Current News from the Kansas Authors Club

Contest Reminder: Deadline for Entering is June 15

4/30/2025

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18 Categories in Prose and Poetry

Poetry Categories in our Adult Writing Contest

Theme Contest
Classical Poetry
Free Verse
Narrative Poetry
Whimsy
Japanese Poetry
Ekphrastic Poetry
New Poets
Rural Voices

Prose Categories in our Adult Writing Contest

Theme Contest
Humor
Memoir or Inspirational
Flash Fiction
Stories Written for Young Readers
Short Story
Playwriting
First Chapter of a Book (unpublished)
Rural Voices

Always Read the Guidelines Before Entering

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Congratulations to the Kansas Authors Club Members Published in the Ninth Issue of 105 Meadowlark Reader

4/21/2025

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Issue #9, the Luck issue, of 105 Meadowlark Reader has stories taking place in 31 Kansas counties and features 30 authors.

Eleven stories in this issue are by authors new to 105.

This issue will be available for purchase in Kansas independent boosktores and via the Meadowlark website in May 2025.

Kansas Authors Club members with essays in the Spring 2025 issue are:

Boyd Bauman
Brian Daldorph
Beth Gulley
Roger Heineken
Jerilynn Jones Henrikson
Duane L. Herrmann
Vicki L. Julian
Amy Kliewer
Kerry Moyer
Robert W. Phillips
Robert Rebein
Cynthia C. Schaker
Mason Taylor-Taite
Alicia Troike
Brenda L. White
Sheree L. Wingo

About 105 Meadowlark Reader

Meadowlark Reader Submission Calendar

Open Reading Period for Issue #10
May 1 - June 30, 2025
Theme: Work

Read the Guidelines Before Submitting

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Gordon Parks Museum Poetry Contest

4/21/2025

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This poetry contest is inspired by a quote from Gordon Parks, "I feel it is the heart, not the eye, that should determine the content of the photograph. What the eye sees is its own. What the heart can perceive is a very different matter."

2025 Poetry Contest Guidelines

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We Have Writing Contests for All Ages

3/31/2025

Our contest for young writers, grades 3-12, includes categories in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and—new in 2025—visual art. There are no fees for youth entries. The awards ceremony for young writers will take place this year at the Kansas Book Festival in Topeka on September 20, 2025.

Youth Writing Contest Guidelines

Adult Writing Contest Guidelines

Writing Contests Open on April 1!

3/30/2025

Kansas Authors Club Announces Annual Writing Contests Opening April 1 through June 15

All residents of the state of Kansas are invited to enter the annual literary contests of the Kansas Authors Club. Entries in 18 categories of prose and poetry are accepted April 1 to June 15 with cash prizes presented at the Kansas Authors Club Writing Retreat on October 5, 2025. Winners who cannot attend the awards ceremony will receive awards by mail after the event. All residents of the state of Kansas are welcome to enter, and those who are members get discounted entry fees. Members of the club may reside anywhere in Kansas and beyond.

The contest for young writers, grades 3-12, includes categories in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and—new in 2025—visual art. There are no fees for youth entries. The awards ceremony for young writers will take place this year at the Kansas Book Festival in Topeka on September 20, 2025.

“More Than a Manuscript: Words Take Root” is the fall event theme for 2025. In prose, theme entries can be fiction or nonfiction, with a limit of 1,500 words, any genre. In poetry, the theme entries can be of any poetic form. Full guidelines and all category descriptions for adult and youth contests can be found at www.kansasauthorsclub.org
(menu – Writing Contests – All Ages).

As well as short form writing contests, the Club hosts seven categories for books published by its members, including awards for fiction / nonfiction / poetry, books on Kansas history, books for children, and a book design award. The chapbook contest, for books of poetry 49 pages or less, is open to any resident of the state of Kansas, regardless of membership.

Anyone with an interest in writing is invited to become a member of Kansas Authors Club. Organizations such as libraries and businesses that have services for authors may also be interested membership and monthly programs, which are available via Zoom with accessible recordings for those who are not available to attend during the live program. Learn more at www.kansasauthorsclub.org.

Annual Writing Contests - All Ages

Published Book Awards

YOU can be a part of it!

