Riverside Writers

Today Newsletter

August/September

2013

Riverside

Writers

Today Newsletter

November/December

2013

RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER LOOKING NORTHEAST TOWARD THE FALL LINE

Maxine –the

snack lady

thanks

everyone who

volunteered to

provide snacks

for 2013!

Life Memberships in

Riverside Writers A motion to change our by-laws

voted on and passed by the membership at the March 2013 meeting. The change

established a new category of club membership. For a one- time fee of $100 the member

will be considered a

Lifetime Member.

2014 RIVERSIDE ANTHOLOGY IS BEING

READIED FOR PUBLICATION. THE 2014

ANTHOLOGY IS “RAPPAHANNOCK VOICES”

Larry Turner announced during the November

meeting that there are orders for 86 books.

Discounted price for members is $8.98 each

but the deadline for purchasing at the discount

is the January meeting. The discount

represents a 50% savings.

There are still submissions in the review

process, and members need to be patient while

waiting comments from reviewers.

Author biographies for the anthology are due

November 15.

Congratulations to all members who

participated!!

QUICK UPDATES NOVEMBER 2013 MEETING: Treasurers report : 1289.93. . November meeting

WELCOMED the Riverside Young Writers! See Program Notes on page 1 above. - - - - Critique group still

meeting every Monday 7:00pm at Books a Million, recent meeting well attended with 14 members - - - Election

of Secretary and Vice-President held at the November meeting.. Liz Talbot – Secretary and John Wills - Vice

President have been elected to serve two year terms . Congratulations Liz and John. --- Stephanie Miller

announced a chorale concert from a local school will perform at our Christmas Party, December 14th!! - Club

will provide a table at Festival of the Book on Saturday March 14th in Charlottesville. – Candice Ransom

announced a “Revision Retreat”, March 15-16 at Mimsyln Inn, Luray, VA March 15-16. Contact Valerie

Patterson at valopttrsn@verizon.net to reserve your spot.

Thank

You

These Guys Don’t Bite!

Riverside Writer’s members just wrapping up a Critique Session at

Books-a-Million

Members meet every Monday evening at 7 p.m. to read their writing and critique the work of other members.

The process is spirited, honest and very helpful.

Members read their work (five minute limit) and bring working copies of their readings on which the others write their comments. This technique is quite useful for writers who can then take home the written suggestions for later review. The critique suggestions range from comments on style to general grammatical usage.

These sessions give attendees a forum to help them understand how others view their work. The writer gets immediate feedback and the opportunity to question the reader about why the critique was made.

The meetings are open to all members, free of charge, and new members are particularly urged to attend. Critique sessions are often a part of our regular monthly meetings for those who cannot attend the Monday sessions.

WEBSITE IS LOOKING FOR MORE

MEMBERS TO PARTICIPATE.

Make money from your personal website.

Sell your books, offer literary services such

as proof reading or editing. Beginning in

2014, you will be able to promote your

website on our website. Further

information will be provided at January

meeting.

We still need writers who want to tell their

story about why they write, how they write,

gain inspiration, ideas, or any other facet of

their writing life. See Dave Miles or fill out a

request on the contact the website.

The Riverside Writers Club Welcomes all who wish to be better writers, readers and enjoy the camaraderie of those

with similar interests. Please go to our “About Us” page on the website and view the Application for Membership – Better

yet, just show up at one of our meetings and see for yourself what it’s all about!

Members of Riverside Writers Club who have had a recent Success!

LARRY TURNER “How Do Mermaids Mate” has been published online by Voices on the Wind Vol. 54, and two poems,

“Adrift” and “Afterlife Surprise” appear in Vol. 55. LARRY has been notified that his poem “How Do Mermaids Mate?”, has won

First Prize in the Humor Category in the Chicagoland Poets and Patrons Competition.

TOM HIGGINS published a book “How Far Is It From Richmond to Heaven”. Based on his experiences working with the

mentally disabled.

CHUCK HILLIG is arranging to have his works on Eastern Philosophy published in Japanese.

JIM GAINES’ “The Path to Avalanche Lake” (Spring number of hardcover Avocet). “Memorial Day”, “Valentine’s Day”, and

“The Orphan’s Birthday” (the latter three in April issue of Voices on the Wind) also appeared recently. Virginia Poetry

Society - Honorable mention. JIM’s translation of “Moving In” appears online in the November 2013 issue of Arts and

Entertainment Magazine.

