"Maybe I write because it is a way of thinking that has no possible match. It is a very active way of thinking. You think more clearly when you have to put something down in words. Even people who are not professional writers clear their minds while writing a letter or keeping a diary."
Javier Marías
News of the Month
Happy October, dear writers!
As we round the corner toward the last few months of 2026 (gasp!), what are your writing intentions for the remainder of the year?
In September, we had fun with our Flash Prose Contest. If you didn't get a chance to attend, you can watch the recording on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/MK_Ctbch9_s?si=c40bEdslKSNe1r3Y Even if you did not submit a piece, Tracy Crow and MaxieJane Frazier provided feedback that resonates. Here are our contest winners:
"What to Expect" by Penelope Cottrell
"Don't Flinch" by Terry McLean
"Juden" by Leslie Selbst
Upcoming Events
All WMO events are virtual via Zoom. Links will be sent out two days prior to each event.
Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 1:00pm ET - Writing Cave
Many of us write in our own "caves" apart from the outside world. Why not spend an hour writing together? I will offer a prompt, which you can use, or you can spend the hour on your own work in progress - it's up to you! The writing cave is a generative session to use as you like and to create accountability with other writers in our community.
Saturday, October 10, 2026 at 1:00pm ET - Writers Discuss Writing
Please join us to share your accomplishments, questions, anecdotes, and comments as we discuss all things writing. Think of this as a writers' support group.
Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 1:00pm ET - Slush Pile Event
Welcome to the Writers' Morning Out semiannual slush pile event. This event is your chance to submit your work (or a portion of it) for feedback from an expert in the literary field. Our panelist may not be able to provide feedback on all submitted pieces, so submit early, as she will read them in order of receipt. Even if your piece is not read, the feedback on others' pieces will likely resonate in some way with your work in progress.
Submission Guidelines:
The quickest way to get rejected when submitting anywhere is to ignore the guidelines!
• Deadline: Friday, October 9, 2026, by midnight
• Entries will be read in order of receipt. We may not get to all submissions, so submit early.
Format:
Prose: One page, 300 words or fewer, with one-inch margins, 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, and the first line of each paragraph indented by half an inch.
Poetry: One page, at least one-inch margins, 12-point Times New Roman font.
Identify your primary genre—fiction, creative nonfiction, nonfiction, or poetry—at the top of the manuscript. Please also include if this is a finished, stand-alone piece (e.g. flash) or if it is the beginning of a larger piece (e.g. short story or novel). This information will not count toward the piece's total word count.
Do not include your name or identifying information in the manuscript.
Submit via email: Send your manuscript as a .doc or .docx file to info@writersmorningout.org with the subject line: Slush Pile (Title of Work).
Include your name, title of work, and contact information in the body of the email.
If you’re unfamiliar with the slush pile format, please see the recording of our October 2025 Slush Pile event here: https://youtu.be/NEL6ztfVvOs?si=2LONB0uKvz3J5EZh. We encourage you to submit—this event is a valuable opportunity to receive constructive feedback on your work!
Tracy Crow will be our panelist for the event. A former Marine Corps officer, Tracy is a literary agent and the
president/publisher of MilSpeak Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to the creative writing endeavors from within the military community through writing workshops and a traditional publishing pathway for books authored by military veterans and family members.
She is a former assistant professor of journalism and creative writing and the
author/editor of six books to include her award-winning memoir, Eyes Right:
Confessions from a Woman Marine, and the historical biography with co-author Jerri Bell, It’s My Country Too: Women’s Military Stories from the American Revolution to Afghanistan, earning a starred review from Library Journal. In addition to her role as an online MFA adjunct at SNHU, Tracy teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Queens University of Charlotte in North Carolina.
Currently, as a work-for-hire author, Tracy is writing the first historical biography of women in Air Force special forces from 1990 to 2022, scheduled for release in 2027 from Air University Press.
She lives in central North Carolina on ten storybook acres with her husband—a Major League Baseball lifer—and their three pups, Rocky, Hope, and Fenway.
Tuesday, October 27, 2026 at 7:00pm ET - Writers Discuss Craft
Join us for what is always a valuable learning session with literary agent, Tracy Crow, a true expert in the field. Learn more about Tracy at https://tracycrow.com.
