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Riverside Writers Minutes of November 12, 2011 Successes: Larry Turner's poem "Garden Gifts" appeared in the Summer
2011 issue of The Lyric. In the 2011 Poets and Patrons Chicago
Land Poetry Contest his poem "While I Wasn't Paying Attention"
won first place in the Miniature Poem Division. "The Romantic
and the Realist" won third prize in the Social Conscience Division,
and "On the Rocks" won second honorable mention in the Humorous
Poem Division. He was also chosen to judge one of the categories
in the same contest. Anne Flythe's poem, "Matters of Gravity"
won second place in the Golden Nib contest sponsored by the Virginia
Writers Club. John Wills will be writing narratives for deceased law enforcement
officers at the new law enforcement museum in Washington, DC. Some
of his writings will be used in a criminal justice course taught at Algonquin
College (Ontario, Canada) Reports: 1. Judy Hill, Acting Treasurer, announced
a balance of $1,417.72. The bill for hosting the website was recently
paid ($125). An additional royalty check for anthology sales arrived
for $29.. 2. Michelle Hern will be assuming the duties of vice president.
Elizabeth Talbot will be assuming the duties of Secretary. David
A. Miles was introduced as the new webmaster. Larry Turner is resigning
as program chair. 3. The young writers are continuing with plans
for a contest and an online anthology. Readers are requested. Upcoming Events: 1. The holiday party will take place next month at the Salem Public Library where Michelle Hern will be sharing her music. 2. The Monday night critique group continues to meet at Books-a-Million from 7 - 8:30 PM. Please contact Larry Turner for more information. 3.
Michelle Hern will be sponsoring a category "Honoring our Fathers" in the Poetry Society of Virginia Contest. The deadline is January 19, 2012. 4. On March 2-3, 2012, at Luray Caverns, Candice Ranson is sponsoring a writing retreat, "Landscape of Your Past: Place as the Basis for Memoir and Fiction." Registration is limited to 15 people and the cost is $250, which includes lodging and meals. For more information, please contact valopttrse@verizon.net The meeting was followed by an inspirational talk by Candice Ranson on "How Your Writing Can Pull You Through Difficult Times." At 4:30 the meeting was adjourned. Sincerely, Elizabeth
Talbot, Secretary
Riverside Writers Minutes of July 9, 2011
In attendance were 11 members..
Successes: Larry Turner’s poem
“Song of a Continent” was published in the July 1 issue of the online journal Voices on the Wind, “Courageous Voices.” John Willis will
be doing a presentation on “Creating
Undercover Characters” at a crime writers convention in Law Vegas.
Reports –
Over
no objections, Madalin Bickel, announced that Judy Hill will be assuming Norma’s duties as treasurer. The corrected June balance is $1184.14 .
The current balance for July is $1447.82. The royalty checks from the anthology totaled $263.68
The executive committee approved $100 honorarium for
Joanne Liggan, who will be participating
in the upcoming Parade of Prose..
Upcoming
Events –
1. At next month’s meeting, Michael Theis will be discussing the online publication, the
Fredericksburg Patch.
2. The Monday night critique group continues to meet at Borders from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. (Note:
the Critique group was moved to Peace Methodist Church after Border’s sudden bankruptcy in late July. For
further information, contact Larry Turner) . 2011 Navigating Your Writing Life Symposium, sponsored
by Virginia Writers Club, will be
August 6, 2011.
October 8 is the date of Parade of Prose in the Salem
Church Library, Meeting Rooms A &
B.
5. Candice Ransom will be speaking at the November meeting.
Announcements -
1.
The winners of the Golden Nib contest were announced.
2. The “Poets and Patrons” competition is
now open to residents outside of Chicago, with a deadline of September 1. See http://www.voicesonthewind.net. For other contests, see www.newpages.com/literary/contests.htm.
The meeting was followed by John Wills’ presentation on traditional and nontraditional opportunities for publishing and a Critique
Session.
A 4:45 the meeting was adjourned.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth
Talbot (substituting for the Secretary)
****June minutes are missing****
Riverside Writers Minutes of May 14, 2011
The meeting was called
to order at 1:05 pm by Madalin Bickel. In attendance were 14 members.
Successes:
Diane Parkinson’s published novel, “Elysium,” is now available on Amazon and Kindle.