KUDOS to Michelle O’Hearn (aka MiCKi) a winner in our recent poetry slam. Her poem “Open Doors” received a notice of

a “win” in the Fall CAT Bus Lines Poetry Contest and is one of the poems featured throughout Charlottesville Area Transit

(CAT) routes.

MADALIN BICKEL – General Federated Women’s Club - First Place

JOHN M. WILLS - Won 3 Awards for short stories at the Public Safety Writers Conference. Two for poetry and one for a

new novel, “The Year Without Christmas”, to be published October 1, 2013. Wills’ latest novella “Dancer”. Is to soon be

published by Oaktree Press. John also won People’s Choice Award given at the conference to an author who submits and

wins in most writing categories. October 27 John is signing his books at St. Matthew Catholic Church Craft Bazaar from

9am to 3 pm. JOHN will speak to a meeting of Lake Authors on Dec 15th at Lake of the Woods.

Congratulations to all of our fine writers and their recent successes! Members can submit information about

their successes directly to the website via contact page on RIVERSIDEWRITERS.COM

JUDY HILL’S new novel, “THE SECRET DIARY OF EWAN MACRAE” is now available on Amazon in paper-back and e-book format. It is the story of disparate souls, Margaret and Phil who come - together and launch a journey of self-discovery as they search for answers to a mystery and conspiracy. A 200 year old diary written by Margaret’s ancestor gives them both inspiration and strength and against all odds, love somehow manages to bloom. JILL DEMING’S poem “Confusion” appears in Vol. 54 of “Voices in the Wind”

We’re Looking for

a Few Good

Writers

“Riverside Writers Today” wants stories from our

members about why and how they write. Your fellow

members are quite interested in the process of

writing, and how you go about producing your prose

and poetry. Bring a short story (300 words or less),

about the way you write to the next meeting and we

will be happy to publish it in our newsletter. Hope to

hear from you soon!

WHY I WRITE This is the second in a series of essays submitted by our

members addressing the subject “Why I Write”. This time

member Kelly Patterson, Fiction Writer, presents us with

his personal views about writing. Riverside Writers would like to take

this opportunity to welcome new

members for 2013

Ryan Davis

Julie Phend

Sheila Chambers

Darren Chambers

Jean Young

Jorge R. Saavedra

Why I Write by Kelly Patterson

I can create imaginary gardens with real toads.

To write can be an artistic expression. I especially enjoy entertainment type fiction and to have the ability to paint a mental picture with words. Artistic storytelling, emotion or comedy, the writer may twist them in any way he wishes. Clever solutions to imaginary problems or imagined solutions to real problems; that’s the game we play.

Reality is just a word. It is what we think is true. However, it’s only true until we know different. Careful, a writer can change ones outlook on just about any subject. I bet that you can remember some crazy story that you read many years ago, right? Unforgettable. That’s entertainment! The more I read, the less I know, I knew.

Father knows best, but what did father know?

“Now you listen to me,” Mother said.

“I have the solution?” questioned the absent-minded professor.

Enough drivel, let’s talk about why I write. I write because I can. I have always enjoyed sitting down and writing a story about something that happened to me or I can make one up. I was a daydreamer, “pay attention!” My teachers said I had A.D.D Sometime, my mind would be in Baghdad on a magic carpet ride, or I may be the King of England the next moment, all without drug intensification. I think imagination may give ultimate advantage to the fiction writer. “Imagination before knowledge.”

Let’s look at Mark Twain, “could you conjure up Huck Finn?” Will Rogers? “I never met a man I didn’t like.” Or Mr. Bill Clinton … talk the tongue off the wagon, and then convince the horse to pull it. Dr. Martin Luther King, ‘I have a dream’ All of these great orators had a dream. Shakespeare, without mind muscles? I don’t tink’ so.

In my opinion, the best writers (especially fiction) are super dreamers. Remember Superman? Clark Kent, man made of steel, able to leap over tall buildings – Star Trek – The Incredible Hulk – Green Hornet – The Catcher in the Rye. It takes unusual thought to write a script for these types.

I write because I love it. It seems to relax me and gives me great satisfaction to pen something that I think is really good, but no matter what you do, or how goot it is, there is always someone that will not like it. No matter. “If you like it, someone else will like it too. Go ahead, write that best seller; you know, “the one that is ‘stuck’ in your head.