Are you a veteran with a story to tell?

If so … First of all, thank you. Second, the Missouri Writers Guild is looking for you. The statewide guild for wielders of the written word is launching its Missouri Warrior Writers Project for soldiers and their families.

Through workshops and publication opportunities, the project seeks to give a voice to the experience of veterans and those who love them. That includes teaching veterans how to express themselves in writing, but also teaching military couples how to journal their feelings during deployment and even helping children of deployed soldiers record their thoughts.

The workshops, which have been held in rounds since August, are based primarily at the Veterans Affairs hospital at Jefferson Barracks in suburban St. Louis. The project’s most ambitious work is something soldiers statewide can participate in easily.

The Warrior Writers Project is looking to publish an anthology of Iraq and Afghanistan war stories, to be titled “Holding Each Elephant’s Tail: Voices from the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.” The guild says on its website that it is looking for stories of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans’ wartime experiences and transition back to civilian life, as well as reflections from those who have never been deployed. Prose and poetry pieces will be accepted; length restrictions apply. A $250 prize will be awarded to the top submissions in fiction, poetry and creative nonfiction.

The guild is aiming for a release date of Armed Forces Day (May 19, 2012), so submissions must be in by Dec. 30.

To see a previous Missouri Writers guild anthology, check out their website for information on “Storm Country: The Anthology,” the proceeds from which went toward furnishing rebuilt libraries in the Joplin School District.