Write Angles 11-08

8/9/2019 Write Angles 11-08

1/10

WriteAngles

Berkel

ey

BraNch,

califorNia

writers

cluB

NoVeM

b

e

r

2008

Jack London's Cabin, Jack London Square, Oakland, California

In 1968 Russ Kingman, an area businessman with a passion for Jack London, headed an

expedition to the Alaskan wilderness to authenticate a tiny cabin discovered in the woods on the

north fork of Henderson Creek. The cabin was said to be the location where Jack London

wintered in 1897-98 when he was prospecting during the Yukon gold rush. Kingman brought

Sgt. Ralph Godfrey, a handwriting expert from the Oakland Police Department's forgery detail,

along to verify London's signature which was scratched out on the ceiling. Once the cabin was

determined to be legitimate it was disassembled, packed out of the wilderness and the logs

divided into two piles. Half went to Dawson City, Canada and half was purchased by the Port

and came to Oakland. Two cabins were replicated from the original materials and now both

cities have duplicate tributes to Jack London, world renowned author and adventurer.

The cabin was dedicated on July 1, 1970.

Donated by The Port of Oakland.


2/10

September 2008Special Supplementary edi-

tion

November 2008 WriteangleS 1

GUIDED BY AN INNER LIGHT

D. Patrick Miller, our featured speaker for the November 15

meeting, can guide us on a journey of self-discovery and, at the same time,

help us get published. His books includeLove After Life, My Journey

Through the Plant World: a Novel of Sexual Initiation,Understanding A

Course in Miracles, Instructions of the Spirit, The

Book of Practical Faith, andA Little Book of

Forgiveness. In 1997, after selling three of his

projects to major publishers, Miller founded Fearless

Books to continue publication of his writing. More

than 75 of his articles have appeared in a wide

variety of magazines, including Yoga Journal, Self, Natural Health,

Healthy Living, andReaders Digest. His poetry has been published in a

number of magazines and several anthologies.

As a collaborator, ghost writer, or principal editor, Miller has

helped other authors prepare manuscripts for Viking, Doubleday, Warner,

Simon & Schuster, Jeremy P. Tarcher, and John Wiley & Sons. A

top-ranked volunteer expert on publishing at AllExperts.com, he provides

professional consultations to literary agents and publishers as well as to

authors writing ction and nonction. Miller has worked for many years

with the Linda Chester Literary Agency of New York, which

recommends his critique services. He is a member of the Authors Guild

and serves as president of the Northern California chapter of the

American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA).

Millers webpage at www.fearlessbooks.com is interesting to visit.

He not only encourages us to release guilt, gain trust, practice

patience, and learn transcendence but also offers advice on agency

representation, working with the independent press, co-op or

print-on-demand publication, electronic publishing, and self-publishing.

Whether you seek a path to enlightenment or the road to publication, bring

your questions to the November meeting.

- David Baker

TableofContents

Guided by an Inner Light

DavidBaker 1

The View From the Helm

AL Levenson 2

Member News

Anne Fox 3

E-zines That Pay and Other

Market ResourcesLucille Bellucci 4

Duotrope,Online Market

Database and Submission Tracker

AL Levenson 5

Looking for a Book Friend/Critic?

Barbara Ruffner 5

Your Contract With YourCritque

Group

AL Levenson 6

Co-Publishing

AL Levenson 6

Tidbits 7

On the Horizon

AL Levenson 8

NovEmBERmEETING:

Saturday, November 15, 2008, from 10 a.m. until noon.Jack London Square, Oakland.

Inside Barnes & Noble Book Store at the Event Loft.


3/10

The View From The Helm


A month ago I was having coffee with Lucille Bellucci, one of the

Berkeley Branchs most productive members. The subject of e-zines came up,

and she said this had been an exciting new piece of her writing life. She began

to look into e-zines almost three years ago. She reports regular sales and says

she really made no changes to accommodate to the new market and likes the

savings in postage, paper, etc.Lucilles article about e-zines, her newest, best friends, appears in this

issue. Also see reference to her in Member News.

* * * * * * *

On October 19, along with fourteen delegates from other branches, I attended the quarterly meeting of

the Central board of the California Writers Club.

