Hudson Valley Writers Guild Newsletter, October 1, 2011

In This Issue

Guild Announcements: October Writing Conference, Non-Fiction Contest Winners Announced, Albany Community of Writers, Dates to Save for Upcoming Guild Events

Member Announcements: Anthony Bernini, M.E. Kemp, Mimi Moriarty, Melinda Morris Perrin, Jan Marin Tramontano, Barbara M. Traynor

Area Announcements: Writers Institute Readings for Fall Begin at UAlbany, Yes! Reading Series in Albany, Romance Writers Conference in East Greenbush, Bookmarks at Arts Center in Troy Inviting Submissions, Local authors to read at Proctors, New Reading Series in Hudson

Guild Announcements

HVWG Writers Conference, October 2, 1:30 p.m.
The Hudson Valley Writers Guild will sponsor a free Writers Conference tomorrow starting at 1:30 p.m. at the East Greenbush Community Library, Community Way, East Greenbush. The conference will include a panel discussion on e-publishing and a writing workshop by award-winning novelist Hallie Ephron.

The panelist for the discussion on e-publishing will be Susanne Alleyn, author of the Aristede Ravel series of historical mysteries set during the French Revolution; Gloria Waldron Hukle, author of three novels; Robyn Ringler, owner of East Line Books in Clifton Park; and Daniel Nester, author and professor of English at the College of St. Rose in Albany. The panel moderator will be mystery writer M.E. Kemp. The panel will be followed by a writing workshop lead by author Hallie Ephron (hallieephron.com) whose novels include Come and Find Me and the award-winning Never Tell a Lie, which was made into the film “And Baby Will Fall.” Her book Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel was an Edgar Award finalist.

The program is free and open to the public. To pre-register, contact the East Greenbush Public Library at (518) 477-7476 or online at eastgreenbushlibrary.org.

Winners of Non-Fiction Contest Announced
The Hudson Valley Writers Guild is pleased to announce the winners of its 2011 Non-Fiction Writing Contest. The winners and honorable mentions will be recognized at a reading on Saturday, October 15 (see item below for details about the reading). The Winners of the HVWG Non-Fiction contest are:

Personal Essay — Fran Yardley, Tupper Lake, NY
Memoir — Judy Staber, Old Chatham, NY
Humor — Sandra Powley, Loudonville, NY
Honorable Mention for an HVWG Member — Mary Murphy, Albany, NY

Albany Community of Writers, October 15, 2 p.m.
The Hudson Valley Writers Guild will host the annual Community of Writers reading at the Albany Public Library on Saturday, October 15, 2-4:30 p.m. The program will be in the auditorium at the Library’s Main Branch, 161 Washington Avenue, Albany. The program will include a reading by the winners of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild non-fiction contest. See item above for names of the winners. Certificates and prizes will also be awarded at the reading.

Also reading will be Jan Tramontano from her recently published novel, Standing on the Corner of Lost and Found (CreateSpace), and Howard Kogan from his new book of poems, Indian Summer (Square Circle Press).

Save These Dates
Please mark these dates on your calendar: November 14 (note date change) for the annual HVWG membership meeting at the Colonie Town Library starting at 7 p.m. and November 20, 2-4 p.m. for the Schenectady Community of Writers event at the Schenectady Public Library (more details including the list of readers will be forthcoming).

Member Announcements

Anthony Bernini announces the publication of his second volume of poetry, Immediate Worlds. This 72-page bound paperback volume, produced with exacting care by The Troy Bookmakers, includes a discerning preface by Selma R. Burkom, past professor of English and American literature at San Jose State University. Bernini is the author of Distant Kinships, a volume of poetry published in 2002.

Copies of Immediate Worlds may be ordered on-line through the website of TBM Books (tbmbooks.corecommerce.com) or through Amazon. Consider buying Immediate Worlds through your local independent bookseller. You may also arrange to purchase directly from the author by calling (518) 588-6419. Those who visit Albany on October 24 can obtain an inscribed copy from the author at McGeary’s tavern, located at 4 Clinton Square, where Bernini will be the featured poet at a reading beginning at 8 p.m. Cheeses and sweets will be served, and libations will be available from the bar.

M. E. Kemp spoke on Writing the Historical Mystery at the Clifton Park/Half Moon library on September 23. Kemp will also give a talk to the Womens Club of Valley Falls on November 9.

Kusamakura International (Japan) is pleased to announce that Stephen W. Leslie has been awarded the silver medal for his second place finish in the prestigious 16th annual International Haiku Poetry Competition.

Here’s the award winning haiku:

Her far away look
Tire swing on a nearby tree
The missing children

Mimi Moriarty has had a string of good luck with submissions and would like to share with you that her short story, “Ordinary Time,” was awarded second runner-up in the Oasis Journal 2011 Best Fiction Contest (Tucson, AZ); her poem, “I Hear Geese,” was awarded second place in the Green Heron Poetry Contest, sponsored by the Upper Delaware Writers Collective (Narrowsburg, NY); and her poem, “The Strangest Weather,” was awarded third place in the Voices of Lincoln Poetry Contest in the “Seeing is Believing” category (Lincoln, CA).

