Bonham -- Songwriters, it’s time once again to polish up your prose and tune up the six-string guitar as the third annual Ruby Allmond Songwriting Contest gets underway.

Named in honor of Fannin County’s best-known songwriter, this contest, sponsored by the Special Collections Department of the James G. Gee Library at Texas A&M University-Commerce and Bonham businesses, will once again offer free, family-friendly entertainment for music lovers as well as a chance for 10 talented finalists to test original material in front of a live audience.

10 finalists of the 2011 Ruby Allmond Songwriting Contest: (L-R) Juli Wild, Michael Waid, Wylie Mark Wilson, Janet Leslie Reynolds, Callie Maxwell, Jill Hobbs, Casie Luong,
Gary Hamilton and Jimmy Don Freeman

Aspiring songwriters should send in original songs recorded on cassettes or CDs, along with two sets of lyrics sheets. A panel of judges will then select 10 finalists to perform in Bonham August 4, 2012, with cash prizes going to the top three contestants.

Michael Waid walked away with the championship in 2011. The San Antonio native's flawless rendition of his original composition, "Abilene," earned him $300 and an opportunity to record the winning song in a recording studio at the new Texas A&M University-Commerce Music Building.

Michael Waid

The winner of the inaugural Ruby Allmond Songwriting Contest in 2010, Commerce, Texas resident Lou Ann Petty, is one of the top five finalists for Top Female Vocalist in this year's Texas Music Awards.^TM  

Lou Ann Petty

Send your songs to Ruby Allmond Songwriting Contest, P.O. Box 507, Bonham, TX 75418 before July 1, 2012. For more information, please visit www.rubyallmond.com

2011 winners -- Master of ceremonies Matt Meinke (left), Chief Announcer and host of Notably Texan at KETR 88.9 FM, stands next to the three contestants who finished in the money in 2011: Michael Waid of San Antonio, Texas (1st place), Casie Luong of Wichita Falls, Texas (2nd place) and Gary Hamilton of Bailey, Texas (3rd place).

"It’s time to check rhythms and rhyme verses," says contest founder Audra Brock. "It’s songwriting time."