Larry Turner and Anne Flythe reported winning first in their respective categories during the 2011 Poetry Society of
Virginia Contest. Larry also reported having his work accepted by the 25th anthology published
by the Illinois poetry society and placing in a contest sponsored by the Pennsylvania Poetry Society.
Reports –
1. Madalin Bickel, reporting for Norma Redfern (Treasurer), who is recovering from surgery, announced
the amount of dues collected so far. A temporary acting Treasurer may have to be appointed. A new Secretary
was appointed. The members present unanimously approved a motion to send Norma flowers.
2.
Judy Hill (Anthology Chair) announced that she is now contacting downtown booksellers in her efforts to market the
new anthology. . 3. Larry Turner is soliciting suggestions for future
speakers.
4. Stephanie Fellinger announced that members of the
young writers’ chapter have had some of their work selected for a young writers’ anthology. They
will soon be electing officers.
Past Business – Madalin
Bickel presented a proposed budget for this year. It was debated whether the members should approve the
budget, or whether the approval of the Executive Committee was sufficient, as provided in the By-laws. Further
discussion on the budget was tabled until the next meeting.
Larry Turner, Donna Turner,
and Anne Flythe announced the completion of a successful poetry workshop last month at the Fredericksburg Academy.
.
Upcoming Events –
1.
Planning continues to take place for the upcoming workshop, Parade of Prose. Madalin,
Larry, as well as Maxine Clark have formed a planning committee. There was some discussion as to whether it should be held
on one day (9:00 am to 4:00) or split over two weekends. Salem Library and the New England Run Library
were mentioned as possible workshop sites. For more information or to volunteer, please call Maxine at mclark12348@comcast.net .
2. The Monday night critique group continues to meet at Borders from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm.
3.
The deadline for the Golden Nib Contest is the next Riverside Writers meeting in June. Details about the
Golden Nib Contest are on the Riverside Writers website.
Announcements
–
Fredericksburgpatch.com, a local news site, has issued an invitation for
local bloggers. . As part of the presentation, various members read their winning entries from recent contests. The
presentation ended at approximately 3:15 and was followed by snacks and a Critique Session.
A 4:45 the meeting was adjourned.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Talbot (substituting
for the Secretary)
Riverside Writers Minutes of April 9, 2011
The meeting was called to order at 1:05 pm by Madalin Bickel. In attendance were 21
members and the speaker. Two guests were introduced, Merdie Williams and Beverly
Brown, who writes under E. Ayers.
Successes: Sherryln Powell and Diane Parkinson (as
Diane Scott Lewis) have published novels (“Captured Hearts” and “Elysium,”
respectively) and John Willis has published a short story in Hippocamus Magazine (online).
Reports
–
1. Madalin
Bickel, reporting for Norma Redfern (Treasurer), emphasized that dues for this year were now due.
She also presented a budget which will be discussed at the next meeting. Planning for a future writer’s
workshop, tentatively titled “Parade of Prose,” is now taking place. The club is also looking
for a new membership chair and secretary.
2.
Judy Hill (Anthology Chair) announced that members will be holding a reading next Tuesday at Elderstudy on Mary Washington
Campus. Riverside writers will be paid a $100 honorarium. She will be working on marketing plans for the anthology. It was
suggested that it be put on Kindle.
3. Larry Turner announced the 2011 Poetry Society of Virginia awards
and annual festival (more details below) and provided a report on the Celebration of Poetry. Some of the
members proposed moving the festival to a new month, April, to coincide with National Poetry Month, and another location with
better parking, the New England Run Library.
4. Stephanie Fellinger announced that the first meeting of the young writer’s chapter,
with guest speaker, Steve Watkins, took place on April 9.
Past Business –
The Celebration of Poetry took
place on March 26 at the Headquarters Library. Although the Library inadvertently failed to reserve the
auditorium, the event attracted potential new members. Members also attended Virginia Festival
of the Book on March 19.
Upcoming Events –
1. A workshop geared for writers of prose
has been proposed to take place in the future and has been tentatively titled Parade of Prose. For more information
or to volunteer, please call Maxine at mclark12348@comcast.net .
2. The 2011 Poetry Society of Virginia Annual Festival
will take place May 12-15, Norge Library, Williamsburg. Additional details will soon be posted on the Poetry
Society website.
