Today on Writers' Voices we delve into two of my favorite subjects- happiness and philosophy, with a delightful author who has spent a lot of time thinking about both.  FRÉDÉRIC LENOIR is a philosopher, sociologist, and religious historian, and the author of numerous essays, books, and novels, including historical thrillers such as "Oracle of the Moon" and the transformative fable "The Soul of the World." He is a professor at L’École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, one of France’s elite universities, and is the editor of the bimonthly Le Monde des religions. Lenoir is host and producer of a weekly program about religion and philosophy on France Culture radio.

"Happiness: A Philosopher's Guide" was a bestseller in Europe and has now been translated into English. In this book, Lenoir examines how history’s greatest philosophers and religious figures have answered life’s most fundamental question:What is happiness and how do I achieve it?

At the end of today's show, we will announce details of the Inkfingerz 2015 Creative Prose Contest, co-sponsored by 1st World Publishing. Grand prize is a publishing contract!  Tune in for details, or go to writersvoices.com for details.

If you have ever dreamed about publishing your first novel, you will definitely want to tune in to Writers' Voices this week as we speak with Amy Spitzfaden, co-winner of the first Inkfingerz Publishing Contest sponsored by Writers' Voices and 1st World Publishing, both of Fairfield Iowa.

It is really exciting for us to read this book and know that we helped make it happen!

She graduated with a literature and writing degree from Maharishi University of Management in 2012 and now lives in Temple, New Hampshire with her husband, Ravi. She works as editor and social media manager at PSCS Consulting in Peterborough.

Amy is back in Fairfield for a short time to launch her book.  She will be reading and signing books at Revelations Saturday, June 28 at 1:30 pm so y'all come!

"Shiny"  is a powerful and touching novel by Rudy Wilson, co-winner of the 2013 Inkfingerz writing competition sponsofed by Writers' Voices and 1st World Publishing.  Join us this week on Writer's Voices as Rudy tells the story behind "Shiny" and its long and winding path to publication. We will also delve into how Rudy stepped onto the writing path and what has kept him writing through its many ups and downs.

Rudy is the author of four books including "The Red Truck" and "Sonja's Blue," and has published widely in literary magazines and online (Check out some of his essays about writing and publishing on writersvoices.com. ) Among his many distinctions, Rudy was awarded an NEA fellowship for fiction and was nominated last year for the prestigious Pushcart Prize.  He has an MFA from the University of Iowa's Writing Workshop and has taught fiction writing for many years. Rudy is a popular guest on Writer's Voices and we are glad to have him back!

Today's the day that Writers' Voices announces the winners in the 2013 Inkfingerz Writing Competition!  Our six finalists all have a Fairfield connection, and are competing for a grand prize of a publishng contract with 1st World Publishing, with a runner up prize a of full manuscript critique.

Listen in to Writers' Voices today (Friday December 6) at 1 pm or Monday November 9 at 8 am, as contest sponsors Monica Hadley and Caroline Kilbourn (co-hosts of Writers' Voices) and Rodney Charles (of 1stWorld Publishing,) discuss the contest and the finalists' entries.  We will also play short excerpts of the writers reading their work.  You can listen to and/or read the full contest entries (which are 6 - 10 page excerpts of a completed book) at the Writers' Voices writing competition site. You can continue to vote on the Inkfingerz Facebook page for your favorite by hitting the "Like" button until 12:45 on Friday, while we are on the air. It is a close race. Let's show these authors some love for all their hard work!

The finalists are: "Shiny Apalaris" by Rudy Wilson, "Untold" by Amy Spitzfaden, "City of Three Rivers" by Grace Carter,  "Home Quest: Banished" by Tom Carlisle, (all novels,) "The Sprite" a short-story collection by John Michael Foster,and "On Writing By an Old Novice," poetry by Emily June Breffle.

Today's the day - that Writers' Voices announces the finalists in the 2013 Inkfingerz Writing Competition!  Our six finalists all have a Fairfield connection, and are competing for a grand prize of a publishng contract with 1st World Publishing, with a runner up prize a of full manuscript critique.

Listen in to Writers' Voices today (Friday November 8) at 1 pm or Monday November 11 at 8 am, as the finalists read from their works, then go to to the Inkfingerz Facebook page to vote for your favorite by hitting the "Like" button. The show will be available online at kruufm.com and writersvoices.com. Text of manuscript excerpts is available at the Writers' Voices writing competition site.  Voting continues until December 6, 1:45 pm central, when we will announce the winner live on air!

The finalists are: "Shiny Apalaris" by Rudy Wilson, "Untold" by Amy Spitzfaden, "City of Three Rivers" by Grace Carter,  "Home Quest: Banished" by Tom Carlisle, (all novels,) "The Sprite" a short-story collection by John Michael Foster,and "On Writing By an Old Novice," poetry by Emily June Breffle.