MWSA News — Military Writers Society of America

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Valerie Ormond

Opportunity for Authors in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) Area

The Kensington Day of the Book Festival is a family friendly street festival, held rain or shine, spanning three blocks of Howard Avenue in the heart of historic Kensington, MD. In its 18th year, the event will take place Sunday, April 27, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.

MWSA member Dick Epstein said, “It's that time again. The last Sunday in April is the Day of the Book Festival in Kensington, MD. I have the pleasure of hosting an open mic event at the Veterans Tent where writers, poets, singers, songwriters, and standup comics, can have a time slot at the mic to show or tell a welcoming audience about your recent work or activity. Please let me know if you are interested in participating and help get the word out to your followers. Let me know by return email at dick_epstein@hotmail.com if you want to participate. If you have any questions, call me at any time at 301-996-3016.”

For additional information about the festival, please visit https://www.dayofthebook.com/.

MWSA Goes for the Gold

Congratulations to the Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) for earning its Gold Seal of Transparency with @CandidDotOrg! For updates on MWSA’s impact through its #NonprofitProfile, please see the MWSA Candid Link.

From Candid - Nonprofit Profiles and Seals of Transparency

Candid offers a common online profile that can be updated, for free, by any tax-exempt organization. When an organization claims its profile and earns a Seal of Transparency, it becomes more visible not just on Candid's site, but also on more than 200 partner platforms including Facebook, Network for Good, and donor advised funds. Organizations earn Seals of Transparency by contributing information about their mission, staff and leadership, programs, goals, and more.

Next Generation Short Story Awards

MWSA received the following notification regarding an upcoming short story awards program, which we pass along to members. This does not imply official endorsement.

The Next Generation Short Story Awards, currently in its second year, is a not-for-profit international awards program for authors of short stories. We are a Canadian company and host our awards program annually. The Short Story Awards is now accepting entries, i.e. short stories and poems in English (5000 words or less) for the 2025 awards program in 30+ categories.

The entry deadline for the 2025 year is Thursday, February 27, 2025. Winners and Finalists will be announced in mid-May. Winners in each of the 30+ categories are given $75 cash prizes, gold medals, complimentary digital promotional stickers, social media coverage, literary exposure with their stories published in an Anthology of Winners, and a complimentary copy of the Anthology of Winners.

The entry fee is $25 for the first category and $20 for every additional category entered for the same story. Three Grand Prize Winners will be selected from all entries received and will be awarded cash prizes of $500, $300, and $200 based on their order of win. They will also be invited to attend the Indie Book Awards gala ceremony.

For additional information, please see http://shortstoryawards.com/.

MWSA Writers Education Series First Event of 2025

Please join our first Writers Education Series of the year on January 19, 2025, when MWSA prolific and award-winning author Jim Tritten will present “Writing Your Story.” All webinars this year will be held on Sunday afternoons at 5:00 PM Eastern, 4:00 PM Central, 3:00 PM Mountain, and 2:00 PM Pacific. You'll also find these webinars listed on our website's Events page.

This event will include a presentation, discussions, and questions and answers.

Please use the following URL to join the meeting:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/2245629439?pwd=AH6c5VaddDONn88i6dXU2aZKm1RLcB.1

or click the image above.

If anyone has any questions, contact Jim Tritten at jimtritten@comcast.net.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

By Valerie Ormond

While MWSA is a member-funded organization, we have also received sponsorships and donations in the past. Some donations have been from members, and some from organizations. We would like to thank and recognize the following sponsors during 2024.

• The Phillip Morris International (PMI) Community Foundation program - $738.00 to support our Write Your Story Workshop in San Diego

• AutoCrit online editing program (https://autocrit.com) - $360 value for two Annual Memberships in support of MWSA’s Buckaroo Auction

• Rob Lofthouse, owner of Hold The Line Press, LLC (https://holdthelinepress.com) - $250 value for five hours of writer coaching in support of MWSA’s Buckaroo Auction

• Sue Rushford Editorial Services (https://suerushford.com) - $500 value for 50% off an editing job

• Bowkers (https://www.myidentifiers.com/ ) - 15% discount for MWSA members

We will be requesting donations again in 2025 to support our Buckaroo Auction, which is a way we reward our volunteers for their work throughout the year in the form of Buckaroos. Watch for the calls in eBlasts, or you can always reach out to me, MWSA’s Vice President and Buckaroo Auction Chair at vp@mwsa.co, if you have services or items you would like to donate.

Also, MWSA has a donate button on our website, available 24/7/365 at this link: Make a donation to MWSA.

