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Volume: 16.06 • The South Carolina Writers Workshop Newsletter • July 2005 |
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NEWS |
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Board BulletinsOur 2005 Anthology WinnersIn our June 19 Board meeting, Catfish Stew Editor Steve Vassey announced the winners in this year's competition.
Congratulations to all of these selected to represent the best of SCWW in our annual publication. Thanks to all who submitted and to Steve for bringing our book together. In other business, South Carolina Poet Lauret Marjory Wentworth was nominated to become an Advisory Member of SCWW. She has accepted. The Board also elected Pat Graney and Jason Zwiker to fill the unexpired terms of Terry Laws and Ed Howe who had recently resigned, each citing personal reasons. We express our thanks to Terry and Ed for their service to SCWW and look forward to working with Pat and Jason. Linda Schaffer was elected to serve as Secretary, the post formerly held by Terry. It's not too early to be thinking about Board elections this Fall. The Board encourages members from all over the state to consider offering their services. Chapter ChatterCharlestonWe note with sorrow the death of Mike Strantz, whose wife Heidi is a long time member of the Charleston Chapter. Mike was a premier golf course designer (Caledonia among his credits) and was recently featured in Golf Magazine. Our thoughts and prayers are with Heidi and the family. Columbia IILarry Hamilton, Columbia II's moderator, writes a column on running that appears in The State newspaper on the sports page. Larry is a longtime running enthusiast who went to Alaska last summer to participate in a marathon. Three of our writers have completed novel manuscripts and are seeking publishers. Six are currently working on novels and bring excerpts to workshop for critique. Each meeting, we read the continuing saga of: a free-spirited woman living in a 14th century Islamic country (Sheryn Bellue); the impoverished childhood of a mill-town resident (Mickey Burriss); the challenges faced by a contemporary couple who cannot have children (Rachel Beanland); and life on a sea island cotton plantation in 1867 (Bonnie Stanard). Bonnie Stanard's poem "Country Song of Carolina" was accepted for publication by The Connecticut Review. GreenvilleFrom Printed Matters Wow - there's never a dull moment at the Third Tuesday meetings. This month, women outnumbered the men three to one. The visitors were almost as numerous and certainly as vocal and insightful as the regulars. We had seven readers out of twelve attendees. The Sunday, June 12, 2005 Greenville News comics features one of our own. Look at the comic strip "Shoe" and see if you recognize our illustrious Quill Editor. When Shoe makes a comment that his muse has broken his heart, it sounds a lot like the reaction Thaleia has on Leland. Check it out. Rock HillGrace W. Looper won second place for her story "Man's Best Friend" in The M. L. Brown Award for Young Adult Literature at the Southeastern Writers Workshop at Epworth-By-The-Sea, St. Simons Island, Georgia. She also received honorable mention in the Hudson Award for Speculative Short Fiction for her story "Hearts and Flowers." |
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OPPORTUNITIES |
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SCWW Summer WorkshopsJuly 16, 2005 – Freelance Writing Presented by Jason Zwiker. 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Cayce-West Columbia Branch of the Lexington County Library, 1500 Augusta Highway, West Columbia, SC. Workshop is free and open to the public. Jason A. Zwiker is a freelance writer and photographer in Charleston, SC. He is a frequent contributor to Charleston Magazine, a book reviewer for the Post & Courier, and a regular writer for the Charleston City Paper. His articles have also appeared in such publications as Consumers' Digest and Pool & Billiard Magazine. While at the College of Charleston, he studied fiction writing under novelist Bret Lott. Jason's short stories have won numerous awards, including placing in the Piccolo Fiction Open, and have appeared in such publications as Eureka Literary Magazine and All Hallows: International Journal of the Ghost Story. He is an active member of the Charleston Chapter of the SCWW. SCWW 15th Annual
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| Fiction: | Non-fiction: | |
| Lee Child | Jeff Herman | |
| Quinn Dalton | Kelly Love Johnson | |
| William Price Fox | Sally McMillan | |
| Joshilyn Jackson | Marcy Posner | |
| Bob Mayer | Brett Valley | |
| Sally McMillan | ||
| Mary Alice Monroe | Plays/Screenplays: | |
| Marcy Posner | Terry Roueche | |
| Kimberla Lawson Roby | ||
| Charles Todd | Poetry: | |
| Brett Valley | Paul Allen |
Please note that manuscripts will be assigned on a first-come/first-served basis according to faculty availability.
