Congratulations to Brenda Kay Ledford

LEDFORD WINS THE GOLD

Brenda Kay Ledford won two gold medals in the Clay County Cherokee Senior Games Silver Arts Literary contest for 2020. She received first place for her essay "Backyard Blessings" and short story, "Shaking Loose."

Congratulations to Maren O. Mitchell

Maren O. Mitchell has poems published in 3 online journals:


The Orchards Poetry Journal – “My Friend Janice Said She Wouldn’t Write a Poem the Prison Across the Meadows Within View of Her House, but Suggested I Could” and “Most visible,”


Still: The Journal, Summer issue – “V,” “Vanishing Act” and “Tree Talk”

The Lake (UK), July issue – “All the way home”


Maren O. Mitchell’s poems appear in San Pedro River Review, The MacGuffin, The Cortland Review, Hotel Amerika, Poetry East, The Comstock Review, Tar River Poetry, The Pedestal Magazine, Appalachian Heritage, Slant, Still: The Journal, Chiron Review, The South Carolina Review, Southern Humanities Review, Appalachian Journal and elsewhere. Two poems have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She lives with her husband in the mountains of Georgia.

Check out Book Buzz for Feannag the Crow by Carroll Taylor

https://www.ncwriters.org/index.php/our-members/book-buzz/11345-feannag-the-crow-by-carroll-s-taylor

Congratulations to Carrol S. Taylor. Her new picture book was featured this week on Book-Buzz on www.ncwriters.org .

Carroll S. Taylor, author of Feannag

Meet Carroll at Writers' Night Out, July 10 on Zoom where she will be featured guest.

No NCWN sponsored in-person meetings anytime soon

We received notice from Ed Southern, Executive Director of the North Carolina Writer's Network that we will not hold any in-person meetings sponsored by NCWN and that includes NCWN-West in the foreseeable future.

Ed Southern, Executive Director of NCWN

This is from his email:

"With North Carolina stuck in Phase 2 of our "re-opening," and our neighboring states having re-opened to greater degrees, we've heard that some of you have questions about when you can start hosting monthly, in-person events again.

Again, the short answer is, "You can't . . . at least not in the NCWN's name. Not now, and not anytime soon."

At this point, I don't feel comfortable enough even to set guidelines on when you can think about re-starting in-person events. COVID-19 diagnoses continue to rise, and many of our members are part of particularly vulnerable populations. The NC Writers' Network will not take part in exposing anyone to unnecessary risk.

We recognize that those of you in smaller towns and rural areas face different circumstances and dangers than those in large cities. As soon as we feel we can formulate safe, responsible, and comprehensive guidelines for in-person events, we will let you know.

If you have questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to let us know."

Some events are still meeting but on Zoom. Bob Grove said the prose group that usually meets in Murphy is meeting same time and date but online. 

Writers Night Out set to meet at the Ridges Resort in Hiawassee, GA will continue this month with guest Carroll S. Taylor. 

Writers' Night Out is Zooming on July 10

We are delighted to have Carroll S. Taylor, award-winning poet and author of three books, as our guest for Writers' Night Out Friday, July 10 at 7:00 PM.

 We will once again hold a Zoom event. I will send out the invitation to our members on July 5 or 6.
The event will include an Open Mic session. 

Don't miss the opportunity to apply for this online conference.

SQUIRE ONLINE 2020

Community, but not Communicable

https://ncwriters.org/index.php/programs-and-services/conferences/11189-so20

Fiction session is closed, but there is room in Poetry and Creative Nonfiction. The price is right. Very reasonable cost for members of NCWN and NCWN-West, with discounts for seniors and for students. 

If you have not taken classes on Zoom, I think you will enjoy it. I have taught on Zoom and took classes at the Cabin Fever Conference earlier this year. I really like being able to attend a workshop by a professional writer, to ask questions and hear comments from other participants while sitting in my own home.

This is an excellent method for older folks to participate without having to brave the outside world right now. 

See the link above to register, but the deadline for registration is June 29, so don't wait. Do it now.
You don't have to be a member to register, but if you want to join at the time you register, you will get a nice discount. 

Congratulations to Randy Mazie

NCWN-West member, Randy Mazie, poet

Randy Mazie’s poem A Poet's a French Pirate, has been published in the DASH Literary Journal (13th Edition 2020). It is a limited-edition anthology published by The California State University, Fullerton, Department of English, Comparative Literature, and Linguistics. For more information, visit: http://english.fullerton.edu/publications/dash.aspx.

Glenda Beall teaches class for ICL in July

Glenda Beall will teach an online Zoom writing class for the Institute of Continuing Learning beginning Monday, July 13, 1:30 - 3:30 and ending Monday August 3rd. It will be a two hour class running for four weeks.
Fee for this class is only $10.00 with membership.

