Special Offer from Women for Hire Career Expos

Women for Hire, and organization that provides career advice, tools, networking and guidance for women, is hosting two upcoming career expos: one in Los Angeles on Tuesday, April 17, and one in Chicago on Wednesday, April 25. These 4-hour long career expos are already free and open to the public, but Women for Hire is extending a special offer to Sigma Tau Delta members: the chance to attend the Early Morning Seminar FREE of charge. These 90-minute pre-expo sessions, which require pre-registration and are normally a $10 fee, give you tips and tricks from the experts that will help prepare you to do your best during the career expo. Attendees to the Early Morning Seminar are also given early admission to the career expo, ahead of the other job seekers. Click on the expo link above and scroll down for information about the featured speakers at each seminar.

To register, email emma@womenforhire.com. Type “Sigma Tau Delta Early Morning Seminar” in the subject line. Mention that you are a Sigma Tau Delta member and tell her you would like to register for the Early Morning Seminar. Include your full name, and make sure you state which expo you plan to attend.

Midwestern Student Leadership Candidate

Emily Elizabeth Scott
Candidate for Midwestern Associate Student Representative, 2012-2013
Junior, Alpha Nu Pi Chapter, Western Michigan University, MI

Positions, other memberships, offices, etc., currently or recently held:

Chapter President

Explain why you are running for office and comment on any skills, experience, or personal qualities you possess that would contribute to your performing the following duties: promoting communication among chapters other than your own, producing official publications, assisting your Regent, serving on the Student Leadership Committee. Further comments or ideas are encouraged. Include your region and your first and last name at the top of the page. Please do not include sensitive personal information in your essay. Candidate essays will be displayed publicly before the election. Do not exceed 500 words:

As the president of my university's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, I am familiar with how the organization works on a local level, and am committed to forming strong relationships with other regional chapters in order to learn ways to better improve upon our own chapters. My experience as an editor for a student run publication "The White Goat," as well as my two years of interning for WMU's graduate literary magazine "Third Coast," have prepared me well to work on our region's publication "Ex Medio." I know that as ambitious leader, effective communicator and creative student I am an excellent candidate for this position.

Keeping it Short: Flash Fiction

by Ashlyn Wells
Midwestern Region Student Representative, 2011-2012

I was first introduced to flash fiction while reading a local arts and entertainment magazine—the editors were accepting short story submissions of 500 words or less as part of a contest.  At first I thought it would be easy to write something that short, but when I tried to whip something up, I realized it wasn’t so simple. As a creative writing major, I have gotten very comfortable with the short story, with having several pages I could use to flesh out my character arcs and plot; covering all that in 500 words was a real challenge for me. Having to boil the story down to its most essential elements and focus on each individual word was a great exercise, and one I found fun and useful.

Flash fiction, also known as the short short story, sudden fiction, microfiction, micro-story, or postcard fiction, is a type of short story that uses as few words as possible. Its word limits can range from as few as 55 words to as many as 1,000. Flash fiction pieces include all the traditional story elements such as character and plot, but the word limit often forces the author to imply some elements they would normally write out. One great example of implied elements can be seen in this short short penned by Ernest Hemingway: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

Flash fiction contests like the one I first encountered are becoming more and more popular, and one of the places members of the Midwestern region can submit flash fiction is to Sigma Tau Delta’s Midwestern Regional Journal, “Ex Medio.” In addition to flash fiction of up to 750 words, this online publication is accepting poetry and artwork (photography as well as original artwork). The deadline for submission is January 31. View the complete Call for Papers.  As the current editor of the publication, I encourage you to submit or email me with your questions.

Whether you're a creative writer by trade or a casual writer looking for a new and interesting format, flash fiction is a fun twist on a genre we know and love.Try it out and see what the buzz is about!

Midwestern Region Call for Submissions

Midwestern Region
Journal Title - Ex Medio
Call for Entries

Submission Due Date: January 6, 2012

The 2012 edition will be electronic and is open to original poetry, artwork and (NEW this year) flash fiction from members of Sigma Tau Delta's Midwestern Region. Contributors are welcome to submit up to three entries from each category. If submitting multiple entries, each must be sent as a separate email.

Look Ma, we're blogging!

It's official! The Student Leadership News has ditched the semiannual newsletter for a blog which will bring you all of Sigma Tau Delta's student and alumni news in a more timely and interactive way than ever before. We also offer a variety of subscription choices to help you get the news you want, how you want: Facebook, email, or RSS. Check back soon for helpful articles, inspiring chapter updates, and valuable resources for chapters and individuals. For more information, or to submit a story, contact sigmatd.sa1@gmail.com.