2. The
Monday night critique group continues to meet at Borders from 7:00 pm to 8:30.
Contest announcements –
The
deadline for the Nimrod Journal poetry/fiction contest, sponsored by the University of Tulsa (OK) is April 30, 2011.
At 2:00
pm, Larry introduced the featured speaker Teresa Adele Bettino, who discussed how she incorporated her experiences in corrections,
welfare, and animal rescue into her writing. Her publisher, Sherry Ferrell, discussed her experiences in
publishing.
The
presentation ended at approximately 3:00 and was followed by snacks and a Critique Session.
A
4:45 the meeting was adjourned.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Talbot (substituting
for the Secretary)
Minutes of March 12,
2011 The meeting was called to order at 1:05 by Madalin
Bickel, presiding. In attendance were fifteen members. Two new members were introduced: Kristen Davis and Jessica Davis. Business- 1. Norma Redfern, Treasurer, was not in attendance due to health problems. There will be a
formal treasurer's report at the next meeting. 2. Larry Turner reported that he received confirmation from the publisher that copies
of the Anthology would be ready for the Virginia Festival of the Book. March 12 is the last day to purchase a copy at 50%
discount. The Anthology will be $16.00 at the festival; $17.95 is the list price. 3. Judy Hill, Anthology Chair,
reported that the Anthology would be available for authors to review on March 15, the location TBA. Authors are to note any
corrections to be made using the form they receive by email. 4. Stephanie Fellinger reported that Linda Lane approved
the name, Riverside Young Writer's Group, for the young writer's chapter. The first meeting will be held on April
9. Stephanie will be advertising the group in surrounding areas. 5. Jim Gaines reported that VWC is encouraging members
to attend the Virginia Festival of the Book. The next VWC Board of Governor's meeting will be held on May 7 at the Richmond
public library. Jim will also be sending an email to each member giving information about the Speaker's Bureau of the
Virginia Writer's Club. For more information, log on to www.virginiawritersclub.org. 6. Maxine Clark (Refreshments Chair)
suggested dedicating a meeting, in the fall, to a writing workshop conducted by four or five volunteer members. Call or email
Maxine at mclark12348@comcast.net for more information or to volunteer. Successes- 1. John Wills has interviews scheduled for his
latest release, Targeted. 2. Jim Gaines has a book signing for Moliere and Paradox on March 23 from
3pm – 5pm at the UMW bookstore. President's
Report- 3.
Ollen Richey has resigned as Secretary. 4. Rob DuBois is the new Publicity Coordinator. Upcoming Events- 1. VWC Spring Shorts entries will be accepted through March 30. See VWC website
for details. 2. Celebration of Poetry will be held on March 26 at the downtown library. Members were encouraged
to take fliers to distribute. There will be a table for members to sell their books. 3. Monday night critique group
continues to meet at Border's at 7:00 pm. 4. Teresa Adele Bettino will speak on April 9. Teresa is the author of The Cats of
Hanover Juvenile Corrections Center and several other books. She will talk about how she has incorporated her experience
in welfare and corrections into her writing. Teresa's publisher, Sherry Ferrell, will accompany her and be prepared to
talk about her experience as a small publisher. Teresa's new release, Wind Chimes, is featured at www.fersherpublishing.com. The group took a break at 2:10 pm for refreshments with open mike to follow. Respectfully submitted, Diann
Brunell Substituting as Secretary
Riverside Writers Minutes of February 12, 2011
The
meeting was called to order at 1:05 pm by Madalin Bickel.
In attendance were 16 members and the speaker.
Two new members were introduced, Robert DuBois and Patrick
Neustatter.
Successes: Jim Gaines,
Stanley Trice, John Wills, and Robert DuBois all contributed their successes.
Reports –
1. Norma Redfern (Treasurer) emphasized that Riverside Writers yearly dues were
now due. She reported a current balance of $1,883.00, with expenses consisting of table rent at the Festival
of the Book and the Anthology. She also clarified that while she would be accepting dues for the
Virginia Writers Club (VWC) from returning members, new members needed to go online to http://www.virginiawritersclub.org.
2. Judy Hill (Anthology Chair)
thanked members for their input but emphasized one more proofing session was needed. Details about when and where this will
take place will be forthcoming. Hopefully the anthology would be ready in time for the Festival of the Book
(March 16-20). Judy was also looking for “table sitters” at the Festival of the Book.