Glenda recently taught a Zoom class with four students. It was a new experience for everyone.

This is what one student said about the class:

Despite the challenges of ZOOM, my recent Creative Writing class with Glenda Beall proved valuable.
Motivation, learning new things and excellent peer review far outweighed the perceived difficulties of distance learning. Hopefully, Zoom classes won’t be the new norm, but if so, know that Glenda and the students handled the shortcomings well. Class notes were emailed and students shared work and suggestions via email and Zoom.
I couldn’t ask for a better outcome despite my technical aversions. M.C. Brooks


Title: ENTERTAIN AND ENLIGHTEN YOUR READERS WITH YOUR LIFE STORIES

Description: How do we begin to write about our lives? Can we use dialogue, stories passed down from parents, and do we have to prove they are true? In today’s world where family members often live long distances from each other, it is difficult to share the interesting lives we have lived. There seems to be no time to sit on the porch and talk about the past. But we can still share our life experiences with our children, grandchildren, and future generations by writing them now. In this class we will learn how to make our stories entertaining as well as enlightening. We will also learn by receiving feedback from our classmates.

ICL is taking registration. Visit the website here. Membership is required. Number of students is limited.

Carroll S. Taylor has good news

Carroll  S. Taylor  received exciting news this week. Two of her poems, "Irises" and "Circling Magic," will be published in the upcoming edition of The Georgia Poetry Society's annual anthology, The Reach of Song. The anthology will be published this year.

Carroll is an active member of NCWN-West. She is volunteer assistant to the program coordinator. We will publish an interview with Carroll soon. She is author of two children's books, Chinaberry Summer and Chinaberry Summer, on the Other Side.  

Online Writing Classes with some top writers

A few weeks ago, I received this notice from The Writers' Workshop in Asheville, NC. Now we can all benefit from these classes because

they are online. You don't have to drive to Asheville or stay overnight.

THE WRITERS' WORKSHOP

387 Beaucatcher Road

Asheville, NC 28805

828-254-8111 writersw@gmail.com  www.twwoa.org

                                             

 WRITING CLASSES ON-LINE!!

JUNE 27:  FICTION CLASS with Karen Ackerson

The class will learn the essentials of a good story or novel. Character and conflict are key elements that will be discussed, including creating a sense of place, dialogue, and enhancing one's writing style. Students may bring up to five pages to the class for review. Ackerson has taught fiction writing for over 25 years. As Senior Editor at The Renbourne Editorial Agency, she has edited over 500 novels and memoirs.

JULY 11:  WRITE YOUR LIFE with Richard Krawiec

        In this supportive writing-intensive class, participants will learn how to draw on the "material" of their lives to write and revise memoirs, stories, or plays. Elements covered include time compression and expansion, theme, recognizing your purpose, and developing your piece professionally. 

Krawiec is the founder of Jacar Press, and the author of numerous books such as "Breakdown: A Father's Story", "Faith in What?", and "Time Sharing". His work is published in numerous journals including Shenandoah, Florida Review, and N.C. Literary Review.

JULY 25:  SCREENWRITING WORKSHOP with Nathan Ross Freeman

 The class will learn all aspects of writing the screenplay, including formatting, characterization, sequence structures, and how to adapt any genre to a screenplay. Freeman’s credits include the feature films Gem and Mr. Bones, the official selection of major film festivals; and Authoring Action, awarded 2010 Best Documentary in the U.K.  He has taught at UNC-C and Salem College.

AUGUST 8:  HOW TO POLISH YOUR OWN WORK with Karen Ackerson

Writers of fiction and non-fiction books and stories will learn how to revise and polish their works before submitting to an agent or publisher. Techniques will be taught on how to grab the reader's interest by eliminating unnecessary details, building tension, and fine-tuning dialogue and descriptions. Participants may bring five pages (double-spaced) to the class for discussion. Ackerson is Senior Editor at The Renbourne Editorial Agency (www.renbourne.com), and has edited hundreds of novels, memoirs and creative non-fiction stories. 