Attendance is an opportunity for me to learn what goes on at the state level, to learn how other branches

operate, and to come to know the best and brightest club members across the state: successful professionals and

serious hobbyists, generous every one.

This meeting dealt with a number of subjects, including projects related to the Centennial, guidelines for

the formation of a new Branch, implementation of an online forum for the Central Board (possibly reducing the

number of physical meetings).

Co-publishing emerged as the most exciting topic. The Sonoma Branch has been co-publishing with

Unlimited Publishing for three years. They have produced an annual anthology as well as three books by

member authors. Although there was discussion of the CWC entering into a multibook deal with a publisher, a

straw vote of the Central Board heavily favored leaving control at the branch level.

And a nal word. Statewide, the CWC has sustained a signicant attrition in its membership, down toslightly under 1000 from the 1200 at the end of last year. I dont know if this is a typical annual uctuation from

all memberships expiring in June though new members are added all year long, or if this is still one more

casualty of our several national uncertainties. Only two branches showed a small increaseSouth Bay, the

largest branch, is up to 191 members from last years 186; and Berkeley, up to 67 from the 65 we closed last year

with. I can only think there is a special dynamism at work in the Berkeley Branch helping us to buck the

statewide trend, the dynamism we need to continue to nourish. Membership numbers are simply a way of

keeping score.

* * * * * * *

Although I have not specically mentioned it before, I am always open to membership feedback

suggestions for what youd like to see, especially from people who are willing to help implement innovative

ideas.

The View from the Helm is all clear ahead, visibility unlimited, and were calling for more steam from

the engine room.

- AL Levenson, President


4/10

September 2008


Member News

Caroline Ahlswede and her niece, Cynthia Haney, were awarded Honorable Mention for their

submission to the Feature Article category of the 77th Annual Writers DigestWriting Competition. The article,

Classroom Demons? Maybe Not, was one of over 17,000 submissions to the 10 contest categories. Maria

Schneider, editor ofWriters Digest, wrote in a letter to Caroline, Your success in the face of such formidable

competition speaks highly of your writing talent and should be a source of great pride as you continue in your

writing career. Caroline appreciates the support of Lucille Bellucci, copyeditor Anne Fox, and the late Ione

Kramer, for helping to bring about the success for her and her niece of this rst-time contest entry.

An e-mail message Lucille Bellucci recently received said, Good news! Were publishing your piece

in our Winter 2008 issuealthough I dont know the exact date of publication. The I is Jane Lancellotti,

Readers Narratives Editor ofNarrative magazine, (narrativemagazine.com). This exciting online magazine

will feature Lucilles picture as well as her story, Shanghai, February 1952. Be on the lookout. And check out

the Web site yourself to see its possibilities for you.

Berkeley Branch Publicity ChairLinda Brown is now reporting on the activities of the Oakland

Metropolitan Chamber of Commerces Economic Development Committee. Two articles she wrote appeared

in the Oakland Business Review, which reaches 15,000 elected ofcials, business leaders, and other VIPs in the

East Bay and beyond each month.

IN MEMORIAM: In May of this year we suffered the loss ofIone Dorothy Kramer, a longtime

contributing member of the CWC Berkeley Branch. After her marriage, she and her husband, Gentom Wang

moved to China, where for some 30 years Ione worked forChina Reconstructs, an English language

magazine, while her husband taught electronics in Tsinghua University. Once back in the United States, Ione

and colleague Kit Chow wroteAll the Tea in China, which is still in print. Ione was not able to fulll her desire

to write stories based on events and letters she had written during the turbulent years in China.

Attention, Members: Remember, your successes inspire your fellow members. Let us know what

youve done, what you are doing, what you plan to do. Has your article or short story been published? Has an

agent signed you on? Has a publisher accepted your book? Are you scheduled as a speaker, being interviewed,

presenting at a writers conference? Teaching a writing course? Send the good news to Anne Fox,

[email protected].