3/29/2025

Writing from the Center

The official literary magazine of Kansas Authors Club

Prose - Poetry - Visual Art

Free for members and students (Kansas secondary & post secondary)

Open for Submissions: March 1 - April 30, 2025

2025 Theme: Balance

Read the Submission Guidelines

New Book by Member Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg

3/29/2025

From Member Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg:

Do you write book reviews for publications, blogs, podcasts, or other sources? Or do you host writers with new books on blogs or podcasts? I have a hard-won new book coming out July 17 from Mammoth Publications – The Magic Eye: A Story of Saving a Life and a Place in the Age of Anxiety – and I would love to connect with you about the possibilities (I can also send you a PDF of the book and its cover pronto).

Here’s a little about the book:
Harriet Lerner calls The Magic Eye "....a luminous, poetic meditation on survival, community, and resilience. With tenderness and humor, her memoir speaks to the fierce beauty of holding on to life, to land, and to hope when the odds seem insurmountable. A deeply human story, this book is a testament to courage and the power of place that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.”

The Magic Eye encompasses a mythic, quirky, and timely journey with a cast of unforgettable friends that make surviving the odds—both the danger of invasive cancer in a body and invasive development vying for tallgrass prairie—possible. Crossing through the pandemic, this memoir is guided by tenderness, curiosity, and more than a dash of magic as Mirriam-Goldberg writes of giving endangered turtles names such as Gandalf and Harrison Ford, undergoing surgery to insert a radioactive disk in her eye, outsmarting a tornado, and the Rube Goldbeg contraption of the body.

The Magic Eye investigates what it means to reinhabit our bodies and ecosystems.

You can also see the press release here.

Q&A: Book Contest vs. Literary Contests

3/14/2025

The following question came up during our 2nd Tuesday Social. It is an important distinction and we wanted to clarify for new members.

Q: I was waiting to submit my published book to the contest on April 1, and now I see that the "preferred deadline" for submission was March 1. Am I too late to enter?

A: Good question! This is an important change to the 2025 contest guidelines.

First, members need to be aware that there are two sets of contests that Kansas Authors Club sponsors annually.

The first is our Book Awards. We have eight awards for PUBLISHED books. In 2025, eligible books were published between June 1, 2023 and December 31, 2024. We are honoring the June 15 deadline, but as we are introducing the announcement of finalists for this contest, we would prefer to receive your entries ASAP. Click here for Book Awards guidelines. Read the whole thing before entering!

ONLY Kansas Authors Club members are eligible for the Book Awards contests. It is OKAY to join today and submit your book for the competition.

The second set of contests are our Annual Literary Contests with categories for youth and adult writers. These contests are open to all Kansas Authors Club members (regardless of where you live) and to ANY Kansas resident. If you live in the state of Kansas, you do not need to be a member, but adults will have to pay a little more to enter the contest. There is no charge for youth to enter the contests.

Eligible entries for this contest are short, never-before-published pieces of prose and poetry (there are several categories, review the guidelines for specifics).

Submissions for the Literary Contest are always open from April 1 to June 15. Start on this page and take the time to read the guidelines before you submit. Check out the video at the bottom of the page that walks you through the submission process.

Book Awards

Annual Literary Contests - All Ages

Submissions for the third issue of Writing from the Center are now open!

3/7/2025

Guidelines for Entering

Invitation to the Cavalier Conference on Writing and Literature

2/25/2025

From member Beth Gulley:

Authors club members are invited to the Cavalier Conference on Writing and Literature April 11. The theme is The Future of Storytelling. Jose Faus is the keynote speaker. Proposals for individual presentations are still being accepted. For more information see the website: https://www.jccc.edu/conferences/cavalier-writing/

The Cavalier Conference on Writing and Literature will be held Friday April 11 at Johnson County Community College. This year's theme is "The Future of Storytelling" and the keynote speaker is the poet and artist Jose Faus. While the conference is broadly aimed at English and Writing teachers, all are welcome to attend.

From the conference website: "As teachers of literature and composition, we often focus on the usefulness of narrative or storytelling. Not only are students often more inspired by this genre, but even the "driest" and most analytical writing benefits from author's deliberate use of story. Whether used as a hook device, anecdotal evidence, a means of persuasion or the structure for epic stories and poems, the future is built by stories.

How might we reimagine storytelling for future audiences? How has technology changed storytelling? What are the stories we need to hear and to tell today? What are ways we can include a broader range of stories in our classrooms?

