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WIWA NEWSLETTER
News from the Whidbey Island Writers Association
Vol. 7, No. 2 April - May 2007
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CONTENTS
Letter from the Editor, by Achaessa James
WIWC 2008 Conference News
WIWC 2007 Conference Update
WIWA Announces
On the Island
Off the Island
MFA Program Update – a report on the January 2007 residency, by Jo Meador
Cross-training – a Two-part Essay, by Sharon Wootton and Maggie Savage
Recent Releases
Cheers!
Contests and Market Requests
WIWA Web Site News and Member Services
WIWA’s Wish List
Quotations
CyberSurfing
Writers Ask / Writers Respond
To Contact Us or Submit an Article
To Subscribe or Unsubscribe
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
I have great news: beginning with the April issue, we are no longer distributing the newsletter by e-mail. So, if you’re reading this, you must have followed the link to the newsletter's URL. We have so many activities and member resources it’s just impossible to publish them all in the newsletter. I hope this move will encourage you to look around the rest of the Web site and learn more about WIWA.
I had a very rewarding time at the conference this year. The workshops were substantial and at times inspiring. I made some lovely new friends. And I finally have some faces to go with the names of people I correspond with regularly. In fact, you can see some of those faces, too, if you click on over to the conference photos page. Either go to our Home page and select the photo link in the text or put this in your browser http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/Prior_Conferences/2007WIWAConferencePage1/index.html.
In this edition, we’ve got an update on the MFA program and a motivating article on cross-training. And our CHEERS! and RECENT RELEASES sections are huge! In fact, I took off the “WIWA member and past conference presenter” from the authors with recent releases because I got bored reading it so many times – they’re ALL members and past presenters. That just goes to show that we have a superbly talented membership and exceptional conference faculty.
Speaking of the conference, be sure to read the WIWC 2008 Conference News section thoroughly. Next year we’re having our 10 th birthday party and it’s going to be a heck of a good time! Our conference director, Elizabeth Guss, has promised to give me enticing bits to publish all year long, so keep your eyes open.
Truly, WIWA is an organization of dedicated volunteers. The conference team smoothed the way for us all to learn and enjoy in a relaxed atmosphere. The chat house sponsors welcomed us into their cozy, cookie-smelling homes (I had to sit with my back to the windows so as not to be distracted by the stunning views). The workshop volunteers made sure we could concentrate on our classes and not watch the clock (well, except for me – a couple of times I got so into the workshop that time just disappeared).
A special thanks to Karl Olsen, Minister of Music at Trinity Lutheran Church, for opening the conference with his humorous and insightful performance of One is the Loneliest Number with emphasis on its particular significance for writers and their agents.
And a big “Thanks!” in advance to Susan Wilmoth and Karyle Kramer who have graciously volunteered to be my peer review board for the newsletter this year.
Keep writing and keep in touch!
Warm regards, Achaessa
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WIWC 2008 CONFERENCE NEWS
Call for Presenters
The 2007 Ninth Annual Whidbey Island Writers Conference was, as usual, a resounding success. Advance planning is always a factor in achieving excellence. In 2008 we will be marking the tenth anniversary of the Whidbey Island Writers Conference and for this to be a big celebration, the conference planners have already been working hard. Here’s a peek at some outstanding presenters they’ve secured: Mystery - Elizabeth George, Steve Berry, Katharine Ramsland, Deborah LeBlanc; Children/YA - Kirby Larson; Fiction – MJ Rose; Nonfiction - Maureen Murdock, Erik Larson; Memoir - Stephanie Elizondo Griest, Screen/scriptwriting – Lewis John Carlino; Agents - Katharine Sands, Doris Booth.
The tenth annual conference dates are February 28-March 2, 2008. The Call for Presenters is already posted for those interested in applying as conference faculty or pre-conference workshop presenters. If you’d like to join this august group, the deadline for submission is June 5, 2007. Details and application form are available on the conference Web site at http://www.writeonwhidbey.com/Conference/CallForPresenters.htm.
2008 WIWC Image Art Competition – The Whidbey Island Writers Conference is sponsoring a competition for artwork that will be used as the main image for conference advertising and marketing materials for the tenth annual conference. Artists age 16 and older are invited to create an original two-dimensional piece that will mark this special anniversary. The winner will receive a transferable 2008 conference registration. Submission deadline will be late June. To participate in making our tenth annual conference memorable, please review the submission guidelines on the WIWA Web site (not posted at press time, but they’ll be there soon).
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WIWC 2007 CONFERENCE UPDATE
Writing Competition Results from the 9 th Annual Whidbey Island Writers Conference
Special thanks to the judges who each year make this contest work:
Poetry
First Place : Kimberly Davis, Hingham, Massachusetts for “Thumbprint on Estate Papers”
Second Place : Kate Laster, Edmonds, Washington for “Love and the Immune System”
Third Place : Jerry Mercer, Greenbank, Washington for “Post Op”
Fourth Place : Lisa Tobe, Quincy, California for “The Journey Home”
Nonfiction
First Place : Jonna Laster, Edmonds, Washington for “Lessons at Fifty Below Zero”
Second Place : Sara Ohlin, Everett, Washington for “Appropriateness of Tears”
Third Place : Suzanna Banwell, Takoma Park, Maryland for “Fairies and Queens”
Fourth Place : Jerry Mercer, Greenbank, Washington, “The World’s Greatest Athlete”
Children’s
First Place : Suzanna Banwell, Takoma Park, Maryland for “Agnes’s Eyes”
Second Place : Terry Irvin, Langley, Washington for “Daniel”
Third Place : Sharon J. Nicholson, Oak Harbor, Washington for “Grandma, Where Does G
od Live?”