Larry Turner noted that members could still order copies today at the half-price of $8.98. Thereafter,
copies would be available at a 40% discount for members, or $10.77.
3. Larry Turner (Program Chair) advised that the March meeting (March 12) would
be an open reading (5 or 6 minute limit). Teresa Adele Bettino, who will be the guest speaker at the April
9, 2011, meeting, will speak on how she has incorporated her experience in welfare and corrections into her writing. Ms. Bettino
will also be accompanied by her publisher, Sherry Ferrell, who will talk about small publishers.
4. Maxine Clark (Refreshments Chair) circulated a snack calendar in which members were
urged to choose a month to bring snacks. The beverage policy is still BYOB.
5. Stephanie Fellinger shared her plans to set up a separate young writer’s chapter
and indicated that the first meeting is tentatively planned to take place before the Riverside Writer’s April 9 meeting
from 11:00 to 1:00.
6.
Jim Gaines, who is setting up a speaker’s bureau, indicated that he will be soon be contacting members via e-mail
about their areas of expertise.
Past Business –
The VWC Board of Governors meeting last month was well attended and the minutes are available on the VWC website. See http://www.virginiawritersclub.org.
New Business –
An
executive committee (Larry Turner, Madalin Bickel, and Jim Gaines) will draw up a budget.
Upcoming Events –
1. Celebration of Poetry will take place on March 26 at the downtown library. Larry
requested book donations for use as prizes.
2. Virginia Festival of the Book will take place on March 16-20 in Charlottesville, VA. Members will plan to attend on Saturday, March 19. Most events will be taking place in the Omni
Hotel. Hopefully, the anthology will be ready for sale by that time and volunteers will be needed to staff the table.
For more information see http://www.vabook.org/index.html/.
3.
The Critique Group continues to meet every Monday at Borders from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm.
4. EPICon-2011 (e-publishing conference) will be held March
10-13 at Colonial Williamsburg, VA. For more information see http://ebooks.epicauthors.com.
Contest
announcements –
1. The deadline for the Golden Nib contest has been
set for the Riverside Writers’ June meeting. The three winners will compete with winners from other
VWC chapters. For more information about the Golden Nib, see http://www.virginiawritersclub.org.
Program
At 2:00 pm, Larry introduced the featured speaker Pamela K. Kinney, author of nonfiction and fiction
ghost books. The theme of her presentation was the rising importance of e-publishing and advised that all
writers obtain a Kindle (or similar platform for e-books) and a website. She also recommended using Facebook,
Twitter, and joining organizations in one’s genre (horror, romance, etc.). She discussed the challenges
of protecting copyright in electronic publishing and advised writers to look for “properties” in Word Perfect
and put in their name, date, and “copyright.”
The presentation ended at approximately 3:00 and was followed by snacks and a Critique
Session.
A
4:45 the meeting was adjourned.
Sincerely, Elizabeth Talbot
(Subsituting as Secretary for Ollen Richey)
) .
**************************************************
Minutes of January 8, 2011 The meeting was called to order at 1:05 pm by Madalin
Bickel, presiding. In attendance were fifteen members. Two new members were introduced: Candice Ransom
and Don Rowe. Old Business— 1. The minutes of the November 13,
2010 meeting were accepted. 2. Norma Redfern, Treasurer, reported expenditures of $359 for Anthology
related costs and $126 for miscellaneous expenses. The current balance is $953.57. 3. Larry Turner reported that the
Anthology was in final stages and will be sent to the publisher in a couple weeks. Members may pre-order
copies at a 50% discount of $8.98 per copy (order ten and receive the eleventh free). Copies of the new
collection will be available for sale at the RWC tables at the Virginia Festival of the Book and the Celebration of Poetry.
