C2 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, July 11, 2001 Three-day novel-writing contest on Labour Day weekend Since its genesis in a V ancouver bar in 1978, the Three-day N ovel-W riting C ontest has attract ed both praise and scorn from w riters and critics. The praise has com e from those w ho recog nize the contest as a challenging literary exercise w orthy o f support; suspicion and doubt flow from the stalw art naysayers w ho rem ain con vinced that im portant literary w ork is only borne from years o f struggle and arduous revision. T he Three-day N ovel-W riting C ontest has served as a launching ground for several writers w ho have proven to be anything but "flashes" in the pan. For exam ple, Tom W alm sley's 1979 w in ning entry. Dr. Tin , w as expanded and reissued in 1992 as Shades: The Whole Story o f Dr. Tin. O ther novelist who got their start w ith the NovelWriting Contest include M arc D iam ond ( Proper ty) Stephen M iller (The Woman in the Yard) and Candas Jane D orsey ( Vanilla and O ther Stories). To register for this y ear's contest, w hich takes place on L abour D ay w eekend, applicants m ust send their nam e and com plete address plus the $25 en try fee (n o n -refu n d ab le) to A nvil Press, 204A - 175 East B road way, V ancouver BC, V 5T 1W2, post m arked no later than Friday, Aug. 3 1. Entrants begin w riting at 12:01 a.m ., Satur day, Sept. 1 and m ust stop at or before midnight, M onday, Sept. 3. O utlines are perm itted prior to the contest, but the actual w riting m ust take place during the L abour D ay w eekend. C ollaborations are perm itted, but no more than tw o per novel. There are no lim its on the novel's length, but entries average 100 typew rit ten pages, double-spaced. N ovels may be w ritten in any location and u sin g any m eth o d - pen, ty p ew riter, w ord processor. H ow ever, the copy subm itted m ust be typed, double-spaced on 8 1/2" x 11" w hite paper, w ith pages num bered (no folders, clips or staples). Participants may use the w eek follow ing the contest to have handw ritten m anuscripts typed or disks converted to hard copy. Finished novels m ust be postm arked no later than Sept. 7 and sent to the above address, along w ith a non-legal statem ent signed by a w itness co n firm in g the n o v el's com pletion o ver the L abour D ay w eekend, and a self-addressed enve lope large enough to return the novel (if desired). The w inner will be announced Nov. 30. A ll entrants will receive a press release co n cerning the outcom e o f the contest. The ju d g es will be com prised o f the editorial board o f A nvil Press and the literary collective o f subTerrain M agazine. DONT SUFFER IN SILENCE Have the courage like Cindy from Oakville. Art for all ages W h ite G ru b s ca n d e v a sta te y o u r law n. 1 G R A N U L A R A p p licatio n o f M E R I T g ru b c o n tro l n o w w ill p re v e n t an y g ru b d am ag e b o th th is Fall a n d S p rin g 2002. W hether y o u 're 7 or 70, if you have a love o f draw ing and painting, you can participate in the half-day art classes offered by w ell-know n O akville artist Frances Tyrrell. T his w ater colour technique session w ill run July 16 to 20 at the O akville C hristian School on T hird Line. C ost is $140, w hich includes supplies. The class will be lim ited to betw een 8 and 10 partici pants. M inim um age is seven. To register, call 827-5621 or 825-1247. " I h a v e a lw a y s h a d a d iffic u lt tim e lo sin g w e ig h t a n d k e e p in g slim . W ith the e a sy -to -fo llo w p la n an d e n c o u ra g e m e n t o f th e s ta ff at H e rb a l M a g ic , I w a s a b le to lo se 3 6 lbs. a n d 5 0 in c h e s in o n ly 5 m o n th s ." CALL NOW to b o o k y o u r · · · · FR E E No odour Safe for applicators, children & pets Complete guarantee through Spring 2002 Granular formulation used for maximum control and watering convenience Consultation en&zl ' TK aqlt W e ig h t M a im g «u ic ru n n c l f v i. CALL NOW! Must be applied by early August. M erit not available in stores. 1395 Abbeywood Rd. OAKVILLE (In the Bruno's Fine Foods plaza) Open 2400 Wvecroft Road, Unit #5, Oakville, ON 905-827-1441 9 _ 4 (905) 469-4532 www;w eed-m an.com email: weedman01@on.aibn.com Free estimates and/or analysis provided within 48 hours of your call. Hone your guitar skills A ppleby C ol lege w ill be the hom e of the N ational G uitar W orkshop C ana dian cam pus, July 22 to 27. Students o f all ages and at all levels o f abil ity w ill be offered a variety o f courses in all m usical styles, such as rock, jazz, blues, acoustic and classical. M inor courses in songw riting, im provi sation and slide guitar, am ong others, are also offered, as w ell as courses for bass, drum s and keyboard. T his y ea r's guest artists are R ik Em m ett (Canadian Rock 'n ' Roll Hall of Fam e), a virtu oso guitarist and singer/song w riter w ith an aw ard-w inning, m ulti-gold and platinum history; D on Ross, twotim e w inner of the U.S. N ation al Fingerstyle G uitar C ham pi onship; and D avid Sinclair, w ho has made TV appearances on The Gram m y Awards and The Juno Awards and w ill be releasing his first book in the near future. E m m ett and Ross will be per form ing a spe cial evening con cert during the w eek. Tuition for this one-w eek m usical experi ence is $750, w hich includes all courses, m eals and accom m oda tions. F or a free brochure, call 905-567-6813.