Fourth Place : Kristin Wahanik, Vashon, Washington for “Under the Baobab Tree”
Fiction
First Place : Mary Luddy, Fairfax, California for “Not About Love”
Second Place : Gail Madden, Clinton, Washington for “Nightfall”
Third Place : Angie M. Chatman, Des Moines, Iowa for “Cows on Parade”
Fourth Place : Barbara Lopuszynski, Langley, Washington for “Wolfie”
Benefactor’s Award Winner for 2007: Kimberly Davis, for the poem “Thumbprint on Estate Papers”
Everyone who entered received critiques from the preliminary judges. If you did not include an SASE and would like your critique sheets, please send Marian Blue a request for your manuscripts at wiwa@whidbey.com.
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WIWA ANNOUNCES
WIWA Fall 2007 Classes. WIWA’s spring classes are underway but they’ll be finishing up in June. If you’ve been wondering how to strengthen your writing credentials (i.e. build your “platform”), sell more books, find new inspiration, work past your writers block or prepare for all the public speaking you’ll do on your next book tour - it’s time for you to teach a local class this fall. If you are interested in teaching with WIWA please e-mail the office right away at wiwa@whidbey.com. To get a good response, we need to start advertising your class as soon as possible.
Soundings – WIWA Literary Journal. One of our newer projects is Soundings, WIWA’s literary magazine. Soundings will start off as an annual publication and be modeled after the journal Ploughshares. Soundings will support WIWA’s mission and values, without being a commercial- or academic-focused publication. Soundings will promote WIWA events and will present local writers with publishing and editing experience, and it will also include youth internships and at least one youth publication in each magazine. The plan is to be able to pay writers and staff as soon as possible and be self supporting from subscriptions and sales.
After a slow down on fund raising in 2006 (due mostly to the project coordinator’s health issues), Soundings is in full swing again to raise the last few thousand dollars needed to go to publication. We’d like to meet our initial funding goal early in 2007. We're receptive to fundraising ideas any of you have (as well as sponsorships and donations). We hope to have more specific details as to publication dates soon. For more information, please e-mail Marian Blue at wiwa@whidbey.com.
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ON THE ISLAND
3rd Tuesday Whidbey Island Writers at 3 Cats Cafe, Tuesday, April 17, 7:30 p.m. Bayview Corner. WIWA’s own Molly Larson Cook will be reading from her jazz novel, Listen, and there will be some live jazz to go with it. Dessert, espresso drinks, wine available. Call 360-221-5460 for more information.
Burning Word 2007 – The Festival of Poetic Fire! at Historic Greenbank Farm on Whidbey Island, WA, Saturday, April 28, 2007, 9:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. All day/all event passes $15 Adults, $7.50 Students. The Washington Poets Association presents a dynamic, all-day celebration of poetry, music, performance, and workshops, featuring more than 50 talented poets and musicians, ranging from renowned award-winning poets to hot new talents you'll want to discover. For more information go to http://www.washingtonpoets.org/burning_word.php or contact Victory Lee Schouten, Festival Co-Chair, at 360-331-7099 or victory@greatpath.com.
Island Coffee House Poetry Slam. The monthly poetry slam has a new venue – the Island Coffee House, sponsored by the Island Arts Council. For more information, please call 360-221-2414.
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WIWA Spring 2007 Classes. The spring classes haven’t been posted to the Web site yet, but here are the offerings we’ve got so far. For more details, or to register, call the WIWA office at 360-331-6714 or write to wiwa@whidbey.com. Instructor biographies are also online at http://www.writeonwhidbey.com/Classes_Groups/InstructorBios.htm.
Travel and Family Writing Just in Time for Summer Journeys. You will learn how to make maximum use of small crevices of time during your summer adventures and family moments and how to use that precious hour at the end or beginning of the day for longer description. Dr. Susan Zwinger will lead this class. Starts April 18, runs 8 weeks, Wednesdays 3:00-5:00 p.m.
Literary Fiction Workshop 101. This workshop is for beginning and intermediate writers who have at least one short story or short novel segment completed. The workshop process is particularly helpful to less experienced writers looking for constructive feedback in an encouraging environment. (Please no genre fiction.) Molly Larson Cook will lead this class. Starts April 17, runs 8 weeks, Tuesdays, 2:00-4:00 p.m. Class limited to 8 students.
