Until last week, I had forgotten about the creative nonfiction manuscript I had submitted to the Honeysuckle Press Chapbook Contest back in December.
I submit a lot, and when I don’t hear back I naturally assume that it either wasn’t a good fit or they thought it sucked.
Then I received this email:
I’m emailing to let you know that we’ve chosen your powerful, compelling chapbook “Lies, and Saturdays” as a semifinalist for the Honeysuckle Chapbook contest. We loved your innovative and risk-taking use of language and form.
Well, imagine that.
The prose finalists and winner will be chosen by Bhanu Kapil and announced in early September (fingers crossed, people; fingers crossed).
Here’s a list of the poetry and prose semifinalist, chosen from over 500 entries.
PROSE
Disfigure Studies by Asha Dore
Adolescence, Secondhand by Francisco Delgado
Dislocate by Simone Person
Woman Braces Herself by Danielle Zaccagnino
Lies and Saturdays by Cinthia Ritchie
Things That Cannot Be Tamed by Khristian Mecom
POETRY
Chronicle the Body by Mick Powell
Cleaning Service by Beyza Ozer
Bitter Map by Crystal Boson
Canciones de Cuna by William Palomo
Oracle: a Cosmology by Destiny Hemphill
Sirens by Mitchell Glazier
Part of my manuscript will be featured on the Honeysuckle Press website next month; I’ll keep everyone posted on that. And my poem Crazy, They Said will be featured on the Rattle website sometime next month, too.
Other than that, life trudges on. I’m obsessing about my memoir, trying to decide what to keep in, what to leave out. I want to capture moments in small slices, with bare-to-the-bone prose, and writing less is so much more difficult than writing more.
But forget the writing struggles. It’s summer in Alaska, though we’ve been getting a lot of rain. Right now it’s raining at 58 degrees out there. Yes, you read right: 58 degrees. In the summer. Still, we’ve been getting out as much as possible, running and walking the beach. Beauty is beauty no matter the weather, eh?
Enjoy.
Cinthia Ritchie 
Congratulations!
LikeLike
Thanks, Lynne! Hope your novel is getting a lot of good feedback. Keep me updated, okay? Cheers and take care.
LikeLike
Wow. I wish I would have forgotten objects of my creative genius come back with notes that encouraged me so! Congratulations!
LikeLike
Thanks, Eric! Sometimes the writing life isn’t so bad. Other days, it sucks, which is why God created dogs, right? Take care, and hope you’re enjoying the summer.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best thing about Work, is the fodder it provides for writing! BUT going to Idyllwild in for a few days starting tomorrow! Woo-hoo
LikeLike
As always, good luck with your submissions. The semi-finalist spot for the chapbook contest sounds promising.
As always, thanks for the pictures.
We’re headed up to Vancouver next week. We’ll get a little of bit of the extended days experience up there.
LikeLike
Thanks, Mark. And Vancouver! Like a mini Alaska, only with better weather. Hope you all have a great time. P.S. Are you going to be hiking? If so, please take a lot of pics and post on your blog, okay? Cheers.
LikeLike
Congratulations! I love the photo of YOU! That should go on your next book’s dust jacket 🙂 And this is so, so true: “writing less is so much more difficult than writing more” …
LikeLike
Thanks, Marie. That photo is wild, isn’t it? It was so windy I had to tie my windbreaker around my head to keep my ears warm. It’s been that kind of summer. Cheers and happy writing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are so special. I love who you are and the things that you do. Congratulations!.
LikeLike
Thanks so much, Bob. I’m sending a big hug your way.
LikeLike
Oh honey how wonderful and I know that you will win. Just the title makes me want to read it. And yes keep us informed. Love and miss you very much. You are lucky to have both Candace and Christopher coming for a visit. Maybe we can all get together in Tucson if Christine ever gets there LOL
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, Cinthia, that is SO SUPER COOL! Congratulations!!!!!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Luanne. It was a big surprise, which makes it even cooler, eh? Cheers and hope you’re staying cool down there.
LikeLiked by 1 person
SO cool!
LikeLike
Congratulations Cinthia! How wonderful to get that letter! I love the photos, especially the one of Seriously! How is Seriously these days?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks so much, Carla. Seriously is doing well, happy and out running and hiking on the trails every day. We return home muddy and wet and exhausted, as people and dogs should always return from the mountains. Hope you’re doing well and enjoying the summer. Cheers and hugs (and sloppy kisses from Seriously).
LikeLike
Congratulations! Fingers crossed for you!!! Love the pics! Love the running headgear. 🙂 And hey, Seriously!!
Hope you are cranking on your memoir! I am THIS CLOSE to being all done with editing my latest novel. Getting to that point where I’m SO SICK of it. (I’m sure that’s why they say “Write what you want to read.” Because you will end up reading it at least 187 times….)
LikeLiked by 1 person
How exciting! So glad you’re almost finished with your novel. It feels good to be so close, doesn’t it? I kind of finished the memoir but still don’t feel that it’s exactly right. So more editing, more obsessing, more agony (why do we do this?). Cheers, hugs and pets to all.
LikeLike