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Mission Statement
The Woman's National Book Association is a national organization of women and men who
work with and value books. WNBA exists to promote reading and to support the role of women in the community of
the book.
The Women's National Book Association was established in 1917, before women in America had the
right to vote.
The San Francisco branch of WNBA is one chapter in a vibrant organization with over 800 members
across the county. Each branch has its own flavor and lively events to honor books—the creation of books, the
world of books, and allied arts.
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Events
Please consider joining us soon at one of our events. The networking possibilities alone, not to mention the
chance to make new writer-friends, is what WNBA is all about.
Join the WNBA at the San Francisco Writers Conference! The 2006 San Francisco Writers Conference --
which takes place on February 17-19, 2006, at the Mark Hopkins Hotel on San Francisco's historic Nob
Hill—is the creation and collaboration of our own WNBA-SF members, literary agents and authors Elizabeth Pomada
and Michael Larsen. Together, they wield considerable influence in the world of the book, and the conference has
grown into a national literary event, with authors and editors, writers and agents from all over the country
converging on our City to share in the passion that is the written word. This year, like last year, the WNBA will
host a table featuring our chapter member books and chapter literature. We need volunteers willing to do
four-hour shifts on the 18th and 19th. If you are interested, please contact wnbaeditor@mindspring.com.
Please note that volunteering at the WNBA-SF table does NOT qualify for free entrance to the conference. If
you are interested in attending the conference sessions, please visit www.sfwriters.org.
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Classes
Write Your Memoir Online, with Linda Joy Myers, Ph.D.
Have you been meaning to write your personal story? Do you have a book you'd like to work on but don't have time
for classes? Join Linda Joy Myers' online memoir class. Self-paced, includes phone consultations, exercises, and
feedback. $150 for 4 classes / $225 for 6 classes. Visit www.memoriesandmemoirs.com or email
Linda (writeforlife@earthlink.net) for more details.
Master Poetry and Fiction Program with Joan Gelfand, author of SEEKING CENTER
From your first draft to the stage, Joan Gelfand, author of SEEKING CENTER, will coach participants in
public readings. Learn how to choose the right poem, essay or story for a memorable reading. Classes will include
writing exercises and workshops. Our class 'finale' will be a group reading at a popular San Francisco venue.
Joan is President of the San Francisco Chapter of the Women's National Book Association and has over twenty years
writing, publishing and training experience. Awarded the Chaffin Fiction Prize for 2005, her publication credits
include The New York Times, Poets & Writers, If Women Ruled the World, Streets of New York, The Meridian
Journal of Contemporary Poetry and numerous literary journals and publications.
Enrollment in the program is limited. Classes take place: January 9th - February 27th, 2006. Mondays 7pm - 9pm
in San Francisco. Fee: $295. You can register for the Program with PayPal by clicking on www.jg.typepad.com/ciel/poetryprogram. For more information, contact Joan at joangelfand@pacbell.net or call
415-665-9292.
Advanced Fiction Workshop with Ellen Sussman, author of ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS
Ellen Sussman will be offering a ten-week writing course this winter, at her house in Los Altos Hills. If you're
interested, contact her at ellen@ellensussman.com. For more information about Ellen check out her website: www.ellensussman.com. The workshop will take
place on Thursday evenings, 6:30 - 9:30. Dates: Jan 5-April 6 (skipping a couple of dates in the middle). Cost:
$500 for ten classes.
Winter Session at The Writing Salon: Jan/Feb/March 2006 Classes
The current Fall Session of classes at The Writing Salon is winding down, and the upcoming Winter Session course
descriptions, dates and times are now posted on the website: www.writingsalons.com. You may sign up
online, over the phone, or by mail. The Writing Salon notes that they prefer that you sign up online if at
all possible, because you'll receive an automated email confirmation followed by an email receipt. It's a
much faster and more efficient way to register.
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In This Issue
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Welcome
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Welcome to the January edition of Bookworm, our monthly Newsletter—news and events featuring San Francisco WNBA
members!