Poetry Potpourri. This poetry workshop will celebrate spring, new beginnings, and the joy of words with a mad mélange to inspire beginners and seasoned poets alike. We'll do in-class writing, and you'll bring a poem a week for constructive critique in an encouraging environment; class includes a field trip to the Burning Word Poetry Festival at Greenbank. Molly Larson Cook leads this class. Starts April 17, runs 8 weeks, Tuesdays, 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Class limited to10 students.
On going-A Poetry Seminar. This class is intended for poets with some experience in the workshop format, who are also interested in enriching their own writing with reading the works of some of our best contemporary poets. Lorraine Healey leads this class. Starts April 19, runs 8 weeks, Thursdays, 2:00-4:00 p.m.
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WIWA-Sponsored Writing Groups.WIWA sponsors a broad selection of writing groups, both on-island and online. You can find the details for your particular locale or genre on the WIWA Web site at http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/Classes_Groups.
Whidbey-poets@googlegroups.com is an online poetry critique group open to all members of WIWA. During each month of 2007 we have a suggested topic for writing. These are suggestions only, and subscribers to the group are encouraged to circulate poems on any topic at any time.
April – The Animals in My Life
May – Time
June – Memory
July – Ordinary Things
August – The Battle of the Sexes
September – The Prose Poem
October – Hate and Loathing
November – Anniversaries
December – No Ordinary Trip
Whidbey-poets@googlegroups.com is designed to be a full participation work group for the poets of WIWA. We are not an entertainment group, and we are not open to the public. We are a working critique group designed to encourage constructive feedback on our work. To subscribe to the group, e-mail your request to wiwa@whidbey.com.
Editor’s Note: WIWA encourages its members to be creative in forming writing groups that meet your genre’s special needs. If you have an idea for a writing group and you’d like to take the lead in making it a reality, we’d love to assist. The proposal form and group guidelines can be found at: http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/Classes_Groups/FormNewGroup.htm. You don’t have to be a WIWA member to join a writers’ group, but you will have to become a member to remain in the group once you’ve joined.
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OFF THE ISLAND
SoulFood Poetry Night , Thursday April 19, 7 to 9 p.m. at SoulFood Books, 15748 Redmond Way, Redmond, WA. Featured readers and open mic follows. Free. For directions, visit http://www.soulfoodbooks.com or call the store at 425-881-5309 or e-mail info@soulfoodbooks.com.
WAY OFF THE ISLAND
May 21-30 – Write in Crete on location at Kokini Hani, Crete, Greece with tutors Bruce Holland Rogers (WWC and MFA faculty) and Eric Witchey. For details, go to http://www.write-in-crete.com/.
May 11-September 30 – The Narrative Art Center in New Mexico has put together a series of unique retreats known as the Carson Conclaves: Small Group Weekend Intensives for writers with work in progress. Each three-day weekend joins one award-winning presenter and four attendees with a goal toward creating an intense, rewarding and productive writing experience. Retreat topics vary. Details on their Web site at http://www.narrativeartcenter.com/Carson%20Literary%20Events.html.
June 11-July 20 – Odyssey Writing Workshop's 2007 session. Odyssey is an internationally known, six-week workshop for writers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Held every summer at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH, it offers developing writers intensive, professional critiques and lectures on the major elements of genre writing. Odyssey is the only program of its kind run by an editor. Jeanne Cavelos, the director and primary instructor, is a best-selling author and former senior editor at Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing, where she won the World Fantasy Award for her work. The workshop also attracts top writers in the field to serve as guest lecturers. Over the past ten years, authors such as Harlan Ellison, Terry Brooks, Robert J. Sawyer, Ben Bova, Jane Yolen, George R. R. Martin, Patricia McKillip, Steve Rasnic Tem, Melanie Tem and Dan Simmons have taught at the workshop. Forty-six percent of the workshop’s graduates have gone on to be published. Application deadline is April 13, 2007. Further workshop details can be found on the Web site, www.odysseyworkshop.org.
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MFA PROGRAM UPDATE
Editors Note: The Whidbey Writers Workshop MFA Program is a low-residency program that consists of four 16-week semesters and five 10-day residencies. Residencies are held on Whidbey Island in August and January, each followed by an online semester. The following report is from the January 2007 residency.
Neither Wind nor Snow nor PSE...
by Jo Meador, MFA student
The faculty and students from the Whidbey Writers Workshop MFA Program report that we have made it through another residency – our fourth – despite the antagonistic bent of Mother Nature. Our courageous caterer proved her mettle when she was forced in the middle of the day to move dinner preparations from Garrison Hall to the Officer’s Bachelor Headquarters. She batted nary a noggin as she moved soup ladle and fry pan to deliver an unscheduled candlelight supper. The students then read their works in the eerie atmosphere of the cold mess hall lit by camp lights. Doors rattled and windows moaned in seeming protestation of the event which included original songs performed by poet Caleb Barber and a very apt Halloween story by Nina Bayer.
The senior students were claiming this to be the best residency ever, but we suspect a certain rosy euphoria has begun to creep into their filters as graduation will be part of the next residency at the end of August. The students met several times to organize graduation events and to prepare for the inauguration of the alumni association. Due to the stunning account of a school auction in her recently workshopped novel, Nancy Cluts was elected graduation chairperson hands down. The alumni association will be organized under the capable hands of Nancy Boutin, who was elected president and Helen Sears who stood for the role of secretary. Nancy Cluts was chosen as vice president, which is also president elect for the next two-year period.