Thursday, October 29, 2026 at 1:00pm ET - Writing Cave
Many of us write in our own "caves" apart from the outside world. Why not spend an hour writing together? I will offer a prompt, which you can use, or you can spend the hour on your own work in progress - it's up to you! The writing cave is a generative session to use as you like and to create accountability with other writers in our community.
News from the North Carolina Writers' Network
Is it time to renew your NCWN membership?
Check the top of the NCWN newsletter to see when your membership needs renewal.
Not a member? You’re missing out on discounts on Network-sponsored programs and events.
What are you waiting for? Membership is open to writers of all experience levels and genres, across the state and beyond. Join now at https://www.ncwriters.org/
Fall Conference 2026 will take place November 6-8 in Asheville.
Registration is now open. Visit https://www.ncwriters.org to register.
The 41st Fall Conference of the North Carolina Writers’ Network won’t look the same as the first 40.
The 2026 NCWN Fall Conference–scheduled for November 6 – 8 in Asheville–will follow a new format and schedule, giving registrants more flexibility and freedom while costing them less to attend. Hurray!
Doris Betts Fiction Prize
Submissions accepted September 15 – October 31
The Doris Betts Fiction Prize, sponsored by the North Carolina Writers’ Network, awards the first-prize winner $250 and publication in the North Carolina Literary Review. Finalists will also be considered for publication in the NCLR, and authors will receive $50 to $150, depending on how many stories selected.
Eligibility and Guidelines
The competition is open to any writer who is a legal resident of North Carolina or a member of the North Carolina Writers’ Network. North Carolina Literary Review subscribers with North Carolina connections (lives or has lived in NC) are also eligible.
The competition is for previously unpublished* short stories up to 6,000 words. Multiple entries ok, but each requires a separate entry fee. No novel excerpts. Stories do NOT have to relate to NCLR’s annual special feature topic.
The deadline is October 31. Submissions are open only from September 15 to October 31.
Simultaneous submissions ok, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
Please read the Network’s statement on “A.I.” in contests and other Network-administered programs.
Submit previously unpublished stories online at nclr.submittable.com/submit. Submittable will collect your entry fee via credit card ($10 NCWN members or NCLR subscribers / $20 for non-members/non-subscribers).
To pay submission fees by check or money order, make payable to the North Carolina Writers Network and mail to: Ed Southern, PO Box 21591, Winston-Salem, NC 27120- 1591
Documents must be Microsoft Word or .rtf files. Stories should be double-spaced. Author’s name should not appear on manuscripts. (Submittable will collect and record your name and contact information.) If you have any problems submitting electronically, email NCLR’s Submission Manager.
If submitting by mail, mail story manuscript with a cover sheet providing name, address, email address, word count, and manuscript title, to:
NCLR
ECU Mailstop
555 English
Greenville, NC 27858-4353
(but mail payment to the Network as per instructions above)
The winning story and select finalists will be published in the next year’s issue of the North Carolina Literary Review.
Questions may be directed to Margaret Bauer, Editor of the North Carolina Literary Review, at BauerM@ecu.edu.
*“Published” means the work has appeared for public consumption in any form: print, online, digital, etc.
Has it appeared in a magazine or journal, of any size or circulation? Then it’s been published. Has it appeared on a blog, even one hardly anybody reads? Then it’s published. Audio book? E-book? Free download? ‘Zine, mimeographed and stapled in 1995? Published.
For our contests, we’re looking for new work, fresh work, work unseen by anyone outside your immediate family and/or critique group. Shine a light on your published work in your portfolio, and submit your new work for one (or more) of our annual prizes. Good luck.
Jacobs/Jones African-American Literary Prize
Submissions open November 1.
Please visit https://www.ncwriters.org for more information.
Postscript:
WMO’s programs and meetings are a collaborative effort with Penny Cottrell, Tracy Crow, Tom Dow, Catherine Duncan, George Kauffman, Carol Phillips, Louise Dolan, and Judith Stanton—plus our ex-officio member and IT wizard, Josh Cottrell—all contributing.
Wishing you all the best in your writing endeavors!
Penny Cottrell, NCWN Regional Representative, Central Piedmont