Women do not always have to write about women, or gay men about gay men. Indeed, something good and new
might happen if they did not. —Kathryn Hughes
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Call for Volunteers
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We need your help! The WNBA-SF Board is working hard to make WNBA an organization that supports, promotes, and
assists writers, readers, and the endangered art of literacy. In order to make us even stronger, we need volunteers
interested in writing for our BookWorm; be a liaison correspondent for our national newsletter, BookWoman; and help
staff our events. If you are interested in volunteering, please send us an e-mail at womensnationalbookassoc-sf@earthlink.net and let us know your interest and availability.
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From Our Chapter President
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The New Year is here, and we've a lot to celebrate at the San Francisco Chapter of the WNBA. Last year, we
increased our membership by more than 40% and had a presence at several major book-related events, including the
Northern California Independent Booksellers Association annual trade exposition in Oakland and San Francisco's
literary festival extraordinaire, LitQuake. In addition, we had a table at the San Francisco Writers
Conference (see below for our 2006 presence at the conference) and our members released an astonishing twenty new
books! Our board is composed entirely of volunteers, each of whom has worked hard to strengthen our role within
the San Francisco literary world and the national configuration of the Women's National Book Association. Our new
members include authors and aspiring authors, editors, and literary agents. We are actively seeking to strengthen
our ties with local booksellers and appreciate any assistance our membership can provide. We will continue in
2006 to showcase our membership's diverse and impressive array of talents, as well as promote our chapter as a
vital and unique contributor to the landscape of reading and books. Please, consider making the WNBA part of your
new year's resolution: volunteer with us at our events, and let us know what kind of events you'd like to see us
doing. Remember, it's your chapter and you are as important to it as we are.
Here's to a fantastic start to 2006!
—Joan
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Member News
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Member Jan Newman announces the publication of her book, Chance Meetings That Tied the Knot (The Newman
Group, Ltd., 2006, $17.95, 0-9773853-0-2). Known for her question, "How did you two meet?" Jan Newman, interviewer,
shares 24 chance meeting stories from couples living happily ever-after. At the core of this book is a new heightened
awareness that in our everyday lives, love is often found when least expected. Use these stories to uplift your
spirit, or guide you toward the path of love. The book is available in hardback, fully illustrated in four-color. See
our BookWorm Talks below to learn about Jan and her work! |
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BookWorm Talks to Jan Newman, author of Chance Meetings That Tied the Knot
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- When did you start writing?
- About nine years ago, I developed the idea for my book. The concept is based on my chance meeting that
occurred in 1968. I met my husband unexpectedly and have been madly in love with him ever since.
- Why did you choose non-fiction?
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 I have spent the past 30 years facilitating conversations about new
ideas, new products and services as a Focus Group Moderator. I am known for getting people to reveal
their core inner thoughts, dreams and ideals. My research projects have me crisscrossing the country
allowing me to collect intriguing stories of people's chance meetings from all walks of life and
across a range of experiences.
I know first hand that a chance meeting can change a life. As a freshman in college, my last minute
decision to attend the Chancellor's Tea brought me face-to-face with the man I would marry. It was love
at first sight. Over the last thirty-plus years of married bliss I've uncovered hundreds of "chance
meetings." Some are simple stories about meeting one's soul-mate at the post office, ATM or by the copier
machine at work. Other stories have more complex serendipitous settings.
Chance Meetings That Tied the Knot is based on true stories about people from every background,
age and setting. Each story is an example of a chance meeting culminating with finding true and enduring
love. These stories illustrate that circumstance, choice, and personal awareness are key in producing
such chance meetings. At the core of this book is a new heightened awareness that in our everyday lives,
love is waiting.
- How did you publish? Tell us a little about why you chose this route (i.e., traditional house, small
press, subsidy, self-publishing?
- I am self-publishing this book. It will be a 6x9 hardback 4-color book, perfect for a little gift. My
agent was not successful in selling this book to a larger publisher.
- How difficult / easy has your launch been, into the world of the published author?
