I am excited to announce a new poetry anthology!
2011
includes 48 poems on 60 pages
$7.49 paper
Click here to order paper
$2.49 ebook coming
Click here to order ebook
Writers Wanted! May 23, 2012
The Rotary Club of Salmon Arm (Shuswap) a.k.a. Shuswap Rotary Club has an awesome fund raiser that we’d love you to be part of!
We are searching for writers of poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction (plus photographers) to submit their work for an opportunity to be published in an anthology called On the Shores of Shuswap Lake. The work must relate to life in the Shuswap, and fit within the length criteria, otherwise, you’re free to explore all options! The deadline for submissions is July 31st.
You grant non-exclusive rights to Shuswap Rotary to publish your work in the anthology. Non-exclusive means that as far as Shuswap Rotary is concerned, you’re welcome to offer the piece to any other publication or contest, even if it’s accepted for the anthology. An entry fee of $10 must accompany your work, and is considered a donation to Rotary, to support our community and international projects.
What would you like to write about?
Your first houseboating trip? An interesting wild flower? Geographical strata? Your grandmother? An adventure at your summer cabin? The time you nearly drowned in Shuswap Lake? Watching the salmon run at Adams River?
Deadline is July 31st, 2012. We’re looking forward to hearing from you!
Here’s the official info and fine print:
HandbillOntheShoresShuswapLake
What are those community and international projects undertaken by Shuswap Rotary? Here are a few:
Blackburn Park universal access playground, Victim Services, Air Force Cadets, Women’s Shelter, R. J. Haney House Museum, Salmon Arm Fall Fair, Sheltered Workshop, Barani Kenya Lunch Program, Fathers’ Day Fishing Derby, Guatemala Midwives, Music Festival, Ecuador Dental Mission, Gamma Probe for Salmon Arm Hospital, Highway clean ups, Trail maintenance…
Remembering Masks… July 16, 2011
Once upon a time, on this day in history a few days after I turned 13, I had a life changing conversation with a friend. He shared with me a short story he’d found called “Masks.” It was profound and the resulting conversation about honesty and being true to yourself left me in a cloud.
In fact, when I got home, people were afraid there had been a lot more than conversation going on, since I was so dazed and blissful.
I don’t remember the details of the story anymore, and I don’t remember the conversation either. What I remember is the attachment that came from listening and being heard. I remember the comfort of someone I admired spending time with me. I remember the sense of connection, fondness, and adoration.
It was still resonating enough at my graduation that 716 was the number on my grad t-shirt.
It still resonates enough that I’m writing this blog about it decades later.
So Happy Masks Anniversary. May you live your life unafraid to be yourself and to accept others as themselves. May you speak words of honesty with warmth. May you be the kind of person who draws others to your sincerity and good humour. May you be an inspiration that echoes through the decades.
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PS. If you know the story “Masks,” which was apparently from a youth writing anthology published in the late 70s, I’d appreciate knowing about it. I would love to read it again.
Shawn L. Bird 