Abilene Writers Guild Meeting Minutes
January 26, 2006
Center for Contemporary Arts Building
Barbara Rollins called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. She announced that the "I Submitted" buttons will begin again for 2006. Anyone who submits their writing to a publisher or agent during this year will be rewarded with this button and recognition during guild meetings.
Financial Report:
Current balance is $3,103.03. We have 96 members at this point.
Announcements
- Due to recent thefts in the downtown area, the back door to the Center for Contemporary Arts will now be kept locked. Please use the front door even when bringing in refreshments unless you have made prior arrangements with Sue and Brandon Davis.
- Don't forget the Saturday day meeting!
- Category for February's Members Only contest will be poetry. Entries must be postmarked by February 10th.
- The date has been set for the next annual workshop. October 22, 2006 will be the date and Dusty Richards will be our speaker. He is the author of over 67 western novels.
- A free newspaper called "The Creative Pulse" is accepting submissions for their new publication. They report on the cultural activities here in Abilene.
Brags and Sags
- Millie Sayre has 16 large paintings displayed in the red carpet area of the Abilene Civic Center.
- Cheryl Vorhauer completed the first draft of her murder mystery.
- Lynn Davidson sold an article to Cowboy Magazine and his new book, Frio Man, is now available for sale.
- Ginny Greene, Jo Cox, Jan Carrington, and Diane Lyell combined efforts and sold a story about the Mammoth found near Bangs, TX. It will be published in November.
- Nancy Masters has a new book, The Cotton Gin, coming out on February 1st. This her latest Scholastic book.
- Marv Johnson celebrated his 80th birthday.
- Karen Witemeyer received word that her book proposal had been rejected by Multnomah, but she has good news as well. She sold one of her children's Bible stories to Clubhouse, Jr., the children's magazine put out by Focus on the Family.
- Barbara Rollins announced that her latest book, Syncopated Summer, is due to be out in May from WordWright publishers. She is still waiting on the contract to arrive, but has received verbal confirmation that the book will accepted as a royalty book.
New Business
The January Members Only contest provided our best turnout ever. We had 15 entries for the memoir category. The Judge for the contest was James Sutton Page. First place went to Becky Haigler for "Doctrinal Differences", second place was awarded to Betty Thomason for "Green Onions", and third place went to Jan Carrington for "Long Live the Texas Tomboy."
AWG bylaws state that if any member wishes to propose a change to the bylaws, he/she must notify one of the Board members by February 1. All the Board members identified themselves during the meeting to ease this process.
Gail McMillan presented a program on the art of storytelling. To create reader interest, our stories must be captivating, emotionally powerful, and must involve the reader and hold her attention. Expression is key, and since the reader can't hear how the characters are speaking, we must show that through action, facial expression, and body language. We must create a sense of drama.
Beware of clichés in your descriptions. Use sensory details and imagery. The reader should be able to see it, smell it, hear it, and experience it. We worked through an exercise on showing, not telling.
Never apologize for your writing. Even if you think someone may not be interested in your particular writing, sell it with enthusiasm. It is unprofessional and bad marketing to hint that your audience won't like your book. If you don't believe in it and get excited about it, no one else will either.
Minutes respectfully submitted by:
Karen Witemeyer
AWG Secretary