The Anthology Committee will next meet at 7:00 pm, January 18 at Borders. 4. Jim Gaines reported on VWC activities
and pointed out that the RWC and VWC are separate organizations and that membership in one does not result in membership in
the other. He described the VWC’s two annual contests, the Golden Nib and Spring Shorts, and provided
details regarding the February 5 VWC Board of Governors meeting to be held at Mary Washington University. Details
for both the contests and Board of Governors meeting are available on the VWC webpage: www.virginiawritersclub.org. Specific questions
regarding the Board of Governors meeting may be directed to Jim at JimGaines3@earthlink.net. Jim also noted that RWC’s own Greg Mitchell has received the first ever VWC Media Award for his
excellent webpage management. Successes— 1. Children’s author and new
member Candice Ransom shared several recent publications and discussed challenges associated with editors, illustrators and
long publishing timelines. 2. Jim Gaines reported several successes: his translation of a French story
was accepted for publication, the previously published poem Cajun Halloween will be re-published by the Massachusetts
State Poetry Society and his poetry collection Downriver Waltz has been accepted by a Virginia based publisher. 3.
Stephanie
Fellinger thanked John Wills and Judy Hill for their participation in a student writing club critique program on January 7. President’s Report— 1. Per Larry Turner and Judy Hill’s request, Madalin
has written the preface for the new Anthology. 2. Madalin is working with her students to complete their
submissions to the Poetry Society of Virginia Contest and is interested in creating a young writers club beneath the RWC umbrella.
Stephanie Fellinger indicated her willingness to support that endeavor and, as a first step, will contact June Diehl
regarding classroom poetry readings by members. 3. Larry Turner has agreed to serve as the Program Chair
for the coming year (details on upcoming events are described below). 4. Madalin solicited volunteers for the following positions: a.
Snack Coordinator.
Following the meeting, Maxine Clark agreed to serve in that capacity for the period February-November. b.
Historian (Photographer).
Candice Ransom volunteered. 5. Madalin proposed creation of a RWC Speakers Bureau and Jim Gaines agreed
to chair. 6.
RWC annual
membership dues ($15) are now due and must be paid by April 15 in order to remain in good standing. Checks should be
made out to Riverside Writers and mailed to Diann Brunell, Membership Chair, at 1115 Wright Ct. Fredericksburg, VA 22401.
VWC dues ($30) are also due and may be paid to Norma Redfern who is serving as treasurer for both organizations. Upcoming Events— 1. Madalin provided information on three contests: a.
Pennsylvania Poetry
Society 2011 Contest: deadline
January 15; details at www.nfsps.com/pa/. b. Poetry Society of Virginia Contest 2011 (includes a competition for students): deadline January
19; details at www.PoetrySocietyOfVirginia.org. c. VWC Spring Shorts: details at www.virginiawritersclub.org. 2.
Larry described the following
upcoming events: a.
The Virginia Festival
of the Book will be held in Charlottesville on Saturday, March 19. b. The RWC will again sponsor the Celebration
of Poetry on March 26. Larry emphasized that students are encouraged to participate in the event
including the Poetry Slam. 3.
Larry announced scheduled
speakers and programs for February, March and April: a. The speaker for February 12 will be Pamela K. Kinney,
author of two nonfiction ghost books: Haunted Richmond, Virginia and Haunted Virginia: Legends, Myths and True
Tales. Pamela has also written horror, science fiction and fantasy short stories and is a stage, screen
and television actor. Pamela’s webpage: http://FantasticDreams.50megs.com b. The March 12 program will member’s “Open
Mike” followed by the regular Critique Session. c. Teresa Adele Bettino will speak April 9.
Teresa is the author of The Cats of Hanover Juvenile Corrections Center and several other books.
She will talk about how she has incorporated her experience in welfare and corrections into her writing.
Teresa’s publisher, Sherry Ferrell, will accompany her and be prepared to talk about her experience as a small
publisher. Teresa’s new release, Wind Chimes, is featured at www.fersherpublishing.com. 4. The critique group meets every Monday at Borders from
7:00-8:30. 5.
The next RWC meeting will
be Saturday, February 12 at the Salem Church Library in Meeting Room A. As noted above, our guest speaker
will be author Pamela Kinney. The Business Meeting ended at 1:55 and was followed by a snack break. Program. At 2:10, Madalin began a presentation on the sonnet lyric poetic form.
She described and contrasted three types of sonnets (Petrarchan, Shakespearean and Spenserian), discussed rhyme schemes
and meter, and read a number of representative examples including two of her own compositions. The presentation ended
at 2:35 and was followed by snacks and a Critique Session. At 3:20, the meeting was adjourned.
Faithfully submitted, Ollen Richey Secretary
2010 Meeting Minutes
2009 Meeting Minutes
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