- I am just at the beginning of this journey. I have been greeted with much enthusiasm and interest by
readers and the book industry.
- Tell us about your most successful marketing technique.
- I made up a catchy flyer and sent it out to many people and places. My editor and personal PR guy has
sent them out, too. I've gotten very good feedback on them. Ditto with some recipe cards I sent out (recipes
for "murder" from my book) These seem very successful, too.
- What advice would you give other aspiring authors?
- Dare to dream. Never give up.
To learn more about Jan and her book, please visit: www.chancemeetingsthattiedtheknot.com.
Are you a WNBA-SF member and published author? Would you like to share your story with WNBA-SF? Contact
Christopher (wnbaeditor@mindspring.com) for the chance to be featured in our Member Profile section of
BookWorm!
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Announcements
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Got a New Message for the New Year?
 Whether you woke up in this New Year with a
resolution to start a new book, write in a new area, approach a new agent, get a new editor, or become better
known in the publishing world—you've got to promote your ideas.
"You can do it. You can promote your ideas effectively and quickly—without being a marketing expert," says
WNBA-SF member and publicist Elisa Southard. Elisa's New Year's resolution is to make your message stick all year
long by turning your personal skills into marketing talent. On January 24th, she has arranged for a special
one-day offer to show you how.
On that day, for those members who order her book Break Through the Noise: 9 Tools to Propel Your Marketing
Message, in addition to mastering 88 power verbs to describe your talents and staying clear of the number
mistake people make when promoting themselves, you'll receive a suite of phenomenal resources—provided by
internationally sought-after marketing mentors. Break Through the Noise endorser and Chicken Soup
Co-Creator Jack Canfield includes the 44 page workbook based on his New York Times best-selling book The
Success Principles. You'll also receive a Million Dollar Rolodex from one of the country's most powerful book
publicists whose clients range from Stephen King to Caroline Kennedy.
Writer's Digest Magazine says about Break Through the Noise, "This energetic little book has a
lot of charm; it's fresh, and chock full of useful tips, sidebars, exercises, etc. It's a lot of bang for a
little buck! Little buck indeed. Be your own best marketer and mark your calendar for January 24th. You'll
wake up ready to write—and market. Then, take just two minutes and logon to BreakThroughtheNoise.com and click on
special offer. Better yet, sign up for an e-mail reminder. E-mail elisa@marketskills.com. Put
"Reminder" in the subject box. No message needed.
Bay Area Independent Publishers Association's Get Published! Seminar
Date: March 11, 2006
Time: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
Location: San Anselmo's SF Theological Seminary
Price: $89 (Members, preregistration; $99 after Feb. 26); $105 (Non-members, preregistration; $115 after Feb.
26)
$50 Manuscript Consultation
Price includes continental breakfast, lunch, beverages, break snack, and a six- month membership in BAIPA,
including SPEX, our monthly newsletter, a $25 value.
A registration form plus more info can be found here: www.baipa.net/2006seminar.pdf.
This year's Get Published! seminar concentrates on marketing—for authors, publishers, and writers as well as
newcomers to the field of publishing.
- 9 to 9:45 Keynote: Cynthia Frank, publisher of Cypress House (www.cypresshouse.com) will speak on defining
success for independent publishers.
- 10 to 10:45 Emily Cook, the marketing & publicity manager at Milkweed Editions (www.milkweed.org), will speak on marketing and
promotions.
- 11 to 12 Breakout sessions (see below)
- 12 to 1 Lunch
- 1 to 1:45 Teresa Lehane of Lehane Designs (www.lehanedesign.com) will speak on merchandising and design.
- 1:45 to 2:45 Breakout sessions (see below)
- 3 to 3:45 Emily Cook and Lin Lacombe, an independent publicity consultant, will discuss publicity.
- 4 to 4:45 Kristine Enea will speak on the Leisure Team (www.leisureteam.com) approach to special
market sales.
- 4:45 to 5 Closing Remarks
The breakout sessions include:
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