We invite you to share your thoughts as we talk through these questions and workshop solutions to form stories and connections that transcend boundaries."

Registration is live here: https://www.jccc.edu/conferences/cavalier-writing/

Announcement: 2025 Literary Contest Guidelines are now LIVE!

1/31/2025

For those who like to plan ahead, the guidelines for our 2025 writing contests have been updated and are now available on our website.

Note that our literary contests are for short form, never-before-published work. If you are looking for details about our published book awards, click here.

Read the 2025 Literary Contest Guidelines

Kansas Authors Club
Annual Writing Contests
Open for Submissions April 1 through June 15

All residents of the state of Kansas are invited to enter the annual literary contests of the Kansas Authors Club. Entries in 18 categories of prose and poetry are accepted April 1 to June 15 with cash prizes presented at the Kansas Authors Club Writing Retreat on October 5, 2025. Winners who cannot attend the awards ceremony will receive awards by mail after the event. All residents of the state of Kansas are welcome to enter, and those who are members get discounted entry fees. Members of the club may reside anywhere in Kansas and beyond.

New in 2025

Ekphrastic Poetry category added
Short Story category now accepting fiction up to 2,500 words
Youth Contest has added a Visual Arts category

Read the complete guidelines for details.

18 categories in prose & poetry

Share our Press Release!

Short Story Dispensers: A Tip from Member Carmaine Ternes

1/25/2025

Dear Authors,

I am grateful for your efforts, organization, and enthusiasm!

If you have not experienced the Short Story Dispensers, visit the Wichita Art Museum and the Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport. You can also access Select a Short Story at your convenience.

If you know anyone interested, please share. An author can create an account and submit a short story.
Although no royalties will be awarded, this is another opportunity to promote literacy.

Thanks for going beyond the books!

Cheers!
Carmaine Ternes
Librarian, Author, Editor, Presenter
"A child who reads will be an adult who thinks!"
Climate Stories Project
StoryCorps One Small Step

Important: Book Awards Guidelines for 2025 Updated

1/10/2025

To all members who have published a book June 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024. Please carefully review our updated consolidated Book Award Guidelines before entering a 2025 book contest. Significant changes have taken place.

Beginning in 2025, we will add an announcement of three finalists per contest category prior to the announcement of the winner at our fall gathering in October. Eligible books, for 2025 alone, will include an expanded window of eligibility that will include books that would have been considered eligible per our previous guidelines. Beginning in 2026, the book awards will be for books with a 1st publication date in the previous year only.

Our goal is to elevate the status of the Kansas Authors Club Book Awards, and to recognize as much fine writing from the state of Kansas as possible with these changes.

Read Now: Consolidated Book Awards Guidelines

Published Book Awards
Eight Categories
Cash Awards

For the 2025 Award Year

Submissions Accepted: NOW through

March 1, 2025 (encouraged), June 15 (final)

Invitation to Submit: Looking for True Kansas Stories

12/14/2024

L U C K

Hello Friend!

We are currently collecting true stories for the LUCK issue of 105 Meadowlark Reader. You have until December 31 to get your stories submitted. Guidelines below.

Happy Holidays from 105 Meadowlark Reader!

What we’re looking for, in general: Your true stories about Kansas told in an engaging way. Pull us in, make us feel something. Make us laugh or make us cry. Be creative. Use dialog. Careful word choice and fresh imagery is valued. Write your stories in any of the persons (first, second, third).

Eligible writers: We are looking for true stories about Kansas written by Kansans, therefore you must be a Kansas resident or have lived in Kansas at some point in your life.

Theme for Issue #9 (November 1 - December 31, 2024 Submission Period):

Luck

Word count: Let’s say 100 - 3,000 words, give or take. How many words does it take for you to tell your story?

We want original, never-before-published pieces. No simultaneous submissions, please.

105 Meadowlark Reader does not accept AI-generated stories.

Have fun: When a writer enjoys the process, that positive energy comes through to the reader.

Publishing rights: We are asking for First North American Serial Rights.

Payment: Payment is currently $10 per story and one contributor copy of the journal.