MWSA’s Writers Education Series Returns

By Jim Tritten

MWSA will host five educational webinars during 2025 on the following topics:

January 19, 2025, Writing Your Story – Jim Tritten

March 16, 2025, Setting – Nancy Arbuthnot

May 18, 2025, Starting Your Story/Characters – Jack Woodville London

July 27, 2025, Telling – Narration and Dialogue – Bob Doerr

August 17, 2025, Plot and Story Arc – Jim Tritten

All webinars are on Sunday afternoons at 5:00 PM Eastern, 4:00 PM Central, 3:00 PM Mountain, and 2:00 PM Pacific.

These are the same topics that were presented by these same people at the Admiral Kidd Club in San Diego on September 26th as our Write Your Story Workshop. Our intent is to record these presentations and make them available for others who want to use them for local presentations elsewhere. Events will be scheduled and reminder links posted on our MWSA website and MWSA Facebook pages as the dates near. However, we normally hold sessions at our MWSA Zoom meeting link here, passcode 430028. If anyone has any questions, contact Jim Tritten at jimtritten@comcast.net.

MWSA 2025 Anthology Submission Guidelines

By Bob Doerr

The theme for the MWSA 2025 Anthology is "Reflections: Service to our Country." As the term implies it means submissions are short pieces. The format is wide-ranging: from articles and short stories (maximum 3,000 words, please), to art and photo essays, poetry, and music lyrics (if a contributor has recorded a song based on the lyrics, then please add the URL so that we editors—and obviously readers—can listen to it). All submissions have to be related in some way to the military and military life. In other words, we want this anthology to be as inclusive as possible with regards to the military experience, ranging from that of what veterans themselves experienced to experiences of veteran family members, and to civilian outsiders who have their perspective. We hope that many of you may have military, military family, or military-related stories to share. Your stories can be fiction, non-fiction, humorous, or serious. This is your opportunity to bring that story from the back of your mind onto the pages of this collection of stories from fellow MWSA authors.

Stories and poems must be written by active MWSA members and not previously published. Authors will grant a one-time right to publish in the anthology with all rights other than the anthology publication remaining with each author. The maximum word count is 3000 words, and each member is limited to one submission. Black and white graphics, maps, and photographs to which you have the permission may be included with your work with proper attribution and within the publisher’s specifications. You can submit color images, but they will appear in the final version in black and white.

In accordance with the MWSA Ethics Policy, MWSA cannot accept submissions that include politically, religiously, or racially biased or anti-U.S./U.S. military material. As we anticipate these anthologies will be read by family members of the submitter, let’s try to keep these submissions to a PG-14 level.

Submissions need to be in Word, New Times Roman, 12 pt, and double-spaced. Submissions need to be well edited before being submitted. Submissions that are poorly edited will be sent back to be fixed. We will open the submission window on December 1, 2024, and close it March 30, 2025. Submissions should be emailed to Bob Doerr at anthology@mwsa.co with the story attached. Please also include a photo (headshot) of yourself and a brief bio of no more than 75 words.

So, get those writing muscles working and get ready to have your story published in 2025! This opportunity is one of your MWSA benefits, so take advantage of it. For some, this will be the first time they have had a story published. Over the years, many of us have learned much about and from our fellow members through their stories published in MWSA anthologies. To see past anthologies, please check this link: https://www.mwsadispatches.com/anthologies.

Request for Proposals: Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) 2025 Anthology

MWSA is soliciting proposals for the following:

Solicitation: Request for Proposals (RFP) 012024

Title: Reflections: Service to our Country

Opening Date: 12/01/24

Closing Date: 01/31/2025

Download: http://www.mwsadispatches.com/mwsa-news

Scope of Work:

About MWSA

MWSA is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation to support military writers. The purposes of the organization are to help military service members, veterans, their families, supporters, and historians record history and the complexities of military life, and to encourage writing as therapy. The organization focuses on using the writing of MWSA members to educate the general public, students, and the military community.

MWSA Anthologies

In past years, MWSA has compiled and published multiple themed anthologies (see Anthologies — Military Writers Society of America). These anthologies offer MWSA’s writers opportunities to have their work published and allow MWSA members to read other members’ shorter works. The theme for the MWSA 2025 Anthology is Reflections: Service to Our Country.

Member Submission Requirements

Stories and poems must be written by MWSA members and have not been published previously. They may be fiction or non-fiction. Authors will grant a one-time right to publish in the anthology with all rights other than the anthology publication remaining with each author. The maximum word count is 3000 words. Graphics, maps, and photographs to which authors have the permission may be included with their work with proper attribution and within the publisher’s specifications. In accordance with the MWSA Ethics Policy, MWSA cannot accept submissions that include politically, religiously, or racially biased or anti-U.S./U.S. military material.

