Reminder – Entries Due 6/15 for 2013 ISFHWE Writing Competition

Don’t forget to submit your entries for the 2013 International Society of Family History Writers and Editors Excellence in Writing Competition.  Submissions are due by June 15, 2013.  Both ISFHWE members and non-members are allowed to enter the competition.

Here are the categories for this year (note, there are some changes from previous years):

• Category I - Columns. This is for columns of original content published on a regular basis, in any medium, published in 2012. Entries should consist of two columns, each submitted as a single file, and must be shorter than 2,000 words. These are entries from the author’s regular column, not features.
• Category II – Articles. These one-time articles (not part of the author’s column) must have been published in 2012 in a journal, magazine, newsletter, blog, or website. Entries cannot exceed 5,000 words.
• Category III – Genealogy Newsletters. This category is for society or family association newsletters published in 2012. Entries should consist of two issues, each submitted as a single file in PDF format. The judging will be based on originality, content, visual appeal, writing and editing quality, and accuracy. The award is to the editor of the publication.
• Category IV – Unpublished Authors. Entrants in this category aspire to be published writers or columnists in the field of genealogy, family or local history. The submissions in this category are original and unpublished, between 500 and 2,000 words.
• Category V – Unpublished material by Published Authors. This category is for original unpublished genealogically-related articles by previously published authors. Entries should be between 500 and 3,000 words.

Cash prizes will be awarded to the winners of each category.  Winners will be announced at 2013 FGS Conference in August.

Complete details, including rules, judging criteria, entry fees, and the entry form, can be found here (will open a PDF file).

Need some convincing to write about your genealogy research?  See my post 4 Reasons to Convert Your Genealogy Research Into Writing.

Changes for the ISFHWE Writing Competition in 2013

I took a few minutes today to review the details of the 2013 International Society of Family History Writers and Editors Excellence in Writing Competition.  Right off the bat I noticed a few changes that I think people will be interested in learning about.

• The word limit for Category I “Columns” has been increased to 2,000 (was previously 1,000).
  
• The “rules” for Category II “Articles” now specify that submissions from blogs are acceptable (this was previously “implied” as a website).
  
• Category III, which was previously “Genealogy Research Story,” has been replaced by “Genealogy Newsletters.”  This is for society or family association newsletters.
  
• Category IV has been renamed to “Unpublished Authors,” and the word limit has been changed to between 500 and 2,000 (1,000 was previously the max).

Submissions for the writing competition will be accepted starting January 1, 2013, with a deadline of June 15, 2013.  Both ISFHWE members and non-members are allowed to enter the competition.

Complete details, including rules, judging criteria, entry fees, and the entry form, can be found here (will open a PDF file).

International Society of Family History Writers and Editors 2012 Excellence-in-Writing Competition Winners

I just received word about the winners of this year’s ISFHWE Excellence-in-Writing Competition!  Unfortunately, I was not among the winners this year, but that’s what I get for waiting until the last minute (literally…oh wait, I did that last year too and still took third place!).  Even though I did not place, I’d still like to recognize this year’s winners.  Let’s give them a round of applause!

Category I – Columns

• First - A Big Game for the Big Day – Shelley Bishop
• Second - Newel King, 91^st Ohio Volunteer Infantry – Shelley Bishop
• Third - Wanted: Larger ‘Needles’ – James M. Beidler

Category II – Articles

• First - Blue Collar Breakthroughs – Sunny Morton
• Second - Academic Libraries: A Good Reason to Head Back to Campus – Mary Penner
• Third - An Identity Crisis: Using Indirect Evidence to Prove …. – Debbie Parker Wayne, CG

Category III – Original Research Story

• First - Common Ground – Courtenay O’Bryan Auger
• Second [tie] -The Long and Winding Road: The Search for the Clark Farm – Cheryl Roach
• Second [tie] - James Holmes: He Was Tickled to be Pickled – Marjorie Waterfield

Category IV – Unpublished Author

• First - The Butchers of Marshall Avenue – Carla Love Maitland

Category V – Unpublished Work by Published Author

• First - The Bones of Hobo Hollow – Paul K. Graham
• Second - Ella’s Letter – Nancy Waters Lauer
• Third - Civil War Perils of Springtime – M. Carolyn Steele

The rules for the 2013 competition will be posted at the ISFHWE website soon, but if you happen to be at the FGS Conference, you can stop by the ISFHWE booth (#628) to pick them up.

ISFHWE 2012 Excellence in Writing Competition

It’s time for the annual Excellence in Writing Competition sponsored by the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors.  Both ISFHWE members and non-members are eligible to participate.  There are five categories for the competition, and you can enter in more than one category.  The submission deadline is June 3, 2012.

For a complete list of categories, rules, instructions, and the entry form, download the 2012 Excellence in Writing Entry Package (PDF).

Last year, I won 3rd Place in Category 5 (unpublished work by published author), which you can read more about here.