Attendees are encouraged to enter the competition for the Carrie McCray Literary Awards. This contest gives you a chance to win $100 and to have one more success to list in your query and submission letters. So start writing now for the September 1 deadline. Specific guidelines are on the SCWW Web site.
Those interested in reading for open mic on Friday night, the time limit will again be five minutes in order to give more people an opportunity to read. As always, there will be a sign-up sheet at registration with readings done in order of sign-up.
Returning attendees who practice "recycle or reuse" and do not need another SCWW tote, might want to bring their old one so they can transfer their conference materials to it at registration and return the new one for use next year.
Guest registration will be $50 per guest and includes the Friday night cocktail party and other social events. Guests may not attend the conference or workshop sessions.
Saturday dinner will be available for a separate per person charge, which will be determined at a later date.
Landmark Resort Hotel is located at 1501 South Ocean Blvd. within minutes of the Myrtle Beach International Airport and the many restaurants, shops, golf courses, tennis courts, water parks, and entertainment venues that have made Myrtle Beach into one of America's top tourist destinations.
The resort offers a wide array of amenities that include the Southeast's largest resort indoor pool complex, a full-service restaurant, snack bars, exercise facilities, and complimentary airport shuttle service. SCWW conference attendees will enjoy the following exceptionally discounted room rates:
| Interior hotel room: | $42 | King angle suite: | $55 | |
| Ocean view hotel room: | $46 | Double angle suite: | $57 | |
| Ocean front hotel room: | $53 | Ocean front suite: | $65 | |
| Ocean front efficiencies: | $55 | Deluxe ocean front suite: | $68 |
To receive these special conference rates, reservations must be made directly through Landmark Resort no later than Sept. 14. Call 1-800-845-0658 and be sure to mention that you are attending the SCWW conference to get our low group rate.
Note: all room rates are subject to state and local taxes (currently at 10.0%) and $2 per night taxable resort fee.
Got news from your local chapter? Got a helpful writers web site to share? Got a caution about a bogus publishing opportunity or contest? Let's network our knowledge to build a better newsletter.
Deadline for submissions is the 21st of each month. Please send submissions to quilleditor@spymac.com either in the body of an e-mail or as an attached file in MS Word (DOC), Rich Text (RTF) or plain text (TXT) format. Articles accepted for publication will appear in The Quill and archived on the web. Writers retain all rights to their works.
Submissions may also be made on floppy disk and mailed to:
Leland Beaudrot
1 Cleveland St Ste 110
Greenville SC 29601-3646
Write on!
Leland Beaudrot, Editor
The Quill
Only one percent of all books written get sold to traditional publishers. The odds of selling a short story or magazine article are better, but still dismal. Increase your chances of selling whatever you write by picking the brains of an editor with more than 30 years of book, magazine and newspaper experience. Bobbie Christmas has condensed her six-week creative writing course into a one-day seminar, and you do not have to be a member of The Atlanta Writers Club to take the course.
You may submit up to five manuscript pages (double-spaced, 12-pt. font, Times New Roman or Courier New, 1-inch margins) to Bobbie for critiquing prior to the workshop. Bobbie must receive your pages for evaluation no later than July 9. When you register for the workshop (see payment instructions below), you may send the pages by e-mail to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com (Microsoft Word or WordPerfect files only) or via regular mail to Zebra Communications, 230 Deerchase Drive, Ste. B, Woodstock, GA 30188-4438.
Date: Saturday, July 23, 2005
Cost: $65Sandy Springs Regional Library
395 Mt. Vernon Hwy
Sandy Springs GA
To register and pay for the course, you have two choices:
1) Log on to http://www.PayPal.com, register your name, and specify that you want to send a payment against your credit card to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com in the amount of $65. You will get confirmation of your payment.
2) Alternatively, send a check for $65 made out to Bobbie Christmas at the address above. Specify in the memo section that this payment is for the July 23 workshop.
For more information, contact George Weinstein at gjweinstein@yahoo.com (or 770-552-5887) or Bobbie Christmas at Bobbie@ZebraEditor.com.
