WIWA NEWSLETTER

Vol. 3, No. 5                               Oct. -- Nov. 2003
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Brochures for the Whidbey Island Writers Conference 2004 will be mailed the second week of Oct. If you do not receive one, but are interested in attending the conference, contact writers@whidbey.com to request a brochure.

CONTENTS
Message From the Editor
Letters to the Editor
Exciting Changes at WIWA
     --by Celeste Mergens
On the Island
Off the Island
Online Classes
Sex and the Singular Pronoun
     --by Dr. Richard Lederer
Cheers
WIWA's Online Noncredit Introductory Writing Classes and Advanced Workshops Start in January
     --Wayne Ude
Youth Scholarships Available to WIWC 2004
     --by Nancy Ruff
Recent Releases
A Writer Asks About Illustrators
Sea of Voices Still Heard
     --Marian Blue
Contact WIWA to Sponsor Your Event
     --Marian Blue
Contests and Market Requests
Receive Continuing Education Credits by Attending WIWC
     -- by Marian Blue
Sno-Isle Library Levy
Cyber Surfing
To Contact Us
To Subscribe or Unsubscribe

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MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR

Underpromise; overdeliver. --Tom Peters, Chicago Tribune


Recently I finished my twelfth story for Log Home Living, a feature about the Baker family's home. I call it my Baker's dozen, even if it isn't number 13.

After writing a dozen articles, I've learned something about Log Home Living's style and format, how to put together an acceptable lead and how to use transitions to avoid writing myself into a room without an escape route. I've also learned to interview as many sources as possible, because you never know who's going to feed you the morsel that adds zest to your story.

Once, when I finished writing a feature that was acceptable but lacked pizzazz, I felt like I'd missed the real story behind the home. Two days before the deadline, I still worried that the piece was flat. Reading through notes and contact numbers one more time, I picked up the phone and called the marketing representative of the company that provided the logs. I didn't expect to learn much, because I already had information about the logs and the home's construction. The rep said, "Did you know that the home owners won the lottery?" Bingo! My story went from lackluster to gold.

The homeowners hadn't said anything about their luck, perhaps out of modesty, but when I asked, they were eager to tell me more. Like a fairy tale, theirs was a rags to riches story. Both the husband and wife had been laid off from work when he bought a lottery ticket and won. Suddenly, I had a story with human interest.

The moral of this story isn't to rush out to buy a lottery ticket, unless you have spare change to feed to your needy government. It's to take the extra step in research, writing and editing. Like the baker who adds a 13th roll, deliver more than the expected.

May goodwill prevail,
Candace Allen

To read past issues of the newsletter see "News, Events & Resources" at: www.writeonwhidbey.com

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

A Playwright Remembers
One point in your newsletter struck a chord of golden memory. Tom Stoppard's, "The hard part is getting to the top of page one," is a paraphrase of my old mentor's comment to a theatre full of fellow playwrights: "I don't know how it is for you," Moss Hart confessed to us, "but for me, the hardest part is the fifth word."

As he waited for us to get it, there was an embarrassed hush throughout the audience, then the laughs began as each of us visualized himself or herself at the typewriter typing, "Act One, Scene One ... "

Best, Kevin O'Morrison

Three Cheers for Storytelling
After just reading the latest WIWA newsletter, I had to write to say how much I enjoyed your editorial and the great use of brewing sun tea as your analogy. How easily I can relate and concur with your excellent point to proof, proof, and have someone else review our work.

Also in this issue, I thoroughly enjoyed Susan Zwinger's essay, "To Become Old Time Story Tellers of Nature." I've found that by reading stories to seniors every Tuesday, in addition to the entertainment value, these stories reflect the listeners' lives and are a catalyst to rediscovering themselves by recalling those memories that had been tucked away and nearly forgotten. Three cheers for storytelling.

Keep up the good work.  I always enjoy receiving my newsletter.

In the spirit of writing and storytelling,
Diane Schuller

Seeks Information About Fairy Godmothers
Thanks to some useful feedback from Katharine Sands at the 2003 conference, I sharpened my query letter for a book of essays about real-life fairy godmothers enough that the acquisition editor at Red Wheel/Weiser wrote that she would be very interested in seeing my full proposal. I sent the proposal for Fairy Godmothers to both Red Wheel and Beyond Words a few weeks ago. So now I'm looking for more women to interview who had someone in their life they consider a fairy godmother -- someone other than a real mother who inspired them, encouraged them, and helped them achieve their dreams.

Did you have a fairy godmother in your life? Someone who could see you as you really are and how you could be? Someone who offered you new ways of seeing or being in the world? This relationship could be lifelong or your fairy godmother may have dropped in with just the right words or assistance and then disappeared from your life. If you did have a fairy godmother, I'd love to talk to you about it. Send me a few lines or a paragraph of information about your fairy godmother, and a phone number or an email address so I can call and arrange a convenient time for an interview.

