.

Here are the first lines and their deadlines:

Feb. 1
“There are a few things you need to know before we start.”

May 1
Rachel’s first trip to England didn’t go as planned.

August 1
A light snow was falling as Charlie Reardon left the diner and made his way down Madison Street.

November 1
Sometimes, when it’s quiet, I can remember what my life was like before moving to Cedar Springs.

Those selected to be included in The First Line Literary Journal receive $30 and and copy of the issue your piece appears in. First Line is also looking for 500-800 word essays on–what else?!–your favorite first line from a literary piece.

Have Fun!

Deadline: Dec. 15

Entry Fee: $15

Prize: The attention, advice, and hopefully encouragement of two YA literary agents and three YA editors. Those five industry gurus are Elizabeth Kaplan of the Elizabeth Kaplan Literary Agency, Kirby Kim of William Morris Endeavor, Michelle H. Nagler at Bloomsbury Children’s Books, Lanie Davis at Alloy Entertainment, and Stacey Barney at Penguin/Putnam Books.

For more rules and the entry form check out She Writes here.

Good Luck!!

Are you yelling that is can’t be done? Oh ye of little faith! In 1939 Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a 50,000 word novel Gadsby without any help from “E”. There’s even a special name for writing without using one letter: lipogram. Who knew?

Enter here by August 31. No entry fee.

• the WOW website at http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/
• the Muffin blog at http://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/
• WOW Blog Tours at blogtour@wow-womenonwriting.com
• Facebook at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/WOW-Women-On-Writing/135164411877

• Twitter @womenonwriting, @WOWblogtour, @WOW_Ang, @WOW_Marcia, and WOW_Jodi

I’m a WOW Blog Tour organizer which is a fun way for me to meet new authors and bloggers and read great new books. I’m super-organized which is mind blowing because, in my personal life, I am totally unorganized! I also occassionally write for The Muffin and the website and tweet constantly about WOW Authors.

But today is about chances for all you writers out there!

WOW-Women on Writing just announced the theme for their October issue: Niche Writing. Here’s the deal:

Have you found your niche in the writing world? Or do you know someone who has? We want to hear about it! Our October issue will focus on niche writing. This theme is open to interpretation. As always, our mission is to help and educate other writers, so keep that in mind when you query. We are open to both how-tos and interviews.

Please review our submission guidelines on our Contact Page (scroll down to “Submissions”) for guidelines and how to submit or query. Pay is $50 – $150 per article, on publication.

Deadline for queries: August 26

There are also opportunities on The Muffin. They have a Friday Speak Out about the writing life. You can submit a guest post to blog editor Marcia Peterson at marcia@wow-womenonwriting.com. Check out the details here.

Come join me at WOW!

11th Annual Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest

Submission: August 15 to April 1

Entry Fee: Free

Entries: Must be submitted online. One poem only. Any length.

Language: English, although some gibberish is accepted.

Prizes: 15 prizes ranging from $75 to $1500 and publication

To learn more and read past winners check out the website

Now, for a little inspiration my little brother’s FAVORITE funny poem when he was a kid.

The Slithery Dee

Shel Silverstein--much funnier than he looks

The Slithery Dee
He lives in the sea
He saw all the others
But he didn’t see me.

The Slithery Dee
He came out of the sea
He chased all the others
But he didn’t chase me.

The Slithery Dee
I hid in a tree
He caught all the others
But he couldn’t catch me.

The Slithery Dee
He went back to the sea
He ate all the others
But he didn’t eat me.

The Slithery Dee
Oh where can he be?
He ate all the others
But he’ll never eat … S-L-U-U-U-R-P!

Everyone else, stop by next week for another giveaway.

But if you haven’t been paid for your writing you could enter the Cheerios Spoonful of Stories Contest. You enter a story for children ages 3 to 8 and the winner is published(in a cute little paperback they include in their cereal boxes as well as as a hardcover for sale) and you receive a prize of $5,000.

It’s time to put your thinking caps on because the deadline is July 15! For more complete rules and past winners check out the contest online. You can enter your story online.

Annual Gival Press Short Story Contest

The contest, which accepts short stories of 5,000 to 15,000 words, has a deadline of August 8. The entry fee is $25 and the prize is $1,000 and publication on the Gival website. Scroll down the home page for the link to more info about this contest and their poetry contest.

While we’re talking about free…Ellery Adams is having a fantastic Kindle contest to celebrate the release of her latest Books by the Bay Mystery, A Deadly Cliche. Check it out on her website.

Deadline: Dec. 5

Word Count: 1,000 to 2,000 words

Grand Prize: $100 and complete library of Cup of Comfort books
Two Runner Ups: Complete Library of Cup of Comfort books

All three winning submissions will also be posted at www.CupofComfort.com from Dec. 15 through January 1

For the complete rules visit the contest page.