Contract Performance Work Statement

This MWSA RFP seeks proposals from experienced individuals and businesses to provide services to compile, format, and publish MWSA’s 2025 Anthology. Specific services will include:

1. Managing the project to include schedules, communications with MWSA, and cost management.

2. Compiling stories, poems, and images from MWSA authors. The anthology should be approximately 300 pages in final format.

3. Formatting of anthology to include individual stories and poems, graphics, front matter, back matter, front and back covers, and spine.

4. Coordinating final edit with MWSA technical rep and MWSA leadership.

5. Publishing anthology in eBook and in paperback.

Anthology to be completed for distribution at the MWSA Annual Conference tentatively scheduled for September 2025.

Proposal Instructions

Please provide your proposals for this project including the following:

1. Description of how you will accomplish tasks 1 – 5 in the Scope of Work including project management.

2. Past experience you have with similar projects in the past ten years. Include links to three projects if available.

3. Two work reference points of contact (name, email, and phone number).

4. Any additional information the proposal evaluators should take into consideration.

5. Your price quote. This is a firm fixed price contract.

Email proposals to the Technical Contacts listed below by 01/31/25.

Technical Contact: Bob Doerr, MWSA Anthology Chair, anthology@mwsa.co

Procurement Contact: Hugh Simpson, Treasurer, treasurer@mwsa.co

Writers/Storytellers Needed for Non-profit Pets for Patriots [REMOTE Positions]

Occasionally, MWSA receives requests for writers, so we are sharing this opportunity for you. One of board of directors is a member of Pets for Patriots and recently adopted a four-legged family member through their wonderful team.

Pets for Patriots is a registered national charity that helps service and veteran members of the United States military adopt the most overlooked shelter pets. We're looking for volunteer writers to contribute to our blog.

What's required?

-Volunteers work from home and claim writing assignments as they have availability.

-The assignment includes interviewing a veteran by phone about their adoption experience.

- From that interview, the writer creates a compelling story such as those you see on our blog: https://petsforpatriots.org/the-wet-nose-blog/

PLEASE FILL OUT AN APPLICATION HERE: https://petsforpatriots.org/volunteer/ and we will be in touch once we receive it.

Compensation: This is a volunteer position.

Writers Education Series Webinar Video Available

Below please find the link to the final version of the fourth installment of Greg Elliot's writer's education series, "A Primer on Writing for Television and the Movies Part Four: The Rewrite: You’ve written your script, created your bible, now what?”

A big thank you to MWSA’s Writers Education Committee Chair Jim Tritten, our instructor Greg Elliot, and all of our webinar series participants. We hope you enjoyed the series.

Writing for Screens Big and Small (Part 4) — Military Writers Society of America (mwsadispatches.com)

Maritime Museum and Vietnam Unit Memorial in Coronado, CA

The following is from MWSA member Raul Herrera, author of Capturing Skunk Alpha and member of the Swift Boat Sailors Association (SBSA). He wanted to pass along this information for those attending the MWSA 2024 Annual Conference in September.

“I was the president of the SBSA during the time we, in concert with the Maritime Museum of San Diego, were able to secure a Swift Boat, Mark II, from Malta. Today, the museum has custody of the boat, PCF-816. Numerous Vietnam Era / SBSA area members (The Dirty Boat Guys) keep her in the best shape possible. The history is here - https://swiftboatsailorsmemorial.com/exhibits/show/pcf816/pcf_816_history.

 “MWSA may already have planned tours in conjunction with the 2024 Conference, but perhaps you might be able to add this information in forthcoming conference announcements. Some of the attendees might be able to squeeze in a visit. PCF-816 is an in-the-water museum craft. Rides are available. 

“In addition to the Maritime Museum, the Naval Amphibious Base in Coronado is home to the Vietnam Unit Memorial where boats from three Task Force Unit (TF-115, Swift Boat PCF-104; TF-116 PBR; and TF-117, CCB-118) combat craft make up a beautiful static display. Website - http://www.vummf.com/.

“They face a memorial wall built by Task Force veterans and volunteers and was formally dedicated on 21 May 2005. The Memorial wall contains the names of the 2,564 Navy and Coast Guardsmen who died in Vietnam during the period 1960 to 1975. I can provide contact information for group or individual on-base visits.”

Thank you, Raul, for sharing this information about this unique exhibit in San Diego. Raul’s can be reached by email at raul@skunkalpha.com, and he is scheduled to be one of our seminar presenters.

