NSNC April 2024 Newsletter | |
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In This Issue:
A Word from Executive Director Ginny McCabe
President Lori Duff Shares NSNC Highlights
NSNC Writing Contest Submissions - Deadline Extended to May 3
SAVE THE DATE: NSNC Annual Conference Virtual
NSNC Member News
Susan Odgers, NSNC Member, Receives NWS Award
Jobs, Resources, and Fellowships
Join us at NSNC "Writing Space"
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Hi Friends,
It was wonderful to see so many of you at the recent Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop in Dayton, Ohio, this month! A group of us NSNCers were able to gather after Friday night's keynote with Beth Lapides and we had a fantastic time catching up. We missed those of you who were unable to be with us.
Also, I wanted to let you know that the 2024 NSNC Columnist Contest has been extended through Friday, May 3. So, for those who haven't entered yet, you have a little more time! The annual contest is an amazing way to highlight all of the incredible work you've done all year! I'd love to encourage you to enter before the contest closes.
Looking ahead to this summer, the NSNC annual conference will be held virtually in 2024 on Friday, July 19, and Saturday, July 20. Please save the dates and plan to join us. The conference will provide countless opportunities for columnists and journalism professionals to network with their peers, engage in meaningful breakout sessions, and hear powerful keynotes. Watch for more details and registration to open soon.
All the best,
Ginny McCabe, Executive Director
National Society of Newspaper Columnists
NSNCdirector@gmail.com
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Happy spring, my friends!
I hope your writing is getting new life along with the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees and the handfuls of pollen collecting in my sinuses and throat.
It’s an exciting season, anyway. We’re about to wrap up the submissions for our annual column contest. If you haven’t submitted yet, why not? Glory awaits the winners!
We were proud to collaborate once again with the Ernie Pyle Foundation for Ernie Pyle Remembrance Day and National Columnists’ Day on April 18. If you'd still like send us or tag us on your videos and articles, we would love to share them..
And we’re hard at work making sure that this summer’s conference will be a great one, with keynoters and sessions you won’t want to miss. If there’s something or someone you’re dying to hear about, let us know.
In fact, let us know everything. We’re happy to amplify your voice in any way we can.
After all, that’s the whole point of the NSNC, isn’t it? To support each other. Post your
articles in the Clubhouse on Facebook. Let us know when your books are published or
what award(s) you win. If you know of an opportunity that would benefit our whole
community, by all means share.
A rising tide lifts all boats.
Be well and write on!
Lori B. Duff, NSNC President
lori@loriduffwrites.com
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NSNC Mixer at Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop
Attendees at the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop in Dayton, Ohio, joined NSNC Director Ginny McCabe and NSNC President Lori Duff for a NSNC Mixer on April 5 at Dewberry 1850 Restaurant & Lounge. "We had a great time meeting with everyone and are looking forward to more mixers this year," said Lori.
Watch for NSNC Mixers coming near you!
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DEADLINE EXTENDED until May 3
NSNC Annual Columnist Contest
Words you probably never hear from your editor: Deadline extended!
You can count on NSNC for a lot of things. State-of-industry knowledge. Writing clinics. Good friends.
Count our "contest deadline extensions" among those.
This year we're extending the deadline to Friday, May 3.
Categories include humor, sports, lifestyles, social justice, crisis, and general interest columns from 2023.
We're particularly interested in seeing more columns in our humor online, sports, and crisis commentary categories.
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NSNC Member Honored with National Writers Series
Bill Montgomery Literacy Award
NSNC member Susan Odgers recently received the "Bill Montgomery Literary Service" award from the National Writers Series at its April 7 author event.
Odgers has served as host for the NWS multiple times, most recently for Jeannette Walls, bestselling author of The Glass Castle. She is known for being a courageous interviewer who asks questions that get to the heart of authors’ writing.
NWS director Anne Stanton highlights that Susan most notably writes poignant columns about challenges disabled people face in her Traverse City Record-Eagle feature titled “Adapted in TC,” which has been published weekly since 2008.
