It’s been an honour this year to judge entries to the American Writers Review (AWR) 2026 literary contest. Congratulations to Ellen Hirning Schmidt on her winning poem, ‘Thoughts Composed on a Walk 250 Years After the Declaration of Independence’. Ellen has deftly managed to find personal enlightenment amidst the current political turmoil. Donna Ferrara, editor of … Continue reading Trusting your Judgement
Tag: Barry Lee Thompson
Join the 2026 AWR Contest: ‘The Truth Will Set You Free’
Last year, on behalf of Elwood Writers, Barry Lee Thompson and I had the pleasure of judging submissions to the American Writers Review (AWR) annual literary contest. The editor of San Fedele Press, D Ferrara, themed the 2025 entries to both contest and anthology as ‘Buyers’ Remorse’. Writers these days are encouraged to be good literary citizens, … Continue reading Join the 2026 AWR Contest: ‘The Truth Will Set You Free’
Radio Stars
UK author and media personality Richard Osmond recently announced on his own podcast that audio books are the fastest-growing format in the publishing industry. The reason being that you can listen to an audio book while driving, gardening, lulling yourself to sleep or even … ironing! In other words, you are free to multitask – … Continue reading Radio Stars
Buy Now, Regret Later – a literary contest
We've all done it. Experienced buyer's remorse, that is. That pair of '70s bell bottoms you thought you looked so good in, but rarely fitted into. The gifts you've stored for years for which you've never found a suitable recipient. A life - maybe - you've bought into, but since wondered about. What about when … Continue reading Buy Now, Regret Later – a literary contest
Our Stories in 20 Artists
Early in 2023 (remember that year?) the Elwood Writers were invited to submit stories and poems to 20 Artists, a Port Phillip based magazine. The first literary edition of the visual arts/lit mag was published and launched in December and is now available on the 20 Artists' website. Read about 'Handwritten Issue One' in the … Continue reading Our Stories in 20 Artists
The Writing Group
As you might know, my writing group Elwood Writers is an active and committed cohort of four. Member, Barry Lee Thompson, recently wrote about the group on The Writing Life, a blog hosted by Lee Kofman, author of fiction and non-fiction books. She is a superlative teacher - among her other talents - to both … Continue reading The Writing Group
Queensland Literary Awards, Barry’s collection shortlisted
We at Elwood Writers are excited to announce that Broken Rules and Other Stories by Barry Lee Thompson has been shortlisted for the 2021 University of Southern Queensland Steele Rudd Award. To see the shortlisted authors and judges comments, click here. Barry has been a founding member of Elwood Writers since 2007. He is the recipient … Continue reading Queensland Literary Awards, Barry’s collection shortlisted
Read All About It
Elwood Writers (EW) is pleased to announce that our anthology Every Second Tuesday is profiled on BookBub. You can read all about it here, including a 5 star review from author Ann McCauley. Ann has also listed the book as a recommended title. You might have to be a member of the BookBub community to access the link, … Continue reading Read All About It
Meet Author Barry Lee Thompson
Barry Lee Thompson, member of our group Elwood Writers, guest interviews about his newly released book, Broken Rules and Other Stories, on the website 'In Their Own Write'. Barry discusses his writing process. For him there is no such thing as writer's block. If he gets stuck, he works on something different, dipping in and … Continue reading Meet Author Barry Lee Thompson
Broken Rules and Other Stories, update — Barry Lee Thompson
Barry's book Broken Rules will be released by Transit Lounge on 1st September. Barry is a friend and colleague from Elwood Writers and this is his first collection of short stories. Some early reviews have appeared. There’s a write-up in Westerly, here, and one from The Age and Sydney Morning Herald, here. The book’s release … Continue reading Broken Rules and Other Stories, update — Barry Lee Thompson