Thanks for your help,
Lynn Willeford, willefrd@whidbey.com

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EXCITING CHANGES AT WIWA
by Celeste Mergens, WIWA Director

By the time you receive this issue of the Newsletter, thanks to the efforts of a large team (especially Wayne Ude and Davison Stivers) and CKDesigns and Big Mind Media, the Whidbey Island Writers Association's new Web site will be up and running. Take a look at www.writeonwhidbey.org. You can also access through the old Web address for the next few months. 

On the new Web site, you'll find all the information you've been used to getting from WIWA, as well as information about a number of new developments. Perhaps the most important of these are the founding of the Writers Institute of the Northwest, associated programs and retreats and our fund-raising for a site to house our offices and programs, including much-needed offices for the annual Whidbey Island Writers Conference and Association staff and Conference Committee, while creating a cultural haven for writers and a gathering place for the arts. The Conference will continue to be a mainstay of our organization, as will our local youth programs, writing classes, and writing groups here on Whidbey Island.

We'll also be offering more programs nationally, beginning with Online Noncredit Writing Workshops starting this January. We'll offer advanced workshops in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, and also beginning classes in fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and article writing. In fact, the need for a Web site which can handle this kind of program is one reason for this redesign. Take a look at the new Web site for descriptions of each of those classes and of their instructors.

Beyond these Online Noncredit Workshops, we have applied to the State of Washington for authorization of a Brief Residency Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing ("Brief Residency" means that students would come to the Island for ten-day intensive residencies in August and January, each followed by a semester of online workshops and classes).  If that authorization is granted (a long process; we won't hear until spring of 2004, and classes wouldn't begin until 2005 at the earliest), we will need the new Web site's capabilities to operate that program, and the Institute's facilities to house it. By State law, we cannot advertise or accept applications to that program until and unless we have received official approval from the State -- nor should we! We hope to have good news to pass on to you in the spring.

The new site also includes Online Registration and Payment for the Writers Conference, the Online Noncredit Writing Classes, and even Membership in the organization. This will not only save you time and trouble, but will save our staff and volunteers countless hours during registration periods. 

As we say farewell to the old Web site which served us so well since our organization was founded six years ago, we want to acknowledge the work of our incredible volunteer Webmaster, Linda Jedlicka, who was the brains and talent behind that site -- and will continue to be our Webmaster as we move into the new site. Thanks, Linda, and we hope you enjoy the new site!  

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ON THE ISLAND

The Way of Story
Oct. 4 - 5, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Clinton. Award-winning playwright and screenwriter Cathrine Ann Jones' workshop presents an approach to writing for the soul. http://www.ojai.net/cathrinejones/. For directions, contact soluna@whidbey.com, or call 360-341-3382.

Gangsters, Cowboys & Revenge
Nov. 6 -7, Best-sellers Loren Estleman and Deborah Morgan
Thursday 3:00 - 5:30, "Great Beginnings." Explore how to set the tone and capture your audience from the start. Dinner follows and includes Estleman discussing "The Bell at the End of the Line: My Thirty-Year Love Affair With the Typewriter."
Friday 9:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. Workshops and lunch. Registration limited to 12. Fee: $300. To register, visit www.writeonwhidbey.org and click Writers Institute of the Northwest Offerings, or call 360-331-6714, or email writers@whidbey.com. Location to be announced.

Children's Book Week
Saturday, Nov. 13, 11 a.m. at the Freeland Library and 3 p.m. at the Oak Harbor Library. Children's author George Shannon will present "Through Storytelling," an exploration of how our daily lives provide rich story ideas. He will show how to link these ideas into story and writing "as a form of play." A former children's librarian and professional storyteller, George has been a freelance writer and lecturer for more than 20 years. See the Sno-Isle Regional Library System catalog for a list of his titles. http://www.sno-isle.org/

WIWA-Sponsored Writing Groups
The WIWA-sponsored writing groups provide an opportunity to share your work, gain insight, and discuss the world of writing and publishing. Featuring a friendly forum and useful critiques, these groups welcome drop-ins and writers of every experience level. For more information, contact Dot Read at: thereads@whidbey.com, or call (360) 331-2038.

Evening Writers' Group
Toni Grove, coordinator for the evening WIWA Writers' Group, is returning to school and will no longer be available to organize the meetings. The group has temporarily been cancelled until another group leader is found.

Day-time Writers' Groups
The North Whidbey Writers' Group meets the second and fourth Wednesday of each month, 1 to 4 p.m., at Great Times Espresso in Coupeville (water-side of Front Street, down one flight of stairs).

The South Whidbey Writers' Group meets the first and third Wednesday of each month, 1 to 4 p.m., at Trinity Lutheran Church in Freeland (Hwy 525 and Woodard Rd.) The meeting is in the small building closest to Highway 525.

Workshop with Author/Artist Susan Zwinger
October 18-19: How to Sculpt a Poetry Manuscript. Location: South Whidbey private home overlooking the Strait and Olympics. For any writer wishing to collect individual pieces (essays, poems, life vignettes, stories) into a stunning, cohesive whole. In this intensive workshop students will work with an intuitive, right-brain-inspired organization to carve their manuscripts into a meaningful shape. They will also learn how to best present a manuscript to an editor. Cost: $160. For more information, call (360) 579-2457.