She thanks her very supportive writing partners in the Delmar Writers, Tai Pan Writing Group and www.group for their attentive eyes and ears as she honed her work and recommends a writing group for those who are thinking of jumping into the submissions game. See the HVWG web page for available writing groups in your area.

Poet Melinda Morris Perrin will be reading from her latest volume, Winterberries: Poems of Hope, at the Open Door Book Store on Friday, December 16, as part of Schenectady’s Arts Night. Winterberries is published by Ice Cube Press, North Liberty, Iowa.

Jan Marin Tramontano’s poetry chapbook, PATERNAL NOCTURNE, will be available for pre-order purchase through Finishing Line Press: finishinglinepress.com/NewReleasesandForthcomingTitles.htm. The number of copies pre-ordered determines the print run. The book will be available January 2012.

In a world of Facebook and iPhones, it’s hard to remember a time when handwritten letters were the way we communicated with family and friends. There was a time, not so long ago, when mail was eagerly awaited and letters were savored—read and reread, tied in bundles and saved. Max Silverman, living apart from his family in the 1930s and 40s, wrote letters home everyday. They became his life line, written almost as a daily blog. It was how he survived his solitary existence and the tear of being away from his beloved. And it is how we get to know him fifty years after his death. PATERNAL NOCTURNE is a granddaughter’s tribute to a man she barely remembered, whose immigrant beginnings are part of the universal American story.

In addition to participating in the Community of Writers event (above), Jan is doing a reading at the Book House on Saturday, November 5 at 3 p.m. and will read at the Women’s Building on November 11 (details forthcoming).

Barbara M. Traynor, author, Second Career Volunteer…. a budgetary lifestyle of travel with free room and board, will be at the following locations with a PowerPoint presentation along with signing books: Friday, October 28, Rensselaerville Public Library, 7-9 p.m.; Thursday, November 3, Troy Public Library, 6:30-7:30 p.m.; and Wednesday, November 9, “Lunch ‘n Learn” – Bethlehem YMCA, Noon-1 p.m.

Area announcements

Writers Institute Fall Reading Series
Early October is a busy time for this series. Among the many events through mid-month are humorist and journalist Ian Frazier reading at the Recital Hall, Performing Arts Center on the Uptown Campus of UAlbany on October 5 at 8 p.m; journalist and nonfiction writer Sylvia Nasar at the Main Theatre of the Performing Arts Center on October 11 at 7 p.m.; and a conference on the Spanish Writer Gonzalo Torrente Ballester in the Standish Room of the Science Library of the Uptown Campus on October 14 between 1:30 and 5 p.m. For additional information, including about seminars conducted by these writers and about several more events during this stretch, visit the website at albany.edu/writers-inst.

Yes! Reading Series, October 4, 8 p.m.
The next offering of the Yes! Reading Series will have readings by Kristi Maxwell, Megan Martin and a performance by Peter Edwards (Casper House Electronics). At the Social Justice Center, 33 Central Avenue in Albany.

Romance Writers of America Conference, October 8, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Capital Region chapter of Romance Writers of America (CR-RWA) will hold a special all day mini-conference on October 8 at the East Greenbush Community Library from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

After our monthly business meeting 10-11 a.m., the award winning, bestselling author, actress and playwright Leanne Renee Hieber, will be presenting her highly acclaimed workshop, “Direct Your Book: Theatrical Techniques to a Blockbuster Novel” from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

During this workshop, Ms. Hieber will share her unique writing process entirely defined in theatrical terms. Authors will come away from the workshop with a whole new way to think about fiction by using techniques inherent to actors, directors and other theatre professionals. Sparks will fly as authors troubleshoot their way towards an engaging, character-rich, one-of-a-kind hit novel. For more information on Ms. Hieber, visit leannereneehieber.com.

We are brown-bagging lunch. RSVP is required for this event. Please send your registration to kris.mcconville@gmail.com. This event is free to members of CR-RWA. A non-member fee of $25 is payable at the door via cash or check. If after attending this event the guest decides to join CR-RWA, $10 of this fee will go toward their new membership.

The CR-RWA is open to people 18 years and over, seriously pursing a writing career in romantic fiction and to certain related professionals, all of whom are members in good standing with the national Romance Writers of America. Our members live in Western Massachusetts, Central and Northern New York and the mid-Hudson Valley. The chapter holds monthly meetings at the East Greenbush Community Library. For directions to the East Greenbush Library, please visit eastgreenbushlibrary.org/ or call (518) 477-7476.

For more information on CR-RWA, visit cr-rwa.org

BookMarks: The Memoir Project Reading Series
The Memoir Project, a program of The Arts Center of the Capital Region, invites submissions for Bookmarks, a series of group readings featuring writing that is grounded broadly in personal experience. Experienced writers, as well as those whose work has not previously been read publicly or published, are encouraged to submit work.

