Arts Unlimited contest looking for submissions
Toni Louise Diol of Arlington Heights has been writing poetry for years, self-publishing a book 10 years ago, which drew a wide audience for her ability to preserve life memories in poetry form.
However, it took the Daily Herald's annual Arts Unlimited Community Art & Writing Contest to draw her into writing again - and polishing her work enough to be judged.
The motivation worked well enough that Diol won first place last year in poetry for her work titled "Scent of Rain."
Diol says receiving that phone call saying she won was a thrill, and even more satisfying was having her poem published in the Daily Herald and hearing from so many people about her work.
"It was amazing how my poem touched people and brought back remembrances of times when they had hung clothes on the line to dry," Diol says.
The experience motivated her so much that she says not only will she submit another poem this year, she is gathering material to publish a second book.
Each year, the Daily Herald partners with Northwest Suburban High School District 214 to sponsor the Art & Writing Contest, allowing adults who live in the district to compete alongside students in the annual Arts Unlimited competition.
The contest is open to submissions through March 1, says Jennifer Aguilar-Iannotti, an Elk Grove High School teacher who is coordinator of Arts Unlimited.
Entries can include short stories of less than 1,500 words, poems and artwork, from traditional drawings and paintings to photography and multimedia.
Entering the contest and earning recognition has opened a whole new world for Dennis Depcik of Buffalo Grove. He won third place in 2013 for his short story, "A Wanted Death," about the final days before his beloved wife, Maggie, passed away,
"It was my first time winning a writing award," Depcik says.
Depcik went on to self-publish a book, "Wouldn't It Be Something," about letters he and his wife exchanged while he was in the Army and stationed in Europe. She was the much younger sister of his sister-in-law.
The book - originally intended for family - drew him interviews on radio and throughout the community, and it led him to submit another prose entry last year, "A Soft Knock," which earned third place.
"I didn't think anyone else would be interested in a love story about two people they didn't know," Depcik says. "But winning that first award in 2013 made me realize that my writing could touch many people - outside my family as well."
The contest is open to all residents in the District 214 boundaries, which includes Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights, Rolling Meadows and Wheeling.
All entries must be submitted by email to herald.contest@d214.org. Winners will be notified by April 1, receive cash prizes, be published in the Daily Herald and be recognized at the Arts Unlimited reception.
Arts Unlimited Community Art & Writing Contest
Who's eligible: Residents of Northwest Suburban High School District 214
What's eligible: Artwork, poetry and prose in any genre, style or theme
What winners get: Recognition at a reception, work published in the Daily Herald, cash prizes
Entry deadline: March 1
Winners named: April 1
Questions: jennifer.aguila@d214.org
<b>Submission guidelines</b>• All entries must be emailed to herald.contest@d214.org and include name, title of piece, address, phone number
• Artwork must be attached as a JPEG, minimum 300 dpi, and print-ready
• Writing must be attached as a Microsoft Word file
• Poems should not exceed 50 lines
• Prose should not exceed 1,500 words
• Writing must be typed (prose should be double-spaced) in 12-point font
• Only one submission per category per individual