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Summer of Funny

Pique Newsmagazine is hosting the Summer of Funny, a humour-writing competition, with $400 in cash up for grabs for the top entries.

Pique Newsmagazine is hosting the Summer of Funny, a humour-writing competition, with $400 in cash up for grabs for the top entries.

Send your stories, poems, scripts, long-format jokes or other humourous pieces to Pique Newsmagazine at andrew@piquenewsmagazine.com by Thursday, July 23. People can enter as many times as they like, with a maximum length of 2,000 words per entry. Editorial staff will judge the entries and award prizes subjectively, with a maximum of $250 going to a single outstanding submission. The winning stories will be printed in the July 30 issue of the Pique.

Calling all writers!

The CBC is on the lookout for the latest new Canadian literary talents, seeking short stories, poetry and creative non-fiction entries to compete for cash prizes and a chance to be published.

The 2009 CBC Literary Awards are the country's only competition that celebrates original unpublished works in both official languages. Supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, cash prizes for the competition total $60,000. Plus, each winning entry will be published in enRoute magazine and gain exposure on the CBC network.

The competition deadline is November 1, 2009. For more information on submission guidelines, visit www.cbc.ca/literaryawards.

Put the finishing touches on your manuscript...

Okay, so you haven't quite nailed down the art of writing. Well, here's your chance: Whistler's word nerds unite this fall to sharpen their pencils (and writing skills) for the eighth annual Whistler Readers and Writers Festival, which runs from September 11 to 13 in Creekside.

The three-day festival includes more than 20 Canadian authors and editors who are special guests at the weekend-long literary event. Guest writers include Wayne Grady ("Tree"), Merilyn Simonds ("The Convict Lover"), 2009 B.C. Book Prize winner Lee Henderson ("The Man Game"), Annabel Lyon ("The Golden Mean") and Claire Mulligan ("The Reckoning of Boston Jim.") Whistler writer Sara Leach will also be celebrating the publication of her first book, "Jake Reynolds: Chicken or Eagle."

"The Whistler Readers and Writers Festival is the most accessible way people can give their creative selves a boost," festival director Stella Harvey said in a recent press release. "It also offers a one-day immersion in a choice of writing streams."

The festival offers a range of free workshops, with others priced at just $25. A pass to the full festival is just $180.

Sessions touch on topics like Writing for Children, Writing for the Screen and Writing for Magazines and Technique Tune-up: Getting your Prose Lean, your Characters Mean (or meaningful).

This year, the festival will also include a lunch-hour pitching session presented by the Association of B.C. Magazine Publishers, entitled The Pitching Mound, which will feature five of Canada's leading magazine editors.

The full festival program can be found at www.theviciouscircle.ca .

Unearthing art in the mine

The most amazing art is often found in unexpected places. This week consider making a trip to Britannia Beach's B.C. Museum of Mining to explore the photography of Lawrence Hislop in a month-long series entitled, "Transforming Natural Capital."

A Lion's Bay artist, Hislop's photography documents the B.C. mining industry and explores our relationship with the evolving nature of mining, while Jeina Morosoff's series of sculptural art forms of glass and iron, entitled, "Submerged," provides a complement to his work.

The exhibit opens with a reception in the historic machine shop on Thursday, June 18 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., and runs until Monday, August 31.

Film fling

Later this month, Whistler's film aficionados will tear themselves away from the big and small screens for the biggest fundraising event of the season: the Whistler Film Festival Society's annual gala and auction, Soirée.

Dig out your finest cocktail attire, the party takes place on Thursday, June 25 at the Vancouver Four Seasons.

The party features a cocktail reception, a three-course gourmet meal prepared by Four Seasons executive chef Oliver Beckert accompanied by fine wines, plus an evening of incredible entertainment with performers like Lee Aaron and Whistler's own Ali Milner. The evening also includes a silent and live auction, raffle and gift bags for the 200-plus business leaders and media members in attendance.

Tickets are $200 apiece or $2,000 for a table of ten. Contact program@whistlerfilmfestival.com 
or 1-877-838-FILM for more information.

Annual check-in with WAC

Want to find out what the Whistler Arts Council has been up to this year? Staff and board members will present a review of their 2008 activities, plus presentation of financials alongside the election of the 2009 and 2010 board of directors during their annual general meeting. They will also be giving an update on WAC and MY Place functional review.

The meeting takes place at MY Place tonight, Thursday, June 18 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. All are welcome to attend, though only members can vote.