How to submit: File types accepted: .doc, .docx, .rtf

Manuscript Preparation: Use standard formatting for your entry. This means:

12-point Times New Roman

lines double-spaced

Include your author bio at the end of your entry. Your name as printed in this bio is how we will refer to you in the rest of the journal. (Exception: Feel free to use titles and degree designations in the bio, but those titles will not be included in the byline, per Meadowlark style.)
Your bio should include:

125 words or less
Written in 3rd person
A mention of your connection to Kansas (such as where you grew up, your favorite spot in the state, a favorite fact about Kansas).
Your current city, state of residence
Feel free to mention any publishing credits as space allows

Author Photos:

As a 2nd attachment to this submission, include a high-resolution author photo in JPG format with your entry. Do not embed this photo in your manuscript. Bonus points if your author photo includes a Kansas setting.

Photos for publication with your essay:

If you have photos that go along with your essay that you would like to include for consideration with publication, embed those photos in a second document with descriptions beneath each image.

Reponse Time:

Response regarding spring submissions (May-June) will be no later than September 1.
Response regarding fall submissions (November-December) will be no later than March 1.

Limit: you may enter up to two (2) stories per submission period.

Submit via Submittable - Meadowlark Press Submission Manager

105 Meadowlark Reader Calendar

Autumn Poems Contest by Choeofpleirn Press

10/25/2024

Choeofpleirn Press is hosting a harvest-oriented poetry contest this month, and will publish 8 poems selected from the submissions on our website, www.choeofpleirnpress.com, in November.

Barton Community College Prairie Ink Literary Annual Open for Submissions

10/7/2024

Writers and artists in Barton, Pawnee, Rice, Rush, Ellsworth, Russell, and Stafford counties are encouraged to submit their work for publication in Barton Community College's literary annual Prairie Ink, due for a new issue to be published in April of 2025.

BCC is looking for "fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry, drama, literary criticism, and those graphic narratives that can be successfully reproduced into black and white photography." Submission guidelines can be found on their website. Submissions are open until the Sunday after Thanksgiving - December 1, 2024.

Now Taking Literary Entries for the 2025 Yearbook

8/29/2024

We would love to see all of our members represented in the yearbook. Your literary contribution is your calling card. Introduce yourself. Share an excerpt from a published work or a work-in-progress.

We are accepting literary page entries for the 2025 yearbook! Open August 1 through October 31, electronic receipt or postmark.

Every Member having paid current dues is invited to submit ONE literary contribution for the yearbook. That submission can be either prose or poetry. Prose is limited to one printed page (no more than 500 words). Poetry is limited to one printed page (no more than 40 lines including spaces between verses).

Read the guidelines in your yearbook or on our Publications page.

Submit via Submittable

Best in Rural Writing Contest

7/2/2024

In partnership with The Daily Yonder, The Milk House is glad to announce the second annual Best in Rural Writing Contest.

Judged by Dr. Chea Parton, the competition is open to fiction and nonfiction entries under 6,000 words.

Deadline: September 30th, 2024

The winning entry will receive $500, and the runner up $200, as well as significant exposure.

For more details, go to https://www.themilkhouse.org/contest/

FINAL REMINDER: Nominations for Awards of Merit, Service Awards, and Lifetime Achievement

6/28/2024

Seeking Nominations for Awards of Merit, Service Awards, and Lifetime Achievement Recognition.

Nominate members for service and achievement awards.

The nomination form is now online. Deadline: July 1

Kansas Association of Teachers of English Annual Conference & Call for Local Authors

6/28/2024

The Kansas Association of Teachers of English will host its annual conference on November 1 and 2 in Wichita.

KS ASSOCIATION OF TEACHERS OF ENGLISH

This year their theme is “Voices from Our Backyard.” In light of the theme, they are looking for local authors who might be interested in exhibiting their books. Here is a link to the proposal site.

Call for local authors:

Creativity and expertise thrive in our own backyard, but too often we're looking at the grass on the other side of the fence. We learn from our colleagues, our students, local authors and artists. This year, the Kansas Association of Teachers of English would like to highlight experts and creatives from the Midwest. If you don't think of yourself as an "expert," don't worry! We'd still love to hear from you.

We are looking for local/KS/Midwest authors whose works are geared towards students, teachers, and classrooms across the education spectrum (pre-K - post-secondary). Proposal acceptance guarantees authors will be given table space to vend and sign their works, as well as network with educators from around the state. For each day at the conference, KATE requests one book be donated for the conference door prizes.

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