This week: Collections Edited by: Jeff  
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"You never know what you can do until you try,
and very few try unless they have to."
-- C.S. Lewis
About The Editor: Greetings! My name is Jeff and I'm one of your regular editors for the Noticing Newbies Official Newsletter! I've been a member of Writing.com since 2003, and have edited more than 350 newsletters across the site during that time. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me via email or the handy feedback field at the bottom of this newsletter! 
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COLLECTIONS
Did you know that "The Quills" , the site's unofficial annual awards ceremony, has a number of categories beyond the usual Best Short Story, Best Portfolio, Best Contest, etc.? There are a handful of lesser known categories that often fly under the radar if they're even awarded at all because lack of qualifying entries is always a concern. I'm talking about three categories in particular:
 Best Short Story Collection
Best Fiction Collection
Best Mixed Collection
Best Short Story Collection consists of at least five short stories created in the same year, of up to 5,000 words each. Stories must be collected into a book item, or as static items in a folder.
Best Fiction Collection consists of at least five pieces of fiction created in the same year, at least one of which must be over 5,000 words. Pieces must be collected into a book item, or as static items in a folder.
Best Mixed Collection consists of at least five pieces created in the same year, and must contain at least two of the following types of items: fiction prose, nonfiction prose, and/or poetry. Pieces must be collected into a book item, or as static items in a folder.
There are a handful of contests and activities that have popped up over the years that have encouraged the creation of entries that would meet the criteria for one of these categories. "Musicology Anthology" is running now through the end of June and challenges you to write short stories based on the track listing of a musical album of your choice, and would technically be eligible in the Best Short Story Collection category. A decade ago, Indelible Ink  ran a contest called Running on Empty which was a marathon-themed challenge to write a variety of different pieces (poems, articles, short stories, etc.). An entrant's body of work into that contest would have been eligible in the Best Mixed Collection category.
The Quills aside, though, collections can also be a creative and fulfilling way of exploring a topic, theme, or character in more depth than a single work can provide.
The Best American Series is an annual collection of short works on a particular thematic topic, and ranges from The Best American Short Stories to The Best American Essays to more specific subjects like The Best American Travel Writing and The Best American Food Writing.
Similarly, within the genre of science fiction, there are a number of "punk" derivatives (subgenres that focus on a particular aesthetic). The most familiar is probably cyberpunk (movies like Blade Runner and The Matrix, games like Deus Ex or Ghost In The Shell, the tabletop roleplaying game Shadowrun, etc.), but there are any number of other varietals: steampunk, biopunk, dieselpunk, etc. My current favorite is "solarpunk" which is an alternative to cyberpunk that envisions a future with an optimistic or utopian outlook on matters of the environment, social justice, etc. There are a number of solarpunk story collections such as Glass and Gardens and Sunvault, which focus on stories that highlight conventions of the genre.
Other collections might include essays with different perspectives on a central issue, short stories by other authors set a particular fictional universe, or even an assortment of different types of writing (nonfiction, short fiction, poetry, etc.) that an author uses in an attempt to process an important event in their life (the death of loved one, the assumption of a new major role like becoming a parent, etc.).
If you're happy writing standalone works, that's great. But if you're feeling like the same one-off short stories, poems, essays, etc. are starting to get a little stale and are looking for a new challenge, consider putting together a collection of works. Find that theme, central conflict, character, world, or subject matter that inspires you to create more than just a one-off piece of writing and instead challenges you to explore it with a number of different works.
And hey, you never know, maybe it'll be eligible for a Quill Award. 
Until next time,
Jeff
If you're interested in checking out my work:
"Blogocentric Formulations"
"New & Noteworthy Things"
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This month's official Writing.com writing contest is:
I also encourage you to check out the following items:
EXCERPT: Lisa was on the train with her ear-buds in. Blake, her brother had told her he could hear her music even on low volume. That was not her concern today, her parents weren't with her and she could listen to the nastiest lyrics, anybody who didn't like it, could just give her some space. It was daylight, hence the bright overhead lights were set to dim. Lisa was surprised by how much the inside of a train looked like the inside of an airplane. She couldn't believe she had flown in an airplane probably 20 times, before discovering this. Now this was the way to travel.
