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In This Issue
From Our Chapter President
WNBA-SF News
Announcements
From Our Literacy Liaison
Poet's Corner
Link to Renew Membership (General Member -
$45)
Link to Renew Membership (Senior/Student -
$25)
Joan Gelfand speaks at one of the many WNBA-SF powerful author readings. See below for
future events.
Announcements
Women's National Book
Association Members Gather at BookShop West
Portal
When: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 evening 7-9
PM
Where: BookShop West Portal, 80 West Portal Avenue, San
Francisco, CA 94127
Members from the Women's National Book Association will be
reading from
their books and networking. Come meet this dynamic group if you
are a
reader or a writer, or both.
Joan Gelfand, Mary Shyne Lunning, and Teresa LeYung Ryan chair
this event.
To get a spot to read from your book, or work in progress (you
must be a current member), email
Shyne at lunni8@aol.com. To RSVP for networking after open mike,
email
Teresa at LiteracyLiaison@wnba-sfchapter.org. For more
information about
WNBA, please go to www.wnba-sfchapter.org Donations will be used
toward
our 40th anniversary party in June.
Open Positions on WNBA-SF Board
Meet interesting people, learn new
skills, and be a part of the guiding force shaping
WNBA-SF! Were you always the kid at school chosen
to be the secretary of the group? Or were you known as a guaranteed "go to" person
when schoolmates forgot their milk money?
We are in
need of detail-oriented people to join the WNBA-SF Board as secretary, treasurer, and
calendar coordinator.
Each position will be mentored by the previous secretary, treasurer, and vice president
while you learn the responsibilities. Being a part of the Board is a rich and rewarding
experience, filled with networking possibilities and the chance to really make an impact on
the careers of authors and the lives of readers.
Contact Mary at president@WNBA-SFchapter.org to
talk about the positions, or come to the next board meeting to see what it’s all
about.
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SAVE THIS DATE!
JUNE 7, 2008
MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS ASAP!
The 40th Anniversary of the San Francisco Chapter of WNBA will be capped by a DINNER
on Saturday, June 7th in San Francisco.
Held at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel
Highlights include:
Keynote Speaker: Beth Lisick
1. Honoring Past Presidents and Board
Members
2. Retrospectives by selected
Speakers.
3. The Installation of Joan Gelfand, Past President
WNBA-SF as the new NATIONAL PRESIDENT of WNBA.
Please join us for this great, "full-circle"
celebration of 40 years of activity! Presidents
from all of the national WNBA branches will be in attendance. (This is great opportunity
for WNBA authors to meet with them, and schedule events in their
cities).The entire National Board of WNBA will
also be there.
Because reservations need to be secured right away, PLEASE LET US KNOW ASAP BY E-MAIL:
Mary at
president@WNBA-SFchapter.org
Please include answers to the following questions in your
email:
1.Will you be attending? (Cost for the Dinner is
estimated at $50/per person.)
2.Will you be bringing guests (how many)?
We look forward to seeing you there . . . and to celebrating with you!
********************
Reminder: WBNA-SF Board
Meetings
Board meetings are open
to the entire membership and are held the first Thursday of the month 6-8
at the SFMoMA.
*********************
“Introduction to
Essential Elements in Writing a Story" with Teresa LeYung Ryan & Lynn
Scott
When: Saturday, April 12, 2008, 10am-4pm
Enroll: On-line, telephone, or at
store
Cost: $95.00
Where: Book Passage University
Corte Madera Store
www.bookpassage.com
(800) 999-7909
Co-teacher Teresa LeYung Ryan says: "A great story has a captivating beginning, a middle that
compels you to turn the page, and a satisfying ending." Co-teacher Lynn Scott adds: “We can
learn so much and watch our writing improve, if we accept that 3/4 of writing is tenacity, 1/4
talent.”
* What point of view should I use?
* What's the timeline and setting of my story?
* Should I use first-person narrator?
* Do I really need a thesis statement?
What you'll gain from the course:
* in-class writing
(with optional sharing and commenting);
* examples of how other authors use the essential
elements
* list of recommended readings and resources for
writers.
This is an introductory course for anyone who has an idea for a story.
OR
For the writer who has a first draft and wish to re-learn the tools and take the story to a
higher level.
*********************
CWC Writer's Forum Open Mic Night: 10 Writers Read,
for 10 minutes each
When: Third Wednesday of every month
Hosted by: Borders Books and Music, 2925 El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA (On El Camino Real, 1 mile
south of Highway 92, across from the Hillside Shopping Center.)
