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Building Writing Portfolio

September 4, 2024

Rewards of Writing: For writers looking to improve their craft, build a portfolio, and get published, Bosque Arts Center's Books On The Bosque Writing Contest & Conference checks all the boxes

CLIFTON – Whether you are aiming at a career in writing, or someone that enjoys writing as a hobby, entering a writing contest – however nerve-wracking it might be – has several advantages. Writing contests are a great way to showcase your talent and creativity, while improving your craft and building your portfolio.

Then sometimes, there are even cash prizes involved. And in the process, it becomes a valuable opportunity to grow your network and expose yourself to different styles and perspectives from other writers.

The Bosque Arts Center will hold its Third Annual Books on the Bosque Writing Contest, followed by a conference for writers and readers on Nov. 9. The award winners of the Books on the Bosque writing contest are announced in the afternoon of the one-day conference.

Part of the Bosque Arts Center’s general mission is to encourage appreciation and participation in all art forms. Their Art Classic Exhibition and Sale highlights visual arts, the Texas Troubadour highlights musical arts and Books on the Bosque highlights the literary arts.

You might have a short story, a narrative non-fiction essay or a piece of poetry already written. And if not, there is still time to enter your work with the Sept. 20 deadline. Works submitted to other contests are accepted, works preciously submitted to Books on the Bosque are not.

The writing contest features two divisions – an open division for entries from adults and a second division for high school ages – parents or guardians are required to co-sign entry forms for youth under 18. The contest is open to anyone in the United States, and submissions via USPS mail or email are accepted.

Cash prizes of $300, $200, and $100 are awarded to first, second and third places respectively in in the three categories. High school prizes will be awarded across Prose – short story and essay – and Poetry categories; with first place $275; second place $150, and third place $75.

Last year, cash prizes totaled $3,000. This year, Roland and Joyce Jones are once more sponsoring the $1,000 Jones Best of the West Award in the open division. The award will go to the most original work in any category that pays homage to the values of faith, hard work, and perseverance – the Spirit of the West – exemplified in the pioneer days through modern-day ranchers and farmers. Other sponsors for the cash prizes are First State Security Bank, Tolstoy Bookshop , Steve and Leslie McConnico.

The conference kicks off with Virginia “Jennie,” Reeves who will speak about her newly published debut novel “Once in the Blue Moon,” which was inspired by her family stories, setting her up for a life’s course of hard work, endless energy and passion as a teacher, mother and Park Cities socialite.

As a Texas-based author, Reeves was born and raised on a cotton farm in Oklahoma. She married Stuart, the boy she met at 14 after leaving that farm. Set in 1940s Oklahoma on a red dirt cotton farm, the novel is “grounded in the realities of life near the end of the World War II. A tale of willpower in ordinary people who act with courage and grit, this story is ultimately one of resilience, forgiveness and redemption.”

Read more about Jennie and Once in a Blue Moon at http://www.virginiamillerreeves.com, complete with black and white family photos and Kyle Hobratschk’s illustrations.

Stephen King fans will want to check out Texas author Mark A. Daniel who specializes in suspense, horror, and thriller genres, at 10:45 a.m. Taking the advice of his third-grade teacher to “pursue writing of some kind as a career,” he promptly wrote his first book “From Six Feet to Two Inches.” It was about 10 pages long. He never looked back.

Since then, Daniel has completed seven novels – including “The Gifted,” “Burial Ground,” “The Threshold” and “Black Mass” – and two short story collections “Razor’s Edge, part one and two”. He lives on 73 acres in rural west Texas in the Cross Plains area with his wife of 25+ years, a few dogs, several cats and a varying number of chickens. Daniel will be presenting a mini writers workshop.

Award-winning poet, songwriter, journalist and rural Central Texas-native Tony Burnett offers an interactive workshop entitled “Aerobic Plot Development” after lunch at 1 p.m. Burnett has had work published in over 40 international literary magazines including Short Story America, Midwest Review, and Equinox. He has served as board president of the Writer’s League of Texas and is currently the managing Books on the Bosque Literary Festival editor and CEO of Kallisto Gaia Press.

Burnett's publications include a short story collection “Southern Gentleman,” a book of poetry titled “The Reckless Hope of Scoundrels,” and his most recent debut novel, a psychological thriller “Watermelon Tattoo,” winner of the Water Tower Press Novel Prize.

Be sure to check out all the contest guidelines and entry form at: https://www.bosqueartscenter.org/userfiles/file/BooksontheBosque_WritingContestGUIDELINESandEntryForm2024.pdf. Award winners will be announced at the Books on the Bosque Writers and Readers Conference Nov. 9, at 2:30 p.m. Admission to the awards ceremony is free and open to the public. Admission to the conference is $30 and includes a continental breakfast and lunch; please reserve your seat through the BAC website.