Copper Nickel

Contest Finalists Announced

2010-07-01T22:46:47Z

After more than a month of reading and re-reading and debating and comparing, we now have a list of finalists for our fiction and our poetry contests. E-mails are going out to all who entered.

To protect the integrity of the process, we are announcing only the titles of the finalist entries, and not the names of the authors, so these will remain hidden from the final judges. We will update this list, announcing the names of finalists once a decision has been received from each of the judges in late August.

FICTION FINALISTS

"Life Study"
"The Night Garden"
"Aliens"
"There's Something Else Now"
"The Preservation of Objects Lost at Sea"
"Hotel Grand Abyss"
"Trash"
"A Purposeful Violence"
"Eye of the Night"
"Our Youthful Selves"
"Hotel"

POETRY FINALISTS

"Jacob's Ladder"
"Archaeology of Willendorf / Ascendency of Willendorf"
"When A Series of Pulses"
"Photograph of Faulkner"
"Her Hand, The Compass"
"When I Was A Child"
"Dear Ghost"
"Culture and Anarchy"
"The Epidemics of Desire"
"At Zarha's Salon for Ladies"
"A Patterning of Fire, a Gathering of Ash"
"I'm Singing This Poem"
"If the Dead Could Just Hang Around"

Stay tuned for more updates from the contest.

Contest now closed

2010-06-02T13:25:59Z

Thanks to all who entered our first contest. We are no longer accepting entries and turn to the difficult task of selecting finalists. We will notify entrants about the finalists by the end of June and forward those to the final judges for selection. Winners will be announced by the end of August.

Contest Update

2010-05-29T20:04:37Z

Because Monday, May 31, is a postal holiday, we will accept entries through our online system through 11:59pm on Tuesday, June 1, and an entry with associated entry fee postmarked by June 2.

Dear Author

2010-05-04T02:20:17Z

Yes, you submitted work before we switched to our online submission manager system. We read it---actually four times, which is what we do with every submission---and we e-mailed our response.

We're sorry you didn't receive our response. Sometimes this happens. Many ISPs have recently adopted spam-blocking measures that, for whatever reason, may have blocked our message. Sometimes individual users have chosen more aggressive spam-blocking measures, resulting in, for whatever reason, our messages ending up in the "Bulk Mail" or "Spam" folder.

We suspect, too, that someone else, unrelated to us, also with the same hosting provider we used, was sending out a lot of e-mail, resulting in IP blacklisting and subsequent e-mail blocking.

Once we suspected this, we changed hosting providers and e-mail protocols.

We have tried.

We switched to the online system precisely to avoid the current situation.

And we have tried to e-mail you on several occasions, but we can't always tell when an e-mail is blocked.

Please accept our apologies. We treated your submission well.

You probably won't receive this e-mail message either, but please know it wasn't because of what we did or did not do.

We do value every author and every author's work, and we hope you'll try us again.

Sincerely,

The Editors

Contest Entry Deadline Extended

2010-04-29T17:20:24Z

We've opted to extend our contest entry deadline to May 31st. We're still eager to see your work. Full details here: http://www.copper-nickel.org/contest/

New Pages Review of Copper Nickel 12

2010-04-20T19:14:59Z

Thanks to Sima Rabinowitz and the folks at New Pages for their review of Copper Nickel 12, which captures the thematizing push of our editorial program so nicely.

Copper Nickel 12 isn't a theme issue, but a theme of sorts emerges nonetheless, or at least an organizing principle that is highly appealing and largely successful - how do we relate to the things, the stuff, the variety and quantity of forms and objects around us, human and non-human.

The review closes with as good a recommendation as I've read in a while, one that makes me happy that we're not the only ones singing the praise:

As far as lists of the things we connect to and which populate our environment go, add Copper Nickel to the list of things you intend to read soon.

AWP: Postscript

2010-04-12T19:22:07Z

Very briefly, we want to thank all of you who came to Denver and played with us and chatted with us over the weekend. It was a wonderful time for us, and we hope it was for you.

For those of you who found our advice helpful, you're welcome. Let's do it again some time.

If you missed us, it's not too late (never too late) to subscribe for the same low price: $13.

Some of you loved the new t-shirts. We'll have another batch of them for sale in another week or two.

Meanwhile, see what other AWPers are saying about CN:

Other Mentions:

Copper Nickel Presents An Audible Edition, April 10 @ 8:00pm

2010-04-06T23:07:30Z

During the AWP Conference, Copper Nickel will present an audible edition of the journal featuring past contributors---including Hadara Bar-Nadav, Peter Cooley, Mike Copperman, Alyson Hagy, James Hoch, Soham Patel, Deborah Poe, and Aurelie Sheehan---on Saturday, April 10th, beginning at 8:00pm at the Denver Press Club, 1330 Glenarm (just 2 blocks from the Convention Center). The event is free and open to all comers.

Check back here for a table of contents, coming soon.

Colorado Writers Read

2010-04-06T17:35:39Z

Look for us in the mix: we're hosting the second part of this extravaganza on Saturday, April 10...