5/10November 2008 WriteangleS 4

Three years ago (a century in Internet time) you could get published without too much pain if you accepte

online exposure with no pay. Now the medium has become competitive. Think of thatno postage, follow-ups

responded to by e-mail, and maybe even a check afterward. I am not discussing markets like The New Yorker, The

Atlantic, orHarpers, though The New Yorkernow accepts online submissions. I am betting the other two will

eventually join the 21st century.

A seemingly wealthy e-zine is www.narrativemagazine.com, whose editor, Tom Jenks, used to work atEsqmagazine. The zine mounts an annual conference at Ft. Mason in San Francisco attended by the likes of Amy Tan

and Tobias Wolff. The editors are as tough as those on any paper periodical, but you get feedback. The zine featur

$150 Story-of-the-Week winner. (See Member News.)

A print journal, www.newmilleniumwriting.com also accepts online submissions. They run contests

throughout the year. The serious zine, www.danaliterary.com, wants your earnest, well-dened thoughts on any

subject. The Web site www.goodgoshlmighty.com bills itself as a forum for determined individualists. They pay, b

will keep your story or article fresh in their archives if you forego pay. Another resource, www.conversely.com, ru

contests and is fun to read by itself. The handsome literary zine, www.Pedestalmagazine.com, also runs contests.

Then there is www.literarycottage.com, somewhat new on the scene. Once you join, www.fanstory.com promises

ream of markets.

The word funky ts www.anotherealm.com, which runs contests for short speculative ction of the

millennium, whatever that means. For clues, read the stories that have made it onto the site. The zine features

discussion boards where contributors and readers can ght out their differences. Its extended cousin,

www.anotherealm.com/prededitors, offers helpful resources on anything connected to our trade. A zine of stature

that pays little, www.theroseandthornzine.com, has been alive for years.

Traditional literary journals have come online. One of the most attractive is www.crazyhorse.cofc.edu, a

long-standing review of College of Charleston, S.C., offering generous prizes for ction and poetry. Accepting bo

USPS and online submissions is www.newletters.com. These two have broken away from the old-fashioned drear

round of postal-mail submissions to the traditional markets. Remember, you can always nudge this kind of period

by e-mail and get a reply in timely fashion. A site I havent fully explored yet is www.fundsforwriters.com, but it

surely intriguing and has been listed in Write Angles by copyeditor Anne Fox. They offer a free newsletter and a

$12/year newsletter.

Once having accessed a market-resource newsletter, you may nd your mailbox deluged by such newsletteI have been receiving the free www.writing-world.com for at least 18 months, and nd at least one market I can u

every other newsletter. Other market newsletters, all worthwhile, are: www.worldwidefreelance.com,

www.writingitreal.com, and www.winningwriters.com.

Finally, a useful site, www.sfwa.org/BEWARE/agents.html, helps guide you through the mineeld of

acquiring agents.

You writers, go forth and celebrate the resources of the Internet!

- Lucille Bellucc

E-ZINES THAT PAY AND OTHER MARKET RESOURCES


6/10

September 2008


Duotrope, ONLINE MARKET DATABASE AND SUBMISSION TRACKER

In the course of a month, my job as Berkeley Branch Prez, Interim Membership Gu

and enthusiastic participant in both Berkeley Branch support/critique writers groups, I

must get to talk to as many members as anyone. I know that at least a half-dozen of us a

writing short pieces, stories and articles. Dozens of our members have book-length proj

underway. Many of them sometimes take a breather to dash off something short.

So, I wonder whyDuotrope (www.duotrope.com) isnt mentioned more often with

the Berkeley Branch.

For those of us writing shorter than book-length pieces,Duotrope is one of our best

friends.Duotrope is a free (donation-supported), easy-to-use Web site that has two

valuable features: a searchable database of 2,300 publications and a submission tracker.

Feature number one, the database, includes both print and electronic publications. wYou get to ll out a

multield search form. Enter genre (choose from 15), length (choose from four), and pay scale (choose from four

You can also specify print or electronic media and print or electronic submission.

Ask for a mainstream publication, print or electronic, that pays top-end (a nickel a word or more) and allo

electronic submissions, excluding markets that are temporarily closed, and 24 hits come up plus two that list their

genre as other. Click on any single result, and you nd yourself at a page of response statistics for that publicat

maintained by the readers ofDuotrope. And, of course, a link to that publications Web site, submission guideline

copy of the current number, subscription information, and the tooting of their entire horn section.

