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May 2022  |   Issue 21

Scottish BPOC Writers Network
Newsletter

About SBWN

Scottish BPOC Writers Network provides advocacy, literary events, and development opportunities for BPOC writers based in or from Scotland. You can visit our website for more info, contact us through e-mail, or catch us on Twitter. We also have an online Facebook group for Black and POC writers.
Coloured lights (pink, blue, and yellow) in soft focus against a blue background. Text: Thank you!

Thank you for your pitches!


Our first open call for blog pitches of 2022 was a success! We received so many fantastic pitches, each one introducing us to a new perspective on the significance and complexity of what 'Roots to Grow' means for the writers in our community.

Deciding which pitches to publish is always a difficult process, but this shortlist was especially close-run due to the quality and wide variety of the pitches we received.  

After some very tough decisions, we have compiled our final list of authors and posts for publication, and are thrilled to be debuting the first of these next month! Look out for them on our site and in future newsletters.

Once again, a big thank you to everyone who submitted and shared your ideas with us – we really appreciate you!

 


Don't Miss:


Following the release of our 2021 Mixtape: Writers of Colour Audio Anthology last month, we are honoured to present this poetic response to the anthology written for SBWN by Marjorie Lotfi. 

Marjorie Lotfi’s writing has won competitions, been published widely and performed on BBC Radio 4. She is a winner of the inaugural James Berry Prize, and her first collection is forthcoming with Bloodaxe Books in 2023. Refuge, poems about her childhood in revolutionary Iran, is published by Tapsalteerie Press.

Take a moment to enjoy the poem on our site here, and check out the anthology (or listen to it again!) here.

 

Asian Writers Group

 

The Asian Writers Group is on hiatus next month, but will be reconvening in July with guest facilitator Alycia Pirmohamed! Alycia is a multi-award winning poet, co-organiser of Ledbury Poetry Critics, and co-founder of SBWN. Her debut poetry collection Another Way to Split Water comes out later this year from Polygon Books. 

This will be a sharing and feedback session where attendees will have the chance to receive input on their work from each other and one of Scotland's eminent poets of colour. 

Eventbrite link will be going up soon on our social media and website, so keep an eye out! 

Submissions & Opportunities 

Here are some projects that have reached out to SBWN. Here you'll find places to submit work, as well as various events, like webinars, workshops and mentorships. This is not an exhaustive list. Apologies for what we miss!

31st May
Verve Poetry Press is open for submissions for pamphlets and full-length collections of poetry, to be published in 2023/2024! Submissions must be full manuscripts or late drafts. Details here.
31st May
We Are Here is seeking applications from creatives of colour for their Creators Fund. Each funding recipient will receive £500, dedicated mentoring, and promotion for their work/creative practice. Details here.
31st May
Crime/thriller writers of colour are invited to apply for the Mo Siewcharran Prize, hosted by Quercus Books. Entrants must be unagented and unpublished. 1st prize is £2,500 plus an opportunity for full publication. More here.
31st May
the other side of hope is seeking submissions on themes of migration: fiction and poetry submissions from refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants only, and non-fiction, book reviews, and author interview submissions from everyone. All published pieces are paid. Learn more here.
31st May
the other side of hope is seeking submissions on themes of migration: fiction and poetry submissions from refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants only, and non-fiction, book reviews, and author interview submissions from everyone. All published pieces are paid. Learn more here.
31st May
Bucheon City of Literature (Korea) is looking for applications for their Writer in Residence! This is a 7-week residency with funded accommodation, food expenses, and airfare. Applications are open to published writers in all disciplines, with extra consideration given to graphic novelists and comics creators. Details here.
1st-21st June
The Good Literary Agency is offering six Submission Package Reviews (randomly allocated) to LGBTQ+ writers of colour that have submitted their work between 1st-21st June 2022. Details here.
1st June
Field Notes, a new print journal with a focus on practices that work between disciplines and against type, is seeking text and/or image submissions for their fourth issue. All published pieces paid. Learn more here.
5th June
The Scottish Refugee Council is commissioning artistic and community activism projects from creatives, activists, and/or cultural practitioners from migrant or refugee backgrounds for its Cross Borders programme. Details here.
6th June
Travel magazine JrnY is seeking pitches from travel writers of colour! Features are 1,000 (£125) or 2,000 (£250) words. Details here.
9th June
Wonju City of Literature (Korea) invites applications from writers from cities of literature for an 8-week residency (1 Sept-30 Oct) at Toji Cultural Centre. Travel, accommodation, and food provided. More here.
10th June
The Scottish Book Trust wants your true stories inspired by the theme of 'Scotland's Stories'! Entries can be in any form you like – a story, poem, comic strip, play, video, audio file, or letter – and can be in English, Scots, and/or Gaelic. Learn more and submit here.
12th June
North East Culture Collective (NECC) in Aberdeen is seeking a creative writing practitioner to facilitate sharing and telling stories through co-creation with diverse community groups in a range of settings. This will be across a variety of locations, including community centres and prisons, located within partner organisations' services. Details here.
Mid-June
Spit It Out, which builds connections and provides a platform for discussions around trauma and healing through creativity, is seeking paid workshop leaders (with experience or not) for monthly Edinburgh meetups, held on the last Monday of each month between June and December. Pitches should include your idea for a workshop, your background and why you believe creativity can help the mind.

