The Battered Suitcase Newsletter – March 2010


Welcome to the Spring 2010 issue of The Battered Suitcase! As we enter a new decade we’re delighted to offer you a wide range of exciting art and writing straight out of the 21st century!

In this Issue:

Spring 2010 Issue Highlights
Our New Amazon Store Featuring the Work of Battered Suitcase Contributors
Little Episodes Launch and the "Back in Five" Anthology
News From our Contributors
News for Writers/Artists
Changes in Submissions / Reading Schedule
Readers / Interns needed
Website News


SPRING 2010 ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS


The Spring 2010 issue of The Battered Suitcase is now live and free to download at: THE BATTERED SUITCASE.


Our fiction contributors cover a wide range of topics, from ‘Expiration Date’, in which Nancy Williams writes about working in a hospice, and dealing with death to ‘The Greedy Dress’, where Melinda Giordano explores the symbiotic relationship between a woman and her clothes.


War and it’s impact on both those who take part in it and those who stay at home is a theme of a number of this issue’s stories, including ‘Burning in Pairs’, in which Kyle Hemmings explores the impact of time, war and tragedy on a former soldier who finds insight and hope through making contact with the past. Kelly Morris explores the tolls of war in her powerful short piece, ‘The Dark’ and the war theme is echoed by Doug Mathewson in ‘Twenty-One Guns’.


Julie Ann August examines a touching relationship between a young girl and an elderly woman, both damaged, in ‘The Key Collector’, and Wendy Breuer tells the story of ‘Walter Molina, Disembodied Revolutionary’.

Non Fiction includes reflections on gift giving from Adrianne Kafopoulou and a story of the significance of a piano in the life of a young girl as she moves from Russia to the United States by Raisa Bank.


Our March Poetry contributors include Bob Brill with observational slices of life in his poems ‘Florida Suite’ and ‘Senryu’, Madelaine Caritas Longman remembering the feelings of adolescence in ‘The River’ and Linda Kaban’s ‘Elephant in the Room’.


Our cover artist for this issue, Zwir, offers disturbing, piercing studies of faces and bodies. Other visual contributors include Debbie Angell’s art deco-esque images of the natural world. Glenda Jones has offered her vivid paintings of Caribbean scenes, full of life, colour and movement, contrasting radically with the dark, surreal imagery of Talonabraxas.


OUR NEW AMAZON STORE


In order to help support and promote Battered Suitcase contributors, we have created an Amazon store featuring the works of the writers, poets and musicians that have been featured in our pages. Please check it out here: Vagabondage Press Amazon Store


Affiliate fees from our Amazon store will also help cover the administrative and hosting costs of The Battered Suitcase and keep it online and free to read.


Please consider using the above portal link for all of your Amazon shopping and share the link with your friends.


If you have been a previous contributor to The Suitcase and we have not listed your work in our store, please contact us with the full name of the publication and we'll add your work right away. info@vagabondagepress.com


The Battered Suitcase will soon be available in eReader format (Kindle, etc) as well as print copy, and will be available through our Amazon store soon.


LITTLE EPISODES LAUNCH – BACK IN 5 ANTHOLOGY


The Battered Suitcase is pleased to announce the launch of our sister project, Little Episodes, a non-profit organization of creative professionals aiming to use the arts as a platform to raise public awareness of mental health issues.

On February 25th, Little Episodes held a busy launch event in London with music, and exhibition of visual art, performance poetry and writing. The event also saw the unveiling of Little Episodes’ first publication, an anthology of writing and poetry, "Back in 5", which has already sold out and is in its second printing.


Little Episodes publishes both hard copy and e-books, runs workshops with people affected by mental illness and holds monthly open events. Our next open event is March 26th at the Novas Centre in London, UK . London area poets and writers who would like to perform spoken word showcases of their written work are welcome to contact events@littleepisodes.org to be booked.


Join Little Episodes and lend your voice to the cause at http://www.littleepisodes.org/


NEWS FROM OUR CONTRIBUTORS


KIERAN LEONARD – lyric contributor and interview in the September 2009 issue, Kieran’s EP, ‘Scapegoat’ is available at our Amazon Store. Every Sunday, Kieran has a residency, The Gaslight, at The Hideaway Bar in Archway, London.

NEWS FOR WRITERS AND ARTISTS


Ginosko Short Fiction Contest: Best Rendering of a Spiritual Awakening. Deadline September 1st, Decision October 1st. $1000 prize, $10 entry fee; write money order or check out to Ginosko. Winner posted on website, http://www.ginoskoliteraryjournal.com/.


Bellevue Literary Review Prizes in Fiction, Nonfiction, & Poetry: The Bellevue Literary Review Prizes recognize exceptional writing about health, healing, illness, the mind, and the body. First prize is $1000 and publication in the Spring 2011 issue of the Bellevue Literary Review. http://www.blreview.org/.


Omnidawn's 2010 Poetry Book Contest: Omnidawn offers $3,000.00 prize for our annual first/second book poetry contest. Accepting electronic and postal submissions March 1-June 30. http://www.omnidawn.com/

Chautauqua Writer’s Festival: For four days and three nights, live and write in a community of writers on the beautiful grounds of the historic Chautauqua Institution on the shore of Chautauqua Lake. http://writers.ciweb.org/writers-festival/


CHANGES IN SUBMISSIONS / READING SCHEDULE


In order to redirect our resources into the publication of The Battered Suitcase in print, as well as anthologies and novellas and novels, our reading schedule for The Battered Suitcase will now run from April 1st to October 31st of every year. Please do not submit work intended for The Suitcase outside of these dates. Calls for Submission for anthologies and other publications will be announced and available on our submission guidelines page.


READERS/INTERNS NEEDED


The Battered Suitcase is currently seeking slush readers/interns. Creative writing/English Comp students and other publishing/writing hopefuls are welcome to apply. Please email us at info@vagabondagepress.com


Thanks for your support and continuing to read!

Fawn Neun
Chief Editor
The Battered Suitcase
Vagabondage Press LLC