Montana State hosts writing contest

Writers of short fiction, essays and poetry from throughout Montana are eligible for a $100 prize and a chance to meet best-selling author Yann Martel by entering the inaugural Montana State University Freshman Convocation Writer's Voice contest.

Entries, due at 5 p.m. Aug. 15, should be inspired by the book "Life of Pi." Winners of the juried competition will meet Martel, author of the best-selling novel "Life of Pi," at a reception to be held Sept. 5 at MSU’s Renne Library. Several $100 gift cards will also be awarded.

The competition is open to all Montana students in kindergarten through 12th grade, MSU students from all campuses, and Montana community members at large.

Submissions must be identified as short fiction, essay or poetry and may not be more than 1,000 words. Entries will be judged by a panel that includes MSU students, faculty and community members.

Entries should be emailed as an Adobe PDF file to convocation@montana.edu.

All entries must be accompanied by a cover sheet that lists the contestant's name, telephone number, email address, whether the contestant is a student (including name of school) or community member and the title of the work.

Contestants may submit one entry each.

This event is co-sponsored by the Bozeman Public Library Foundation. More specific entry requirements may be found at http://guides.lib.montana.edu/yannmartel or by contacting Catherine Johnson at catherine.johnson7@montana.edu or (406) 994-7835.

Martel is the speaker at the 2013 MSU Freshman Convocation, which will be held at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 5 in the MSU Fieldhouse. The event is free and open to the public; however, tickets must be reserved in advance for everyone planning to attend, except for the members of the 2013 MSU freshman class. Tickets will be available in August.