Writers of Kern

Everything Writers Need | Writers of Kern

Events

Peggy Connelly Scholarship 2024

By

The Peggy Connelly Scholarship honors children’s author Peggy Connelly, a founding member of Writers of Kern, who encouraged and supported new writers. Just as her books encouraged young readers, this scholarship continues her legacy by helping writers of children’s literature.

One $500 scholarship* has been established by Writers of Kern to provide financial support to Kern County writers of children’s literature which can be used for materials, education, promotion, publication, or expenses related to a children’s writing project. Children’s writing includes fiction, nonfiction, and verse ranging from board book, picture book, chapter book, middle grade novel and young adult novel. We invite all aspiring and established children’s authors living in Kern County to apply. (Membership in Writers of Kern is not a requirement).  Application requirements are as follows:

Questionnaire

In two (2) pages or less, please answer the following questions:

  1. What do you consider your strengths as a children’s writer?
  2. What obstacles do you face as a writer?
  3. What goals have you set for yourself as a writer?
  4. If you are awarded the grant, how will you use the money to further your children’s writing and achieve these goals? (Be specific: include details and prices)
  5. Have you ever received the Peg Connelly scholarship in the past?

Style Guidelines

Please address each question in a Word document, double-spaced, 12-point font (Arial or Times New Roman), 1-inch margins all around. Submit two (2) copies: copy 1 with identification; copy 2, blind. Judges will read for clarity as well as creativity. Applications that do not comply will not be considered.

Writing Sample

Please submit a sample of your work in progress as described below:

Full text of a picture book (fiction or nonfiction); OR

First five (5) pages of your children’s work-in-progress project.

Writing Sample Guidelines:

Submissions must be correctly formatted in a Word document, double-spaced, 12-point font (Arial or Times New Roman), 1-inch margins all around. Only works in progress that have not been previously published will be considered. Do not send illustrations. Format as a manuscript; do not format as book pages or spreads. Submit two (2) copies: copy 1 with identification; copy 2, blind. Judges will read for clarity as well as creativity. Applications that do not comply will not be considered.

Application Period

The application period is April 12, 2023. Applications will not be accepted after 11:59 p.m., Saturday, April 30, 2024

*Judges reserve the right to make no award if the number or quality of entries is insufficient.

Please email the following documents with the title of your manuscript in the subject line to: rebeccalangstongeorge@gmail.com

  1. Questionnaire (Identity Copy)
  2. Questionnaire (Blind Copy)
  3. Writing Sample (Identity Copy)
  4. Writing Sample (Blind Copy)

You will receive an email confirming receipt of your application.

All application materials must be received no later than 11:59 p.m., Saturday, April 30, 2024. Submissions after this time will not be accepted or recognized.

TIPS:

  1. Be specific when answering the questions and include how you will use the money to further your writing goals. General answers such as “I plan to attend a workshop” won’t score as high as specific answers such as “I plan to use $500 of the grant money to attend the Highlights middle grade novel writing workshop in June, 2024. The remainder of the money will go towards paying for a substantive edit of my middle grade novel with freelance editor Karla Writewell.”
  2. Polish your writing sample and have a friend proofread it prior to submitting.
  3. Don’t wait until the last minute to submit.

Please direct any questions to Rebecca Langston-George at the email above. (Do not wait until the last day to ask questions)

Winners will be recognized at the WOK Honors Event in May!

April Featured Speaker – Carla Stanley

By

Headshot of speaker Carla Stanley, smiling at the camera against a neutral office background.
Workshop Title: The Art of Writing Great Memoir

Carla Stanley has been writing for years, but it wasn’t until 2017, when she retired from teaching high school English and Theater, that she got serious. Since taking a memoir writing class in 2018, Carla has written over 150 memoirs to share with family and friends. She plans to share what she had learned in her numerous memoir-writing classes, hoping to tweak your writing in small ways that takes an okay piece of writing and makes it come alive.

Besides memoir-writing, Carla has continued the playwriting she polished working with students for 14 years at Shafter High School. In 2022, one of her short plays was performed at Bakersfield Community Theater’s One-Act Festival.

Carla joined WOK during the pandemic and participated in many Zoom Open Mic events. Her poem “Veterans” and her short story “A Bunch of Bull” were published in the 2021 Writers of Kern Anthology Pathway to the Heart.

Registration for this past event is closed.

February Featured Speaker – Phyllis Wachob

By

Upper body shot of featured speaker Phyllis Wachob, holding a small white dog and smiling outdoors.
Workshop Title: Developing a Unique Writing Voice and Exploring Points of View

This workshop will present ideas, tips and a chance to practice developing your own voice and exploring points of view. Tips will be given and exercises will be demonstrated on how to find and develop your unique way of description, dialog, imagery and syntax. A point to remember is that editor’s comments are only suggestions, not corrections. Your own authentic voice is the one that your readers want. The close third person point of view is a newer way of crawling into a character’s head to experience thoughts, feelings, and intuitions without quotes or italics. This workshop aims to give writers more devices in their writer’s toolbox to express themselves.

Phyllis Wachob, born in Bakersfield and currently residing there, began her traveling adventures after college. She became a travel writer and then an English teacher, living and working in various places across the globe. These experiences are reflected in her mystery novels in the Teachers Abroad Mystery series. Later, she used her hometown and its inhabitants as inspirations for her Kern Kapers Mystery Series. So far, she has completed eight cozy mysteries, honing her writing skills along the way. Fellow members of the Writers of Kern as well as critique group members have shown her different ways of looking at characters, storylines and points of view.

Registration for this past event is closed.

January Featured Speaker – Kathleen Kline

By

Upper body picture of guest speaker Kathleen Kline, wearing glasses and smiling outdoors against a backdrop of large brown wooden doors.
Workshop Title: Promoting Fiction in Today’s Tech-Savy World

Get invigorated, inspired, and geared up to write more fiction. Kathleen Kline, a 32-year professional writer, editor, and writing coach will be here to share the changes in the Fiction Market and explain the path for new authors, aspiring authors, and those authors desiring to change up and the potential expansion of their craft.

Kathleen Kline is a wordsmith who’s been playing with words for 32 years and has helped clients all over the world. She started out in the Magazine and Newspaper arenas, but couldn’t help expanding into the fiction and non-fiction genres. She also enjoys helping writers reach their goals, whether it is with a short story or a series of books, detailing a family’s past or a how-to-do. Effective communication is key while helping others create entertaining stories for others to enjoy, that is what Kathleen loves to do!

Registration for this past event is closed.