Hi all!

Well, I've been discussing this on the Lit Den forums, and we're hosting a raffle of sorts, a giveaway. It's very easy, for the fiction writers, journalists, poets, artists and photographers to be in with a shot at winning.

Now, we can't afford to just hand out books like other people (although I do have a few I will probably be giving away at some stage). However, we have three copies of The Literary Den Book of New Fiction 2009 to give away to the public when it's released. As far as I know, this will be in the middle of July, or perhaps a little later.

So here's how to win. Very easy, just submit to our magazine! Every submission, including those already made by members of the public, will be entered into a RANDOM draw to win one of the three books. All the money from the books goes to the Laura Crane Trust (reg. 1058464), based in Huddersfield, Yorkshire.

So what to submit?

We're accepting: articles relevant to the literary world, preferrably not something that will be old news very quickly; short stories in any genre, although if you're aiming for younger readers, please mention that; poems on any topic; comic strips which can be expected to continue through the magazine; artwork and photography that displays a message, or is a demonstration of real talent; writing tips, although it should be pointed out that we will be reading these, and if no one can see the point in what you're saying, it's likely it won't get in (general tips work best; the more experience you have, the better); book reviews of your favourite books, ever - any related to members of the Den are even better!

When to submit?

Right up to the release, and beyond. Although, unless there are huge delays, the competition will close the moment the book hits the proverbial bookshelf. Take it as being mid-July, but keep an eye on our Twitter to get the finalised date.

Where to submit to?

I will be accepting all magazine entries. Send them to literary_mania(at)yahoo(dot)ie with the subject line Magazine Submission on or before the closing date to be entered. All successful entries will be published in the magazine, though not all in the same issue, based on the number of submissions we get.

This is a new magazine people, specifically for the public! Tell your friends!

Note of word limits

Short stories up to 3,000 words will be accepted. We would prefer a minimum of 1,500 words, although less than that may still be published. Articles and reviews must not exceed 1,500 words, unless the subject content is large; contact us in advance if you're not sure. Poems can be of any length, though poems of length greater than 80 lines may not be published. Comic strips may consist of 1-6 panels. If successful, expect further contact to arrange sequel comics.

The Literary Den reserves the right not to publish work (although this doesn't happen a lot after we've said 'yes.') Please send in material in an editted form. The prize of three books may be subject to change, although such changes will be made public the moment they are final. Copyright remains with the author, although by submitting to the Literary Den, we reserve the right to publish your work elsewhere - note that the members of the Literary Den are not making a profit from the magazine or other sales. Any money the Den does acquire that is not related to the Laura Crane Trust will be used to further the promotion and development of the Den, and will not be split among the active parties of the Den.

Also note that successful poets will be contacted to submit to the an Anthology of Poetry, editted by Elizabeth Dyer.

Any further questions can be posted here, or emailed to me @ literary_mania(at)yahoo(dot)ie

Thanks for reading, and good luck!

As many of you know, I work in a bookshop. In fact, I work in Hughes & Hughes in the Omni. Normally, it's a boring day of cleaning the Kids' section...repeatedly. Yesterday was so much better!

First off, I had a chat with some friends (one of whom I had not spoken to in about.... five and half years!). That was grand, yeah. It's something that happens occassionally.

Then came three in the afternoon, and with it, Patricia Scanlan. One of Dublin's biggest writers was present in the Omni to do a book signing to promote her latest bestseller - Happily Ever After?, the follow up to Forgive and Forget. So that was pretty exciting - it was my first book signing ever to work, so it gave me something new to do.

For a while, I was mainly running around the shop fetching the unsigned copies of Happily Ever After? Then I moved on to getting a coffee for Patricia Scanlan and her publicist. While I did that, Siobhán from the Support Office helped run the signing. I arrived back to the table, chatting to the published author (who wore a stunningly pink jacket , and I just happened to mention that I was a writer. (She was telling a story; her nieces and nephews reacted to her saying she had to work by saying, "But you don't work!" ) So, with that out in the open, she decided to say to me, "Okay, I'm going to give you my number. When your novel is done, call me and I'll send it to my publishers." (or something sufficiently along those lines.) Essentially, she's getting me passed the slush pile. Then it's up to someone other than a Junior Editor to read my manuscript. It's pretty big stuff!

To make it better, she's with Transworld Ireland!! They're one of the biggest publishers in the country. They've published the likes of Claudia Carroll and Marita Conlon-McKenna too! (the latter is the author who got me into reading, with her novel, In Deep Dark Wood) If I joined the ranks of Transworld, I think I would actually need a reality check every single morning!! Being part of a publishing house with some of the best writers out there.... wow!

So my mission this summer: Edit Meet Sam. Then we'll see if the most exciting thing to happen to me gets even more exciting!!

Patricia Scanlan - a legend in pink!

So there I was, yeah, checking my emails as per usual.... and suddenly I have an email from Battlefront telling me I have a comment on my campaign! I didn't realise I had a page actually up there! I entered it, yes, but I didn't get anything to confirm it was there! Scary stuff.

So now, I'm in a poll....

http://battlefront.co.uk/campaign/th...

If you vote for the Den, I get to embarrass myself in front of a camera on national (UK) television. Battlefront is a thing Channel 4 started doing a few months ago, and Rachel Phipps, good ol' Rachel... she decided I should do the Lit Den Campaign on there. And now, I am! Ah!! If I do get through to the show, I'll be given a camera to make my own videos, but I'll also have to be.. you know... active! Blimey!

So, if you want to see me on TV (either to embarrass me or to see what I have to say) then vote for the Campaign! Thankies! (everyone who votes will get luv, so long as you leave a comment on the Campaign page as well... and you have to know what the Campaign is about!! )