San Francisco Peninsula Writer
Writers Helping Writers Since 1909
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Little Drops of Water
It’s the time of year when many of us make resolutions. Lose weight. Exercise more. Be kinder. Be more present. Run a marathon. Drink less.
Writers who make resolutions usually include something about writing more and maybe about getting published.
I’ve always had a love-hate relationship with resolutions. On the one hand, they can seem unnecessarily punishing, especially if you set unrealistic goals, fail to meet them, and then flagellate yourself for not living up to your expectations. On the other hand, nothing ever happened in the world that wasn’t first a thought, an idea, an intention.
In an essay in her book
Small: The Little We Need for Happiness
, writing teacher and coach Jane Anne Staw quotes a coaching client who shared a Russian proverb: “Little drops of water wear down a big stone.” Somewhere between the lofty and unattainable and the non-existent lies the slow, steady work that will get you to your end goal.
That’s how I prefer my resolutions: small, bite-sized, and achievable.
So, as you contemplate the first few days of 2020, I hope you’ll balance your need for forward motion with your need for rest and reflection, set realistic goals that make you feel good about your writing, and, most of all, celebrate even the tiny victory of polishing a single sentence or writing a paragraph or stanza.
Audrey
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5...4...3...2...1...LIFT OFF!
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We launched
Fault Zone: Strike Slip, the eighth anthology in our Fault Zone series, at our holiday party on December 15th. What a blast! We sold 100 copies during the festivities. Thanks to all who contributed to the creation of this amazing collection of stories and poems. Trade paper copies are
available on Amazon.
Warm wishes,
Laurel Anne Hill
Fault Zone Editor-in-Chief
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Good Cheer and Fun at the Holiday Party
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We’d like to thank all the volunteers who made the holiday party on December 15 a great success, especially our hospitality chairperson, Megan McDonald. More than 75 members attended. Megan couldn’t have made it happen without Alisha Willis, Sue Barizon, Cheryl Ray (and husband Bob), George Rodriguez, Geri Spieler, Laurel Anne Hill, Carole Bumpus, and Lina and her crew from the yacht club.
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Writers Helping Writers: Editing Your Memoir and Personal Stories
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Wednesday, January 8, 2020
7:00 PM
Darlene Frank talks about what you can do on your own before you give your manuscript to an editor, and what you can expect as the two of you work together. Whether you’re writing a book-length memoir, an essay, or a story, this session will help you refine your work.
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January Meeting: Happenstance as Muse
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Saturday, January 18, 2020
10:00 AM
Come hear how memoir author
Martha Clark Scala
found the word happenstance, and how it continues to find her. Discover how this ten-dollar word might stir your creative juices or deepen your wisdom.
This presentation will:
- Offer tools and techniques to utilize happenstance in your writing endeavors
- Demonstrate how ordinary activities can boost our creativity
- Provide a fun learning experience that will enliven you
Optional: Bring a personal photograph or a picture from a magazine with you.
Think Tank
after the meeting will feature
Tim Flood
demonstrating the power of Scrivener.
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Tuesday, January 28, 2020
7:00 PM
Come listen to the work of your fellow writers. Open to all, not just CWC members.
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Monday, February 3, 2020
7:30 PM
2120 Broadway, Redwood City
$10 suggested donation at the door
California Writers Club presents
Readers Theater: Women's Journeys
San Francisco Peninsula Writers take the stage with an ensemble cast of characters and stories to kick off the shortest month of the year! Take a journey with us as we leap from page to stage. Featuring Sue Barizon, Thomas Crockett, Sam Kaufmann, Audrey Kalman, Lisa Meltzer Penn,
Korie Pelka, and Lisa Rosenberg.
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CWC/Bay Area Generations Peninsula Literary Salon
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Thursday, February 20, 2020
7:00 PM
3 Plaza View Ln, Foster City, CA 94404
$10 suggested donation at the door
A literary salon featuring curated works of Bay Area poets, writers and storytellers, powered by California Writers Club SF Peninsula Branch. Bay Area Generations is an ongoing reading series that pairs readers of different generations (at least 10 years apart) to bring diverse voices and perspectives to the community. Since 2013, more than 400 notable authors, poets, writers, playwrights and musicians have read poetry and stories, or performed at this celebrated literary salon.
See Submissions Deadlines below for information on submitting.
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January 15, 2020 - Conference Summit Passes
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The San Francisco Writers Conference (see below) is offering a special giveaway of two one-day passes (value of $195 each) to the Northern CWC branches, one for the Poetry Summit and one for the Screenwriting Summit. If you are interested in attending either of these Summits, please provide State Board Rep and NorCal Board Chair
Carole Bumpus with your name and email address. Your name will be added into one of two collective CWC “hats” and Carole will notify you if your name has been chosen. Be certain to designate which summit you prefer: poetry or screenwriting. The two all-day Summits will take place on Saturday, February 15th at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero.
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February 1, 2020 - Conference Booth Volunteers
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The CWC will once again participate in the San Francisco Writers Conference, held at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero in downtown San Francisco February 13th to 15th. Members who would like to volunteer to staff the CWC booth will need to submit their names and information by February 1 to
Carole Bumpus, State Board Rep and NorCal Board Chair.