EXCERPT: As the sun sets upon the horizon, inside the mansion of Lord Gerand Miriosta held a lively banquet. He is the appointed host of this year’s ball after the annual trade agreement of Militaria with its neighboring kingdoms yesterday. The ballroom boasted its spacious dining area with the tables spread out across the room. At one side of the room, musicians play on a small elevated area in the middle with the tables of food at the corners. A spacious area in the middle of the room was designated for dancing. The chandelier was hanging on the ceiling above the dancing area with lamps lining the sides of the room. The room was evident of the sleek curves and simple yet elegant architecture native only in Militaria.
EXCERPT: Hi. My name is Sara Lowell, and I am a member of an elite squad known as the G.O.A.---- God's Obscure Army. Yes, the one true God, that is. The one of the Bible who made the heavens, the seas, and sent Jesus as a sacrifice for the world. So what makes this army so obscure? We are saints who are repeatedly used by God in the manner in which Moses and Elijah were on the Mount of Transfiguration, somewhat to the same capacity of angels. So in short we're sort of dead, but not in heaven yet, and dropped here and there in this earthly concept we have of time doing God's work. Vainglorious work aside, it seems all of us saints in the G.O.A. have this one burning desire in common: a want for home.
EXCERPT: Bzzt...Bzzt...Bzzt…
I can faintly hear the buzzing of my alarm clock, indicating that it’s time for me to wake up. The buzzing continues for about another minute before I get fed up with it. I peek one eye open to see where my alarm is, extending one hand, I shut it off with an annoyed slam to the snooze button. With a relieved huff, I turn over and try to fall asleep again.
Nothing can ruin this peacefulness.
Oh, how wrong I am.
EXCERPT: Specialists at the University of Montreal are right now chipping away at a remedial immunization equipped for battling various types of cancer. The aftereffects of this investigation were distributed in the diary Nature Communications.
Will there at any point be an antibody fit for destroying disease?
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Feedback from "Noticing Newbies Newsletter (May 5, 2021)" about biographical information:
From hbk16:
Biography is important indeed and allows the author to enhance the credibility of his credentials. Knowing what kind of information to share with the public is very important indeed. It is good to remind newbies and all the authors about this.
Thanks for the feedback!
From Elfin Dragon-finally published :
This piece could not have come at a better time. I'm just starting to work on publishing a book of poetry and the editor of the publisher asked me to give him a biography. I actually drew a blank. I'm 51 and perhaps it was that I'd lived in different places and have done different things. I just wasn't sure what to put in a Bio for an actual book. Luckily, he helped me out.
It can be intimidating when someone asks you to put together a biography. Figuring out what parts of your experience and life to include can be challenging. I keep a biography with a few different variations (100 words, 250 words, 500 words, etc.) updated and on-hand so that I can use it as a template whenever someone asks me for one. That way I don't have to come up with something on the fly each time.
From ☮ The Grum Of Grums :
Couldn’t agree more with what Jeff has written in his newsletter. I particularly find the biographical details valuable if I’m providing feedback. It’s useful to know the age, location and place of birth, and especially if the contributor is an ESL writer. I can then tailor any feedback more accurately to the individual member.
Knowing something about a writer's background or experience level can definitely be helpful when providing feedback. I'm not sure I agree that their current location and place of birth are integral pieces of information, but definitely age, experiences level, and familiarity with the language if they're not a native speaker are all very useful details to know.
From ~ Santa Sisco ~ :
I was editing a How-To guide for the "Invalid Item" about how to fill in your Portfolio info and Biography, then your newsletter came out after I finished. An hour later I would have saved a lot of work. Thank you for a very informative newsletter, Jeff. I have added a link to this NL in our how-to book. Great work!
Glad this NL was helpful! Sorry it didn't come out a few hours earlier! 
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Noticing Newbies: June 02, 2021 Issue [#10799]
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