The Wannabe’s Journal

For

August of 2012
 

                                                       

Meeting new friends and getting to talk with acquaintances that you have not seen in months is very rewarding.  Nine members of the Wannabe’s met last Friday August 26^th from 9 to 11:15 AM.  A number of people could not attend because work conflicts, appointments and planned trips out of town.  I personally had been absent for the meetings the last few months so I had some catching up to do.  The following is a summary of what was discussed during our meeting,  If you would like to attend next month’s meeting it is scheduled for September 21^st at 9 AM at our home at UD’s River Campus.

Then there are the people who I forget to add to the distribution list,  One such person is Deborah Breakall LiBrandi.  Being a business professional leaves little time for her family and a personal life but somehow she has started posting short stories to her Blog site that have become very popular.  We would love to welcome her to our group and ask her forgiveness for our showing our age.  Visit her blog site for a good chuckle: libranilife.blogspot.com

Members Update:

Don H:  Discussed our current anthology project.  We are still seeking essays, poems and short stories about the “Growing old is not for Sissy’s” I am sure many of you can think of something to share with our audience.  I just saw a BBC program on TV the other night with Ms. Judi Dench about how aging requires either reading glasses, a change in your prescription for your glasses or/add hearing aids.  It was quite comical watching the actors rationalize why the volume of their voices had elevated over the last year, even though they thought they were “normal”.  Please send your short story or poem to Don or myself by September 7^th for inclusion in our next book. 

Don P: He has been deeply involved in his writers group that he participates with at Books and Co.  They have to write a 20 page story once a month and distribute it to the other members for their critique.  Sounds like the Creative Writers Class at Sinclair that I took a few years ago.  It was a great ways to get the basics of story structure down to an art form. 

He claims to have learned a great deal about his own writing style.  Use of the word “that” and errors in 1^st person are two of his favorites.  What are yours? 

Hearing Don talk about his great experience of participating in a Book Club locally reminded me of the article: “Book lovers connect through books” was recently published in the DDN on July 29^th.  Ms. Meredith Moss, a Staff Writer for the newspaper wrote an excellent article of the benefits of participating in a book club.  I know a number of you Wannabe’s are more active in reading books as compared with composing them.  Both activities exercise the right brain. 

Faye D: She is our newest member.  She is Don P’s neighbor and has published a book of poems and photo’s using Kinko’s and the publishing services from the University of Dayton.  She is investigating the possibility of self publishing her book through one the POD sites like Blurb or Createspace. 

Faye also brought up the fact that she has recently become concerned over the fact that her property rights are not copyright protected.  There is an excellent article on that very topic on Jane Friedman.com in an article entitled:  Copyright is Not a Verb http://p.feedblitz.com/r.asp?l=67491415&f=845755&u=29002001&c=4220207).  A very good article.  In my self publishing class I have recommend individuals that are publishing books of poems, novels or photographs that they should spend the 125 dollars and procure an ISBM code.  This fee allows the author to use the code on three different formats for the same title.  Such as an ebook, hardbound novel with a dust cover or a paperback which has a color cover. 

Cindi:  Showed our group a cover that she is considering using for her new novel:  “Keeper of the Keys”. She too is interested in how the copyright law would apply to a drawing which is 80 years old from the original newspaper article about the fire that happen in the early 1900’s in Columbus. 

An additional topic of discussion centered on the write-up that is part of the back cover on a paperback version of a novel.  If it were a Hardbound book then it would probably be found on the inside flap of the dustcover.  Don H indicated this is where you want to entice the potential reader to purchase your book.  I have found that this short description of your novel is very similar to the first paragraph of your email or letter that you would draft for a agent when trying to get a book deal with a publisher. 

Wanda:  Has submitted a poem entitled “ Lady C” to the anthology book that I mentioned earlier.  She also submitted a short story for this month’s Journal. 

Jud commented that there is a local chapter of the Children’s Book Writers organization that meets in Dayton at Panera on Millers Lane.  Here is a recent poem she read to the group.

Play Time

 

“ I am lava”, came from the voice

Of a 5 year old boy dangling

From a rope at the play area

At Burger King

 

A beautiful blue eyed four

Year old girl dangling

On a rope next to him

Replied “I am stars”

 

The boy looked puzzled

The girl demonstrated as she

Stretched out her right arm

Gracefully, opened her

 

Little hand in a grand

Gesture spreading illuminating

Stars over the red hot lava,

Cooling the lava instantly.

 

The little boy said nothing

The little girl paused to look

Over her work and said

“Yes, I am powerful”

                                                                                                                 

Mary Lou:  She has been able to spends some quality time in Slovakia again this summer and wrote a wonderful story about a story that had been passed down by word of mouth for many generations in the small town she visited.  The story involves what happened to a small baby who was found one morning on the church steps and how he travels through life seeking a perfect ending to what life has dealt him.  Since two of our guests at our meeting were adopted children and were raised in similar circumstances it served as a great introduction to our next member’s story.

Martha:  The irony of hearing Mary Lou’s touching story of how the village pitched into helping care for an abandon child was made real in Martha’s story of how her and her family have pitched in to help care for their great grandson who was born to a young unmarried couple.  Somewhere in literary circles it states that literature is an imitation of real life…how true.