Try experimental, ash ction, electronic, token payment and up, and you get 15 direct hits and 27 more

secondary matches. It would take at least an hour in a print publication to do that research.

Feature number two, the submission tracker, is awesome in its own right. Click on the tracker, and you ge

look at the status of everything youve ever submitted, ltered and sorted according to eight categories you specif

Or click the add submission button and enter the data for the manuscript you are sending today. Enter thepublication and the date sent. If/when you receive an acknowledgment, acceptance, rejection, request for rewrite,

enter these as a report. Your personal le is updated, response times are added to the statistics database, and the

diligence of every publication is posted for all.

Is that computers and the Internet at their best, or what?

- AL Levenson

Looking for a Book Friend/Critic?

The discussion of critique groups in last months Write Angles prompted some further thoughts. Do youhave a nished book, novel, memoir or other nonction you want to improve before sending it out (for the rst

time or yet again?) to agents? Maybe you need a Book Friend. Someone who will read your book in its entirety in

return for your reading his or her book. Someone who hasnt been in any of your critique or support groups and

hasnt seen this particular work of yours before. Someone who will be brutally frank, objective, friendly, agree to

a time frame for returning your book (and getting hers back)? Im willing to play matchmaker. Drop me a note at

[email protected]. Ill try to match you up with a book friend you can trust.

- Barbara Ruffner


7/10November 2008 WriteangleS

Your Contract With Your Critique Group

Are you are a member of a private, closed support/critique group? Or do you drop i

on a group that is open to the public like the ones sponsored by the Berkeley Branch? Wha

your contract with the group?

Some writers attend regularly, leaving their own work at home, bringing only their b

editorial eyeglasses. They offer quality opinions in exchange for some credit to be redeem

in the future. They give a lot, and it comes back to thank them. Others submit the best they have, the polished version several drafts beyond the rs

They offer it with prideand trepidationexpecting the aws hiding in their pages to be

ushed out like a politicians peccadillos. These writers, too, give their best and come awa

with the best.

The person who gets the least is the person who has dashed off a rst draft and, with the minimum scrutin

brings the piece in the hope that their raw talent will be a ticket to the circus. They tell themselves they dont know

if their work is any good, but they bring it in the belief that their group will prescribe the surgery necessary to x

Fugedaboudit. Doesnt happen.

Bring a rst draft, and the best editors at the table will spend most of their allotted time correcting

punctuation. The second-best editors, lesser grammarians like myself, ignore the commas and the spelling errors

with the sure knowledge the typos and squiggles will not pass the ne sieve of the best and the brightest. We

second-stringers read for substance and content and get bogged down in incomplete scene setting, incomplete

context, shifts in point of view, unclear antecedents, and lots more. Too much to write up on your manuscript.

The most useful critiques I ever received came when I brought my best to the party. When your peer edito

are not distracted by rst-draft mistakes, you get the suggestions about structure, dialogue ow, credibility of

character, symbolism, pace, etc. That is what I come for.

A good group will deliver more than their share of the contract if you live up to your half.

- AL Levenson

CO-PUBLISHING

The discussion of co-publishing at the Central Board meeting stimulated further thinking.

In this period of ux and ex in publishing formats, we see that individuals can become publishers.

From there it is a small step to imagine the Berkeley Branch with its own imprint.

In our branch at least two books have been self-published within the last year. I know of at least ve book

shopping for an agent. As frustrations mount, I imagine many writers will begin to consider a

self-publishing route. It seems to me these folks ought to get together to pool their knowledge and

examine their collective options.

How many individuals within the branch would like to gather with others and consolidate their ideas

and experience, consider options, and explore possibilities? Would anyone care to host a discussion? Drop me a

note at [email protected] with your thoughts.

- AL Levenson


8/10November 2008 WriteangleS 7

WEB SITES FOR WRITERS

zinebook.comcynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com

agentquery.comquerytracker.net

Critique Groups:

berkeleywritersclub.org/events.htm

The 3rd Saturday support/critique

writers group will meet on the 4th

Saturday, November 22, from 1 to

5 p.m., Rockridge Library.