Visiting faculty this term included nonfiction writers John Calderazzo and Brian Doyle, who is also editor of Portland magazine, Editor Deborah Grandinetti, and agents Regina Brooks, Elizabeth Wales, and Rita Rosenkranz. Deborah, Regina and Rita were troupers; all hailed through wind and snow and airline reservation upheavals to join us.
Poetry readings by MFA faculty members were held on three nights at the Coupeville Coffeehouse. We had several guests who braved the snow-laden streets and slippery slopes to attend the events in downtown Coupeville. It was a great week, one to temper writers’ souls and we wish to thank the community for supporting our MFA students and residency events.
Applications are now being accepted for the Whidbey Writers Workshop MFA degree program beginning with the August, 2007, Residency and Fall Semester. Applications will be accepted until May 5, 2007. A limited number of slots are available, so early application is recommended. Further information and a downloadable application form are available through the Admissions link on the MFA Program page at www.writeonwhidbey.org/mfa.
Applications for those wishing to participate on a non-degree basis in the August Residency only (that is, not enrolled in the fall semester) will be open fromMay 15 through June 15. See the Residency link on the MFA home page for further information.
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CROSS-TRAINING – A TWO-PART ESSAY
Cross-training: What’s Good for the Athlete is Good for the Writer
By Sharon Wootton
Runners, whether training for a sprint or a marathon, are familiar with cross-training – a routine using very different exercises, often from another sport, to create a variety of balanced workouts that improve overall performance. Physically, cross-training exercises different muscle groups, helps develop new skills, leads to overall fitness, and reduces the boredom that comes from doing the same workout day after day.
Writers might recognize those goals, and they can benefit from a similar approach. After days or weeks of working on a writing project, your effort often produces less positive results the longer you stick with it. It’s time for a change.
Find the freedom that comes with artistic cross-training. With exercises involving other genres, you can pull yourself out of a rut, get past writer’s block, improve your skills, or just enjoy creating something that has no deadline or expectation attached. It allows you to work some mental muscles while the ones you use the most rest and recover.
A cross-training workout may inject a more-effective perspective into your muse and it does away with some of the tension associated with writing for publication. Draw on music, photography, newspapers, letters, paintings, television shows, holiday cards, poetry or comic books.
A few times a week, work out for 10 to 15 minutes. You’ll quickly identify strengths and weaknesses, what’s strictly for fun, and what ideas rise out of the workout that might enhance your “real” writing. It’s fun to see how one type of creative workout acts as a catalyst for another. And if nothing else, it allows the Real Writer section of your brain to operate in the background, gathering ideas, relaxing a bit, and hopefully, not being judgmental.
Here are some cross-training exercises to start building workouts. Once you’ve got the hang of it, create your own:
Photography . Singer/songwriter Cris Williamson teaches a songwriting workshop. In it she gives the songwriting teams a photograph and a melody. The trios write a song that captures what they see. Start collecting a variety of photographs. You don’t have to write a song (although you could). Write a poem based on a photograph or start a short story using one of the people in the photograph. Limit this to 15 minutes; it’s an exercise, not a project.
Newspapers, magazines . Collect interesting stories about people. During a workout, condense one story into a poem of no more than 16 lines, or take one person and write a quick character sketch.
Novel . Read the last chapter that you’ve written, a chapter in any novel, or a short story. Capture the essence of each page in a haiku (three lines of five syllables, seven syllables and five syllables, respectively), then write a haiku for the chapter or short story. If there are many pages, split this into two or three workouts.
Poetry . The cubist Picasso painted an object or person from different viewpoints in one painting. Inspired by cubists, some early 20th-century poets invented the series poem, looking at an object or person from more than one point of view (think Wallace Stevens’ Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird) but in a cubist-like minimalist style. Pick a topic and look at it from three to five different points of view, no more than a half-dozen lines of no more than five to six words each. This is an interesting workout to do with the characters in your own writing project. Or you could start with yourself!
Music . Cross-training went big-time when 30 authors each wrote a story based on a different Janis Ian song in a successful sci-fi fantasy book called Stars. For your workout, select a CD at random from your collection; pick a number from one to 12 without looking at the song list and play that track. Now take 10 to15 minutes and start writing a story with that song as the trigger (you can read the lyrics, but listen first).
In the next section, songwriter and author Maggie Savage looks at cross-training opportunities and what can be learned from skilled songwriters and applied to writing.
Cross-training: Songwriters, Forced to be Minimalists, Still Capture Plot, Emotion, Scene,
By Maggie Savage
As one who has dabbled in fiction writing and spent 35 years writing songs, I’ve found that some aspects of songwriting can be helpful for fiction writers to have in their tool box. Cross-training opportunities include developing character, scene setting, establishing emotional tone, creating a plot line, weaving in elements of surprise and predictability, and establishing a beat – all in the service of unleashing creative open spaces, eliciting new ways of perceiving communication and experiencing cross-connections in a helpful way.
