"No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader."
- Robert Frost |
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Hey {Contact_First_Name},
Happy December!
Check out everything Wisconsin Writers Association has to offer this month!
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Working on a novel? Ready for more? WWA is funding two $500 grants to send two WWA members to the 2021 Novel-In-Progress Bookcamp and Writing Retreat. Get all the details and apply here. |
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WWA President’s Message
November 2020
Lots going on, stuff you need to know about.
First up, author and teacher Cathy Lanser will lead a free online mini-workshop/craft talk on December 3 at 7 PM. Say what you want, but as a writer, you can’t say 2020 didn’t provide enough material to fill a page or two. Register here.
Writing a series, or planning one? Award-winning author Silvia Acevedo will host an hour-long online workshop - Keeping Your Story Straight - Series Writing on January 7, 2021, 7 PM. Silvia's craft talk will focus on best practices in writing a series in any genre. Register here.
From the WWA Scholarship Department: two members of the Wisconsin Writers Association will receive financial assistance to attend one of the marvelous Wisconsin-based Novel-In-Progress Bookcamps in 2021. WWA will provide two $500 grants to help two members participate in this great Wisconsin writing program.
Each grant will partially pay the enrollment fee for a qualifying WWA member to attend one of the two NIP Bookcamps, each a six-day writing workshop, all-genre scheduled for May and speculative fiction in August in 2021. Deadline for applications is January 15, 2021, speculative fiction April 15. Details on how to apply may be found here.
Meanwhile, WWA has three new Board Members! Happy to announce that Silvia Acevedo, Kathleen Waldvogel, and Ryan (r. r.) Campbell have been elected to 3-year terms on the Board. Making a difference for writers in Wisconsin!
Oh, and we’re also seeking volunteers to help run the venerable Jade Ring Writing Contest. Coming off a record year (yes, 2020 was a banner year) and one of the oldest writing prizes in Wisconsin (70+ years), the Jade Ring needs you. We’re well-organized, very pro. Come help put it on. Send me a note.
Keep in touch. And keep on writing.
Barry |
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WWA is looking for someone to take the lead in the now 3rd annual Student Writing Contest for 2021. It's not as hard as it sounds. The previous lead (Christine Keleny) will give you all the details and will even be there to help.
If you're interested or you'd just like to learn more, contact Christine. |
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Share
your pride in WWA Download badges to include in your email signature and other
areas where you want to tell the world about your associations. Visit
the WWA website to download your badge.
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Ready to be a Member of the Board? WWA, a registered 501(c)3, is managed by a Board of Directors. Board members focus on policy and the goals of the mission to support Wisconsin writers as they achieve their own writing goals. If interested, contact Barry Wightman, barrywightman9@gmail.com. Not ready for the board, consider other volunteer opportunities. Next Board Meeting December 2, 2020; 10:30 am conference call. Members are welcome to join as observers. For more information, contact Julia Nusbaum. |
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Promote and Support Wisconsin Authors!
Order Your Copy of the WWA Creative Wisconsin Anthology Today! |
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2020 has been…
Say what you want, but as a writer, you can’t say 2020 didn’t provide enough material to fill a page or two.
Join us on December 3rd at 7PM for this free interactive and fun hands-on event where you’ll have a chance to think back over 2020 with a writer’s mind, look forward to 2021 if you prefer, or work on something else. We’ll work together as a group and also meet in small groups with like-minded writers of similar genres. Bring paper and something to write with if you don’t want to write using your computer.
Click Here to Register. |
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Contests and Submission Opportunities
We've updated our contest and submission page on the website! Make sure to check it out. |
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Book Review(s)
Greetings from the WWA Book review team. In time for your holiday shopping and gift-giving, and looking toward your Jan-Feb-March doldrums, it’s a good time to stock up on these books, as well as other books from our talented Membership. Check the whole line of book reviews under the tab “Blog” on WWA’s website home page or link here.