Write Your Story Writing Workshop

On September 26, 2024, MWSA members will host a Write Your Story (WYS) event for local military, veterans, and their families while we are in San Diego from 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Location for the event is the Admiral Kidd Catering and Conference Center, Bldg. A-3, Nimitz Room, on Naval Base Point Loma, Harbor Drive Annex. Lunch is included.

This event is geared toward newer writers who want to tell their stories but may not know where to begin. We encourage MWSA members to get the word out to friends and family in the San Diego area who may be interested in this free event.

MWSA members attending the annual conference may attend, space permitting. We are limited to 40 attendees. Please contact WYS Logistics Coordinator Valerie Ormond at writeyourstory@mwsa.co if interested. Please note that for those without base access, registration is required by Jul. 25; all others may register by Sep. 6. Valerie can place members on a space available list and will notify by email in mid-September if there is room to attend.

Iowa Review Veteran and Military Personnel Writing Contest

Here is an excellent opportunity to enter a no-cost writing contest open only to veterans and active duty military personnel.

The 2024 contest rules include the following.

• Submit a manuscript in any genre (poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction) of up to 20 pages. Prose submissions must be double-spaced. Work must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are fine, assuming you inform us of acceptance elsewhere.

• The judge will select winners from a group of finalists chosen by Iowa Review editors. All manuscripts, whether selected as finalists or not, are considered for publication.

• Proof of military service is not required when submitting. (We request documentation only when a writer's work makes it to the final round of judging.)

• To submit online, please visit https://iowareview.submittable.com/submit between May 1 and 31, 2024, and follow the instructions.

For full details, please visit https://iowareview.org/veteranswritingcontest.

Good luck!

MWSA Member Speaking at WWII Event in France

Jack Woodville London, Director Emeritus of the Military Writers Society of America (MWSA), will speak on the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day landings at Omaha and Utah Beaches in Normandy, France. Jack will speak at the Brittany American Military Cemetery at Montjoie-Saint-Martin, France, on June 6, 2024, and at the Normandy American Military Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer, France, on June 7, 2024. 

Jack, in his own words:

“I am humbled by this invitation. Like many of us, I grew up in a small town where the men and women of my parents’ generation had served in the war, become heroes in their service, and never spoke of it. Only when I served I the Army myself did I begin to learn the magnitude of courage and the gravity of sacrifice that the men and women of the generation before us summoned to go ashore in France and in all the theatres of war and to fight, suffer, and too often die for our country in a war that demanded honorable sacrifice by every living American, man, woman, and child.”

The invitation to Jack to speak in France on D-Day is almost certainly because of the books he has written, particularly his historical World War II trilogy French Letters, for which he won the Author of the Year Award and for which the final novel, Children of a Good War, was named best historical military fiction of 2018-2019. Click here to order the books.  Friends are encouraged to send messages to Jack at jack@jackwlondon.com.

For more information or an interview with Jack, please contact Marlena Brown (mlbpublicity@gmail.com).


MWSA Writers Education Series: April 20--Mark your calendars!

A sneak preview from Greg Elliot:

Many of the ways we tell stories for the movies and television are similar to how we construct a tale for a novel, or a short story. One of the big differences is how we use dialogue.

MWSA Writers Education Series continues on Saturday, April 20, at 5:00 PM EST with Greg Elliot. In this installment, Greg will continue his presentation about screenwriting and writing for television.

The Zoom link is here: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/2245629439?pwd=Sk92UXVZNzBpK1Z3NWd1TWtPcUM3UT09 and is also in the graphic. We hope to see you there!

Bournemouth Writing Festival Writing Competition

The publisher of Dithering Chaps asked Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) to pass this offering on to our members.

Subject: Lines in the Sand

Writing Competition: Poetry up to 30 lines; Flash Fiction up to 400 words.

Deadline: Feb. 29, 2024

£5 per entry

Enter at www.bournemouthWritingFestival.co.uk

MWSA is not affiliated with this organization and suggests those considering involvement conduct their own research.

Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP) Call for Submissions

The Military Writers Society of America (MWSA) provides the following to members who may be interested in submitting to this program. This was brought to our attention by one of our MWSA members.

Call for Submissions: Prose, Poetry, and Visual Art

 Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP) is excited to launch a 2024 anthology with publisher Unleash Creatives. We seek authentic, compelling, and polished short stories, creative nonfiction, humor, poetry, photography, and visual art. 

SUBMIT ENTRY

Theme: Partnerships, The Untold Stories

Partners are an integral aspect of military life, at home and afar, during deployment and after homecoming. Partnerships drive military action and extend beyond being a battle buddy, wingman, or crew member. Some are planned while others arise entirely unexpectedly. Spouses, family, old or new friends, community, faith leaders, and medical specialists all support the military community. Despite their importance, the stories of these partnerships often go untold. This anthology aims to correct that: We will highlight the nuances, surprises, joy, sorrow, heroism, tears, healing power, and ache of partnerships. We invite you to submit the story about partnerships from your journey, so we can help tell it.