Karen Ackerson, Exec. Director
The Writers' Workshop
387 Beaucatcher Rd.
Asheville, NC 28805

828-254-8111
www.twwoa.org

What a great deal from Press 53

BUNDLE AND SAVE! YOUR ESCAPE HAS ARRIVED! Select any five Press 53 paperback books and save big! Five-Book Bundle Bundle and Save: Choose any five paperback books for $53 Browse our website and select five different paperback books of your choice $53.00 Shop Choose five short fiction titles, or five poetry titles, or mix them up. It’s your choice! Any five Press 53 paperback books for $53! Thank you for your support of Press 53 and our authors. Press 53, 560 N Trade Street, Ste 103, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA

Zick is instructor for The Road to Publishing June 25 on Zoom

Thursday, June 25, 1:30 - 4:30 PM
June 25 - Patricia Zick

Patricia Zick's workshop, "The Road to Publishing" will explore the different choices for publishing a book. Then she will delve into the step-by-step process for self-publishing a work of nonfiction or fiction using Amazon’s publishing platform. Ms. Zick, the author of twenty-five published books in a variety of genres, will demonstrate how to prepare a manuscript, provide definitions for publishing jargon, and walk through the process for uploading a book for both Kindle and paperback publication to the online retail site. Fee: $40

Send check made to NCWN-West to Glenda Beall, P O Box 843, Hayesville, NC, 28904

Check out Ms. Zick's new book: https://pczick.com/2020/05/05/the-authors-journey-newrelease/

Patricia Zick

Mary Ricketson, poet and mental health counselor, writing through a pandemic

Mary, thank you for being our guest on Netwest Writers today and taking time to answer our questions. You work as a mental health counselor, and I imagine the pandemic has changed your work life in many ways.

GCB:  Are you working from home and are your clients accepting the new methods you have to use now?

Mary: Thank you for asking about my work as a counselor.  It’s the science, talent, and heart that feeds me well beyond whatever we usually think of as career.

Yes, I’m working from home.  Most people are fine with this change from in person visits at my downtown office, since all of us understand the safety needs of the pandemic.  I have a revolving door of clientele, so already there are some I’ve never met in person.  There are a few people who prefer to wait, deal with their issues when they can meet with a therapist in person.  I treat that like any other personal preference- it’s up to them, handle it with all the respect any human being deserves.

The pandemic is very stressful for people.  No one calls for help simply because of the pandemic, but it adds to stresses already there.

             

GCB: I imagine you had to learn new technology for working at home and did your clients have trouble accepting the changes?

Mary: Primarily I’m working via my cellphone.  I’ve learned to use speaker phone so the phone is not in my ear all the time, and I’ve learned some tricks about how to keep it charged.  I do meet via video with skype.  I already knew how to use this, so I’ve managed to avoid learning a whole new technology, thankfully.

Some people have to go out to their car with their phone to gain the privacy needed for a counseling session.  Other people simply can’t manage because their children are home from school.  Some arrange for child care.  Others muddle through.

GCB: Do you find working from home more tiring or easier than going to your office each day?

Mary: I miss my office.  I thought it would be a real treat to work from home, and indeed in some ways it is.  I’m incredibly more fatigued at the end of my work day now.  It takes much more energy to attend only via voice, or even the face that shows in the  video of skype or any other tele-conference.  I’m constantly finding words and asking questions to make up for the nonverbal cues and the energy I usually get in person.  Besides that, there is a difference in the reward I feel.  Nothing makes up for that in person energy exchange.  For now, however, it’s safety at all cost.

GCB; You are a poet. How has this chaotic time affected your writing? Do you feel less creative or more creative in your writing? Do you find you write more now being home so much?

Mary: I’ve been determined to write as much or more as usual during this pandemic.  I’m counting on creativity and my time in nature to bring me the balance I need in life.  Honestly, the pandemic stress is so gigantic, it’s a tough call to meet that balance.  I can keep writing and even bring poems to completion, but the business side of writing, like submitting, is suffering down here at my place.

My schedule is to get focused during my early morning walk, then start writing before the world gets in my way, and before going to work.  I’ve kept this schedule during this odd time.  It gives a predictability to my life, and I think it keeps me tuned with the time and ritual when I expect my creativity to appear.  I even take a note pad on my walk, write down images or ideas.  If I don’t, it all drifts away like a dream you think you are going to remember.

 GCB: Recently you published a poetry book, a memoir in poetry, about your parents and your life growing up in Mississippi. Tell us how that book came to be. Did you set out to write poems for this book or did you find you had poems already written that fit in this theme?

Mary: Slowly I came to a decision that my life in Mississippi during my formative years was worthwhile.  I avoided knowing that for a great deal of my adulthood, embarrassed about the racism of the times.  Other problems in my family were not what I wanted to write about.  I worked within myself for quite some time to find the worth, discover what I was proud of. 

I did set out on purpose to write the poems that turned into the book.  I went through picture albums, remembering, jotting notes all over my house.  I phoned my brother and sister, asking for tidbits and gems.  I talked to my parents, if you can really talk to the dead.  I called one cousin on my mother’s side, and I talked often to my aunt on my dad’s side.  All this generated memories in a kaleidoscope kind of fashion.  I was thrilled and frustrated with no pattern coming to the surface. 