Think back to the songs that have stopped you in your tracks. My list includes Don McLean’s Vincent, Bob Dylan’s Don’t Think Twice, Mac Davis’ In the Ghetto, Leonard Cohen’s Suzanne and Sisters of Mercy, and Janice Ian’s At Seventeen. These are emotionally charged works that leave space for the mind to expand and the soul to absorb, transcending the story line and generating much more than passive listening – all in a few minutes.
So how could you reach into this world? I suggest doing active, attentive listening to music. Go at it with an analytical ear. What is it about the music that either bores you beyond tears or incites an emotional engagement? Does tone, use of very specific words, or notes in the melody evoke different emotions?
Steve Seskin, a Grammy-nominated songwriter and one of the most sought-after songwriters and teachers in the U.S., focuses major attention on the use of perspective to bring out the most emotion in lyrics. He believes this is one of the most important lessons on the road to writing great songs.
As part of your cross-training workout, try this exercise. Select a melody that you know, perhaps Mary Had a Little Lamb, Good King Wenceslas or a country tearjerker, and put together a story with an attention-commanding story line and write a song to the melody. It’s not for publication but to give a heightened emotional quotient to your chops. Have fun with this; write something that makes you laugh out loud.
Tracing the path in the opposite direction from songwriting to fiction, songsmith Richard Buckner, when writing the booklet for a CD, had the lyrics written in mini-letter and short-story form, making a continuous narrative instead of verses and choruses. You could add that approach to a workout.
Songwriters have only a few minutes (or 8½ if you’re Don McLean writing American Pie) to make a connection with their audience and present their product as the full-meal deal. Fiction writers have a more extensive platform and can take more of their readers’ time. In either case, the point is to pick the words that honor your story and engage the reader’s/listener’s emotional connection at the same time.
Author Brenda Cooper (Building Harlequin’s Moon and, out in March 2007, The Silver Ship and the Sea) has attended two songwriting workshops at songandword. “I learned a lot about rhythm and pacing, and was also reminded of the importance of paying attention to each word, to each beat. I do write poetry, but I see poetry and lyrics as sisters. Poetry is less constrained, and lyrics must work with notes, but both must pay homage to beat, to the single word, to the power of image.
“In commercial fiction,” Cooper continues, “we sometimes forget these things as we focus on story and character but the language we use can add spice, power, and precision to what we share with our readers. A favorite poetry teacher of mine, Susan Hecht, wrote a whole book of poems which were a reaction to different George O’Keefe art pieces. The two played together very well. The core of it, for me, is that anything creative I do (beadwork, writing, singing, drawing) seems to feed the overall pool of creativity I use in my fiction.”
The objective here is to give a shot to your creative arm, something to tickle your enthusiasm and send you back to the drawing board (or computer) with a renewed sense of purpose. It’s possible that you can find someone with whom you can share your cross-training adventures, who can get into the spirit and reciprocate. Consider a cross-training workout in your writers’ group. It’s worth a try.
Sharon Wootton and Maggie Savage are co-founders of songandword, songwriting and writing workshops and retreats for women in the San Juan Islands, now it its sixth season. Independent writer Sharon has about 3 million words in print; singer/songwriter Maggie has produced two recordings; and together they have a new book , You Know You’re in Washington When … 101 Quintessential Places, People, Events, Customs, Lingo, and Eats of the Evergreen State (Globe Pequot). For information on workshops, their book, Maggie’s music, or opportunities for group retreats, go to www.songandword.com.
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RECENT RELEASES
The Alexandria Link , by Steve Berry (Ballantine Books, January 30, 2007). An adrenaline-fueled thriller about the quest for a secret contained in an ancient library that, fifteen hundred years ago, vanished without a trace.
Double Bind , by Chris Bohjalian (Shaye Areheart Books, February 13, 2007). “A mystery anchored in sorrow, a harrowing and even haunting tale of literary influence, delusion, intervention. Chris Bohjalian has done it again," says Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked.
Napoleon’s Pyramids , by William Dietrich (HarperCollins, February 6, 2007). Entertaining and well researched, this historical thriller based on Bonaparte’s 1798 invasion of Egypt should enthrall anyone interested in Napoleon, ancient Egypt, or Indiana Jones-type treasure hunts. To date, foreign rights have been sold in French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Hebrew, Romanian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Greek, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Swedish and Polish.
Greg Noll: The Art of the Surfboard , by Drew Kampion (Gibbs Smith, Publisher; 1 edition, April 1, 2007). One of the greatest surfers of all time, Greg Noll has built a considerable reputation as master of surfboard making, or "shaping." Today, collectors and surfers alike prize his unique brand of board. Now living in Crescent City, California, Noll still shapes about a dozen boards a year out of old-growth salvage woods – replicas of Duke Kahanamoku's olo and other exotica for collectors. The Art of the Surfboard combines the art of building extraordinary surfboards with fascinating surfing history and photography. It's a must-have for surfers and surfing history buffs of any age.
