Board of Directors
Roger Lubeck,
President
Sandy Baker,
Immediate Past President
Robbi Sommers Bryant,
Vice President
Marilyn Lanier,
Vice President
Malena Eljumaily,
Treasurer
Adele Layton,
Secretary
Judy M. Baker
, Membership Chair
Skye Blaine
, Newsletter Poetry Editor
Joelle Burnette
, Website Editor
Pamela Heck,
Conference Volunteers
Linda L. Reid
, Speaker Chair
Jeane Slone,
Author Launch
Chairs and Editors
Elspeth Benton
, Registration Team
Les Bernstein
, Poetry Anthology Editor
Skye Blaine
, Newsletter Poetry Editor
Robbi Sommers Bryant
,
2018
Anthology Editor
Fran Claggett-Holland
, Poetry Anthology Editor
Pamela Fender
, Hot Summer Nights
Sher Gamard
, Salon Coordinator
Marie Judson
, Critique Groups
Jeanne Jusaitis
, Author Support
Susan Littlefield
, Historian
Margarite Olmos,
PR Internal
Linda L. Reid
, Writers Circle
Deborah Taylor-French
, Author Support
Deborah Walton,
PR Director/ Newsletter Editor
Tommie Whitener
, 2019 Anthology Editor
Natasha Yim
, Contest Chair
Redwood Writers Meetings
are held the second Sunday of the month at the
2777 Fourth Street,
Santa Rosa
Board meetings take place before the general meeting, beginning at 12:30. You are welcome to join us at any time.
THIS MONTH'S MEETING
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11
2:00-4:30 pm
Killer Suspense
Arrive at 2 p.m. to register and network before the general meeting, which runs from 2:30-4:30 p.m.
We ask for a small fee of $5 from members and $10 from non-members to cover costs.
NEXT MONTH'S MEETING
Sunday, December 9
2–4:30 p.m.
Elizabeth Stark
How to Create a Page Turner
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BOARD NOTES AND NEWS
Writing Opportunities
President Roger Lubeck
This month, there are three writing opportunities to keep in mind -- two with Redwood Writers and one with the California Writers Club.
November 15
(9 p.m.) is the deadline for submissions for the 2019 poetry anthology
In the Light of Day... In the Dark of Night... Something to Crow About.
Members can submit up to five unpublished poems (100 lines maximum per poem). Please review the guidelines for submission on our website by
clicking here
.
The second writing opportunity, The Short Play and Performance Contest, is also due by
November 15
(9 p.m.). Members can submit two unpublished 10-minute plays (10 pages maximum). There will be six winning plays selected. Winning plays will receive three performances in mid-March 2019, presented by Off The Page Readers Theater. Winning playwrights can attend the performances for free. Please review the guidelines for submission.
Details here.
The third opportunity is for the 2019 CWC Literary Review. The deadline is
November 30
. Members can submit up to three works of prose and six poems. In 2018, the Redwood Writers had five pieces out of thirty-seven pieces in the Review.
Read them here.
This is an excellent opportunity to have your work read by a large audience. Please note in the submission guidelines: CWC is “ looking for good writing of any genre, style or topic. Romance, mystery, sci-fi and fantasy will be given the same consideration as more 'serious' works. Lighter themes and humor are always welcome. The important thing is to polish your work and make it the very best you can. The only things we will reject outright are pieces that proselytize, are libelous, or contain gratuitous vulgarity.”
Submissions are accepted here.
I encourage every RW member to submit for the Poetry Anthology, Play Contest, 2019 CWC Literary Review, and upcoming 2019 Anthology. I hope to see our members in the Literary Review winners' circle.
As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions to make our meetings and our club more relevant to you. Just email
president@redwoodwriters.org
. See you on Sunday!
Board Meeting Agenda for November 11, 2018
12:30 p.m. Call to Order – Roger Lubeck
- Approval of minutes from prior meeting.
12:35 p.m. Board Report
- Treasurer’s Report: Malena Eljumaily
- Membership Report: Judy Baker
12:50 p.m. Committee Reports
- Website: Joelle Burnette
- Speakers committee: Linda Reid
- Academy workshops: Judy Baker
1:30 p.m. New Business
1:45 p.m. Adjourn
General Meeting Agenda for November 11, 2018
1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. Author Support
1:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Screenwriting Support Table
2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Networking
2:30 p.m. Welcome: Roger Lubeck
2:35 p.m. Chair Announcements
- Membership: Judy Baker
- Salon (Nov 17): Linda Reid
- Poetry Anthology Submissions: (Closes Nov 15) Linda Reid
- Prose Anthology 2019: Tommie Whitener
- Other chair announcements
2:55 p.m. Member announcements
3:00 p.m. Break ~ Snacks, Networking & Book Sales
3:15 p.m. Presentation: Killer Suspense - Simon Wood
4:30 p.m. Final announcements
- Meeting December 9
- Presenter: Elizabeth Stark How to Create a Page Turner
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Members at the October Salon shared their poems and stories for all to enjoy. Join us next month on Friday evening, December 14. Details in our next newsletter or on our website!
