Technical Editing Scholarship

The Technical Editing SIG is offering a scholarship of $800 to a student pursuing an undergraduate degree in Technical Communication (or a related area, such as professional writing). The Technical Editing SIG is accepting scholarship applications for 2011. The deadline for submission is June 12, 2011. Winners will be notified in mid-July 2011.

Students applying for this scholarship are expected to be able to demonstrate their focus on topics related to technical editing through their academic studies, current jobs, special projects, or undergraduate/graduate program.

To be eligible for a scholarship, an applicant must be:

* Enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in Technical Editing or Technical Communication (or a related program, such as Professional Communication)

* Pursuing a career as a Technical Editor

For more information on the scholarship, see the STC Technical Editing Web site.

Complete the online Scholarship Application at the STC Technical Editing Web site.

Norman Mailer Writing Award

The Norman Mailer Writers Colony and the National Council of Teachers of English are taking submissions for the 2011 Norman Mailer High School and College Writing Awards for Creative Nonfiction.

Prizes
Cash prizes of $5,000 to $10,000 will be awarded to National Winners. Four finalists will be awarded trophies. Sixteen semifinalists in each category will be awarded certificates. Winners receive travel and lodging to attend the Colony's National Award Ceremony.

Submission Guidelines

Category
Norman Mailer produced extraordinary works in many genres, including the category of this year’s award: Creative Nonfiction. Students may submit work in any of the subgenres of creative nonfiction: memoir or autobiography, essay, literary journalism, profiles of people or places, and so on. Whatever its type, the best work will be true material presented with compelling literary merit.

Eligibility, Page Length, and Deadlines
Entries accepted online only from March 1 - April 28, 2011

Submission is open to current full-time students. Maximum 15 single-spaced pages. The winner receives a scholarship to the Norman Mailer Writers Colony during the summer of 2012 and cash award of $10,000.

For complete submission guidelines and judging criteria, or to submit an entry, visit the NCTE website. Please email any questions to nmw@ncte.org.

Interested in Creating Graphic Novels?

Professional Writing majors at SMSU typically have a wide range of interests and pursue a range of careers after undergraduate work including graduate school. If you have an interest in creating graphic novels, comic strips, cartoons, etc., you might what to check out the Center for Cartoon studies at:
http://www.cartoonstudies.org/
The program offers an MFA as well as certificates in this area of study.

Top Interview Questions for Technical Writers

I recently signed up for a Twitter account as an assignment for my Writing and New Media class. I was reluctant at first, as I've been trying to boycott Twitter for whatever reason. As I've become more acquainted with Twitter, I'm actually starting to enjoy it and see its value.

And every once in awhile, I come across useful information pertaining to PWC. This is one link retweeted by Professor Amanda Bemer I found particularly interesting:

Top Interview Questions for Technical Writers

Congratulations to PWC majors who received honors for the 2010 Fall Semester.

Students with a 3.8-4.0 GPA were awarded with High Honors.
Students with a 3.5-3.75 GPA were awarded with Honors.

High Honors

Stephanie Bruns

Lorien Downing

Kylie Jacobsen

Amanda Paine

Honors

McKenna Carr

Janna Dorman

Katherine Robertson

Kimberly Watkins

Aubrey Wood

Congratulations to English 360 Students Who Participated in the 5th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference!

Part-time Sports Writing Job at Marshall Independent

Mr. Joe Brown, the sports editor for the Marshall Independent, is looking for a part-time sports writer. The job would mainly be answering phones about three nights a week. The person would take calls from high school coaches, who phone in the scores of their games and statistics, then write a very short summary of the game. The usual work schedule would be Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 8 p.m. to midnight.

While Mr. Brown would prefer someone with journalism experience, he mostly wants to fill the position, so someone could be trained in, too. There's a pretty set formula for writing the game summaries, so it becomes routine quickly.

If you are interested in the position, please contact Mr. Joe Brown at: jbrown@marshallindependent.com