Gray Horse at Oak Lane Stable (Oak Lane Stable Adventures, Book 2)
by Kerri Lukasavitz Young Adult Fiction, Reviewed by Joan Bauer
All children should have obsessions. In Gray Horse at Oak Lane Stable, Kerri Lukasavitz’s second novel for young adults, thirteen-year-old Cassie Piotrowski and her friends are obsessed with horses. The story, set in 1976, invites any reader to immerse herself in a world of shared values and interests—a world that can reflect universal experiences through an unfamiliar lens. Read the full review here.
The Rooming House Gallery: Connecting the Dots by Bill Mathis, Contemporary fiction, Reviewed by Lisa Lickel
A building with a previous life is bequeathed to a young couple, one wanting home and family, one wanting space and community action. They learn their roots go deep and twine through the building’s very foundation, and their current relationship may have sprung from history itself as they unravel personal stories from the ledgers and diaries left in the building. Read the full review here.
Men of God by JP Jordan, Mystery/Thriller, reviewed by KM Waldvogel
J.P. Jordan does a masterful job of weaving several mysteries into one. As a reader, you follow the perspective of various characters while piecing together a web of intrigue. The more you read, the more you want to continue. How do the puzzle pieces fit together?
Read the full review here.
The Dragoneer by Amber Boudreau, reviewed by Michelle Caffrey
This was a fun read, with a great blend of reality and fantasy. The characters are three-dimensional, with orphaned Moira facing teen issues like dating, friendship, curfew, and homework. Complicating her life is her unexpected encounter with a dragon. Read the full review here.
Thank you again to our dedicated team of book reviewers. If you like to read and would be able to help us out by reading one or more books a year in your favorite genre and write up a review, please check the guidelines under the Blog-Book Reviews tab at https://wiwrite.org/book-reviews or email me, lisalickel@yahoo.com. To our members who would like to have their book reviewed, again, please check the guidelines and send me the requested information. I look forward to hearing from you. |
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WWA Literary Press Poll
In deciding whether to move forward in potentially establishing a traditional, royalty-paying literary Press, WWA requests your input. Responses will be collected through March 31, 2021. Any questions or points of discussion can be directed to Lisa Lickel, lisalickel@hotmail.com. Take the WWA Press Poll |
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If becoming your own best editor sounds appealing, and an immersive program with gentle accountability and real community would help, reach out to me now. Pro bono consults to discuss your needs are offered to all Wisconsin Writers members. Email Katey at katey.schultz@gmail.com to schedule, or go straight to the application.
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Member News:
Got news? Email Julia Nusbaum by January 20th to share your news in the next brief.
Michelle Caffery's book Jade – Lost in Yellowstone won the Creative Child’s 2020 Book of the Year Award.
Jim Landwehr had his third memoir, Cretin Boy, published in November by Burning Bulb Publishing. The book details his experiences at Cretin High School, an all-male, Christian, military academy in Saint Paul Minnesota in the late '70s. The book also ventures outside the walls of the school and delves into the mind of a teenager as he navigates the freedoms and risks of life on the edge of adulthood. It is a coming of age story with a military dress code, a coming to faith story while smoking in the boy's room. Get it on Amazon. For more about Jim's books, visit his Website.
Kerri Lukasavotz first MG/YA novel, Mystery Horse at Oak Lane Stable (Book1), is now published by Three Towers Press (an imprint of HenschelHAUS Publishing) and was released November 15th. The novel has a new cover and has been fully edited and updated to match the format of the recently released Book 2 in the series, Gray Horse at Oak Lane Stable. Both books are available in paperback and e-book editions. Order them here. |
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Write about someone trying to fix a mistake that they will never be able to fix.
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Start a poem with a line or word from a conversation with a stranger. |
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Editors Note: The WWA NewsBrief is about member accomplishments, writing
events, and contests. It is delivered at the end of each month. If you have news for the November issue please send it to the editor, by January 20th. Thank you. |
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"A word after a word after a word is power.
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To download and print a copy of this NewsBrief, CLICK HERE
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