I’m not real clear why this is a women-only issue, but the American Library Association and Woman’s Day magazine are teaming up on a national essay contest.
The topic, according to the Westport Public Library: “Why is the Westport Library important to you?”
(I assume women can insert the name of their own library — I don’t think all women in America will write about Westport.)
From now through May 9, women ages 18 and up are invited to send in stories of 700 words or less. (Why the age limit? Beats me.)
Winners will be published in the March 2011 edition of Woman’s Day. Seems far in the future, but who am I to judge?
The fact that Westport Public Library director Maxine Bleiweis is a woman is probably not a winning topic.
This seems like a great topic. Not that Westport women need help figuring out what to write, but the Westport library offers an incredible array of services: job seekers’ forums, Kindles to check out, intriguing events (examples: a mother-daughter self-defense workshop, and a presentation on packing healthy school lunches), a superb children’s library, an enticing cafe and a well-stocked DVD section, to name just a few.
Still stumped? How about the library’s yeowoman’s work during last month’s storm? Entire families camped there for days. It was the place to go to read, socialize, use the internet, charge cell phones, and of course dry your hair.
If you’ve got severe writer’s’ block, check out last year’s winners here. Then get cranking, ladies. Tell the rest of the country how wonderful our library is for all Westporters, regardless of age, race or economic status.
And gender.
(Send submissions to womansday@ala.org. Click here for more information, including official rules. To share your entry with the Westport library staff, email mbleiweis@westportlibrary.org.)