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OFF THE ISLAND

Sunshine Coast School of Writing Workshop, British Columbia
For detailed information about Sunshine Coast School of Writing workshops, call (604) 886-8951, or email c_upton@uniserve.com.
Oct. 4 - 9, Getting Wild with Words to Kick-Start Your Writing. Instructor: Sandra Jeppesen. Location: Gibsons Elementary School. Cost is $90, including lunch.
November 1 - 2, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mastering Magazine Articles. Instructor: Daniel Wood. Location: Gibsons Elementary Library. Tuition is $225, including lunches, snacks and an evening slide show.

Songandword Workshops on Shaw Island
Oct. 24 - 26, Nature Writing: Where Earth Meets Sea. Instructor: Jennifer Hahn. Work with field guides, maps and nature to create a sense of place. Explore rich habitats. Learn to interpret stories of land and seascape and encourage the stories within. Hear the process of turning journals into stories, articles and chapters. See www.songandword.com for details.

Seattle Arts and Lectures
Oct. 27, 7:30 p.m., Benaroya Hall. Sandra Cisneros, novelist and poet. http://www.lectures.org/

Literary and Natural History Workshop on Orcas Island
Oct. 10 - 12, Tools for Depth -- Archetype, Metaphor, Description for the Adventuresome Writer. Instructor: author/artist Susan Zwinger. Orcas Island, private home, wild land. So you've got the content, the urge to communicate, the story line or the poem, but it isn't singing yet. Exercise after exercise will give you tools to dive into the depths, to allow the reverberations of metaphor and allegory to turn a phrase that has the reader inhaling in surprise. Come enjoy Winnie Adams' hospitality and the Orcas community. For more information, call (360) 376-4656. Cost: $135.

Northwest Bookfest and Conference, Seattle
Sand Point Magnuson Park, http://www.nwbookfest.org/
Oct. 17, Writers' Conference. $90 full day, $50 half day.
Oct. 18 - 19, Bookfest. $10 per day, or $15 for a two-day pass. Youth 17 and under admitted free.

Hilton Head Island Writers Retreat, South Carolina
Nov. 6 - 9, Instructor: Bob Mayer, http://www.bobmayer.org/courses.html#retreat

Romance Writers of America, Vancouver BC
Nov. 15, Plotting Your Fiction Career. For details, see http://www.rwagvc.com/, or contact: rwagvc@hotmail.com.

Richard Hugo House in Seattle
See http://www.hugohouse.org/events/ for the latest schedule of events.

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Online Classes

Marian Blue will be teaching two classes for Writers Digest Schools, each starting on October 9. Advanced Poetry is an online poetry workshop that will give writers a chance to give and receive a critique on a different poem each week. Elements of Effective Writing III is a class designed to let students stretch creative muscles and put a little poetry into their prose: creative expression is the goal! For more information about these classes, logon to www.writersonlineworkshops.com.

Create a new poem each week with lectures and critiques online. Port Townsend area published poet and writer, college instructor in writing, Sarah Zale, facilitates 6-week, or on-going, sessions. Next session: October when 8 to 10 registrants enroll. Ask about other on-site and online workshops. Contact: SarahWrite@aol.com.

WIWA's online classes begin in January. See the related article in this Newsletter.

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SEX AND THE SINGULAR PRONOUN
by Dr. Richard Lederer

Dr. Richard Lederer, English professor/comedian extraordinaire will make you giggle, not gag, as he dishes up lessons about our loopy language. He is the author of more than 3,000 books and articles about language and humor, including his best-selling Anguished English series. Richard's syndicated column, Looking at Language, appears in newspapers and magazines throughout the United States. He has been elected International Punster of the Year, named by Toastmasters International as its 2002 Golden Gavel winner and is a board member for Writer's Digest. In December, St. Martin's will publish his latest book, A Man of My Words, My Career-Capping Reflections on the English Language. Hardcover; Book of the Month Club, Literary Guild, QPB. WIWC 2003 was fortunate to have Richard entertain and instruct us with his witticisms and his knowledge of our crazy English language. You can explore Richard's Web site at www.verbivore.com.
                           
You're sitting at a table and after a long period of time elapses, someone finally brings the food. Why are they called the waiter?

I've used this quip dozens of times in my talks and asked the audience if anyone has been offended by any grammatical atrocity I have uttered. Almost no one raises their hand.

Yet some purists grow apoplectic about the use of the pronoun they to refer to indefinite pronouns, such as anyone, each, and everybody, or with singular nouns, as you've just experienced (without trauma, I reckon) twice in the previous two paragraphs. Why has this usage become so ubiquitous? One reason is that we have been doing it for centuries, all the way back to Middle English. It's been more than 600 years (1395) since Geoffrey Chaucer wrote, in The Canterbury Tales, "And whoso findeth hym out of swich blame,/They wol come up . . . ."

It was not until the 18th century that they in its third-person role was disparaged. That's when such grammarians as Robert Lowth (yes, he of the anti-split-infinitive league) and Lindley Murray decreed that indefinite pronouns are singular. The reasons for this linguistic holding were more cultural than structural. In 1746, for example, John Kirkby's Eighty Eight Grammatical Rules included as rule # 21 that "the male gender was more comprehensive than the female."

