Rick Rofihe's Blog, page 2

Finding One's True Calling in Life...

The guy in the Crazy Eddie commercials was Jerry Carroll. Earlier, he had been a Sophomore at Boston University as was his girlfriend. On a bench on Commonwealth Avenue there she broke the news to him that she'd met another guy, a Senior. Jerry started to cry, asking, "What am I going to do with my life?" She replied, "Why don't you go into radio, you have such a nice voice."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc-Mhy...

3 Anderbo Literary Contests

Literary Contests @ anderbo.com for 2012

New Contest!
2012 Anderbo Self-Published Book Award
Postmark Deadline: October 25
For a self-published book (fiction or nonfiction)
Winner receives: $500 cash and publication of a book-excerpt on anderbo.com
Judged by Rick Rofihe; Contest Assistant: Carolyn Wilsey;
Contest Readers: Anderbo Associate Editors Emily Kokoll, Tricia Brock,
H.M. Sheldon-Dean, Hannah Frederick, Angela Polidoro, Anne Heltzel
Reading Fee: $20
Guidelines @ http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander...
***

7th Year!
2012 Anderbo Poetry Prize
Postmark Deadline: December 15
For up to six unpublished poems
Winner receives: $500 cash and publication on anderbo.com
Judged by Sidney Wade
2012 Contest Assistant: Anderbo Poetry Editor Charity Burns
Reading fee: $10
Guidelines @ http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander...
***

9th Year!
2012 Open City Magazine pic.twitter.com/8jU6I8QP
RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest
– FREE TO ENTER
Postmark Deadline: December 31
For an unpublished short story (3,500 to 5,000 words)
Winner receives: Trophy, $500 cash and publication on anderbo.com
Judged by Rick Rofihe; Contest Assistant: Carolyn Wilsey; Contest Reader: Jean Hartig
No fee to enter
Guidelines @ http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/no-fe...

The 2012 Open City Magazine No-Fee RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest @ Anderbo

The 2012 Open City Magazine No-Fee
RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest @ Anderbo
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/no-fe...

2012 RRofihe Trophy

For an unpublished short story
(Minimum word count: 3,500; maximum to 5,000 words)
Winner Receives:
$500 cash
Trophy
Announcement & Publication on anderbo.com

Judged by Rick Rofihe

2012 Contest Assistant: Carolyn Wilsey.
Carolyn Wilsey has read fiction for Esquire and Swink, and is the Managing Editor of Anderbo. She teaches writing privately and at colleges in New York City.

2012 Contest Reader: Jean Hartig.
Jean Hartig is a writer and editor living in Brooklyn. She is former associate editor of Poets & Writers Magazine and has served on the editorial staff of A Public Space and Lumina,
published by Sarah Lawrence College, where she earned her MFA.

Guidelines:
–Stories should be typed, double-spaced, with the author’s name, the story's title, and contact information on the first page
–Submissions must be received by December 31st, 2012
–Limit one submission per author
–Author must not have been previously published in Open City Magazine or on Anderbo
–E-mail submissions to editors@anderbo.com with RROFIHE TROPHY in the subject line
–YOU MUST SUBMIT YOUR STORY-MANUSCRIPT
ENTRY WITHIN THE BODY OF THE E-MAIL—NO ATTACHMENTS!
–THERE IS NO READING FEE and all literary rights will remain with the author

Contest Judge Rick Rofihe is the author of FATHER MUST, a collection of short stories published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. His fiction has appeared in The New Yorker, Grand Street, Open City, Swink, Unsaid, and on epiphanyzine, slushpilemag, and fictionaut. His nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, The Village Voice, SPY, and The East Hampton Star, and on mrbellersneighborhood. A recipient of the Whiting Writers’ Award, he has taught MFA writing at Columbia University. He currently teaches privately in New York City, and was an advisor to the Vilcek Foundation for their 2011 prizes in the field of literature. Rick is the Editor of Anderbo.

A Long & Short on Stories for No Pay...

As a writer, of course I’m interested in money, but, as an experiment, I decided to put nine short stories of mine, each of which originally appeared in The New Yorker magazine, together as a “book”, under the title “BOYS who DO the BOP”, and make it easily and freely downloadable in e-form at http://www.anderbo.com/bop9.html — anyone, anywhere, anytime, can read it on a computer or smartphone without charge. Yes, there was a time when I was paid $2500+ by The New Yorker for my fictions, but, as an editor there at the time, Dan Menaker, said to me, “You can’t expect to make a living from short stories.” This, I think, is increasingly true, both for writers and for publishers. Lately, I’ve been giving my — and others’ — stories, poems and nonfiction away for no charge via the online journal I co-founded in 2005 at http://www.anderbo.com/ yet at the same time I strongly disapprove of making writers pay fees to submit their writings, unless it’s for a contest where the money would go toward paying the winners cash prizes. As for the Anderbo editorial staff, it's basically an unpaid one, and all work is voluntary; also, we aren't in a position to pay the writers, the only exception is work having to do with our literary contests — contest-entry readers, contest assistants, contest judges, and, of course, the contest-winners, are paid.