“Her columns are real and honest and reflect both her resilience and humanity. She doesn’t pull punches. Susan goes way beyond the issues of wheelchair access, helping you think about everyday life and assumptions in a way that you might otherwise never think about,” Stanton said. “Now she is writing a blog about fighting breast cancer and courageously talks about the financial challenges and nightmare of health insurance."
Susan Odgers is a past president of the Keeweenaw Storytelling Center and a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. She's also taught psychology at Northwestern Michigan College since 1989. Twice, she was awarded the Wayne State University Thomas Rumble Doctoral Fellowship. A psychology professor and counseling psychologist by training and experience, she’s a social justice activist in her community. A Ragdale Fellow in 2017 and 2019, she’s currently working on a nonfiction book. Susan Odgers — Ragdale
The National Writers Series is a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing world-renowned authors to Northern Michigan. Learn more at nationalwritersseries.org.
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NSNC member Kathy Eliscu (RN) and her late husband Ted White (MD) have been published!
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“Are we worried?” I ask the doctor, in front of Ted, fully expecting him to say, “Oh, no. nothing a round of antibiotics can’t treat.” Instead, we are in a race against death, as we begin an unasked-for journey of denial, hope, anger, love – and everything in between.
Brain Tumor: A Love Story published in March 2024 by Maine Authors Publishing (Thomaston, Maine) is a memoir told in two voices detailing the experience the couple had when Ted was first diagnosed with brain cancer in 2011 on a trip to a college reunion. Some members of NSNC will remember meeting Ted at some of the past conferences. NSNC is one of the threads of the book, as the couple’s path through cancer is detailed, including some backstories.
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Kathy Eliscu is the author of the humor novel Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess, and a two-time NSNC Humor Column winner for past columns, 2012 and 2018.
Information/details on ordering Brain Tumor: A Love Story can be found on her website www.kathyeliscu.com and she is happy to receive inquiries, as you wish, at kathyeliscu@outlook.com, her personal email.
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Heavenly Headbutts: Reflections of Hope about Cats and Eternity by Allia Zobel Nolan won an Honorable Mention in the Writer’s Digest Book Awards in the
Inspirational/Self-Help Category
“Author took great care to create a clean edit, minus any distraction from typos and visual confusion. Nicely done materials. I loved how I could hear the author's voice in the narratives as reassuring and leaning into faith as an added layer of comfort. So well done.”
“The narrative moves smoothly and naturally, gliding the reader along through emotional and beautiful thoughts and quotes. I felt comfortable and engaged all the way through, which allowed the narrative to share its Bible-based thoughts like 'animals were a top priority in God's original plan.' That brings our existing soul-love for our animals right to the forefront, helping the pace to stay resonant. Beautiful work! I loved the structure of the quotes and original writings. Just gorgeous.”
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William Cooper announces his latest book How America Works... and Why it Doesn't: A Brief Guide to the US Political System
William Cooper is an attorney, national columnist, and award-winning author. His writings have appeared in hundreds of publications around the world. Publishers Weekly calls his commentary about American politics “a compelling rallying cry for democratic institutions under threat in America.”
Now Available on Amazon
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Marcy O'Brien's New Book
"Rounding Third ..." by Marcy O'Brien is a collection
of her columns from 20 years of writing locally, then regionally, in Northwest Pennsylvania and Western New York.
This lively book is warm, funny, and depicts a lifetime of travel experiences, family, friends, and genuine characters. A curmudgeonly share of Andy Rooney-ish perspective is mixed into an Erma share of the fun. And it is so relatable, so close to home, that a few tears might mix with the laughter.
The most common review is from bedside reading: "One or two chapters a night allows me to reflect on many aspects of my own life - and I drift off smiling. Comfortable. Delightful."
Copies are available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and Target.com.
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Jobs, Fellowships, and Resources
The Blade in Toledo is seeking a page designer/copy editor to join our on-site copy desk. The desk produces pages exclusively for The Blade. The preferred candidate should have past newspaper and page design experience, along with the willingness to learn. The job will include handling both print and digital production needs for the paper, among its multi-platforms. The Blade produces toledoblade.com, its digital eBlade, and the print paper.