Thus we confront the matter of sex and the singular pronoun. While all other pronouns avoid reference to gender, the third-person-singular pronouns in English he and she are gender-specific. We are not fully comfortable with the male chauvinist "Each student should underline in his textbooks so that he can achieve his fullest academic potential" or the clunky "Each student should underline in his or her textbooks so that he or she can achieve his or her fullest academic potential." They has long been a graceful solution to the most nettlesome problem in sexist language  the generic masculine pronoun  and to the grammatical stutter engendered by dancing back and forth between the sexes: "Each student should underline in their textbooks so that they can achieve their fullest academic potential."

They has been moving toward singular senses, in the manner of you, which can function both singularly and plurally. That's the way we do it and by we I mean we caring and careful speakers and writers. We've been doing it for centuries, and we're doing it today:
-- Everyone attended the party, and they had a rockin' time.
-- If somebody wants to cut class, we can't stop them.         
-- The cellular customer you have called has turned off their phone.
-- We are required by law to post the pharmacy's number on the medication vial in case the customer has questions about their drug.   

The astronomer Galileo Galilei was branded a heretic because he insisted that the earth was not the center of the universe but, in fact, revolved around the sun. Despite his perilous state, Galileo urged others to conduct objective experiments so that they could see the truth for themselves.

Gentle reader, please open your ears and eyes. Listen and look for statements that contain an indefinite pronoun or a singular noun and hear and see what pronoun follows. In almost every case that pronoun will be a form of they. We do that because the device is historically tested. We do that because it is more graceful than "he or she." And we do that because it avoids making a minority of us the linguistic norm and a majority of us a linguistic afterthought.

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CHEERS
Your good news cheers us on! Please share your successes with us. email the editor at: candace@whidbey.com.

Linda Beeman's article, "A Grace Note," about political, cultural and social change in Bhutan, will appear in the Foreign Service Journal, U.S. State Department's Nov/Dec issue. Her article, "Patchwork & Quilting in South Asia," about the religious impetus behind these textile traditions, will be featured in PieceWork's Nov/Dec issue.

WIWC 2003 participant Julia Cousineau recently sold her children's story, "A Grape Fell on Its Head," to Ladybug Magazine. She also says that an agent is interested in three of her picture book ideas.

WIWC participant Pat Detmer's story, "Lesson Learned," and Islander Natalie Olsen's short story, "The Foot," both won honorable mentions in Writers Weekly's Summer 2003, 24-Hour Short Story Contest.

Patricia Harrington has lots to cheer about: "Code of Silence," a noir story, is in the summer issue of  Hardluck Stories. Her emerging readers e-book series featuring Fat Cat and Gray Mouse has had four stories published since January at http://www.gadxoox.com/. "Pure Light," flash fiction, will be in the upcoming edition of Centograph-pocket edition. "A Chilling Clue," is currently at http://www.anthologiesonline.com/. Three of her haiku have been accepted at www.haijinx.com. "A Lover's Understanding," was published in the anthology Murder in Mind. And she's had stories accepted for Bullet Points and Murder by Six anthologies.

WIWC participant Tamara Hillman writes that she's having success with her cowboy poetry and country articles. She regularly reads her cowboy poetry on "The Dollar Watch Program" at KVLR 106.3 FM. Also, several of her articles have been picked up by Country and Reminisce Magazines.

Past WIWA instructor Bharti Kirchner wrote the Breakthrough column for the November issue of The Writer magazine. An earlier novel, Sharmila's Book, was recently translated into Spanish. Her current novel, Pastries: A Novel of Desserts and Discoveries, (St. Martin's Press 2003) was chosen by the Working Mother magazine in its August issue as a "Must Read."

Judith LaMontagne teamed up with her son, Christopher Rose, to write an essay that will appear in the January issue of Lapidary Journal.

Martha Martin's story about Queen Victoria's doll collection, "The Princess and Her Dolls," will be featured, along with 15 century-old illustrations, in the fall issue of Doll News, a United Federation of Doll Clubs publication.

Rosemary Patterson was named a 2003 Telluride Indiefest winner for her screenplay, "Journey Great Barrier Reef." For more information about this impressive honor, see http://www.tellurideindiefest.com. Rosemary says she began writing her screenplay while taking Bill Kerby's screenwriting workshop at WIWC 2002.

Cynthia Ward's story, "The Lost Homeland," appears in the trade paperback anthology, Bending the Landscape: Horror, Overlook Press 2003. Her story "When the Summons Came from Camelot" is in the mass market anthology The Ultimate Dragon, iBooks 2003.

Editor Candace Allen's latest Log Home Living feature, "Hitting the Slopes," is on page 50 of the November issue.

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WIWA'S ONLINE NONCREDIT INTRODUCTORY WRITING CLASSES
AND ADVANCED WORKSHOPS START IN JANUARY
by Wayne Ude

As part of our development of the Writers Institute of the Northwest, the Writers Association is offering noncredit Online Creative Writing courses and advanced workshops, beginning in January 2004. Here you'll find both Beginning Classes and Advanced Workshops in fiction, poetry, and non-fiction, taught by published writers who are also experienced creative writing instructors on the college and university level. These aren't brief refreshers, but genuine 14-week opportunities to grow as a writer.