The Poetry Society of South Carolina meets at Second Presbyterian Church on Meeting Street in Charleston at seven p.m. on the dates noted below. All meetings, other than the holiday party in December, are free and open to the public. A reception with light refreshments follows each meeting.
| Friday, September 9 Kurtis Lamkin Poems set to music of the Kora |
Friday, October 14 Kathryn Stripling Byer Poet Laureate of North Carolina |
Friday, November 11 Fran Quinn Nationally acclaimed poet-teacher |
WORKSHOP LEADER: Jerri Chaplin, Certified Poetry Therapist
DATE: Saturday, October 8, 2 - 4 p.m.
LOCATION: Trott's Cottage, 83 Cumberland Street, Charleston
REGISTRATION: $20 for Poetry Society of South Carolina members, $25 for others.
Preregistration is required by October 1; space is limited to 30 participants.
Payment of registration fee will confirm a spot in the workshop.
DESCRIPTION: Participants will learn how the reading and writing of poetry helps heal and will do some expressive writing exercises.
Light refreshments will be served after the workshop.
COORDINATOR: Mary Harris, (843) 821-2086 or wordnotes185@hotmail.com
Spotlight Magazine has reserved space for a creative writing corner in each of our future monthly issues for our readers to enjoy. Our lifestyle publication is targeted to a general audience in this region who are interested in reading about entertainment, people and organizations in our region. We are soliciting fiction or non-fiction short stories, essays or poetry from adult writers as well as students. The criteria for short stories, poetry and essays are that they be original and under 1,000 words in length.
A panel of judges will select what creative pieces will be run each month. You may submit your creative writing pieces before the 15th of each month. It is recommended that you submit only one piece each month. You will be notified if your writing will appear and in what issue it will run. Please include your name, address, email address, daytime phone number on each submission.
There is no guarantee that your submission will be published nor that you will be compensated for your submission. However, we have reserved $100 per issue for outstanding creativity that the panel of judges may award to the writer that will be called, "A Special Spotlight On Creativity."
Submissions should be sent to fran@spotlightcharlotte.com.
The National League of American Pen Women promotes development of the creative talents of professional women in the arts, and consists of more than 200 local branches and State Associations throughout the United States.
The League offers its members association with other creative professional women: workshops, discussion groups and lectures related to the creative process. Writing and poetry contests, art exhibitions (both juried and judged), and music composition competitions conducted at local branch, state and national levels of the organization.
For more information covering the requirements for membership, please visit our membership page.
Meetings of local branches are held regularly with programs on topics of interest to artists, writers and composers. For information on branches in your area, please contact National Headquarters at (202) 785-1997 or email us at info@americanpenwomen.org.
From The Novel Writer's Toolkit: A Guide To Writing Great Fiction And Getting Published
What is reality? What someone perceives it to be. Keep this in mind in terms of the point of view you choose to write your novel in, and the points of view of your characters, and the point of view of the reader.
After many years of writing and teaching novel writing, I firmly believe that perspective or point of view is the number one style problem for most writers. It is also one of the easiest problems to correct with a bit of awareness of both the problem and possible solutions. For the sake of simplicity, in this section I will stick with the term point of view, although it is interchangeable with perspective.
When considering how to tell your story, the first thing you have to do is select a point of view. This may be the most critical decision you have to make after you have your original idea and are ready to transition to story. Often the type of story you are writing will clearly dictate the point of view, but a good understanding of the various modes of presentation is essential because this is one area where beginning novelists often have problems. They may select the right point of view, but it is often used poorly because of a lack of understanding of the tool itself.
Regardless of which point of view (or points of view) you choose to use, there is one thing you must have: You as the author must have a good feeling about the point of view with which you are telling the story. If you don't have a warm and fuzzy about that, this confusion will most definitely be translated to the reader. Remember, ultimately, point of view is your voice as a writer.
Some people write like an MTV music video: point of view flying all over the place, giving glimpses into each character but never really keeping the reader oriented. I say this because the best analogy I can give for point of view is to look at it as your camera. You, as the author, are the director: You see and know everything in your story. But the reader only sees and knows what the camera records from its unique perspective: the point of view you choose. You must always keep that in mind. You see the entire scene, but your lens only records the words you put on the page and you have to keep your lens tightly focused and firmly in hand.
