The Write Journey

The Speculative Literature Foundation announces the 2008 Older Writers Grant

SPECULATIVE LITERATURE FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES THE 2008 OLDER WRITERS GRANT

SPECULATIVE LITERATURE FOUNDATION
PO Box 1693, Dubuque, IA 52004-1693

info@speculativeliterature.org - http://www.speculativeliterature.org/

For Immediate Release February 20, 2008


SPECULATIVE LITERATURE FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES OLDER WRITERS GRANT

The Speculative Literature Foundation (SLF) is pleased to announce that it is accepting applications for the 2008 Older Writers Grant. The grant of $750 is available to any writer of speculative literature of 50 years or older at the time of application just beginning to work professionally in the field. There are no restrictions on the use of the grant money.

The grant will be awarded by a committee of SLF staff members on the basis of interest and merit. Applicants are asked to submit a brief autobiographical statement, a writing sample, and a bibliography. For full details on how to apply for the grant, please see the SLF web site: http://www.speculativeliterature.org/Grants/SLFOlderWriters.php, or email olderwriters@speclit.org. Applications must be received by March 31st 2008. The successful applicant will be announced on June 1st 2008.


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PR Contact: Ashley Gronek press@speculativeliterature.org

The Speculative Literature Foundation is a volunteer-run, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the interests of readers, writers, editors and publishers in the speculative literature community.

"Speculative literature" is a catch-all term meant to inclusively span the breadth of fantastic literature, encompassing literature ranging from hard and soft science fiction to epic fantasy to ghost stories to folk and fairy tales to slipstream to magical realism to modern mythmaking -- any literature containing a fabulist or speculative element.

More information about the Speculative Literature Foundation is available from its website (http://www.speculativeliterature.org/) or by writing to info@speculativeliterature.org.

To be removed from the Speculative Literature Foundation press release mailing list please write to press@speculativeliterature.org.

Black History Month Recommended Reading List

The Carl Brandon Society, who is dedicated to addressing the representation of people of color in the fantastical genres such as science fiction, fantasy and horror, has put out a recommended reading list of books for Black History Month. The list is below:

• "So Long Been Dreaming: Postcolonial Science Fiction & Fantasy" edited by Nalo Hopkinson and Uppinder Mehan

• "Parable of the Sower" by Octavia Butler          

• "Dhalgren" by Samuel R. Delany            

• "My Soul to Keep" by Tananarive Due

• "The Coyote Kings of the Space Age Bachelor Pad" by Minister Faust                     

• "Mindscape" by Andrea Hairston   

• "Wind Follower" by Carole McDonnell

• "Futureland" by Walter Mosley         

• "The Shadow Speaker" by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu 

• "Zahrah the Windseeker" by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

And the 2005 CARL BRANDON SOCIETY AWARD Winners:

• PARALLAX AWARD given to works of speculative fiction created by a
person of color:

"47" by Walter Mosley

• KINDRED AWARD given to any work of speculative fiction dealing with
issues of race and ethnicity; nominees may be of any racial or ethnic
group:

"Stormwitch" by Susan Vaught

New Releases from WheelMan Press Just in Time for Christmas

WheelMan Press releases new book, An Interview with Santa and Other Christmas Treats, as well as the Amazon Short, "Law of the Land," just in time for Christmas. (An Interview with Santa and Other Christmas Treats -- ISBN-13: 978-0-6151-7676-5, "Law of the Land" -- ASIN: B000YMG8S2).

Stockbridge, GA. December 2, 2007 -- Today WheelMan Press announces the release of both a collection of short stories and poetry, plus a brand new short story published by Amazon Shorts.

First, An Interview with Santa and Other Christmas Treats is a collection of short stories and poetry about the beloved holiday season. The collection not only contains the highly acclaimed story, "Living with Mrs. Klase," about a woman suffering from Alzheimer's who believes herself to be the wife of the Jolly Old Elf himself. Other stories include "A Wondrous Night," a brief tale about a man who experiences a spiritual awakening on Christmas Eve, as well as the never-before published story "Shadows from A Christmas Past," in which a man must face the ghosts from a painful childhood to rekindle the spirit of Christmas within his heart. The title story, "An Interview with Santa," is the story of Johnny Brown, a small time reporter who comes up with a plan to catch Santa Claus on Christmas Eve and achieve the fame he's always longed for by getting an exclusive interview with him. The story was inspired by a poem of the same name, and both are included in the book, along with several other Christmas themed stories.

Also released today is the Amazon Short "Law of the Land," a near future tale of how life has changed after the "Law of the Land" Amendment was enacted, which gives everyone the right to use deadly force to resolve their issues, even for the most innocuous and minor arguments. Though a bit tongue-in-cheek, the story explores the potential consequences of a world where everyone is free to take the law into their own hands.

An Interview with Santa and Other Christmas Treats is available at Lulu.com for $9.95 in print, and $2.00 for the downloadable version. Available from Amazon, in both print and download onto Amazon's new Kindle ebook device for $5.00.

"Law of the Land" is available for download now from Amazon Shorts for only $0.49.

WheelMan Press launches website for upcoming book, “Into the Every”

WheelMan Press announces the launch of IntotheEvery.com to promote its latest release, due out in December (url: www.IntotheEvery.com).