For more information and to sign up online, go to the new website, www.writeonwhidbey.com and move your cursor to the Writers Institute of the Northwest. When the small menu comes up, click on Online Campus Info and Signup. That will take you to our course descriptions and instructor bios; you'll probably find something that looks useful. As with many of our programs, you may now register online; just use the button which accompanies each individual course description, and have your credit card handy!  These courses are open to anyone, so pass the word.

Here's the list of writing courses that will begin in January:

Beginning Fiction Writing
Advanced Fiction Workshop

Beginning Creative Non-Fiction Writing
Beginning Article Writing
Advanced Non-Fiction Workshop

Beginning Poetry Writing
Advanced Poetry Workshop

Once you've registered for a course, you'll receive from us an email confirmation, which will be followed in January by your personal password allowing you to access the course on its starting date. Since the Beginning courses often use textbooks, those instructors will be in touch with you by email about any text you should order at your local bookstore or from one of the online booksellers.

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YOUTH SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE TO WIWC 2004
by Nancy Ruff

Students in grades 9 - 12, in the Running Start program, or enrolled in a college/university undergraduate program are eligible to apply for a full tuition scholarship to the Whidbey Island Writers' Conference 2004. Up to five scholarships will be awarded to students in grades 9-12, and up to two scholarships to junior or senior college students (maximum age 23).

Students must demonstrate a desire to attend the conference by filling out the Scholarship Application, writing a letter of 100 words or fewer explaining why they wish to attend the conference and what benefits they hope to receive, and submitting a sample of original written work.

Work may consist of poetry, short fiction, the first pages of a novel, a newspaper article, the first pages of a screenplay, website copy, or other written work.

Application packets must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2003. Winners will be notified by November 26, 2003.
Applications and additional information about the submission packet are available at www.writeonwhidbey.com. Point your cursor at Writers Conference and click Scholarships.

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RECENT RELEASES

A Man of My Words, My Career-Capping Reflections on the English Language
Richard Lederer
St. Martin's Press, Fall 2003
www.verbivore.com
For more witticisms and perceptive lessons in the English language, watch for Richard Lederer's latest book, A Man of My Words. It's been named Book of the Month Club, Literary Guild and QPB selections. Richard's contributions to the WIWA Newsletter are prototypes of chapters in his upcoming book.

The Novel Writer's Toolkit, A Guide to Writing Novels and Getting Published
Bob Mayer
Writers Digest Books, August 2003
Prolific, best-selling author, and WIWC instructor Bob Mayer has a winner with his latest guidebook for helping writers. Recent queries with a well-known online bookseller showed only three copies left. Delays may occur while restocking.

Medusa
Skye K. Moody
St. Martin's Minotaur, August 2003
http://skyemoody.com/
Medusa is the sixth novel in Skye's Venus Diamond mystery series, and the darkest of them all. A young girl's drowning in Elliott Bay, reports of monster jellyfish in Puget Sound and three children with a terrible secret make Medusa a page-turner (Booklist) of a story. For more information, see SkyeMoody.com. Skye will be teaching at WIWC 2004.

A Blind Eye
G.M. Ford
William Morrow, July 2003
In this third novel of the Frank Corso mystery series, Corso leaves the Pacific Northwest and gets stuck in a snowstorm in the frigid Midwest where he stumbles across an abandoned farmhouse loaded with frozen, dead bodies. Corso's chase after the killer takes him to a strange backwoods enclave in New Jersey inhabited by hard-bitten northern hillbillies. This novel received a starred Kirkus review. G.M. will be teaching at WIWC 2004.

Crazy Hair Day
Barney Saltzberg, author and illustrator
Candlewick, August 2003
www.barneysaltzberg.com
When Stanley marches proudly into the classroom, ready for Crazy Hair Day, he discovers, to his horror, it isn't until next week. To make matters worse, today is School Picture Day. This is an uplifting story of friendship and kindness that starts out as a worst-ever experience.

Healing With Nature
Susan Scott
Helios Press, September 2003
http://www.susansscott.com
Islander Susan Scott's latest book is an inspirational journey that combines nature and Jungian theory with healing.

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A WRITER ASKS ABOUT ILLUSTRATORS

Martha Martin recently wrote, "I have a completed story for a picture book and need an illustrator. Does WIWA have any illustrators?"

WIWA contacted Barney Saltzberg, a talented author/illustrator/songwriter of more than twenty books, who offers this advice to Martha. "Assuming you're trying to have the book published by a major house, they would want to find an illustrator for you. If, however, you want to self publish, that's another story. Are you a member of SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators)? You can check out their website at http://www.scbwi.org/.

Barney recently gave an engaging presentation, "Thinking Outside the Sandbox with Squiggles, Stories and Songs," to children at the Langley Library. His book, The Soccer Mom From Outer Space, just won the Virginia Young Reader Medal for 2002 and 2003. Barney's website www.barneysaltzberg.com features imagination sparking activities and ideas.