Anderbo scores 3 Notable Story picks

Anderbo scores 3 storySouth Million Writers Award Notable Story picks --

"Ghosts" by Mac Barrett;
"Monologue" by Juliet Grames;
"Clarins" by Courtney Maum

http://www.storysouth.com/millionwrit...

Readers & times for the Anderbo Monday, March 12th Reading @ Rouge et Blanc

Here is the line-up for the http://anderbo.com Reading on Monday, March 12th, 2012, at Rouge et Blanc Restaurant, 48 MacDougal Street in SoHo, from 6:30-9:30 pm, free, doors opening at 6:00 or so.
(On Facebook -- https://www.facebook.com/events/35017... )

The kitchen (see review in the current New Yorker http://www.newyorker.com/arts/reviews... ) will be closed, but we'll bring in some good snacks, and make sure everyone who wants a glass of wine gets one.
(Rouge et Blanc http://www.rougeetblancnyc.com/ is on the block of MacDougal Street between W Houston and Prince Sts.)

Readers and times are:

7:00
Matthew Daddona (Poetry)
Matthew Daddona works in the publishing industry. He is the recipient of Academy of American Poets and Beatrice Dubin Rose awards for poetry.
His poem "Lottery" appears on Anderbo.

7:15
Sarah Goffman (Fiction)
Sarah Goffman lectures at Hunter College and elsewhere in New York City. She grew up in Northern New Jersey and lives in Brooklyn.
Her short story "Physical" appears on Anderbo.

7:30
Maureen Duffy (Poetry)
Maureen Duffy, just recently arrived in New York City from the Bay Area of San Francisco, has one poem on Anderbo.

7:45
Larry Shapiro (Fiction)
Larry Shapiro, an environmental lawyer, lives in New York City. His short story "Atlanta" appears on Anderbo.
He recently completed a novel-manuscript, "FRAGMENTS" -- the first 3 chapters are on Anderbo.

8:00-8:15 (Break)

8:15
Juliet Grames (Fiction)
Juliet Grames, Senior Editor at Soho Press, lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Her short story "Monologue" appears on Anderbo.

8:30
Emmalea Russo (Poetry)
Emmalea Russo grew up in Eastern Pennsylvania. She lives and writes in Cambridge, Massachusetts but considers New York City home.
Her poem "The Body Protects Itself, Doesn't It?" appears on Anderbo.

8:45
Laurie Stone (Essay)
Laurie Stone is a much-published writer who is from, and lives, in New York City.
Her essay "Sex at 58" appears on Anderbo.

9:00 Anderbo Editor Rick Rofihe's closing remarks...

2011 RRofihe Trophy Winner: JL Schneider

There were almost 140 entries in the 2011 Open City RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest;
the Winner is JL Schneider of Ellenville, New York for "A Pair of Soup". The story is published now at http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander... ; he will receive $500 plus a trophy.

The Runner-Up Story is "Monologue" by Juliet Grames of Brooklyn. New York.
This story is published now at http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/afict...

Finalist Stories (2) were:
"Anatomy of a Geode" by Venita Blackburn of Avondale, Arizona; and
"Dos Equis" by Don Downey of New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Semi-Finalist Stories (9) were:
"The Snowbird" by Anna Ingwersen of Houston, Texas
"Literacy" by Kathleen Spivack of Watertown, Massachusetts
"Pipework" by Dwight Holing of Orinda, California
"Like Cindy" by Lynn Vande Stouwe of New York, New York
"Color-in Medusa" by Louisa Peck of Seattle, Washington
"The Flight" by Mia Farinelli of New York, New York
"Da Capo" by Amy Meyerson of Los Angeles, California
"Snowstorm" by David Englander of New York, New York
"Angles" by Heather Sappenfield of Vail, Colorado

***

For RRofihe Trophy Contest Assistant Carolyn Wilsey,

Sincere thanks to all who entered,
Rick Rofihe
Editor, http://www.anderbo.com
Judge, http://opencity.org/the-rrofihe-trophy

Anderbo's First-Ever Fundraiser Thurs, Dec 1

Anderbo's First-Ever Fundraiser will feature Readings from the http://www.anderbo.com/ site on Thursday, December 1st from 7-10pm (Doors open at 6:30)
$20 contribution; includes wine & snacks
Jimmy's No.43 is at
43 East 7th St, New York, NY 10003 between Second & Third Aves
Subway: Take the 6 to Astor Place or R/W to 8th St or F to 2nd Ave.

