Virginia Writers Club logoA 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of writers and poets, screenwriters and playwrights, journalists and essayists, and other publishing professionals whose purpose is to support and stimulate the art, craft and business of writing, as well as advocate the literary arts in the Commonwealth.












  Requires Adobe Reader

     

      Get Firefox!

   Events



VWC BOARD OF GOVERNORS MEETING
Saturday, February 5 | 10:00am - 2:30pm

This event is open to the public.

Location
University of Mary Washington, 137 Combs Hall, Fredericksburg, VA

Agenda
9:30 - 10:00 AM   Coffee
10:00 AM   Board of Governors Meeting
12:00 Noon   Boxed Lunch (registration & payment required in advance, cost $10 by Jan 21). Details below.
1:00 PM   Program - "Writing the Young Adult Novel"
Speaker: Steve Watkins, author of DOWN SAND MOUNTAIN

LUNCH RESERVATION
Deadline - JANUARY 21

Box lunches available at $10.00 each: chicken, turkey, ham, beef, or veggie, including drink and dessert. Order by email from Jim Gaines (jimgaines3@earthlink.net) by Jan. 21. Remit check to 17 North Pointe Dr.,Frederickburg VA 22405 or pay at the meeting.

SPEAKER
Steve Watkins

Steve Watkins is the author of DOWN SAND MOUNTAIN (read more about the novel here), a young adult novel published in October 2008 by Candlewick Press, and winner of the Golden Kite Award for Fiction from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Another young adult novel, WHAT COMES AFTER, will be published in hardback and audio by Candlewick in April of this year, along with audio and paperback editions of DOWN SAND MOUNTAIN. A third YA novel, JUVIE, is forthcoming from Candlewick in spring 2013.

Steve Watkins is also author of a short story collection, MY CHAOS THEORY (2006, Southern Methodist University Press), which was a finalist for the Paterson Fiction Prize, and an Honorable Mention for the Library of Virginia Fiction Award. He also wrote the award-winning non-fiction book THE BLACK O: RACISM AND REDEMPTION IN AN AMERICAN CORPORATE EMPIRE, published in 1997 by the University of Georgia Press, which tells the story of the largest employment discrimination class action lawsuit in U.S. history. His fiction, poetry, and non-fiction articles have appeared in numerous publications, including The Nation, Poets & Writers, Mississippi Review, 100 Percent Pure Florida Fiction, North American Review, and The Pushcart Prize Anthology.

A graduate of Florida State University, he teaches journalism, creative writing, and Vietnam War literature at the University of Mary Washington. He also teaches Ashtanga yoga, and works as an investigator and advocate for abused and neglected children through the child advocacy organization CASA. He lives in Fredericksburg, Virginia with his wife Janet, is the father of four daughters-Maggie, Eva, Claire, and Lili--and serves as co-director with Janet of the religious education program at the Fredericksburg Unitarian Universalist Church.


2011 Golden Nib contest

The 2011 Golden Nib writing contest is officially open. Accepted categories are fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, with cash prizes for first, second, and third place finishers. The statewide deadline is September 3, but please check your local chapter for their deadline and rules. Download rules here (pdf file | 126k) and good luck!


2010 Annual Meeting

The 2010 Annual Meeting of the Virginia Writers Club was a resounding success. Over 70 members, guests, and speakers attended the event, held at the historic Mount Vernon Inn in Alexandria, VA November 13, 2010. The keynote speaker was New York Times bestelling author, John Gilstrap.


The Golden Nib

The Golden Nib is the Virginia Writers Club annual writing competition in three categories: fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. Winners must be a member in good-standing of a VWC chapter as well as a member of the state organization. Each chapter submits one representative in each category to the state finals, where first, second, and third place winners are announced at the annual meeting (usually held in November).

Winning entries are published electronically in our Golden Nib Anthology, listed below (please note all anthologies are .pdf files and require a .pdf reader, such as Adobe Acrobat). Rules for the 2011 Golden Nib contest will be released soon! View the 2010 contest rules here.

Golden Nib Anthology 2010 [PDF | 178k] (winners below)

Golden Nib Anthology 2009 [PDF | 160k]

Golden Nib Anthology 2008 [PDF | 165k]


Winners of the 2010 Golden Nib were:

Nonfiction
1st place ($100) "The Game"
Elizabeth Morelli, Richmond, VA
 
2nd place ($50) "Way Off Broadway"
Donna Knox, Roanoke, VA
 
3rd place ($25) "Rescue Dog"
Linda Morefield, Alexandria, VA
 
Fiction
1st place ($100) "Promises to Keep"
Frank Milligan, Williamsburg, VA
 
2nd place ($50) "Musing (With Lemons)"
Becky Mushko, Penhook, VA
 
3rd place ($25) "Used To Be Famous"
Jody Hobbs Hesler, Charlottesville, VA
 
Poetry
1st place ($100) "Late Garden Days"
Judith Grissmer
 
2nd place ($50) "Fred, Your Guardian Angel, For Billy In Afghanistan"
Mary Duley Guy, Lancaster, VA
 
3rd place ($25) "Troublesome Creek '93"
Melanie Lynn Moro-Huber, Vinton, VA
 



This site is optimized for the Firefox browser. Get Firefox!

Cool Text: Logo and Graphics Generator

Copyright © 2005-2010, The Virginia Writers Club, Inc.
Some graphics courtesy Ender Design Realm

Problem? Question? Broken link? E-mail the Webmaster!