Meeting Time Change

Tidbits

Publicity Plans for CWC Berkeley Branch

The 2009 Publicity Planning Calendar is nearly

complete, with plans for media and community outreach.

Initial plans include monthly yers promoting the

Berkeley Branch--CWC meetings and support/critique

writers group workshops for distribution to local

bookstores, literary coffee houses, libraries, and more.

Barnes & Noble is restoring signage.

For the long-range, our branch is coordinating

Centennial Plans--the 100 years of the CWC--with the

state CWC. For this effort, we are considering a

speakers bureau (10 to 15-minute briengs) and at least

bimonthly media releases with stories about CWC and,

when possible, its published authors.

I hope that you will send me stories that tie in

with a signicant event such as a holiday or a state or

nationally recognized event. For example, February is

Black History Month and October is Family History

Month.

If you have ideas or comments on our branchs

publicity plan, a story, or an idea about how to help

spread the word about CWC, please contact Linda

Brown at [email protected].

- Linda Brown

Anthology Deadline Extended

to November 16

The last issue ofWrite Angles put out the call

members for submissions to the California Writers C

state anthology. This will be the fth edition of the

anthology in the hundred-year history of the club. Th

last edition, published over twenty years ago, include

three pieces by Berkeley Branch members.

The anthology seeks ction, literary nonctio

and poetry. No more than 2,000 words for prose,

750-word limit for poetry. Any topic. No more than t

previously unpublished submissions per category pe

author.

Electronic submission only to:

[email protected].

Professional manuscript format. 10-12pt seri

type, start title page half-way down rst page, includauthors name, address, phone, and CWC branch at t

right of rst page. Include authors name, title, and p

number in a header on each page except the title pag

Give them your best by November 16.

- AL Levens


9/10

President: AL Levenson

Vice President: Dave Sawle

Secretary: Evelyn Washington

Treasurer: Ken Frazer

Program: AL Levenson

Membership: OPEN

Hospitality: OPEN

Childrens Contest: Lucille Bellucci

Newsletter Editor: OPEN

Copyeditor: Anne Fox

Publicity: Linda Brown

Webmaster: Stan Sciortino

Berkeley Branch Ofcers

The CALIFORNIA WRITERS CLUB is dedicated to educating members and the public-at-large in the craft of writing and in the marketing of their

work. For more information, visit our Web site at www.bklywisclb.g.

Copyright 2008 by the California Writers Club, Berkeley Branch. All rights reserved. Write Angles is published 10 times a year (September -

June) by the California Writers Club, Berkeley Branch on behalf of its members. CWC assumes no legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy,

completeness, or usefulness of any information, process, product, method or policy described in this newsletter.

oNTHE HoRIzoN

Something new and different. This

year our winter meeting will be a

Sunday brunch at 10:30 a.m. on

December 7, 2008 (note meeting date

change).* You can invite family and

friends to this light-hearted holiday party to socialize, learn abou

the club, and meet the people you hang out with every month.

And this is a great opportunity to introduce the club to your write

friends.

For the program, we will have the pleasure of hearing

David Jenkins, who works with dreams and has a Ph.D. in that

subject. He believes dreams can help solve everyday

predicaments. How about dreaming your way through writers

block? Jenkins believes your dream life ought to be fun and will

offer several group interactive exercises. Bring a dream for

Jenkins to dance us through. You can nd out more at his Web

site: www.DreamReplay.com.

Brunch will be in Alameda at Pasta Pelican, 2455 Marina

Square Drive (510-864-7427). The charge for CWC members an

guests is $17 each, checks to be received by December 3.

Otherwise, charge at the door is $20 per person. Please mail your

check to Berkeley Branch, P.O. Box 15014, Oakland CA 94614.

Come for fun and food. Looking forward to seeing you.

- AL Levenson

*Remember, no club meeting on December 20. However,

support/critique groups will meet as usual on December 13 and

20, respectively.



10/10

P.O.Box15014Oakland,CA94614

Write Angles 11-08

Documents

Transcript of Write Angles 11-08