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SEA OF VOICES STILL HEARD
By Marian Blue

Sea of Voices, Isle of Story, WIWA's 2003 Anthology of the best of contemporary writing, is pleased to announce that the editors have nominated "King of the Butterflies" by Christopher Howell for a Pushcart Prize this year. This anthology is stuffed with excellent choices for this sort of prize; this is proven by the good news about some of the included authors' recent publishing successes.

These authors are also busy with readings, attending and presenting at conferences, teaching writing ... in other words, writing is part of their daily diet, and we hope that is true for all of you.

We'd like to encourage writers to pay attention to where other writers are publishing -- and what they are publishing as well (notice the credits in anthologies for where work first appeared and pay attention to kudos in this newsletter and other sources). That sort of information provides an excellent marketing tool by learning what sort of material is appearing where and by keeping you up to date on new magazines. And of course it's always a boost to know that writers are continuing to write, to submit, to publish. Congratulations to these writers from the anthology and to all of you who are continuing to work. Be sure to write and let us know where your work is appearing.

The following are recent publications from those included in Sea of Voices, Isle of Story:

Brian Ames: Some of Brian's recent publications include work in Glimmer Train Stories and Night Train and the premier issue of Seattle's Monkeybicycle. Brian's second story collection, Head Full of Traffic, should be out around Halloween. Brian claims his real low point in writing this year was that his move to Missouri coincided with the Whidbey Island Writers Conference, so he missed attending for the first time in four years.

Erv Bobo: Recent publications include an essay, "The Line in the Sand" in the April 2003 issue of American West Magazine; an essay, "Deconstructing Shane," forthcoming in the October 2003 issue of RoundUp, the Magazine of the Western Writers of America; two book reviews forthcoming in RoundUp. Erv also was a winner in the short fiction contest sponsored by Missouri Writer's Guild.

Patricia Brodie: Her work has appeared in diverse publications, including two poems in Potpourri, (Vol. 14. No. 4 and Vol. 15. No 1); two poems accepted by Mobius, one published in their Spring & Summer, 2003 issue and the other to come out in their Fall issue; one poem in the last issue of The Aurorean, Summer 2003; three poems accepted for the anthology Wings and Waking Dreams by Abbeywood Press, due out this winter and a short story accepted for their subsequent anthology, Family, Friends and Strangers due out next summer; three poems accepted for a British anthology, Listening to Crystals which will raise money for organizations that help the deaf, due out this fall; one poem in the anthology Constellations: An Anthology of Poetry about Motherhood, due out in Jan. 2004.

Elizabeth Engstrom: her new novel, Black Leather, is now out and receiving rave reviews. This is an erotic thriller with a murder mystery at its heart.

Don Hall: A book-length memoir, Life Work, was released from Beacon Press in April 2003. A book of short stories, Willow Temple, was released from Houghton Mifflin in May 2003.

Kristin King: she has a publication forthcoming in Raven Chronicles.

Paul Lindholdt: a forthcoming issue of Seattle Review will include an essay. Paul is also editor of a forthcoming essay collection, concerning environmental issues on western public lands, entitled Treading Common Ground.

Nnedimma Okorafor-Mbachu: Recent and forthcoming publications include: a novel, Zahrah the Windseeker (Houghton Mifflin), scheduled for release in late 2004; a short story, Asuquo, published this summer in Mojo: Conjure Stories (published by Warner Aspect); a short story, the Magical Negro and her essay Her Pen Could Fly: A Tribute to Virginia Hamilton forthcoming from Dark Matter II: Reading the Bones in January 2004; a short story, the Awakening, was this year’s winner of the Chicago Bar Association Goodnow Entertainment Award; a short story, Long Juju Man, forthcoming from Alchemy Magazine (Edgewood Press).

Jay Paul: Jay has had poems recently published in Sou'wester, Roanoke Review, and Artemis (online).

Philip Raisor: Outside Shooter, a book length memoir, was released from University of Missouri Press in August 2003. This work grows out of Raisor's sports experiences -- "being on the losing side in two of the most storied basketball games ever played."

Patrick Riley: He has sold mostly nonfiction articles on writing to Dana Literary Service, The Institute of Children's Literature, Rainy Day Corner, and Absolute Markets. His big news is that his short story, which appeared the September 2002 issue of the national magazine, Liguorian,was voted best short story of 2002 by the Catholic Press Association, an industry association of religious publications.

Rick Robbins: Recent poems have appeared in Luna, Third Coast, Hotel Amerika, and Folio. Rick was also a teacher at a retreat on Whidbey Island this summer.

Pattiann Rogers: Her next book, Generations, is forthcoming from Viking in 2004 in the Penguin Series of Poets. New poems have been published recently or are forthcoming in Field, Poetry, Prairie Schooner, onEarth, The Georgia Review. Her poem "Animals and People, the Human Heart in Conflict with Itself" is included in a book by Randy Malamud, Poetic Animals and Animal Souls, (Palgrave, Macmillan). Sandy Tilcock, with the Knight Library Press, the U. of Oregon, published a limited edition book of "Animals and People, the Human Heart in Conflict with Itself" with etchings by Margot Voorhies Thompson.

