Mslexia, the magazine for women who write | www.mslexia.co.uk
Welcome
We’re keeping the Mslexia offices warm this festive season with a bevy of activities, including our first-ever short story competition – judged by Helen Simpson – and a special cover competition that will help celebrate our 10th birthday. To mark a decade of publishing this quarterly magazine for women writers, we’re inviting women artists, designers and photographers to submit their ideal Mslexia cover image. The winning submission will be the cover on the magazine’s April/May/June issue. So grab your camera, paint brushes, coloured pencils, etc., and get doodling! The closing date for submissions is 27 February; for all other relevant information, click here.
If you’re looking for inspiration or a stimulating starting point for your entry into our short story competition, look no further than this set of five exercises that Margaret Wilkinson has contributed exclusively on our website. Closing date for these entries is 23 January, so keep the winter blahs at bay with a bit of creativity post-Christmas.
Our 2009 Writer’s Diary is selling like proverbial hotcakes, but copies are still available, whether you are looking for that perfect holiday gift for a friend, or for yourself! Featuring great writing, excellent reading recommendations and information on how to organize your writing group for the next year, it’s the perfect writer’s accessory!
Finally, our recent readers’ poll revealed Canadian great Alice Munro to be Mslexia’s favourite short-story writer by a long shot, and we will be giving away five copies of Munro’s recent collection Runaway to five lucky winners. Don’t delay: click here to participate. And we're still wondering what you're reading, so don't forget to tell us.
If you’re calling over the holidays and happen to get our answerphone, please do leave us a message. We will do our very best to get back to you as soon as we can. Here’s wishing you merry season’s greeting and a wonderful New Year from all at Mslexia.
DANEET STEFFENS, editor
Issue No. 39
Inside the new Mslexia…
Carol Birch presents selected writing on the theme of Bugs ◊ Places of Our Own: Gillian Dow treads the literary tourist trail, visiting homes, cities and libraries dedicated to women writers ◊ Clare Alexander is The Insider ◊ Alexandra Fuller's Bottom Drawer ◊ Colette Bryce interviews Amanda Dalton for Making a Poem ◊ and much more…◊ Explore
Latest news
Mslexia Women's Short Story Competition
Our inaugural short story competition is now open for entries of stories of up to 2,200 words on any topic or theme.
Judged by Helen Simpson
1st Prize: £2000 plus a one-week writing retreat at Chawton House Library (accommodation only) and a day with a Virago editor. See terms & conditions and full guidelines here.
Closing date : 23 JANUARY 2009
Mslexia Cover Competition
We're offering women artists/designers/photographers the chance to design Mslexia's cover. The winning entry will appear on the Apr/May/Jun 2009 issue of the magazine, and bag the artist £500. To read the full guidelines, click here.
Closing date: 27 FEBRUARY 2009
Mslexia 2009 Writer's Diary
Our new writer's diaries are now available. Make 2009 your most creative year yet!
"I feel honoured to be the judge of this inaugural Short Story competition. Mslexia is unique in being a genuinely useful magazine for women who want to write"
"It's kind of exciting and frightening all at once – it's got everything going for it really. "
Julie Walters
Bedside Table
"The process of writing for me is always very silent, very long, very intense. "
Isabel Allende
Interview