Email thespititoutproject@gmail.com to apply or for more details.
19th June
The Space to Write prize aims to enable commercial fiction writers of colour 'to explore creative writing and to potentially write the next bestseller.' Submissions should include the first 5,000 words of a novel, as well as a synopsis of up to 1,000 words and an elevator pitch of up to 100 words. Learn more here.
26th June
The Edwin Morgan Trust's Second Life Awards are seeking applications for projects that enrich Scottish cultural life and connect with Edwin Morgan’s life and work. Applicants can be organisations, collectives, groups or individuals. There are three levels of funding available, depending on the scope of the project. Find out more here.
30th June (opens 1st June)
SFF and horror novelists: Gollancz is opening to novel submissions from unagented, unpublished writers, and is particularly keen to hear from writers from underrepresented backgrounds. Submissions should be full manuscripts plus a synopsis. Details here.
30th June 
The Willowherb Review is seeking nonfiction writing, as well as poetry and fiction, on nature, place and environment from writers of colour. All published pieces are paid (£250 for prose, £100 for poetry). Guidelines here
1st July, 12pm BST
Haunt Publishing is open for submissions of Gothic, horror & dark fiction novels for their 2023 book list. They are particularly keen to hear from BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ authors as well as from people with disabilities and those from low-income backgrounds. Details here.
13th July, 12pm BST
The Scottish Book Trust's 2023 New Writers Awards are open for applications! ​Awardees receive tailored support including a cash bursary, mentoring, a writing retreat, PR/press training and the opportunity to showcase their work to publishers and agents. Applications are welcome across six categories, including two new categories for 2023: Scots and Spoken Word. Learn more and apply here.
1st September
Fiction writers, graphic novelists, poets, essayists: Knight Errant Press, which publishes queer books & stories, wants to read your work! Submissions close on 1 Sept. Guidelines here.
23rd September
The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (Canada) invites published writers in any genre to apply for their 2023 Winter Writers Retreat (16-28 January). Please note there is a programme fee and an application fee, although financial assistance is available. More here.
No date
True & Woke, a magazine for and by women of colour, is seeking submissions centred on women of colour’s lived experiences, the arts, and social impact. These can be blog posts, magazine articles, thought pieces, images, poetry, or short fiction. Guidelines here.
No date
Harper North is open for direct submissions of fiction manuscripts and non-fiction book proposals - no agent required. Details here. Commissioning editor Daisy Watt is also available to writers of colour to give feedback on an extract & synopsis of work in progress; details here.
No date
Portobello Literary, a new literary agency, is looking for submissions from fiction and non-fiction writers at any stage of their careers. These categories include anything from speculative fiction, crime novels, niche literary works, food writing, culture, nature writing, popular science, and much more. Find out more here.
No date
Children's and YA writers: if you have a book released in 2021/2022 and are interested in being featured as a Scottish Book Trust Children's/Young Adult Book of the Month, contact Anna Broomfield (anna.broomfield@scottishbooktrust.com) Sample feature here.
No date
Creative Scotland's Open Fund is seeking funding applications from freelance or self-employed artists and creative practitioners. Funding amounts range from £500 to £100,000. Details here.
No date
Love science fiction? Shoreline of Infinity are looking for book reviewers who have a good knowledge of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Reviewers get a copy of the book (if a printed book is reviewed), a copy of the Shoreline of Infinity issue that their review is published in, and 10% off at their online shop. Apply to be a reviewer here
We're also on Instagram! If you aren't already, do consider following us on our Instagram platform here where we share the latest about our events, showcase our amazing network members and keep you in the loop. :)

Thanks for reading!

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