I kept noticing point of view in any kind of poems I read.  I got the idea to get inside my parents as best I could, try to experience the move to Mississippi and our life there, how it must have been for them.  That turned a corner.  I got excited to the max, started writing in every spare minute I could find.  By the end, I had fallen in love with my parents and found a new aspect of being proud of my life.

 GCB: Do you prefer traditional publishing  or self-publishing of your poetry books?
         Mary: So far, I’ve only published by traditional publishing. I’m intrigued by self-publishing; I may go there yet. Mainly I want to present my writing in the most professional and respectful way I can.

 GCB: I find that marketing is the hardest and most time consuming part of being a writer. How do you feel about marketing and do you have any tips for our readers on how to best handle this part of being a writer?

Mary: I always wish I knew more about marketing, or that it would come easier, and that someone would do it for me.  No one does it for me, it’s harder than it looks and it constantly changes, and no one seems to understand enough. 

For me, it helps to talk about my books to everyone I know and even some I don’t know.  I have to push myself about this.  I read in public everywhere I can, bring books for sale, and keep looking for new places to read.  I try to invent places to read.  I stop myself from dreaming about being popular and fame coming naturally to me.  I go to writing conferences whenever I can, volunteer to read and also trade books with other authors.

I keep wanting to learn to budget my time to spend a regular portion of time weekly on the business end of writing.  I’m not there yet, but I’m sure it’s the right practice to achieve.

 GCB: You have been a member of NCWN and NCWN-West for two decades. How has this membership benefited your writing life?

Mary: I would have done nothing with my writing if I had not been a member of the North Carolina Writers' Network.  The alliance with other writers has been the cornerstone of my writing.  The tradition of joining with others for critiquing our work has been skill-building help and a motivator for me.  I’ve grown in confidence as a writer during my time as a member.  I need my connection with other writers in order to grow. 

 GCB: I often teach aspiring writers. What advice would you give an aspiring poet who wants to one day publish his/her poetry?

Mary: Write daily if at all possible.  I used to set my alarm for 5 am so I could write for an hour before getting my child up for school, do all the getting ready, and then go to work myself.

Share your work with others.  You don’t quite know yourself if you live in total isolation.  It’s the same with writing.

Read your work in public.  Our reading events are as much for ourselves, our own growth as for the opportunity to share and entertain.

Write from your own experience.  Be willing to learn who you are, be willing to be surprised at who you find.

Tell the truth when you write, even if you change the truth somehow.  That may sound like a riddle.  It’s not.

 GCB: Tell us about each of your poetry books, please, and where they can be purchased.

Mary: Disorgananza was my first book, in 2000.  It’s a small book, printed on a home computer, and put together for family and friends, mostly as Christmas gifts. 

I have one copy only now.

I Hear the River Call my Name is my chapbook, my first book via a publisher, Finishing Line Press, 2007.  I didn’t know I could do this.  I took a class in putting a chapbook together simply because the class was being offered, and well why not?  This book is out of print.  When I spend more time on the business of writing, I’ll figure out how to re-publish it.

Hanging Dog Creek is myfirst full length book, published by Future Cycle Press, 2014.  I did this on a wing and a prayer. 
I had to deal with a lot of editorial suggestions and even harsh criticism.  But someone there believed in me, and kept encouraging me not to give up.  I had lost a great deal in life by then, that there was no way to keep.  I was determined to get this done, and I did.

Shade and Shelter was published by Kelsay Press, 2017.  I felt like I sent that manuscript to a million places, and ultimately changed the title a time or two.  Once Karen Kelsay accepted it, there were no significant changes to be made.

Mississippi: The Story of Luke and Marian was also published by Kelsay, 2019.  I frankly did not know how in the world I would get this book published.  Over and over I submitted it.   When I was ready to start over with a real big breath, I sent an inquiry to Kelsay press because I had not received a response in the time they advertise.  I got an almost immediate reply saying my book was already accepted, but someone in the chain of staff had not seen her email.  After that, things went pretty fast.

Hanging Dog Creek, Shade and Shelter, and Mississippi are all available directly from me, or from Curiosity Bookstore in Murphy, or City Lights in Sylva,NC or order on Amazon.

Thanks, Glenda, for this opportunity to converse about writing.  It’s been fun.

GCB: We appreciate Mary Ricketson taking time for our interview and for all she does for writers.

Follow Mary on FB or check out her membership page here.

Glenda Council Beall is Program Coordinator for NCWN-West , Owner/director for Writers Circle around the Table. 
gcbmountaingirl@gmail.com