Book fair for local/regional authors, publishers, booksellers, and more. Conference registration fee not required to participate in the books fair. Tables for participants are $10, or two for $20.
Free information tables are available for libraries, community organizations, etc. Please contact MWC for more information.
The Community Book Fair is free and open to the public.
After twenty-plus years, the David R. Collins Writers’ Conference (formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Writers’ Conference) will return to the campus of Augustana College this summer, June 22-24. Featuring our stellar Conference Faculty (Kali White VanBaale, Keith Pilapil Lesmeister, Jesus “Chuy” Renteria, and Rebecca Wee) leading three-day workshops, participating in a Community Conversation keynote event, and holding a public reading. We’ll also be hosting community book fair on Saturday, 6/24 for local/regional authors, publishers, booksellers, and more.
Less than 1 Week Left to Apply! Deadline 5/15
For young people in the Quad Cities who are passionate about writing and creative expression, the Midwest Writing Center offers the innovative Young Emerging Writers (YEW) Summer Internship Program. This selective seven-week program will be held Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from June 5 through July 26, 2023. Applications are due Monday, May 15, 2023.
The Great River Writers Retreat winner is selected from an applicant pool of writers from Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin across multiple genres, and allows the winner to spend a week working on a specific writing project they have underway.
The Great River Writer’s Retreat Contest will open for all writers on January 1, 2023 and close on May 31, 2023. The retreat dates for 2023 are July 25-31, 2023 at the Benet House Retreat Center in Rock Island, IL.
For young people in the Quad Cities who are passionate about writing and creative expression, the Midwest Writing Center offers the innovative Young Emerging Writers (YEW) Summer Internship Program. This selective seven-week program will be held Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from June 5 through July 26, 2023. Applications are due Monday, May 15, 2023.
Thanks so much to everyone who participated in Iron Pen 2023. We received many terrific entries, and our excellent judges—Samantha DeFilippo (nonfiction), Rachel Rixen (fiction), and Deanie Vallone (poetry), who are last year’s winners in each category—had very difficult decisions to make in their evaluations. We appreciate everyone’s time and talents in making this year’s contest one of the biggest we’ve ever had (120 people registered for Iron Pen XV).
Thank you all very much for participating in the fastest writing contest in the Midwest! We appreciate your writing courage & quick imagination, and we look forward to seeing all of your terrific submissions.
Before we get to the prompt (which will also be available via phone on the MWC’s outgoing voice message at 309-732-7330, via the home page and the Iron Pen page on the MWC website, and on our Facebook page), a few guidelines and other important bits of information:
The fastest writing contest in the Midwest is back and taking registrations now!
The Midwest Writing Center is taking registrations for its 15th annual Iron Pen Contest. MWC will supply a prompt to all contestants at 5 p.m. on Friday, February 24 and contestants have 24 hours (entries are due Saturday, February 25 by 5 p.m.) to write and submit their best fiction, non-fiction, and/or poetry pieces. Writers are welcome to enter into as many categories as they like with a paid registration for each entry.
The Foster-Stahl Chapbook Series, which looks to publish outstanding short collections of poetry, prose (fiction or nonfiction), or hybrid work from poets and writers living in the upper Midwest region (this includes the following states served by Arts Midwest: IL, IN, IA, MI, MN, ND, OH, SD, WI). Submissions for the third year of the series are open now.
MWC is accepting workshop proposals from the public for dates between Oct. 1, 2022 and May 31, 2023!
Anyone is welcome to send a proposal! Details in the slides!