Time: 7:30 pm
Cost: Free
Details: This is a great opportunity for authors to
get exposure and to practice public speaking skills. Open to all writers and listeners,
including CWC members and non-members. Each reader is given a choice of whether or not they
wish to receive feedback.
***If you are a current member and wish to read at this Open Mike, please
email Teresa LeYung Ryan at LiteracyLiaison@wnba-sfchapter.org
immediately for further instructions. Put "Requesting a spot
for March 25"
in your subject line.***
If you would like a free one-hour speech coaching lesson to prepare for our Open Mic, contact
Geri through CWC.
********************* Upcoming Author Reading
Don’t miss Cara Black present her newest book, Murder in the Rue
de Paradis. Murder in the Rue de Paradis is the
8th in the Aimee Leduc Investigations and debuted at #10 on the SF Chronicle bestseller list! To
learn more, visit www.carablack.com. Be sure to check out one of
her upcoming reading:
March 4th at 7pm
Book Passage 51 Tamal Vista Bld
Corte Madera
March 5 at 12:30 pm
Stacey's Bookstore
581 Market St SF
March 12th at 7pm
The Booksmith
1644 Haight ST SF
March 18th 7pm
Bookshop West Portal
80 West Portal Ave SF
We hope to see you at one of these fantastic readings!
********************
Craft of Fiction One-Day
Workshops with Ellen Sussman
Spring Fiction Workshop offered beginning in late March and Best American Short Story Seminars
later this spring. Look out for notices about these classes in late winter.
For more information or to RSVP, please visit www.ellensussman.com.
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From Our Chapter President
 Dear WNBA-SF Friends,
Did you know that in 1987 a Congressional resolution named March Women’s History Month, but
Sonoma, California first observed it in 1978? March 8 is International Women’s Day which is set
aside to honor the fight for the political rights for working women. In March 1776 Abigail Adams
wrote to her husband John, who was helping to frame the Declaration of Independence, “Remember
the Ladies…If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies, we are determined to
forment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice or
Representation.” In March of 1852 Harriet Beecher Stow’s novel, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” is published
and becomes American’s first book to sell over 1 million copies. How many of us would be thrilled
to have that number sold, but just imagine how it felt in 1852. March 1888 was the month the
National Council of Women of the US was organized by Susan B. Anthony, Clara Barton, Lucy Stone,
Julia Wards Howe and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. I wonder what they think of the campaigning going on
right now. And in March 1917 Virginia Woolf established the Hogarth Press. Computers and
technology in general have certainly made some parts of publishing easier, but I think the
writing process will never change.
Growing up March was a celebratory time because three of the eight members of my immediate family
had birthdays within two weeks of each other. My mother perfected what she still refers to as
“the putsy cake” (really a Pillsbury Bake-Off prize winner tunnel of fudge cake recipe) over the
years because it was requested so often. In fact, it is considered the family birthday cake!
WNBA-SF has a birthday coming up in June and I’ll be looking for all of you at our celebration.
Mark your calendars for Sat., June 7 when we will be gathering to celebrate our 40th Anniversary!
We’ll keep you posted here with all the details.
As part of WNBA-SF, we recognize that women’s history runs the spectrum from the kitchen table to
the kitchen cabinet, and as such we have quite a legacy to uphold. Over the years WNBA has
contributed to that legacy in many ways through programs, panels, presentations and members’
works. Our next event at BookShop West Portal on March 25 would be an excellent opportunity
for members to let their voices be heard.
I look forward to seeing you at our next WNBA-SF event!
Be well,
Mary
From our Litaracy
Liason Dear WNBA-SF Chapter Members,
Calling all Members and Colleagues Who are Authors of Children's Literature!
We have formed another literacy partnership—with Reach Out and
Read! In February 2008 I contacted Roya Yasharpour, ROR’s Statewide Program Director in
California, and was delighted to hear about how our members who are authors of children's book
and ROR could collaborate not only for publicity but also for the sheer fun of working together
to inspire children.
Here's Ms. Yasharpour's invitation to you:
Mutually beneficial ways to promote Reach Out and Read’s (ROR) pediatrics literacy efforts in
California, while also promoting your love of reading and your work:
1. Donate signed copies of books for ROR community book fairs and events (we have numerous
community partners including local schools).
2. Facilitate a young author writing workshop—donate a portion of attendance fee and book sales
to ROR.
3. Hold a house party to promote ROR.
4. Volunteer to read at a local ROR clinic.
5. Make a donation to Reach Out and Read in California through www.reachoutandread.org be sure to
specify funds be directed to California.
