— Photos, Artwork, Videos Accepted; New Contest Deadline January 19, 2016 —
(Updated June 22, 2015 – The 22nd Annual CWA Awards Banquet will be held on Friday evening June 24, 2016, at the Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa outside Phoenix, AZ, in conjunction with the 2016 BlogPaws Conference. Those interested in attending BlogPaws programming can check out registration links here. And here’s the link to the resort. BlogPaws will soon post details about discounted hotel reservations, which should be in the $159/night range. BlogPaws traditionally has a “free night” on Friday, so the CWA Banquet will not conflict with their events, CWA members and contest nominees can double their pleasure and attend BlogPaws events, and BlogPaws folks can join our furry throng for a fantastic Awards Night celebration!)
May 27, 2015 – New York – Recognizing the new cattitude in all things related to cats, the Cat Writers’ Association (CWA) is calling all cat loving writers, bloggers, artists, photographers, and videographers to submit to its prestigious contest. Up for grabs? Prestige and the chance to win special awards offering more than $10,000 in prize money! Entrants are encouraged to submit their cat-centric work, which will then be evaluated by a panel of professionals, including writers, artists, video producers, veterinarians and other highly credentialed judges.
The top submission for each category will receive the coveted Muse MedallionTM. In addition to the highly sought-after Muse Medallions, numerous special awards, many including cash awards, are also available through the generosity of corporate and private sponsors. The winners will be announced at the 2016 CWA Conference at a specially scheduled awards banquet.
“We want everyone to know while we began as a writing organization, the contest is not limited to writing. Writing is at the core of what we do, but the amount of creativity in the cat communications world has exploded, especially online. All the judges are looking forward to seeing the breadth of all the entries. As prior award winners, we can all attest to the value of winning these awards,” said Arden Moore, award-winning author, radio host, pet first aid master instructor and CWA 2015 Contest Chair.
This year’s contest is also unique because there are many additional opportunities to submit cat-centric work. The 2015 contest includes 54 regular categories and at least 16 special awards. Candidates also have an extended time frame for eligible work, as the CWA has expanded the entry eligibility period for this year’s contest to 18 months instead of the one-year time period in prior years. Entries must be published between June 16, 2014 and December 31, 2015 to be eligible, and postmarked no later than January 19, 2016 to be eligible to compete in this contest.
Background on the Muse Medallion & Special Awards
In November 1994, the newly formed Cat Writers’ Association, held its first writing competition. Founding member, the late Karen Kuykendall, designed the coveted Muse Medallion. Karen was also the first recipient of a Muse Medallion. The Muse is awarded to the best work of like kind, such as newspaper articles about health and general care, magazine articles about behavior, or newsletter columns. The special awards go to the entry that best covers a specific topic.
The Contest
Below are the links to the 2015 CWA Communication Contest entry forms for regular and special award entries, as well as the complete contest rules. The complete rules are also found at the CWA Contest page. Highlights of the rules include:
- Eligible entries must be first published or broadcasted between June 16, 2014 and December 31, 2015.
- All entries must be postmarked no later than January 19, 2016 to be eligible.
- This contest is open to both members and nonmembers, as long as their work qualifies under the contest rules.
- The categories of Online Magazine or Newsletter, and Website will be judged live (per the posted rules) from the entrant’s website between February 1 and February 29, 2016. For these categories only, submit an entry form with the URL included.
Rules & Categories
2015 CWA COMMUNICATION CONTEST RULES
Entry Forms
2015 Regular Categories Entry Form
2015 Special Awards Entry Form
2015 Shojai Mentor Award Entry Form
2015 Michael Brim Distinguished Service Award Entry Form
Entry Fees and PayPal Info
About the Cat Writers’ Association
The Cat Writers’ Association, Inc. (CWA) is an international journalism organization founded in 1992 to promote the interests of cats; to provide a medium for exchange of ideas, methods and professional courtesies; and to promote a high standard of ethics in the collection, creation, and dissemination of cat information. CWA is a dynamic professional group of passionate cat advocates composed of writers, bloggers, photographers, artists, and broadcasters. The Association promotes mentorship for new writers, provides writing/publishing educational opportunities, and seeks to improve the quality of cat information by recognizing and rewarding outstanding published work. See www.catwriters.com for further information. Follow CWA on Twitter at @CatWriters and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CatWriters.
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For a downloadable copy of the release, go here.
