What was your first time like?
Alexis M. Smith,
Samiya Bashir,
James Bernard Frost, and
Emily Kendal Frey share their stories.
Late Night Library is excited to announce the first annual
Virgin Awards—a contest reserved for those who have yet to publish their first full-length book or collection. Nine prizes will be awarded in the genres of creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry.
Submit 5,
000 words of prose or five pages of poetry with a $10 entry fee by
November 30th!
For more information, check out
http://latenightlibrary.org/virginawards.
Music by
Kevin Macleod (http://incompetech.com).
Special thanks to Alexis M. Smith, Samiya Bashir, James Bernard Frost, and Emily Kendal Frey for appearing in this video!
Alexis
Margaret Smith grew up in
Soldotna, Alaska, and
Seattle, Washington. She attended
Mount Holyoke College,
Portland State University, and
Goddard College, where she earned an
MFA in
Creative Writing. Her writing has appeared in Tarpaulin Sky and on
Powells.com. She currently lives in
Portland, Oregon, with her son, two cats, and their beloved view of the
St. Johns bridge. Her debut novel,
Glaciers, was published by Tin
House in
2012.
Samiya Bashir's poetry, stories, articles and editorial work have been featured in numerous publications including, most recently and forthcoming, in
Poet Lore,
Michigan Quarterly Review,
Crab Orchard Review, Cura,
The Rumpus, Literature:
Craft &
Voice, Callaloo, and
Encyclopedia Vol. 2 F-K. A long-time communications professional focused on editorial, arts, and social justice movement building, she is a founding organizer of
Fire & Ink, an advocacy organization and writer's festival for
LGBT writers of
African descent and a recipient of the
2011 Aquarius Press Legacy Award, given annually in recognition of women writers of color who actively provide creative opportunities for other writers. She currently lives in Portland, Oregon, where she teaches creative writing at
Reed College. Her debut collection of poetry, Where the
Apple Falls, was published by RedBone Press in
2005.
James Bernard Frost is the author of the novel
World Leader Pretend, and the award-winning travel guide The Artichoke
Trail. His fiction and non-fiction has been published in many places, including the
San Francisco Examiner, the
San Francisco Bay Guardian, and
Wired. He lives in Portland, Oregon with the author
Kerry Cohen, their four children, the rain, the freaks, and the trees. His bike is currently in disrepair. His debut travel guide, The Artichoke Trail, was published in
2000 by
Hunter Publishing.
Emily Kendal Frey is the author of the full-length poetry collection The
Grief Performance; the chapbooks
Frances,
The New Planet, and
Airport; as well as three chapbook collaborations. She received a
B.A. from
The Colorado College in
Colorado Springs, Colorado, and an
M.F.A. from
Emerson College in
Boston, Massachusetts. She lives in Portland, Oregon. The Grief Performance, published in 2011 by
Cleveland State University Press, was her first full-length collection of poetry.
- published: 05 Sep 2013
- views: 702