Eva Shaw: Ghostwriting For Fun & Profit will be released late this year. It tells everything a writer needs to know to get into this little known and extremely lucrative career. One of her ghosted books is now #3 on Amazon's Best Business Books for 2003. Eva is busy teaching classes, including the popular Writeriffic: Creativity Training for Writers, available at 1200 colleges and universities (Eva was #5 in top producing online instructors for July).Eva has also been asked to be a panelist at the Associated Writing Program conference in Chicago in late March and she has been nominated to be on the National Commission for Writing. Eva will be meeting with more than 50 of the top media at a publicity symposium in NY this month. Her current project, Answers for Writers, is due out next year. Eva has recently been on San Diego public radio, KPBS, and will be on a talk show in Las Vegas this winter. 

Maurya Simon: Recent poems published in: The Georgia Review, The Gettysburg Review, Poetry, The Kenyon Review, Image: A Journal of the Arts & Religion, Hotel Amerika, Ploughshares, and Lyric. Also, her sixth volume of poems, Ghost Orchid, is forthcoming from Red Hen Press in 2004.

Wayne Ude: "Having the Picture Coalesce in a Kind of Whoosh!" -- Wayne Ude's interview of Pulitzer-Prize-winning poet Rita Dove, has been reprinted in Conversations with Rita Dove from University Press of Mississippi. The interview first appeared in the AWP Chronicle.

Chika Unigwe: Recent work includes "That Bit of Sule" in Lines in the Sand: New Writings on War and Peace, ed. by Mary Hoffman and Rhiannon Lassiter; "Borrowed Smile" broadcast on BBC World Service. Forthcoming are: "Borrowed Smile" in Wasafiri, a British literary journal; "The Burial of Dr. Ude" in an anthology of Nigerian Women Writers Awards: Co-winner of the BBC (Meridian Writing) Short Story Competition 2003.

Andrena Zawinski has work forthcoming in Rattle, Heliotrope, Many Mountains Moving, and in many anthologies. Her work has appeared in print widely with most recent publications including Slipstream, Reverb, Paterson Literary Review, Against Certainty, Poets for Peace anthology and others; online work appears or is archived at Poets Against the War, For Poetry, Adirondack Review, and elsewhere. Zawinski teaches writing in Oakland, CA.

Susan Zwinger: her book, The Hanford Reach, the desert of eastern Washington, will be published in a series of desert books by American nature writers, through U. of Arizona Press. Susan has also been teaching at conferences and on Whidbey Island. For next year, she is lining up jobs in the desert regions of Nevada and California.

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CONTACT WIWA TO SPONSOR YOUR EVENT
by Marian Blue

Do you have a writing workshop, class or other literary event that you'd like to have covered with a 501(c)(3) sponsorship? Consider contacting Whidbey Island Writers Association (WIWA).

WIWA puts on many events, readings, retreats, the annual conference, and more  throughout the year. As the organizer, WIWA handles the administration (including collecting fees and paying expenses and advertising). But when WIWA sponsors or co-sponsors an event, the organizers are responsible for the administration.

What WIWA can provide through sponsorship is the 501(c)(3) umbrella. This can benefit an individual or an organization in a number of ways. For instance, some facilities, such as public schools or community halls, are available at reduced rates to non-profit sponsored events. Sometimes WIWA can help with marketing by noting your event in its newsletter or on its Web page. Sponsorship by a community-recognized group, such as WIWA, may encourage other organizations to also sponsor an event; this can generate fund-raising and more marketing opportunities. Newspapers won't always publish press releases for individuals, but often will run them for organizations when the sponsors are recognized. Therefore, having well-known and respected sponsors can contribute toward the success of a project.

If you would like to have WIWA consider sponsoring your event, contact us at 331-6714 or writers@whidbey.com for more information. WIWA is an organization interested in being a writers' resource in as many ways as possible. We'd love to hear about your projects.

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CONTESTS AND MARKET REQUESTS

Celebrate Writing Contest
Whidbey Island writers, polish up those manuscripts. WIWA will be accepting contest entries from October 3 through October 26 at the following Sno-Isle Branch libraries: Oak Harbor, Coupeville, Freeland, Langley, or Clinton. Contest rules and entry forms are available now at each of the Whidbey Island branch libraries. Each entry must be accompanied by a WIWA Celebrate Writing entry form and, for non-members, a $5 reading fee. (The reading fee is waived for WIWA members.)

Whidbey Island residents 18 years and older are invited to submit work in Poetry (24 line limit), Short Fiction (2,000 word limit), Nonfiction (1,200 word limit), Life History/Memoir (1,200 word limit), and Children's literature (2,000 word limit/32 page limit for picture books, text only).

All winning manuscripts in each category will be displayed in the Whidbey Island branch libraries, and readings will be scheduled for winners to share their works with the public. All winners will be recognized and honored at the Whidbey Island Writers Conference at the Authors' Book Signing Reception March 6, 2004. A Grand Prize winner will be awarded a full tuition scholarship to attend the Whidbey Island Writers Conference, March 5-7, 2004. Winners will be announced November 26th.