The key term to know, like a director, is the word 'cut.' A cut in film terminology is when the camera is either
a) stopped, then restarted later, either in the same place or in a new place; or
b) stopped and another camera, with a different perspective is then used.
To a writer, a cut is a change in point of view. In an MTV music video, you can go about three seconds before having to 'cut.'
The most critical element to remember about point of view is that you have to keep the reader oriented about what camera they are seeing the scene through. The reader has got to know from what point of view they are viewing the scene. Lose that and you lose the reader. Thus, as with everything else, there is no wrong point of view to write in, or even mixture of point of views to write in, but it is wrong to confuse the reader as to the point of view through which they are 'seeing' the story.
Let's take the camera point of view a bit further. When directors do a scene, they immediately look into a viewfinder and watch the recording of the take. They do this because, although they saw what happened, they have to know what the camera recorded. As an author, you have to get out of your own point of view as the writer and be able to see what you write as the reader sees it. All that counts for the reader is what you have written down, not what you think you have written down.
Good Rejections, Story Classifications and Release Forms
Q: I tried writing novels, but I found I was better at writing shorter things. I wrote some short stories, but they all come out as if they are a view into a certain event or something. They don't really have a beginning, middle, and end. Are they still considered short stories?
A: You probably are writing what is called "slice of life" stories, and some markets that accept short stories also accept slice of life stories. Check the guidelines carefully; some specify that they do not accept slice of life stories.
Q: I am writing a nonfiction book and interviewing several people for the book. I have interviewees subject sign a release that states the following:
1. They are aware that excerpts from the interview will be used in a book.
2. They will not be compensated for the interview.
3. They will receive no proceeds from the book.
Additionally, I have interviewees record how they would like to be identified in the book on the release form (e.g. pseudonym, initials, etc.).
Is there anything else I should include on the release form?
A: This is a legal issue, so I cannot answer in absolutes. Short of having an attorney approve the form, you might check a Web site or store to find standard release forms to see if you missed anything. I have two layperson suggestions, though.
You sent a summary, not the release, so the actual form may already include what I'm about to say. Because the purpose of the form is to protect you and give you latitude to use the information, I would not use the word "will" under number one, but "may," because you may not use all interviews, and you do not want to imply a promise. I also would add other options, to cover more bases, too. The wording might go more like this: "Excerpts may be used in a book, article, and promotional literature or in other printed or electronic matter."
Q: I've been submitting my manuscript to several publishers and agents. Although I've had only rejections so far, some of them are very much "near misses." One publisher gave lots of praise for the submission but said it did not accept unagented manuscripts. One agent said he "saw the talent," but he had experienced problems placing similar proposals recently. Do these niceties mean anything, or are they just letting me down gently?
A: Most agents and publishers have little time to let people down gently. Most rejections are sent by preprinted letters, or in the worst case, rubber-stamped rejection notices. Some do not bother to respond at all.
Agents and publishers have nothing to gain by taking extra time to write a nice note. When you get a personal comment of any kind, it is rare, and when that comment is complimentary, frame it! You have the rarest form of rejection letter, and it means you are getting close. Keep revising and submitting your work. Keep creating more. Ponder the point that similar proposals have been difficult to place. Think how you might revise your proposal or your book to make it more marketable. Look at bestseller lists to see what's selling. Keep going, and take pride in the "good" rejections.
If I may add a personal note: My book, Write In Style, just earned an award for Best in its Division at the Georgia Author of the Year Awards. It had already won First Place in the Royal Palm Literary Awards in 2004, and now this. What an honor!
Send your questions to the book doctor at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. If you liked these questions and answers, order Bobbie's e-book, Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your Writing. It addresses hundreds of questions from writers like you, for only $8.95 at http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html. Bobbie Christmas is a book editor, freelance writer and author of the double-award-winning Write In Style: Using Your Word Processor and Other Techniques to Improve Your Writing (Union Square Publishing).
At times we take a step back and ask ourselves what we're doing to improve our writing. Most of us agree that the workshop is helpful. Carol Beard says, "Three years ago, I knew nothing about the art and craft of writing. I knew that some books were good and others not so good, but had no idea why. Everything I tried to write fell flat.... I began reading books about writing and I joined SCWW. I started keeping a journal and jotting down ideas, bits of overheard conversation, odd things people do. I can see now that the learning will never end."
