BARROW preview available online at Scribd.Com!

In preparation of the release of BARROW next month, a short, free sample of poems is now available at:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/19249348/BARROW-EPreview

This particular sample includes poems that have been previously published in literary journals around the world including Whistling Shade, the Journal of the Asian American Renaissance, Northography and Tales of the Unanticipated.

As you will find in this short preview, the subjects cover a significant range. Particularly as speculative poetry, with strong influences from science fiction, fantasy and mythology as well as contemporary culture.

If you enjoy it, please tell your friends, and I look forward to sharing more with you in the coming months ahead!

A review of Zelkova Tree

A fine analysis and commentary on a poem of mine that appeared in the inaugural issue of CHA: An Asian Literary Journal, based in Hong Kong. My deep appreciation to the editors for their insightful and touching remarks. It's a delight to have been included, and Zelkova Tree remains one of my personal favorites for many reasons.

CALL FOR SHORT STORIES

Asian and Asian diasporic writers, new or established, are invited to send short stories in English for a volume of NEW ASIAN SHORT STORIES to be published by Marshall Cavendish (Malaysia). The book will be edited by Prof. Mohammad A. Quayum whose details are given below.

They invite short stories not exceeding 6000 words and NOT published or submitted for publication elsewhere to be submitted to the editor electronically at mquayum@gmail.com, by 15 February 2010. The book will be released in September 2010, and all successful contributors will be sent a complimentary copy of the book upon publication.

About the Editor
Mohammad A. Quayum has taught at universities in Singapore, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and the US, and is currently professor of English at International Islamic University Malaysia. He is the author or editor of nineteen books (published by Penguin, Pearson Education, Peter Lang, Prentice-Hall, Marshall Cavendish etc), and his scholarly articles have appeared in distinguished literary journals in the UK, the USA, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Singapore, Taiwan, India, and Malaysia.

Writer's Opportunities

Minnesota: McKnight Fellowship Guidelines for the 2010 McKnight Artist Fellowships for Writers, Loft Awards in Poetry and Spoken Word and Loft Award in Children's Literature / Younger Children will be available in early September. The deadline for both awards is 5 p.m. on Friday, October 23rd. For more information visit www.loft.org

National: Kundiman and Alice James Books will be accepting submissions of poetry manuscripts for The Kundiman Poetry Prize postmarked between November 15 and January 15, 2010. The Kundiman Poetry Prize welcomes submissions from emerging as well as established Asian American poets. Entrants must reside in the United States. For more information visit www.kundiman.org

Additional deadlines of note:

Poets & Writers California Writers Exchange Contest
Deadline: August 31, 2009
Two prizes of $500 each are awarded every three years to a poet and a fiction writer living in California. Each winner also receives an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City to give a reading and meet with writers, editors, and agents. California poets and fiction writers who have published no more than one full-length book in the genre in which they are applying are eligible. Submit four copies of up to 10 pages of poetry or 20 pages of fiction by August 31. There is no entry fee. Visit the Web site for complete guidelines. www.pw.org

Illinois Arts Council Artists Fellowship Awards
Deadline: September 1, 2009
Fellowships of $7,000 each are given annually to Illinois writers. Finalists receive grants of $700 each. The awards, which alternate yearly between poetry and prose, are given to Illinois residents who have lived in the state for at least one year prior to the application deadline and who are not enrolled in any degree- or certificate-granting program. This year’s competition is open to fiction writers and creative nonfiction writers. Submit 15 to 30 pages of prose completed within the past four years, proof of residency, and a resumé by September 1. There is no entry fee. Visit the Web site for the required entry form and complete guidelines. Web site: www.state.il.us/agency/iac/guidelines/guidelines.htm

Leeway Foundation Art and Change Grants
Deadline: September 1, 2009
Grants of up to $2,500 each are given by the Leeway Foundation three times a year to support women poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers in the Philadelphia area who need financial assistance to work on a project involving art and social change. Women and transgender writers living in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia counties who are 18 years of age or older and who are not full-time students in an arts program are eligible. Applicants must have a project commitment from an organization or mentor. Submit an entry form by September 1. There is no entry fee. Call, e-mail, or visit the Web site for complete guidelines: www.leeway.org.

Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Awards
Deadline: September 1, 2009
Grants of $5,000 and $10,000 are awarded annually to Ohio poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. Writers who have been residents of Ohio for one year prior to the application deadline and are not enrolled in a degree- or certificate-granting program are eligible. Online submissions only are accepted. Submit 10 to 15 pages of poetry or 20 to 30 pages of prose completed within the past three years by September 1. There is no entry fee. Visit the Web site for the required entry form and complete guidelines: www.oac.state.oh.us/grantsprogs/guidelines/individualcreativity.asp