Showing posts with label Joan Hetzler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joan Hetzler. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Writers on the Radio with Joan Hetzler, host of Writers Show on WAWL Chattanooga

Recently I interviewed Joan Hetzler who produces and hosts the Writers Show on WAWL in Chattanooga, TN. I was on Joan's show a couple of years ago discussing Netwest, and she invited me to come back and talk about my poetry book, Now Might AsWell Be Then, but we had to cancel due to the rock slide between Murphy NC and Cleveland TN. I hope I can go later because I found Joan extremely professional and I enjoyed the entire experience. The following is my interview with Joan.





Glenda: I know you host the Writers Show on WAWL in Chattanooga. You are a writer, yourself. Why did you decide to pursue a radio show for writers? What was your purpose?

Joan: There are a lot of programs that offer published and well know writers the chance to promote their books. However, I didn't know of one that promoted the "craft" of writing and also gave unpublished authors that chance to air their work. The purpose of the show is to encourge and promote writing as well as readers.

Glenda: How do you plan your shows as to what writers, what kind of writing and how many writers you have on one show?

Joan: I try to have a variety of topics. For example, I've had playwrights with actors read their works, a tv producer talk about writing for broadcast news and air a sample story, poets, and storytellers. Right now we are limited in the number of guests but in a few months, WAWL is moving to a new studio where I hope to have several authors discuss writing in a roundtable set up.

Glenda: You tape your show yourself. You edit the show and, it seems, you do everything for the show including the interviews. How did you learn all this and how does this show help your own writing?

Joan: Originally, I had a producer who did all that. Due to staff cutbacks and tight deadlines, I found it helpful for me to learn to record and edit. If the show helps my writing, it's to keep my work condensed and just the essentials because both readers and listeners have limited time. Today, there are so many other forms of entertainment that pulls for a reader or listener's attention, that I'm aware the content needs to be interesting and fast paced.

Glenda: Thank you so much, Joan. I feel sure our readers will enjoy learning about you and your show.

Joan Hetzler was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and attended Chattanooga High School and The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga before moving to Atlanta to work for several years as a secretary. In her late twenties, she completed her undergraduate degree at Agnes Scott College and Emory University with a major in Philosophy. While working as a technical writer documenting computer software, she attended Georgia State University to compete a masters degree in applied philosophy with a focus on artificial intelligence.


Just before completing her M.A. degree, she developed severe allergies to chemicals in her work environment and moved back to Northwest Georgia. She lived in a log cabin on her mother's farm where she raised chickens, did organic farming, and took an active role in setting up an environmental group and establishing a community wide recycling program.


From North Georgia, she moved to St. Simons Island, where she lived for ten years until returning to Chattanooga. While on St. Simons, she wrote and published poetry chapbooks, established a poetry writing group, wrote newspaper articles, and a memoir about many of her experiences. Her poetry has also been published in the Savannah Literary Journal. Her writing has won awards in humor, nonfiction, playwriting and mystery at the Southeastern Writers Conference.


Since returning to Chattanooga, Ms. Hetzler has served on the Board of Directors of the Chattanooga Writers Guild. Her drama skits have been peformed in a local church. Selections from her memoir have been published at Southernscribe.com and other publications. She hosts The Writers Show, a local radio progam for writers which airs the first Sunday of each month at 1 pm. To find out more about the program, visit http://sites.google.com/site/thewritersshow/

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

The Writers' Show, hosted by Joan Hetzler

Joan Hetzler the host of The Writers' Show from Chattanooga was kind enough to send me an email attachment with several shows she had taped using my work and the work of Carol Crawford, writer and poet from Blue Ridge, GA. My husband Barry downloaded the attachment to iTunes and I was able to listen to all the programs on my computer. He made a CD of the shows and now I can share them with my friends and family. Such a nice gift from Joan and I really appreciate her taking the time to do this for me.

The Writers Show offers a lively half hour once a month. It entertains listeners through interviews, discussions, readings, drama, stories, and poetry by award winning guests such as poet, Dr. Richard Jackson, and novelist, Karen McElmurray. In addition, the show offers support to local and regional writers by providing a public outlet for their work, information about writing events in the area, and news of trends and happenings around the region. Local theatre groups have provided radio drama, and actors and actresses do dramatic readings.

Frequently, requests for submissions are sent out for listeners to submit their work on a specific theme to be read on air.The show can be heard on the first Sunday of each month at 1:00 p.m. on WAWL FM 91.5.

Joan Hetzler is a native Chattanoogan and freelance writer whose work has been published in poetry chapbooks, magazine articles, newspaper feature stories, literary journals, and in dramatic form. She has served on the Board of Directors for the Chattanooga Writers Guild. For more information or to be put on the email list for upcoming shows and requests for submissions, contact Joan Hetzler at thewritersshow@yahoo.com.


You can listen to her show live by clicking on this link to the WAWL website, http://www.wawl.org/ at 1:00 PM the first Sunday of September. Click on the "listen live" button. She always has interesting guests from the literary world. Joan is an excellent interviewer and has a great radio voice.


Her show should be syndicated on other radio stations throughout the south. Joan is a friend to writers. Listen to her show on September 7 at one o'clock and let us hear from you.

Monday, March 31, 2008

Joan Hetzler's radio show for writers

DENISE HILDRETH IS GUEST

Tune in this Sunday, April 6, at 1 pm on 91.5 FM or listen through live streaming on the internet at http://www.wawl.org/. Denise Hildreth, author of The Will of Wisteria, a novel of Charleston blue bloods and their year of redemption, visits to talk about her latest work and writing fiction. Denise is also the author of the popular Savannah from Savannah series.

For a link to Denise's website and more information about The Writers Show, visit www.geocities.com/thewritersshow/thewritersshow.html or email Joan Hetzler at thewritersshow@yahoo.com.