Alex Raley has thought about this and he says: "Improvement comes from continuing to write with good feedback from people who are not afraid to tell you what will improve a piece you have written. That is a big benefit from the SCWW sessions. I have also improved by attending workshops where successful writers talk about the process of writing—what works and what doesn't work.... A good example is one writer who said that avoiding the sterility of 'telling' does not always mean that dialogue is needed. She drew the distinction between 'telling' narrative and 'action' narrative. I have begun to distinguish the difference in my reading. Eureka, I find that action narrative does keep the reading going."
Most of us agree that we need to write regularly to improve. The SCWW meetings are deadlines that force many of us to get something down on paper, even if we wait until the last minute. And sometimes this effort is rewarded when we blunder into a story that takes off.
"Thaleia? Is that you, or is this another fever delirium?"
"It's me," she said. "It's too hot inside your head. I just had to get out of there."
"That explains the white linen tank top and shorts, but what's with the funny hat?"
"You're sick." She whipped a small glass rod with violent flicks of her wrist. "You need a nurse."
I pulled my afghan firmly around my shoulders. "I don't like to be fluttered over when I'm sick. I want to be left...."
She thrust the thermometer under my tongue and grasped my wrist. "Men! You're all so difficult when you're sick. Just hold still."
"Domphihafamois?" The thermometer waggled like a seismograph needle during an 8.6 quake. I pulled it from my mouth before it flipped up to be sliced in two by the ceiling fan. "Do I have a choice?"
"No!" She thrust the instrument into my mouth and cupped my chin in her hand. "Now, be a good boy and keep that under your tongue."
She grasped my wrist once again and stared at a tiny hourglass strapped to her wrist. "Your pulse is racing." She pulled the thermometer from my mouth. "And your temp is 100.2."
"Harumph!" I shivered with a chill. "Chalk it up to irritation."
"Speaking of irritation..." She held up a flashlight and tongue depressor. "Let me see your throat."
The sight of that minute plank of wood set off my gag reflex which set off a coughing spell which left me breathless.
"Are you quite finished? This won't hurt a bit." She clamped my tongue and shed light on my tonsils. "Umm...hmmm."
I wondered how far she was going to take this exam, and if she would bill my insurance. She cast the soggy popsicle stick in the trash can.
"By the way," I asked. "Where did you study medicine? Could I see your diploma?"
"Who needs a diploma. I knew Hippocrates personally." She leaned toward my ear and whispered. "He was such a bore."
"In other words, you didn't listen," I said. "Especially when he said, 'First of all, do no harm.'"
She wrapped a black cuff around my arm and pumped a rubber bulb vigorously.
"Pop test time!" I said as my hand turned blue. "What's the name of that instrument?"
"Most people call it a 'blood pressure cuff,." She mercifully turned the silver knob, vented the air and released my pent up circulation. "But its technical name is sphygmomanometer."
"Harumph! Bet you didn't learn that from Hippocrates."
With a rip, she pulled the Velcroed arm band free and tapped the face of the dial. "No, it's written on here."
I blew my nose on a tissue and tossed it into the overflowing trash can. "Have you seen enough? What's the verdict?"
She enumerated my symptoms. "Fever, chills, stuffy head, sore throat, cough: clearly a case of congested inspiration."
"I am having a bit of trouble breathing in."
"No, it means you're stifling your creative output." She stashed her instruments of torture in a black bag. "You need to get writing."
I gazed at her with bleary eyes. "Are you kidding? I'm miserable!"
"Many a writer has been moved by bodily affliction to pen some of their most significant work. Many of Emily Dickenson's poems were reflections on death, Jim Poindexter's unfinished novel, The High Hills, became a source for his own eulogy, and in "It is Well With My Soul" Carnegie McQuiston tells how her father's peaceful acceptance of death helps deal with life threatening illness.
My stuffy sinuses opened as my nostrils flared in alarm. "Are you trying to tell me something?"
She patted my hand reassuringly. "You have a cold, and no excuse for not writing. Let your fever warm the crucible of your inspiration and do the write thing."
The Quill is the newsletter of the South Carolina Writers Workshop.
Copyright 2005 by Leland Beaudrot, Editor. Contributing writers retain all rights to their work.