Whidbey-My Eye , by Rick Lawler (MinRef Press, November 30, 2006). Subtitled, A Whidbey Island Photographic Journal, this collection from WIWA member and award-winning photographer Rick Lawler provides over 75 full-color photographs, many of them full page. This is a useful book for tourists, island residents, and anyone interested in stunning photographs and the Pacific Northwest. For more information: www.gopnw.com or minref@gmail.com.
You Know You’re in Washington When … 101 Quintessential Places, People, Events, Customs, Lingo, and Eats of the Evergreen State , by former conference presenter Sharon Wootton and Maggie Savage (Globe Pequot Press, Spring 2007).
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CHEERS!
NOTE: When you place in a competition or get a submission accepted for publication, please let us know. We love to celebrate your successes!
WIWA member Cameron Castle was named a semi-finalist in HumorPress.com's most recent " America's Funniest Humor!" Writing Contest. For his accomplishment, Castle earned publication online and in print. His entry, Feeding Carter, is about the ongoing learning process of being a stay at home dad. Feeding Carter will be showcased on HumorPress.com through March 2007, after which new results from the bi-monthly contest will be posted. The entry will also appear in an upcoming print edition of America's Funniest Humor! HumorPress.com is one of Google's highest-ranked "humor writing contest" sites, with contests and publishing opportunities for all humor writers and those with humorous real-life experiences.
Whidbey Island’s slam master and local poet, Jim Freeman, appears as narrator and guide in a tourism video for Whidbey Island, part of the TurnHere Short Films Cool Places project. You can see the video at http://www.turnhere.com/city/seattle/all/films/776.aspx.
WIWA member, MFA faculty and conference presenter, Kirby Larson, has once again received high honors. Her book Hattie Big Sky (Delacorte Press) won a Newbery Honor Award from the American Library Association. For more information on Kirby, visit her Web site at www.kirbylarson.com, for more information on Hattie Big Sky, go to www.hattiebigsky.com. (Editor’s Note: I’ll be interviewing Kirby for our June edition newsletter.)
Past conference presenter Jill Johnson has been notified that one of her essays will appear in Storytelling Across Language Barriers, published by Libraries Unlimited and edited by Margaret Read MacDonald. The essay describes some of Jill’s experiences storytelling in French in Cameroon, Central West Africa, in 2004-2005. The book is set to be released in winter 2007.
In January, WIWA member Danielle Peck won a writing contest on EHarlequin called the Ultimate Reunion Contest. As a result, Harlequin has requested a partial of a book that she wrote and The Wild Rose Press has requested a full of another book. Now that's exciting news.
WIWA member Diane M. Schuller will be writing a weekly column "Everyday Earth Wise" in the new publication GP Ink, launching on March 17, 2007. Diane will share news, tips, and useful guidelines for living a green lifestyle. For more information on Diane, visit her Web site at www.dianeschuller.com.
Longtime MFA and Conference friend and Whidbey Island neighbor, Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen, has joined the Gotham Writers’ Workshop as faculty in Children’s Books.
WIWA member and newsletter contributor Tom Trimbath will have excerpts from his February 2007 newsletter article on self-publishing featured in promotional materials for iUniverse.
WIWA member and newsletter reporter-at-large Brad Walker has been asked to rewrite his article from the December 2006 edition of the WIWA newsletter "The Quest for Truth" in response to a request from Writer Magazine.
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CONTESTS AND MARKET REQUESTS
NOTE: When you place in a competition or get a submission accepted for publication, please let us know. We love to celebrate your successes in our CHEERS! section.
DATED CALLS:
Cranky Literary Journal announces its first-ever chapbook contest. If you’re a poet with 20-45 pages of poetry full of wit and word play and quirky intelligence, the editors at Cranky want to see your work. All entries are read blindly (like the three mice), which means anything that shouts out your name will disqualify you; please do not include in your manuscript any poems previously published by Cranky. Submission deadline is April 15. The winner will be announced August 1. Cranky will pay $500 and 25 copies of the chapbook (and they’re such nice folks that they will even work with the winner on design and cover art). Hurry to the Web site for more details: http://www.crankymag.org/contest.html.
Iron Horse Literary Review reads manuscripts until April 15 each year. We are looking for fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Payment: $100 per prose piece, $40 per poem. For further information, please visit www.english.ttu.edu/ih.
Second Annual Flash Prose Contest. Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com, is searching for flash fiction, memoir, and creative nonfiction that grabs, surprises, and mesmerizes readers in under 750 words. If you have a complete story with a strong theme, sharp images, a solid structure, and an unexpected discovery, please submit it to the WriterAdvice Flash Prose Contest. Submission deadline is April 15, 2007. Details http://www.writeradvice.com/index.html (scroll down on this page – don’t go to the Contests page link).
Ecotone welcomes unsolicited works of creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry with a specific focus on place and borders, be them geographical, interpersonal, sexual, spiritual, etc. Our audience appreciates literary work that is vital, thorny, and alive. Submission deadline is April 30, 2007. See Web site for details: http://www.uncw.edu/ecotone.