Jud:  Never ceases to amaze us.  After visiting Cuba and Prague this summer she has been busy finishing her participation in the Community Voices program at WYSO in Yellow Springs.  Her Interview with Barb Steffens, a well-known therapists who  specialist in assisting partners of sexual addicts.  Her program and interview will be broadcast on August 28^th at 12:10 PM. 

She is also involved in a working on a local documentary. The group is seeking women who have lived through the 60’s and would be interested in sharing their story.  You can find additional information at TimesTheyAreAChanging.com.

Don Q:  Provided a number of Education Seminars that are being held in the next year.

Exciting News:

Register for a free “Jumpstart Your Fiction” seminar at the Springboro Public Library  on Oct 6^th from 1 to 3.  Bring one of your best short stories that you have sitting on the shelf gathering dust. The instructor is Ms. Katrina Kittle.  Here is her Web site:  http://katrinakittle.com/ 

Speaking of Libraries: 

A Tasting With Friends

Join us at Benham's Grove to meet local authors and sample Ohio's finest wines and beers! Sponsored by Friends of the Washington-Centerville Public Library with literary assistance from Washington-Centerville Public Library.

Schedule of Events

6-9 PM	Local authors, live music, hors d'oeuvres, wine/beer sampling, book sales
8:30 PM	Poster Auction and NOOK™ Raffle. Win a NOOK Simple Touch™ with GlowLight™ donated by Barnes & Noble (valued at $139!).

Tickets

All ticket prices include 3 wine/beer samples of your choice, hors d'oeuvres and dessert! Additional tastings will be available for purchase at the event. A portion of each ticket sale is tax deductible.

General Ticket Price	$35 each.
Author Circle Member	$33 each.

About this Fundraiser

A Tasting With Friends: Featuring Ohio Wines, Books and Brew is a collaborative effort between the Friends of the Washington-Centerville Public Library and Washington-Centerville Public Library to showcase the talented writers in the Miami Valley, as well as sample some fine spirits and food, and raise money for the Friends.

The Friends of the Washington-Centerville Public Library host several fundraisers each year, including book sales, a 5K Fun Run and more. Money raised at these events is then awarded, in the form of grants, to Washington-Centerville Public Library to fund special projects like new computers for the children’s library or tablets and eReaders for librarians to use in training the public to download digital books.

Unable to attend? Consider making a donation directly to the Library. All donations are tax deductible under IRS Code section 170 c(1).

Local Authors

Mingle with local authors, purchase their books and have them signed that evening! Barnes & Noble will process most book sales and a portion of those sales will be donated to the Friends of the Washington-Centerville Public Library!

Meet the Authors and their Showcased Books!

Other Workshops and Seminars of Interest

AWW Fall Retreat:  October 5 through 7^th in Loveland, Ohio.  Up to a 20 page manuscript will be evaluated as part of the session.  Cost is $ 450. 

Crossroads Writers Conference Oct 5 to 7^th in Macon, Ga. 

Mad Anthony  2013 is scheduled for April 12 through 14^th.  Never too early to plan for this popular local seminar that is held in Hamilton, Ohio at Miami’s Campus. 

Doe Branch is conducting a Workshop in the beautiful Smoky Mountains.  Doe Branch Ink: Fall Workshops, Now Including Songwriting, Fiction, Poetry, Memoir and Creative Non-fiction.  Check out the web site for dates and session details. http://us.mg204.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.partner=sbc&.gx=1&.rand=43iam0eeg723s

Chicago Tribune Writers Conference is scheduled for September 14^th through the 16^th.  What a great place to visit in the fall.  Here is the link for the details:

http://us.mg204.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.partner=sbc&.gx=1&.rand=43iam0eeg723s

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I also told the audience last Friday about a Webinar that I listed to that was produced by Fast Pencil, a company which supports self publishing and POD.  The title of the audio session was about how you could become a Amazon Best Seller.  Anyone who is interested in self publishing an ebook on Kindle or on a digital platform should listen to this information.

http://us.mg204.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.partner=sbc&.gx=1&.rand=43iam0eeg723s

One of our members who has recently self published a book entitled: “Gifts from the Garden”.  Ms Carol Hicks published her novel earlier this summer and has received recognition in a article by Sharon Short in the DDN on July 15^th of this year.  I helped Carl with this project with her securing the correct ISBN code and submission of her work to Createspace,

The article pointed out her success in selling her books to independent book stores,  She has had limited success in getting bookstores in the upper Mid-west to place her book for sale on a consignment basis.  One of the keys she indicated in a recent phone conversation was talking to the store manager in person and providing them with a promotional copy of the book. 

I would also recommend that you check an article on the Web entitled:  “6 Sure fire ways to Get Your Book into Bookstores” by Patricia Fry.  

http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/how-to-sell-your-self-published-book-into-bookstores_b51732

or Another good article which covers trying to place your books in Stores is in this article, 

http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2010/06/want-your-self-published-book-in-stores-weigh-the-options161.html

 

All in all we had a great meeting.  However we missed not having everyone who could have participated.  Hopefully you will be able to attend our next meeting. 

 

Our Next Meeting

 

 

September 21, 2012