September 13, 2007 - Stockbridge, GA. Today marks the official launch of IntotheEvery.com, in conjunction with the announcement that the next book from WheelMan Press will be titled Into the Every: Tales of Magic and Science. The website will serve as the lead promotional tool for the book. a collection of short stories and novelettes exploring Magic, Science, and the place beyond humanity’s wildest imagination where one becomes nearly indistinguishable from the other. The site will provide the latest information on the book’s progress as well as ongoing discussions on the ideals driving the theme of the book. The site also has links to a variety of resources in print and online related to the subjects of Science, and the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres, as well promotional items for sale, for free download, and more. “I designed IntotheEvery.com to be more than just a promotional tool,” says the author, Gregory Banks. “I also want it to be a resource for all those who are as excited by the wonder and the limitless possibilities to be found in the exploration of our universe and beyond.

WheelMan Press, a subsidiary of BDDesign LLC, published its first book, Crossroads and Other Tales, in January of 2004. Since then it has published three more books, the highly acclaimed Foreword Magazine 2005 Book of the Year Award Finalist Phoenix Tales: Stories of Death & Life, the journal/biography A Writer’s Journey in Poetry & Prose, and a reprint of the H.G. Wells classic, The Door in the Wall and Other Stories.

Author, publisher, and graphic designer Gregory Bernard Banks runs WheelMan Press. During his ten-year writing career, he’s garnered many publishing credits, and has had stories reaching both the semi- and quarter-finals of the prestigious L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest. The title story from his upcoming collection, Into the Every, finished 6th under the Science Fiction Short Story category in the 2006 Preditors and Editors Readers Poll, and another story, that will also be contained in this collection, The Summoner, currently ranks in the top five under four separate categories at Amazon Shorts. Banks currently works as co-Webmaster for the Speculative Literature Foundation, is the sole proprietor for WheelMan Press and its parent company, BDDesign LLC, and is both a Community Leader and Customer Support Representative at Lulu.com. He also writes the column “A Sedentary View” for Audacity Magazine (AudacityMagazine.com).

Into the Every: Tales of Magic and Science, is scheduled to be released in December of 2007. For more information, point your browsers to www.IntotheEvery.com.

My first podcast!

The first podcast from WheelMan Press is now live. It's a performance of the story, "Living with Mrs. Klase," the sweet Christmastime tale of a man who goes to great lengths to please his wife, whose suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. The recording was created for me by PanRight Productions.

WheelMan Press' Podcast - http://wheelmanpress.libsyn.com/

Cool new publishing credit!

Any of you like unique new Epic fantasy?

My story, The Summoner,, is now for sale under Amazon.com's new "Shorts" program. They have all kinds of content their available in ebook, email, and PDF formats, and each one can be bought for 49 cents.

Today I've been ranked as high as Number 6 under "Fantasy & Science Fiction," and number 43 overall. Really exciting, but I'm now addicted to checking my ranking every hour. :D

Hope you'll all check me ebook out.

- The WheelMan

CALL FOR APPLICANTS: SLF Mentorship Program

CALL FOR APPLICANTS: SLF Mentorship Program

The Speculative Literature Foundation is launching a pilot mentorship
program for beginning writers. These writers will be able to gather
valuable advice from more experienced writers regarding the craft and
business of writing.

Structure
Each mentor will receive five mentees. The mentors will offer advice and
answer craft/business questions (both from a SLF facilitator and from the
writers themselves). Please note: this is not a workshop, and mentors will
not read or comment on individual writing from their mentees.

Applicants may indicate a preference for a particular mentor, but we
cannot guarantee that you will be matched with that mentor. Once matched,
you will be added to a mailing list with your mentor and the other mentees
in your group. Conversations on that mailing list are to be kept private
and confidential. At the end of the program, participants are required to
write a one-page evaluation of the program, and a brief evaluation of
their mentor.

Mentors: Spring 2006 Pilot Program, Mar 15 - May 15
Jay Lake: http://www.jlake.com/
Beth Adele Long: http://www.sff.net/people/bethadele/
Jennifer Pelland: http://www.jenniferpelland.com/

How to Apply
Send a one-page bio and personal statement as an attached Word .doc file
to mentorship@speclit.org. This will serve as your introduction to your
mentor and the group, if you are selected for the program. Indicate if
you have a preference for a particular mentor. Applications are due by
Wednesday, March 8, 2006.

Thank you!

- Mary Anne Mohanraj
Director, SLF

Interviewed by SelfPublisher News

An interview I did for SelfPublisher News now appears in their first issue, which you can get for free by going to:

http://www.selfpublishernews.com/wst_page3.html

- The WheelMan

"Is Life Truly Divine?" now up at Audacity Magazine

My latest essay, "Is Life Truly Divine?", is featured this month at Audacity Magazine.

Please check it out!

- The WheelMan

"Phoenix Tales" gets a 5 out of 5!

Joe Murphy, reviewer for The Dragon Page Radio Talk Show just gave "Phoenix Tales" a rating of 5 out of 5! Excerpt below:

"I knew from the first story I would rate this book high, but struggled with the exact number. Then one day at work, after my last appointment had gone, and my area supervisor (hello Andrea) had left for the day, I read Living with Mrs. Klase, and I wept. I bawled. My eyes became red, my nose transformed into a waterfall. Vulgar, staccato sobs echoed in the empty office. I prayed in earnest that the DHL driver wouldn’t walk right through the door at that moment, or I’d have to kill both him and myself out of embarrassment.

"Any book that can do that deserves the highest marks."

- Joe Murphy, reviewer for The Dragon Page Radio Talk Show

You can read the entire review here.

- The WheelMan