Welcome!
Vol 1 Submission Window Is Closed
We are an annual, creative nonfiction anthology publishing personal stories, essays, and memoirs from Rio Grande Valley natives.Volume 1 submission window opens August 15, 2024, and closes November 15th, 2024.Submit your final draft to [email protected]We look forward to reading your work!
Voices of THe Rgv
Submission Guidelines
-Authors must be RGV natives. You don’t have to live in the valley currently, but you must be from there as your hometown.
-Stories must be true! We encourage the “creative” part of creative nonfiction, but we are here to share and learn from true stories.
-Stories must be under 5000 words.
-Submitted work must be previously unpublished, which includes publication on personal blogs, social media accounts, and other websites. Previously published work will be automatically disqualified.
-Multiple submissions are allowed. You can send us as many as you'd like, but overall we prefer quality to quantity.
-Spanish in the submissions is warmly welcomed, provided the work is written primarily in English. Code-switching/meshing is encouraged.
-Please include your name (as you would like it printed for publication) and your hometown in your submission heading.
-The submission window opens August 15, 2024 and closes on November 15, 2024.
-Authors accepted for publication will receive a response by the end of November. If we are unable to meet this timeline, we will notify all submitters of the extension. Accepted authors will also receive a free copy of the publication.
-Send your final drafts to [email protected] for consideration.
voices of the rgv
About Us
The Rio Grande Valley of south Texas is a most remarkable and unique place, and we want to share true stories of life in the RGV from the people that know it personally.This bordertown region of the world, our homeland, is filled with rich culture, incredible food, striking landscapes, and vibrant, hardworking people creating their own lives in endless ways.Voices of the RGV is here to showcase stories that really portray the dynamicness of the spirit of RGV natives. We want stories of family, friends, and yourselves. Stories of achievement, celebration, loss, and grief. Share with us the good times, or the hard times. We will take it all, but it must have the essence of the emotional range and capacity of the people specific to our beloved deep south Texas.
Our Team
Paul Henning
Founder & Editor---Mission, Texas
Franco Alaniz
PR & Marketing---Mission, texas
Sara Silva
Contributing Editor---Mission, texas
Frequently Asked Questions
voices of the rgv
What is Creative Nonfiction?
Great question. Creative Nonfiction is a genre of literature where true stories can be told with the style and flair of our favorite fiction narratives.It is a place where our personal memories, essays, and histories can flower and expand into whatever expression necessary to appropriately describe and captivate the emotions, scenes, and impacts of the experiences.In short, it means we can catch a vibe and flow with our writing.The following resources provide a bit more information on this.
What Is Creative Nonfiction?
Voices of the Rgv
How Do I Write a Short Story?
There are as many ways to write a short story as there are subjects to write about.That being said, we can set ourselves up for success by understanding some common and popular techniques that can support us in being able to articulate a narrative in a way that is compelling, coherent, and in an authentic voice.NOTE! The following tips are not a requirement for submissions! They are just suggestions.In general, many captivating stories will answer a dramatic or philosophical question throughout 3 parts: The Set Up, The Confrontation, and The Resolution. This is commonly known as the three act structure, and there is countless insight available for free online about it if you want to learn more.Some thematic questions that the story addresses might be, Does justice prevail? Is there such a thing as true love? Was the journey worth the struggle in the end? Is there hope for our main character?Overall, if the story has conflict, resolution, appropriate pacing, and isn’t written above the ability of the writer, it has a good chance at making an impact.Remember! Practicing is very important and cannot be understated. We suggest writing some short stories for practice to get the feel for your own unique voice, strengths, and places for improvement.The following resources offer some more insight to support your writing.
Three Act Structure - WikipediaHow To Write a Short Story10 Tips for Writing Short StoriesHow to Write Three Act Structure
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