Each scheduled reading will be curated by a member of the Arts Center’s Literary Committee. Details about the submission criteria and schedule for each curator are listed below and on the website at artscenteronline.org. New this year, rather than a single deadline, each individual reading has a separate submission date. The first deadline is October 10. Works will be evaluated “blindly” on literary excellence and relevance to the broader Memoir Project theme (i.e. Does the work mine the personal to express the universal?) as well as the individual requirements set by each curator. Please submit no more than once to any individual curator. Works may be edited for length and for synergy with other readers. Here are the readings:

• Special Young People’s Category new this year! “TRADITIONS” curated by Tammy Robinson, Skribbler’s Magazine /Students aged 9 to 12 are invited to submit works of poetry or prose on the theme of traditions. Entries should not exceed 500 words and are subject to editing by the curator. Reading: November 16. Deadline: October 15.
• “CREATIVE ENDEAVORS: BEING TERRIFIED AND DOING IT ANYWAY” curated by Kathryn Allen /Works of prose, no longer than 1,500 words. Reading: November 21. Deadline: October 10.
• “FAMILY AT THE HOLIDAYS” curated by Marion Roach Smith / What more can we say but families and holidays? What a mix, right? Works of memoir, No longer than 750 words. Reading: December 19, 7 p.m. Deadline: November 1.
• “FOOD” curated by Robyn Ringler / Submissions up to 1200 words of memoir in any of its forms–personal essay, poetry, letters, monologue, drama but it must be memoir and related to memories that involve food. Reading: January 23, 7 p.m. Deadline: December 1.
• “TEXT AS ART” curated by Nancy Klepsch / Submissions may include visual or multi-media works. Reading, March 19, 7 p.m. (and/or a visual display during the month of February). Deadline: January 15.
• “CIRCLING THE DARK; CHOOSING LIGHT: MOMENTS OF TRANSFORMATION” curated by Donna Miller / This evening’s reading will explore transformation. Our life stories are filled with moments of grief or insight and inspired by grace and joy. Take us along for the journey that transformed your life story. Poetry and prose are welcomed. Participants in last year’s Grace reading are cordially invited to return and new voices are especially encouraged to submit. Readings will be approximately 1,000 words each, but submissions may exceed this limitation. When the theme and time constraints are established for the reading, your work can be edited for a perfect fit! Reading: February 27, 7 p.m. Deadline: January 1.
• “I DID!” curated by Nancy Klepsch and Lauren Pinsley / Memoir about getting married with a special focus on same sex marriages. Works should be no longer than 5 minutes. (Up to three pieces may be submitted for consideration). Reading: Monday, April 23 2012, 7 p.m. Deadline: March 1.

Interested writers should submit a work sample as indicated and a resume/CV, both in PDF form to: hans@artscenteronline.org. Please include the following text in the subject line: “Memoir Project: (name of theme for which you are submitting) (your name)”. All submissions must be received by 5 p.m. on the deadline indicated in the description specific to each category.

Local authors to read at Proctors, October 15, 1-2:30 p.m.
The spirit and energy of the upcoming Capital Region MOHU Arts Festival (mohufest.com) has not eluded the literary world. Local authors Winifred Elze (The Borgia Prince), John Blandly (The Greatest Novel Ever Written), Lucilla Epps (Phantom’s Legacy) and Zackary Richards (Noon) will read from their work and take questions about writing and publishing from the audience at Proctors Bookstore on Saturday, October 15, 1-2:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

“People regularly stop by Proctors Gift Center to inquire about the books we carry that showcase local authors,” says Robert Warlock, who manages the two gift shops along Robb Alley in Proctors. “hey ask about the authors and their literary careers. It seemed only natural to schedule this rare event in concert with the 9-day MoHu Festival of the Arts.” For more information, contact Robert Warlock, Proctors Gift Centre, 432 State Street, Schenectady. (518) 382-3884, ext. 128; cell: (518) 256-8395.

New Hudson River Loft Reading Series, November 12, 7 p.m.
The Musica Loft, 17 N. 4th Street, Hudson. Featured Readers: Daniel Nester, Sean H. Doyle, Chloe Caldwell, Stacy Pershall, Mira Ptacin, Danielle Winterton. Suggested donation of $5. There will be alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, books for sale and a wonderful night filled with prose, poems, essays and fiction.

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The Hudson Valley Writers Guild offers space in its newsletter for submission and program opportunities but does not endorse any programs or publications that are not offered through the Guild. Two notes from the newsletter editors:
* Within each section, announcements/events are arranged, when possible, by relevant dates.
* We are always curious to know if the formatting “works” (appears neat and tidy) in your email or if it causes issues (is difficult to read). Send feedback and suggestions regarding any formatting issues to hvwginfo@gmail.com.
* News items should go to Bob Sharkey at riverrun@nycap.rr.com. Please use Times New Roman size 12 font whenever possible.
Thank you!
–Carolee Sherwood, Newsletter Co-Editor
-Bob Sharkey, Newsletter Co-Editor