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IMPORTANT DATES
See more details below
Sunday, Nov 11
Redwood Writers Board Meeting 12:30-2:00
Flamingo Hotel
Redwood Writers Author Support 1:00-2:00
Flamingo Hotel
MONTHLY MEETING
Killer Suspense
2:00-4:30
Flamingo Hotel
Thursday, Nov 15
Short Play Contest closes for submissions
Poetry anthology closes for submissions
Saturday, Nov 17
Writers Circle
Friday, Nov 30
CWC Literary Review closes for submissions
Sunday, Dec 9
Redwood Writers Board Meeting 12:30-2:00
Flamingo Hotel
Redwood Writers Author Support 1:00-2:00
Flamingo Hotel
MONTHLY MEETING
How to Create a Page Turner
2:00-4:30
Flamingo Hotel
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Sunday, November 11
2 - 4:30 p.m.
Flamingo Hotel, Empire Room
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KILLER SUSPENSE
with Simon Wood
You’re reading. Your heart is slamming against your rib cage, your fingertips are moist, and you turn another page. If you’ve ever felt this way reading a book, then the writer has done a great job at creating suspense. This doesn’t happen by accident. Simon Wood (
simonwood.net
) outlines the key differences between suspense and mystery and discusses the techniques for building suspense and creating thrills.
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Short Play Contest
Submissions are
open now
.
Deadline is Thursday, November 15.
- 10-minute play
- One scene
- Two submissions per entrant
- Submission fee $10 members; $15 non-members
- Open to all residents of Sonoma, Marin, Mendocino, Lake and Napa counties.
Six winning plays will be performed by
Off The Page Readers Theater in March 2019.
For complete details on submission requirements,
click here.
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2019
POETRY ANTHOLOGY
In the Light of Day . . .
In the Dark of Night . . .
Something to Crow About
Open:
now
Close (
new date
):
Thursday, November 15
Editors Fran Claggett-Holland
and Les Bernstein
invite your poetry submissions!
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Saturday, November 17
10:00 - 1:00 in Sebastopol
How to sign up:
Members who would like to attend
should send an RSVP email to Linda Reid at
rwcircle@redwoodwriters.org
. Upon confirmation, you will receive directions to the location.
Mission:
The Circle's mission is to offer members a constructive and enjoyable environment in which to read their works, among the warmth and support of fellow writers, and to include brief evaluations and short talks on craft and other writing-related subjects.
10:00 – 10:45 Meet, greet, and enjoy snacks
10:45 – 11:45 Readings (
5 minutes max
)
11:45 – Noon Break (more greeting and eating)
Noon – 12:40 Readings
12:40 – 1:00 Flash Education
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Belinda Riehl
Profiled by Fran Claggett-Holland
To say that Belinda Riehl is a writer is to say that she has written short fiction, long fiction, memoir, occasional verse, and even an erotic crime novel about a DEA agent who happened to run into a high school sweetheart when they were both widowed and passing through Maui. She may eventually return to that novel and even has her Domain Name reserved. She currently is a valued member of the Monday afternoon poetry group, the Blue Moon Salon Café, where her expertise as a critic is as important as her willingness to revise, revise, revise—the mark of a serious writer. To say that she has had (is having) an interesting life is to say that she has committed extensive aspects of it to one form of writing or another. It is impossible to do justice to the twists and turns she has taken in her continuing exploration of what it means to chronicle your life story as you live it.
Redwood Writers was a natural group for Belinda as she discovered the need for a serious look at how to write a memoir—after she had written a full length account that she realized she could never print. Belinda got some legal advice from Helen Sedwick, one of our Redwood Writers who is very generous with her time. She also took several workshops related to writing memoir and the liability of writing about people who are still alive. Although she decided to rewrite the story as fiction in the third person, she found it had lost all its appeal to her. Belinda writes, “Maybe one day I will rewrite the story I’ve called
Behind the Pretty Faces
. I haven’t reread it for at least three years. Maybe I can write with more perspective, less anger, and emotion. We’ll see.” But writing that memoir gave Belinda some solid experience in writing, enough for her to know that she wanted to keep writing, explore other genres, and meet with others who were interested in improving their craft.
Belinda grew up in southern California, excelling in all the business courses her school offered; she won the prestigious Bank of America Achievement Award her senior year in high school and was what we call today a self-starter. Shortly after enrolling in what was to become Cal State Northridge, Belinda moved out of her mother’s home and lived independently by working three jobs and maintaining a full college program, graduating with a B.A. in Sociology and Business Administration.