As we continue to expand, our top priority is growing our newsroom. Central Current is seeking a motivated and curious journalist with a passion for digging into systems and reporting on tough issues. We are looking to give a reporter the freedom to explore a topic that excites them.
Bay Area News Group, East Bay, a subsidiary of MediaNews Group, is seeking a Local News Reporter to join the The Mercury News and East Bay Times team! If you're a dedicated local news journalist anxious to tell your readers what’s happening in the community around them, this is the job for you! We are looking for an energetic and resourceful reporter who can balance deeper reporting with the fast-paced news cycle.
Help the Wisconsin State Journal team captivate and engage audiences by joining our award-winning staff as a multimedia editor. We are looking for a self-motivated journalist who enjoys having a hand in multiple parts of telling a good story and attracting an audience to it. You will split your time between reporting on trends and issues that surround sports in southern Wisconsin, from high schools to the University of Wisconsin, and shepherding our award-winning print section through the production process.
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Call for Award Winners, New Podcasts, Book Releases, and Other Good News
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Your newsletter (URL, topics covered, free or subscription based?)
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Your podcast (name, URL, cover art, description, date & time, where it can be listened to)
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Your upcoming book release (title, how to buy it, book cover, author headshot & short bio)
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Someone who inspires you with their grit, courage, and integrity.
Send your good news to Debbie West, newsletter editor, at westdeb7@gmail.com.
Preference will be given to current NSNC members.
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Join Us in the NSNC Writing Space on Zoom
Join us! See our meeting times and details -- on Wednesdays and Sundays -- below.
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"It’s been over two years and our NSNC Writing Space is the place to get things done. Dave Lieber finished a play. Joe McGonagle, Dot Fleming, and Kathy Eliscu made huge strides into their fiction and memoir books. Daniela Gitlin made headway into her psychiatric textbook. And my own romance novel wouldn’t have gotten this far without our collective writing energies on Zoom. Join us!" Suzette Martinez Standring
The National Society of Newspaper Columnists invites you to our Wednesday and Sunday “NSNC Writing Space” where friends get together, write quietly, and get our projects done! Email Suzette Martinez Standring to be put on a reminder email.
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Sundays
Pacific Time: 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. (PDT)
Mountain Time: 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. (MT)
Central Time: 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. (CT)
Eastern Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon (EDT)
Join Zoom Meeting Link
Meeting ID: 958 8989 6420
Passcode: 940130
Wednesdays
Pacific Time: 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. (PDT)
Mountain Time: 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (MT)
Central Time: 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (CT)
Eastern Time: 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (EDT)
Join Zoom Meeting Link
Meeting ID: 964 7713 8466
Passcode: 861637
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National Society of Newspaper Columnists | |
Editor
Debbie West
Copy Editor
Dave Astor
This Newsletter
The Columnist is the newsletter for members of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. By columnists we include bloggers, vloggers, indeed all writers of the serial essay, where the work is published in newspapers, magazines, and other print media, on personal and major websites, and in video and audio formats. The Columnist aims to educate, inform, and entertain as well as announce members' latest books and news. It is delivered electronically on a monthly basis.
Email Updates
Please email changes in address and other news items to NSNC Newsletter Editor Debbie West at westdeb7@gmail.com.
Postal Mailing Address
205 Gun Hill Street
Milton, MA 02186
Facebook
Twitter @NSNCgroup
Your Membership
NSNC remains one of the best bargains in membership in writers groups or other associations, $75 a year. Details are at our website's Join or Renew page.
NSNC Statement of Purpose
The National Society of Newspaper Columnists promotes professionalism and camaraderie among columnists and other writers of the serial essay, including bloggers. NSNC advocates for columnists and free-press issues.
Some Fine Print
The editor and NSNC board reserve the judgment whether to publish information in The Columnist, on the NSNC website columnists.com, and/or through one or more of NSNC's social media accounts, or at all.
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