La Belle Lettre Children's Contest . Submit your children’s story (illustrated or non-illustrated) for the opportunity to win cash prices for 1 st, 2 nd and 3 rd places. Three honorable mentions will also be announced. Submission deadline is May 1, 2007. For information and guidelines go to http://www.labellelettre.com.
Cascade: Journal of the Washington Poets Association (formerly the WPA Anthology). All members of the Washington Poets Association are eligible to submit poems to this annual, juried collection of poetry. Poetry will be blind-judged by a panel of independent judges. Top selections (one poem per selected poet) will be published in the journal. If you're not currently a member of WPA, the entry form provides an opportunity to join. Contest rules and entry form for are now available at http://www.washingtonpoets.org/wpa_cascade_journal.php. Submission deadline is May 15, 2007.
76 th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition . Grand prize $3,000, a trip to New York City and an opportunity to meet with agents or editors. With ten submission categories, this is a competition for all writers to consider. Submission deadline is May 15, 2007. For more information, visit https://www.writersdigest.com/contests/annual/76th/.
15 th Annual Writer's Digest International Self-Published Book Awards. For 15 years Writer's Digest has honored self-published authors with the Annual Self-Published Book Awards. Now is your chance to be part on this exclusive competition. With over $15,000 in prizes, this could be your chance to win valuable cash prizes and gain national exposure for your book. Submission deadline is May 15, 2007. Details at http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/self_published.asp.
Gift of Words; Poetry for the Iraqi People . The Challenge: Write a poem for the Iraqi People, something that you want to express to their citizens. Submission deadline May 2007. More information at http://www.poetslane.com/.
Prose for Papa. Held in conjunction with the 3rd Annual Ernest Hemingway Festival in Sun Valley, ID September 20 to 23, 2007, the winner of this short story competition receives $500 and publication in the festival magazine. Submission deadline is June 1. Details at http://www.visitsunvalley.com/static/index.cfm?contentID=555.
Lunch Hour Stories short fiction magazine announces its 2007 Short Story Contest. Stories must be previously unpublished, literary or mainstream in nature, 4000-8000 words in length, and formatted in common manuscript style. Genre Writers: Suspense, mystery, fantasy and sci-fi will be considered as long as the story only mildly leans toward the genre, and can still appeal to a general audience. Children's, religious, romance and erotica will not be considered. Submission deadline is June 30, 2007. Cash and publication prizes. Complete submission guidelines are available at http://www.lunchhourstories.com/short_story_contest.html.
OPEN CALLS
Common Ties is an interactive story blog, a grass-roots citizen journalism effort. We publish the very best of the stories submitted to the site — and we pay these writers competitively for their personal stories. For more details, visit http://www.commonties.com/about.php.
Inspired Pen is a new journal devoted to publishing a wide range of short work by established and new authors. For more information and submission guidelines go to www.inspiredpen.net.
Unbound Press announces an open call for submissions. Single submission limits: 1-6 poems or 1 short story or 1 creative nonfiction. Prose maximum 5,000 words. Previously unpublished work, multiple submissions acceptable if disclosed in cover letter. For details inquire at UnboundPress@gmail.com or visit their Web site at www.unboundpress.com.
The Vancouver Writers’ Mixer is accepting proposals for 20-30 minute presentations (advice, techniques, instruction) at their monthly event. For more information, or to submit, contact Carolyn Rose at bubba11@pacifier.com.
Vertex Press is a new, Seattle-based cooperative publishing house devoted to showcasing the best new literary work by Pacific Northwest writers. Our interests include essay, fiction, poetry, and memoir. Only submissions by Vertex Press members will be considered for publication. Applicants must agree, if accepted into the cooperative, to critique and edit each others' work; to attend workshops, seminars, and readings; and to participate in other promotional and marketing activities sponsored by Vertex Press. For more information, go to http://www.vertexpress.com/.
SPECIAL CALLS
Council of Literary Magazines & Presses, together with the US Consulate in Kolkata ( India), Rattapallax, and a major delegation of American writers and poets are supporting the Kolkata Book Fair in 2008, where the United States will be the featured country this year.
With an annual attendance of 2.8 million people, the Kolkata Book Fair is the largest book festival in the world. We want to showcase small press books and literary magazines at the book fair. You are invited to donate books or magazines to be sold for one dollar each at the event. Note that large house publishers are being asked to do the same. You are not being asked to ship your books to India, only to a clearinghouse in NJ, and the Kolkata folks will cover the cost of getting everything to the fair. All the proceeds will benefit a not-for-profit organization working in India. All books/magazines donated are tax deductible and all the publishers will be prominently displayed in the US pavilion.
More information on the program can be found at http://www.uskle.org/books.html. If you have any questions, please e-mail Ram Devineni at Rattapallax: info@uskle.org.
This is a wonderful opportunity for WIWA members to reach a vibrant new market, help a terrific cause, and represent American arts and letters at an important book festival.
