Are You the Next Edward Abbey?

Fancy yourself an outdoor scribe of great talent but little recognition? Now's your chance to get the outdoor kudos you so richly deserve, but a word of warning: You'll be compared to one of the greats.

The writing of Edward Abbey is the theme to this year's "Confluence: A Celebration of Reading and Writing" conference in Moab, UT. For their first online writing contest, entrants can submit essays to the conference's website. You'll be judged on writing a piece that best celebrates the spirit and emotion of Ol' Ed Abbey — specifically, an essay that "creates a desire to get off the couch and get outside - an article that brings the author's place, its smells and the feeling of being there, right to the reader and motivates him or her to do something, to get going."

In addition to bragging rights, winners will receive $250 and be published in Mountain Gazette.

For a full list of rules and regulations, check the official entry page here.

Oh, and BACKPACKER editor-in-chief Jonathan Dorn will be a judge. I've heard he's a big Ed Abbey fan. No pressure, though.

— Ted Alvarez

Confluence Literary Festival Online Writing Contest