For more information call (360)331-2038 or email: thereads@whidbey.com.

Prose & Poetry Prizes 
Oct. 31, 2003 submission deadline. See http://www.thenewwriter.com/prizes.htm for details.

PARSEC/Confluence Short Story Contest
This contest is open to nonprofessional writers of science fiction, fantasy, or horror. Maximum 3,500 words. No entry fee. Cash awards. April 1, 2004 deadline. For details, see http://trfn.clpgh.org/parsec/contest.html.

Million Dollar Muse Poetry Contest
Sponsored by Meeting the Muse Chapter of the Missouri State Poetry Society. Cash awards will be given to five winners in each of two categories: Best Rhymed Poem and Best Unrhymed Poem. Any subject, form and length will be considered. Entry fee is $2 per page. Sept.11, 2004 deadline. For a copy of the contest rules, send a #10 Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope (SASE) with your request to: Amy's Muse Contest, 1325 W. Sunshine St., Box 168, Springfield, MO 65807.

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RECEIVE CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS BY ATTENDING WIWC
by Marian Blue

ATTENTION TEACHERS: You can now receive two continuing education credits at the 400 or 500 levels by attending the Whidbey Island Writers Conference!

The Heritage Institute (THI) is working with WIWA to make it possible to receive these credits for K-12 educators. THI has been a leader in progressive continuing education programs for K-12 educators for 25 years. Their philosophy of Educating for Humanity provides the framework and inspiration for their leading edge perspective on teaching and learning and for their vision of schools as enriching and productive learning environments for all children. Their goal is to renew teachers with learning experiences that empower them to inspire children with the joy of learning and a care for the whole community of life.

The Whidbey Island Writers Conference provides exactly the kind of environment and learning opportunity that fit within the outstanding goals and reputation of THI.

All the courses through THI are offered for Antioch University continuing education quarter credits (3 quarter credits equal 2 semester credits). Antioch is accredited by the North Central Association of Schools and Colleges, and Antioch credits may be used in most states for re-certification and salary advancement.

Those signing up to receive the continuing education credits must register with THI and WIWC. Contact THI by emailing registrar@hol.edu or calling 1-360-341-3020. For information about registering with WIWC (see our website at www.writeonwhidbey.com). You can also call  WIWA at 1-360-331-6714. Be sure to register for the conference early to make sure that the classes you want are available!

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SNO-ISLE LIBRARY LEVY

On November 4, 2003 voters in the Sno-Isle Regional Library System will vote on restoring the library's levy rate from 46 cents per $1,000 of assessed value to 50 cents per $1,000. This increase would cost the owner of a $300,000 home approximately $12 more per year, or $8 more per year on a home valued at $200,000.

If the levy is restored, the Library System will be able to maintain programs, services and materials at current levels. If it fails, the Library System will suffer an $800,000 budget shortfall in 2004, necessitating closure of the libraries for one week, a $214,000 reduction in library materials such as books and videos, and a reduction in staff salaries, training and supplies. For more information, see http://www.sno-isle.org/.

Residents of Whidbey Island can show their support by posting a yard sign in favor of the levy. For a $5 donation, the committee working to pass the Library Levy will deliver the sign to you as well as retrieve it after the election. If you are willing to post a yard sign, please contact Joann or Art Peterson. Joann is president of the Friends of the Freeland Library. The Petersons may be reached at jprd@whidbey.com or at 331-3638.

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CYBER SURFING
Have you encountered some helpful Internet sites? Send us the address and your brief review.

http://www.bloomsbury.com/WritersArea/agentsus.asp?Page=2 -- a list U.S. literary agents and contact information

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QUOTES

Choose an author as you choose a friend. --Lord Dillon Wentworth

Cut out all the explanation points. An exclamation point is like laughing at your own joke. --F. Scott Fitzgerald

Make 'em laugh, make 'em cry, make 'em wait. --Charles Reade's formula for a successful novel.

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TO CONTACT US OR SUBMIT AN ARTICLE

We are interested in hearing from you. Perhaps you've been to a recent book fair, heard a favorite author speak, or learned valuable tips from a writing class. Perhaps you're a professional willing to share your expertise. If you would like to submit an article; tell us about your good news for the Cheers or Recent Releases columns; send us your favorite quotes, markets, contests and cyber sites; or contact us about the newsletter for any reason, please email the editor at: candace@whidbey.com

To contact the Whidbey Island Writers Association, email: writers@whidbey.com
Whidbey Island Writers' Conference: March 5 - 7, 2004, The Spirit of Writing
The WIWA Web site is: www.writeonwhidbey.com.

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TO SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE

The WIWA Newsletter is published approximately every two months and is delivered to subscribers by email. If you would like to subscribe, send an email, with SUBSCRIBE WIWA in the subject line, to the editor at candace@whidbey.com. If you would like to unsubscribe, please reply to this email with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject, and we will delete you from our records. WIWA will not share or sell your name or email address.