AWP Extra: Create Denver Week

2010-04-05T15:39:35Z

Some of you who are coming to Denver for AWP might be interested to know (and you probably didn't know) that Denver is home to a burgeoning hand-made movement, and Create Denver Week, one of its creatures, sanctioned by the city, begins on Saturday with a pop-up market just blocks from the convention center, described thus by the Denver Office of Cultural Affairs:

Create Denver Commons: Paper Art + Pop-Up Market
Produced by DOCA + Brian Corrigan
Pop-Up Market by Samuel Schimek of 15 min.
Sat, April 10 - Sat, April 17 11:00AM - 7:00PM
1600 Glenarm Place, Ste. 110 (across from the Paramount Theater)

Using this premium storefront space, DOCA will create an "economic garden" installation and pop-up store that visually represents growing Denver's creative sector. The installation will be designed by local professional artists and seeks to engage the community by asking them to help contribute to the garden participating in flower making workshops. All made from recycled paper, the installation will include flowers, garlands, garden monsters and laser cut cardboard cutouts.

Samuel Schimek, creative mind behind 15 min., will champion the Create Denver Pop-Up Store that will feature 100% Denver designed goods. Examples of merchandise are clothing, furniture, books, posters, art and jewelry.

In addition, we will continue to engage the public by inviting them to write their ideas on how to grow Denver's creative economy at designated areas in the space during both the flower making sessions and the pop-up store hours. We will capture this information on large pieces of white butcher paper that will later be used in future Create Denver endeavors.

Here's how Samuel himself describes it:

Installation of the POP-Up store is underway now. We are gathering great products designed in Denver to be featured in the store. Construction of the store is almost entirely of recycled cardboard boxes!

The Store opens April 10th and is open until April 17th. Business hours will be 11am - 7pm daily! Visitors can enjoy artwork, clothing, jewelry, paper products, and many other items all from Denver designers and artists.

AWP Weather: What To Expect, What To Pack, What To Wear

2010-04-04T20:37:09Z

If you're coming from out of town for the AWP Conference, you may be wondering what to pack and what to wear for the weather. It looks like it's going to be mighty fine, sunny with highs in the mid 60s, maybe even around 70. At night and in the morning, however, it will be cool, and this is Denver in the Spring: warm enough in mid-afternoon to make you roll up your sleeves, cool enough after sundown to need a jacket. "Layering" is the by-word.

It shouldn't rain or snow during the conference, so you needn't worry much about slick gear. But you may want to pack some sunscreen and sunglasses: when it's sunny here, you can burn real easy, and it's brighter than anyone can describe.

You may also want to read my earlier post "Notes On Altitude" for some preparatory advice.

Hangovers and Layovers: Breakfast Spots Downtown

2010-03-30T03:04:18Z

Breakfast. Whether you're recovering from your first AWP hangover or just packing in for a long day and/or night of literary shenanigans, you might need a giant stack of pancakes or a serious deal of bacon. These are the spots to set in your sights.

Snooze: An A.M. Eatery. This is one of the newer establishments, originally opened as a refuge for those who need a little grease after Last Call, but it's now the reigning king of breakfast in Denver, and with such specialties as Sweet Potato Pancakes (with pecan butter!) it's easy to understand why. 2262 Larimer Street. Mon - Fri: 6:30a til 2:30p Sat & Sun: 7a til 2:30p. Long waits are common after 9am on Saturday and Sunday.

Dixon's (1610 16th Street) is a staple of LoDo (Lower Downtown). Locally owned, they do much of their business for lunch and supper, but breakfast is solid, though their sister restaurant Racine's (650 Sherman) is better known for early vittles. Easily accessible via 16th Street Mall Shuttle.

The Delectable Egg has two locations in striking distance of the conference. One is at 1625 Court Place and the other is at 1642 Market.

You could get breakfast elsewhere, by why would you want to?

Best place to get a premium burger: H Town

2010-03-30T03:01:30Z

A new addition to downtown, H Burger slings excellent burgers in the form of ground angus, Colorado lamb, tuna, and others. They don't slouch on the fries, either--regular, parmesan truffle, and sweet potato have all tickled our fancies. The milkshakes are obscenely thick, and the dining room is commodious and sleekly-styled. And are you really going to turn down the $5 gravy fries during their 3-6pm happy hour? We didn't think so. On the corner of 16th & Blake--take the free 16th Street shuttle to Blake.

Best Pizza Late Night (or anytime): Wazee Supper Club

2010-03-30T02:58:45Z

The Copper Nickel crew has put in some serious time at Wazee.--it's our go-to place for a post-reading nosh. Between the delicious pizza, the top-drawer selection of beers on tap, and the old school ambiance (we're suckers for the black and white linoleum tile), we couldn't be more grateful for this LoDo (lower downtown) mainstay. They're open until 2 am from Monday to Saturday (Sundays they take it easy & close at midnight). Take the free 16th Street shuttle to Wazee and walk one block south.

Best Place for Beer Snobs: Falling Rock Tap House

2010-03-30T02:56:01Z

Over 75 beers on tap? Check--their motto is "No Crap on Tap," and they mean it. Over 130 bottled? Double-check. Falling Rock is a noisy, unpretentious place to meet with friends and celebrate the beverage that Homer Simpson astutely referred to as "the cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems." While you're there, please make sure you check out some of Colorado's own fine brews, such as Odell, Great Divide, and Oskar Blues, Falling Rock Tap House is at 1919 Blake--take the free 16th Street shuttle to Blake and walk 3 ½ blocks north.