Prizes

We are offering an Editors’ Choice Grand Prize of $500 and three genre prizes of $250 for winners in prose, poetry, and the visual arts. All finalists will be considered for publication. 

Guidelines

Deadline: March 1, 2024

Accepting submissions from U.S veterans, service members, military spouses, family members, and caregivers. Leave all identifying information off the submission itself. The first round will be judged anonymously. You can submit one submission per category. Reprints accepted if not published within the last year. The writer / artist must retain rights to their work.

Prose Submissions 

  • Maximum length is 2,000 words. 

  • Double-space, use a 12pt font, and add page numbers. 

  • Submit as a google doc or PDF. 

 Poetry Submissions

  • Use a 12pt font and add page numbers. 

  • Submit as a google doc or PDF. 

 Visual Art Submissions 

  • We welcome all types of visual art including photography, sculpture, textile, painting, drawing, etc. 

  • Submit a jpeg or png file at 300 dpi. 

 We abide by the CLMP Code of Ethics and pledge to conduct our contests as ethically as possible. Namely, submissions are read without identifying information and evaluated by at least two reviewers.

Questions?

Contact programs@asapasap.org

Website: https://asapasap.org/event/anthology-submissions/

Submit Entry

July 2023 eBlast

Seeking Shutterbugs

Is there a photographer in the house? The MWSA Program Committee is seeking a volunteer photographer or two to capture moments of our upcoming Annual Membership Conference, and particularly our Awards Ceremony banquet. If you are willing and able, please contact president@mwsa.co.

The Conference Program

The countdown to the conference is on (56 days), with the first event being Sep. 14. If you have yet to register, please do so soon. The hotel is holding 30 rooms until August 26 (37 days away) or until the first thirty are booked. The program is online for you to check out along with the registration form. Please check the agenda online as changes do occur.

Do you think you know all about Benedict Arnold? You may be surprised by our guest presenter, Steve Manuel, the Director of the New London Historical Society, who may have new facts for you and will bring an artifact or two along for you to see.

Some time ago a movie about the slave ship "Amistad" was in theatres and a topic of discussion on television. Learn more about this event and its connection to New London from Henry Savin of the New London Maritime Museum.

Remembrance Ceremony

At approximately 3:15 PM after our Write Your Story workshop ends on Sep. 14, MWSA will hold a brief remembrance ceremony for longtime MWSA member Mike Mullins at his ceremonial brick on the walkway to the Submarine Force and Library museum. MWSA members and guests in New London are invited to attend. Additionally, those members familiar with Mike may write something to be read at the ceremony; Haiku, poem, short memory, or story, but please keep it under 200 words. For those wanting to share something, but will not be present, please forward your input to Valerie Ormond at vp@mwsa.co. If you will be attending and will have a camera with you, we would appreciate you taking some photos which we want to share on social media, our website, and in Dispatches.

Upcoming Writers Education Webinar - NEW DATE!

What: MWSA Writer’s Education Webinar Series Welcomes Greg Elliot

When: Aug. 3, 2023, 4PM EST

 Who: Greg Elliot. For fifteen years, Greg taught at UCLA for the Extension Writers’ Program and was the recipient of their Outstanding Instructor Award in Screenwriting in 2014. Elliot wrote for Star Trek: Voyager, for which he received a Sci-Fi Universe Award nomination. He was a Story Editor on the Warner Brother series Savannah and an Executive Story Editor on the WB series Charmed. Greg also wrote for the Disney Channel series In a Heartbeat. Professionally, Greg has edited short stories, novels, nonfiction books, brochures, how-to books, personal essays, and college papers.

 Greg will offer classes on story structure, broken into two parts. Part 1 was presented on May 20th. See it online on our website. Each class is 1.5 hours, and questions will be permitted at the end.

 Topic: Story Structure Part II: character development, tension, and conflict.

 Follow the Link Below:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/2245629439?pwd=Sk92UXVZNzBpK1Z3NWd1TWtPcUM3UT09

Casting Call for Open Mic

We are looking for volunteers to step forward and participate in this  year’s Open Mic event which will be hosted by Sandra Linhart. Sing, read a short story of your own, tell jokes, dance, your choice.

MWSA has room for FIVE volunteers to fill the program, for FIVE-minute sessions, so don’t be shy. Please email jimwritespoetry@gmail.com to secure a spot.