Her college years, the late sixties and early seventies, as many of us remember, were those politically active days of social discord and passionate involvement. Belinda met her husband between her freshman and sophomore years, a returning vet from Vietnam. Although she did not have an active social life at college, she had an intense life preparing her for her life as a committed participant in the diverse activities of a wife, mother of two sons, student of advanced courses at local colleges, all while holding down jobs such as legal secretary and business office manager.
Belinda likes to say her career choice was to be a stay-at-home mom. She became a self-employed bookkeeper, always working around her kids’ school hours and their after-school activities. She gained valuable experience as a volunteer bookkeeper for Boy Scouts, PTA, and Little League before working for a family therapist. Her reputation for accuracy and dependability spread through the counseling community until she had more work than she could keep up with. She managed to create her own schedule, working in people’s homes and small offices. She always felt she had the best job—setting her own hours, only working for people she liked. And she was able to retire when she was ready because of her husband’s pension from law enforcement, where he was a very untraditional, atypical police officer, turned detective.
Redwood Writers is lucky: Belinda has not only contributed her professional bookkeeper experience to the Board serving as unofficial monthly auditor (for which she has been awarded the Pullet Surprise), she has served as assistant editor and proofreader to Redwood Writers books. She has also supported the club by submitting her own work to books of both prose and poetry, and attending as many Salons as possible.
Among other tasks, Belinda has
- welcomed and signed in members and guests at the front desk before meetings
- sold merchandise at the back tables at meetings
- brought snacks and treats
- served as Vice President on the board
- served as Membership Chair for a year
- served as Retreat Chair
- been a proofreader for flyers and newsletters
In her own words, Belinda sums up her affiliation with Redwood Writers eloquently. She writes, “I am proud to have been an active member of Redwood Writers since January 2014. I truly believe that we get back what we put out. I am grateful to have made some wonderful friendships since I joined. I’ve been helped in immeasurable ways to be able to call myself a writer. I would never have felt worthy if I hadn’t had the association and education I’ve received from speakers, workshops, authors, and critique groups which came from the network of Redwood Writers.”
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PRODIGAL SON
by Jon Jackson
I was the prodigal son.
And when I came home,
Honestly, to give of myself,
And to care for another,
That other was my mother,
And I saw no fatted calf.
She begged me,
To bring her drugs,
To overdose,
Since I was a physician.
And I said No.
And, instead, listened
To her left big toe,
Ingrown, inflamed,
Her constant strain.
And I dug into that,
Literally, as a physician,
With nothing but my hands,
And a simple instrument.
She yelled at me,
This woman who never knew me,
This mother of mine,
With no fatted calf.
And I relieved her pain.
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Silent Stone
by Karen Hayes
A voice comes from the silent stone she holds
and the drop of water it bleeds
She grinds it to powder
makes a gritty paste
paints words in the sand
with clay-glopped finger
Pulls algae from the river
wraps it around trees
marking passage
tucks leaves like messages in cracked bark
Turns over rocks and sticks
searching for pieces of herself under them
knowing she must
be here
somewhere
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Submission guidelines: double-spaced, Times or Times New Roman, 12 point, sentence case: (no all caps, please). Poems are reviewed by a team of poets. We will acknowledge receipt of your work, and let you know if your poem is going to be included, or if we are requesting minor edits prior to inclusion.
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Sunday, December 9
2–4:30 p.m.
FLAMINGO HOTEL
HOW TO CREATE A PAGE TURNER
Elizabeth Stark
Redwood Writers is for everyone, whether you're an accomplished author or poet, or just wondering if writing is right for you.
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Writers News from Around the Bay
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Marketing Mondays for Authors Kicks off November 12
60-minutes of live Q&A about book marketing.
Get the answers to the questions that keep you up at night.
Book Marketing Mentor shares tips to help you reach more readers. Managing your marketing to have more time to write, and stay true to yourself. This will be a live call.
Monday, November 12, 2018 from 12 noon to 1pm PDT
A free workshop from Judy Baker and Judy Reyes, Book Marketing Mentor.
We will connect using Zoom. You will get instructions when you register.
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If you have news of interest to our members, please submit copy and a photo if you wish by the 15th of the month prior to
editor@redwoodwriters.org
.
Editor reserves the right to accept and/or edit. Thank you.
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Our mailing address is The Redwood Writer, P.O. Box 4687, Santa Rosa, CA 95402
Redwood Writers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Redwood Writers Meetings
General membership meetings are held on the second Sunday of each month (moves one week ahead if a holiday) from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Flamingo Conference Resort and Spa, located at
2777 Fourth Street, Santa Rosa, CA 95405.
Registration starts at 2 p.m.
Copyright © 2018 Redwood Writers. All rights reserved.
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