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February 1, 2020 - CWC/Bay Area Generations Peninsula Literary Salon Submissions (for February 20 Show)
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Bay Area Generations is an ongoing reading series that pairs readers of different generations (at least 10 years apart) to bring diverse voices and perspectives to the community. We had a blast at our first Peninsula salon in November. The next "CWC SF Peninsula-powered" reading on the Peninsula will be held Thursday,
February 20, 2020 at 7 p.m. at
Penelope's Coffee & Tea
in Foster City... but first we need submissions! It's not limited to CWC members, so invite your writer--or non-writer!--friends to submit with you.
Send to: Submissions@BayAreaGenerations.com.
See submission guidelines
and make sure to note Feb 20, 2020 Peninsula Show on your entry.
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February 29, 2020 - Literary Review Submissions Due
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Donna McCrohan-Rosenthal, CWC State President, has announced the statewide
Literary Review
has begun accepting submissions as of December 15. The
submission guidelines
have been updated on our website. The deadline for submissions is February 29, 2020. If you have questions regarding the Literary Review, contact
Carole Bumpus
.
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SHUT UP & WRITE
Every Tuesday in Foster City
9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Every Thursday in San Mateo
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
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WRITERS HELPING WRITERS
Join your writing peers as they lead free workshops on the techniques of writing.
2nd Wednesday of every month
7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
OPEN MIC
A monthly opportunity to read your work and hear the work of others. All are invited for this free event.
Co-Hosted by Korie Pelka
4th Tuesday of every month
7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
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Lauren Diephof of Half Moon Bay has been a world traveler most of her life, but it was not until she was 74 and took a solo journey to the Arctic Circle and Sahara Desert that her adventures resulted in a book.
Walking Over the Earth, available now on Amazon, chronicles her exciting yearlong journey that began in the frigid Arctic Circle, traversed half a world away to the world’s most imposing desert and explored some of the world’s most vast and diverse cultures. She wants to encourage other senior citizens to get off the couch and see the world.
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Ida Lewenstein announces an event: Book Release Party & Story Time on Sunday Feb 2 at 11:00 am at Books Inc., 74 Town & Country Village Palo Alto, CA. Ida will appear with illustrator Colleen Sullivan. Bring your (young) friends and be prepared to participate in these wonderful whimsical story books for ages 3-8. For event details, publishing inquiries, book sales:
djenkins@grapplehook.com.
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Martha Clark Scala
has an interview titled “Why Assemble a Life?”
posted online
. Check out this short video for insights into what motivated Martha to write
Assembling a Life
, a pictorial memoir about her father, and for glimpses of both her and her father’s art.
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Marketing Team
Calendar Master - Keep our master Google calendar up to date with club and other activities
Event Promoter - Post our events to Facebook and MeetUp (familiarity with FB helpful)
Marketing Strategy - Help oversee our marketing efforts.
Newsletter Editor - Gather stories/events and edit. Work with newsletter production to produce newsletter monthly, plus occasional updates.
Fault Zone
Book Launch Team
We need help to get our wonderful new anthology and the whole
Fault Zone series to a broader audience with readings and book sales.
Presenters for Writers Helping Writers
Our monthly series (currently the second Wednesday of the month at the San Mateo Library and the third Wednesday at the San Carlos Library) are casual sessions in which a club member leads a discussion about some element of craft, such as writing, plotting, research style, or anything else that goes into the process. You don't have to be an expert on a topic, just interested and comfortable leading a discussion.
Contact Geri Spieler to get involved.
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Check out the
Writers' Corner
page on the SF Peninsula CWC website, where you'll find a list of resources to help you write and get published. Listings include publications and small presses founded or edited by branch members, literary magazines where members' work is published, local writing conferences and contests, and local writing organizations.
There is also a
list of branch members
who provide writing-related services for a fee: editing, coaching, and more.
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Executive Board
President: Audrey Kalman
Vice President: Geri Spieler
Secretary: Korie Pelka
Treasurer: Jean Morrow
Additional Voting Positions
Membership Chair: Mark Dooley
Marketing & Outreach Chair: OPEN
Newsletter Editor: OPEN
Fault Zone Editor-in-Chief: Laurel Anne Hill
Immediate Past President: Lisa Meltzer Penn
State Board Rep: Geri Spieler
NorCal Rep: Carole Bumpus
Committee/Individual Contributor Positions
Volunteer Coordinator: Lisa Meltzer Penn
Memberships: Tim Flood, Margaret Nalbach
Web Manager: Mindy Yang
Newsletter Production: Corinna Sherman
Hospitality: Megan McDonald
Think Tank: Geri Spieler
Parliamentarian: Alisha Willis
SMCF Literary Stage Coordinator: Megan McDonald
SMCF Literary Stage Manager: Laurel Ann Hill
SMCF Literary Stage Exhibits Coordinator: Sue Barizon
Critique Group Contact: Lisa Meltzer Penn
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