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WIWA WEB SITE NEWS AND MEMBER SERVICES
Keep Up With Your Favorite WIWC Presenters
To make it easy for our members and conference attendees, WIWA links to the Web sites of past conference presenters who provide their Web site addresses to us. It’s a convenient place to look up your favorite presenters and find out where they’re reading and what they’re publishing. Just visit our Web site under Writers Conference/Prior Conference/Prior Presenter at http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/Prior_Conferences/Prior_Presenters.html.
If you’re a past WIWC presenter and your link doesn’t appear on our links page, but you would like it to, just let us know. The only requirement is that you provide a reciprocal link to WIWA and/or the conference Web site at: http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/.
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WIWA'S WISH LIST
The Whidbey Island Writers Association is looking for generous individuals or groups interested in donating any of the following items to help us in our efforts to offer outstanding and new programs to local writers and readers. Please contact 360-331-6714 if you have any questions or to make a donation, or e-mail wiwa@whidbey.com. WIWA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and donations may be tax deductible.
–Work station (student desk size) with room for a computer and monitor
–Desk chair
–Computer and monitor to run sophisticated graphics software WIWA received through a recent grant. (Please contact Elizabeth Guss, Conference Director, for specific details)
–The Chicago Manual of Style, University of Chicago Press
–AP Stylebook, Associated Press
–New books on writing (to be used as prizes in the annual youth writing contest)
–Phone cards
–Copy paper
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WIWA Seeks Volunteer Reporters
Join WIWA's team of volunteers as event-specific and beat reporters. I know you’re out there attending events and participating in our local writing community and our readers want to hear about your experiences. This position calls for enthusiastic individuals who attend writing-related events in the Whidbey Island and Puget Sound writing community.
There is no payment or stipend available for event or class tuition. Reporters will work with the newsletter editor to cover current events they have already attended to bring pertinent news back to our writing readership. For more information, please contact Achaessa directly at NewsletterEditor@writeonwhidbey.com.
WIWA does not pay for articles published in the newsletter, but your article will be circulated to approximately 2,000 writers, agents and publishers on our e-mail distribution list and posted on the WIWA Web site. After publication, all rights revert to the author, who may freely use publication in the WIWA newsletter as a publishing “clip” either in hardcopy, PDF format, or by citing to the newsletter archives on the WIWA Web site. All rights are retained by the author, but we’d love it if you cite the original publication with us when the article is republished.
Editor’s Note: Take a look at the CHEERS! section and you’ll see that two of our newsletter contributors have been approached by other publishers about articles they’ve written for us.
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QUOTATIONS
NOTE: Please send us quotations about writing that you would like to share.
“There is the happiness which comes from creative effort. The joy of dreaming, creating, building, whether in painting a picture, writing an epic, singing a song, composing a symphony, devising new invention, creating a vast industry.” – Henry Miller (submitted by WIWA member Achaessa James)
“The real joy is in constructing a sentence. But I see myself as an actor first because writing is what you do when you are ready and acting is what you do when someone else is ready.” – Steve Martin (submitted by WIWA member Achaessa James)
and, worth repeating…
“Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very’; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” – Mark Twain (submitted by WIWA member Diane Schuller)
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CYBERSURFING
NOTE: If you find a Web site you think other writers would like to visit, send us the URL.
Directory of American Poets and Writers - www.pw.org/directory/. Writers of poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction can apply online to be listed in this prestigious professional directory established by Poets&Writers. The listing is free, but you must meet the criteria for published work in your area.
Writers Market Online – http://www.writersmarket.com/. A one year subscription to this robust online publishing resource costs only $29.99. But some of us still prefer post-its on book pages. This year, you can get the online subscription for free if you buy the 2007 Writer’s Market Deluxe Edition.
LiteraryLawGuide.com – http://www.literarylawguide.com/resources.htm#top. Everything you ever wanted to know about law as it applies to writers.
PMA, The Independent Book Publishers' Association – http://www.pma-online.org/. This is a great resource on independent book publishers and they’ve also got Publishing University Online, live Web-based seminars in four key areas: Legal, Production, Marketing, and Business Organization. Definitely a valuable site for self-publishing authors.
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WRITERS ASK / WRITERS RESPOND
Do you have a question on writing or publishing that could use additional input? Do you have writing or publishing resources, information or experience that you’d like to share with our readers? Questions and responses can be sent to NewsletterEditor@writeonwhidbey.com and may be published in upcoming editions of the newsletter for the benefit of all readers.
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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 a writing related 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 e-mail NewsletterEditor@writeonwhidbey.com. For information about the Conference, e-mail writers@whidbey.org. The WIWA Web site is http://www.writeonwhidbey.org.
Remaining 2007 newsletter submission dates:
May 15 for June 1 edition
July 15 for August 1 edition
Sept 15 for October 1 edition
November 15 for December 1 edition
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TO SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE
The WIWA Newsletter is published approximately every two months and posted to our Web site at http://www.writeonwhidbey.com/Publications/. If you would like to receive an e-mail announcing when each new edition of the newsletter is available, send an e-mail, with SUBSCRIBE WIWA in the subject line, to wiwa@whidbey.com. If you would like to unsubscribe, please reply to this e-mail with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject, and we will delete you from our records. WIWA will not share or sell your name or e-mail address.