6. Help us secure a booth to sell books at local events; We will include your books and you can
donate a portion of sales to ROR in CA.
If you are interested in any of the above possibilities and more, please contact ROR’s Statewide
Program Director in California, Roya
Yasharpour.
Members who are planning to get involved with Reach Out and Read, please keep me (Teresa) posted.
Email me photos of you and ROR and we'll post them on the WNBA website.
And, there's our partner Project Read—the
adult literacy program—doing awesome work in the community.
Project Read San Francisco 415-557-4388.
If you are involved with these or other literacy advocates, please email Teresa
at LiteracyLiaison@wnba-sfchapter.org
and I'll showcase you in this Column. Please put "WNBA and Literacy" in your subject
line.
Be well!
Teresa LeYung Ryan
LiteracyLiaison@wnba-sfchapter.org
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Poet's Corner
This month's featured poet is Elaine Dallman. Elaine's collection of poetry is called
Nevadans. Elaine is a firm believer that poetry must
be brought into the community to demonstrate the relationship of poetry to life. She
holds a Ph.D. in Creative Writing and English Literature and has spent a great portion of her
life teaching. She is one of the pioneers of bringing women studies curriculum into
various universities. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors for the San
Francisco Poetry Museum. To learn more about Elaine, please visit www.elainedallman.com.
Red
I’m geranium red, a bloom of virtue
living on a slope.
High on my mountain, by the ruined tavern,
fat boulder,
Oompah
close to a circling crescent rusted off
a fallen weathervane.
That near moon rises, flies like a crane high
above waves of mountain pines.
It sees me,
a bloomin’ stick in the ground.
Oompah of
moon lit heart,
moon shine on the potbelly.
My eyes glitter, petals pulse.
Rock, I rise to dance with you.
Scratch scruntch Oompah rolls,
rolls over me. He falls down the slope
marked by my blurry streak.
From a stick my soul rises,
a flattened red dawn spreads, faces earth.
Red thickens, is fiery.
Pushed by a wind untroubled from love of earth,
I go downward, back to grow
close to wind and grass. Grass.
Flower. Growing. I burst flowers.
I hunger for soil to hold me, and for
its coronal above,
shining day.
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WNBA-SF
News
Congratulations
to Diane LeBow!
Diane LeBow recently won, at the 2008 Bay
Area Travel Writers Awards and Planet Earth Awards, the Gold Award for the Best Travel
Writer Web Site (www.dianelebow.com) and also
the Bronze Award for Best Travel-Related Essay/Article in an Anthology for her story,
"Dancing on the Wine Dark Sea" from the Seal Press Anthology, Greece: A Love Story: Women Write about the Greek Experience.
Judges were tops in their fields from around the country.
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WNBA-National News
History: 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 San Francisco Chapter of WNBA was founded in 1968 by Effie Lee Morris, then coordinator
of Children's Services for the San Francisco Main Public
Library.
Membership has ranged from
sixty to one hundred. Our members are writers, booksellers, agents, editors, publishers,
publicists, librarians, graphic designers, career coaches, marketing specialists,
conference planners, aspiring authors and avid readers. 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.
BookShop West Portal was the
bookstore for the San Francisco Writers Conference this year.
Great Job Neal Sofman!
San Francisco Writers Conference 2008
WNBA is well represented at the SFWC 2008!
Elizabeth Pomada, Karen
Folger Jacobs, Sara Cassella, Joan Gelfand and Michael Larson
The San Francisco Writers Conference is always a fast paced, information rich event
and a wonderful opportunity to network and meet other writers and people in the literary
world. Lets not forget the fun factor, it is truly a great time!
Many of our members were presenters in the breakout sessions or panels and some agents
participated in the Speed Dating portion of the program.
Teresa LeYung Ryan and Elisa Southard , Vicki Weiland, Linda Lee, Cara Black,
Andrea Brown, Hut Landon, Ted Weinstein, Robert Shepard, all were part of popular
sessions!
We also had a very good response from our
WNBA information table. We have already had
several new members join since the conference.
Vice President Linda Lee served as this years Volunteer Coordinator and will be on
board again in 2009. If you are interested in attending and being a volunteer, let her know.
A big thank you to Vicki Weiland for running the WNBA table and all the
members who pitched in: Pat Windom, Mickey Duxbury, Joan Gelfand, Mary E. Knippel, Patricia
Costello, Teresa LeYung Ryan, Shyne Lunning, and Elisa Southard all helped, we can't do
it without you
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The
Bookworm