Readers (so far) will include:

Sarah Gardner Borden, who holds an MFA from the Warren Wilson Program for Writers. Her fiction and non-fiction have appeared in a variety of journals, including Open City, Willow Springs, the Chicago Reader, Other Voices, Literary Mama, and the New Haven Review. She lives in Brooklyn. Her new novel is GAMES TO PLAY AFTER DARK, (Vintage Contemporaries Original).

Maria Modrovich, who is a Slovak writer and journalist who lives in New York and Bratislava. She has three stories on Anderbo. Maria's fiction and non-fiction has been published in magazines in the US, the UK, Slovakia and in the Czech Republic. Her book debut, the short-story collection Lu & Mira, came out in September 2011 in Slovakia.

Kathleen Kraft, who received her MFA in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Anderbo, Gargoyle, The Madison Review, Pirene's Fountain, Foundling Review and other journals. She was one of 50 finalists in fiction and poetry chosen for the 2011 Summer Literary Seminars Fellowship to study in Vilnius, Lithuania with Edward Hirsch and Rebecca Seiferle. She is Associate Editor at Willows Wept Review. She lives with her fiance in Jersey City, NJ, where she teaches creative movement. She has three poems on Anderbo.

Suzanne Farrell Smith, who has a "fact" on Anderbo, has essays published or forthcoming in The Kenyon Review, the AWP’s Writer’s Chronicle, Hippocampus Magazine, Connotation Press, Muse & Stone, and elsewhere. Suzanne has completed her first book, a hybrid of psychology, neuroscience, and memoir that chronicles her attempts to excavate lost memory. She founded and hosts a writing salon in New York, teaches at Manhattanville College, and works as an independent writer and editor. Previously, she taught elementary school, and still focuses much of her work on issues that relate to children and education. Suzanne lives in Midtown Manhattan with her husband and cats.

Carolyn Silveira, whose short story "How James Franco Became My Boyfriend" is on Anderbo. Carolyn currently works at the Freelancers Union in Brooklyn. She studied literature and creative writing at the University of Chicago and has worked in publishing and public radio. She is a Contributing Editor of anderbo.com.

Douglas Light, who is the author of the 2010 Grace Paley Prize-winning short story collection GIRLS IN TROUBLE. His debut novel, East Fifth Bliss, received the 2007 Benjamin Franklin Award for Fiction. He co-wrote the screen adaptation ("The Trouble with Bliss"), which stars Michael C. Hall, Peter Fonda, and Lucy Liu. It will hit theaters in March 2012. Douglas Light's stories have appeared in the O. Henry Prize Stories and Best American Nonrequired Reading anthologies, and in the literary journals Narrative, Guernica, Alaska Quarterly Review, and Failbetter.

Courtney Maum, whose story "Clarins" is on Anderbo. Courtney is a fiction writer based in between the Berkshires of Massachusetts and New York City, where she works as a "verbal identifier", inventing names for products and brands. Her fiction has recently appeared in Slice Magazine, The Rumpus, Vol. 1, Construction Magazine, Upstreet and others. She is currently working on a collection of comic fiction.

Anderbo Reading-Site Rouge et Blanc gets RAVES from The NY Times!

Anderbo.com + The Open City RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest has had three events at Thomas Cregan's Rouge et Blanc Restaurant in SoHo over the past year or so -- now it's been discovered by The New York Times!

See
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/din...
plus
http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.co...

And to experience the writings of the very same Thomas Cregan, go to
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/afict...
and
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/afict...
and
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander...

Congrats to Tom and his wonderful http://www.rougeetblancnyc.com/ staff from everyone @ Anderbo!

anderbo.com guidelines & fees

anderbo.com
guidelines & fees

Fiction - submit stories of up to 3500 words
Poetry - submit up to 6 poems
"fact" - submit up to 1500 words
NO READING FEES for above. Send submissions to editors@anderbo.com
Anderbo Poetry Prize
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander... (Reading fee: $10; Winner receives $500)

Anderbo Creative Nonfiction Prize
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander... (Reading fee: $10; Winner receives $500)

Anderbo Biannual No-Fee Novel Contest (NO READING FEE; Winner receives $500, paid by sponsor)
http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/ander...

Got a story of more than 3500 but less than 5000 words?
Go to http://opencity.org/the-rrofihe-trophy Short Story Contest (Reading fee: $10; Winner receives $500)