On February 17, at our inaugural Author Day, created by VP Eva Barrows, 64 noisy, excited participants networked, celebrated, shared, sold books, told writers’ yarns in genre circles, and gabbed in twos and threes. Tim Flood reports that the room was abuzz with raffles, announcements, and news. Guests came, liked the energy, and joined up. A member from another branch said, “There’s so much more energy in your branch. I’ll come here whenever I can!”

Dave M. Strom applied his superpowers to present “A Comic Book Geek’s Open Mic Journey: Tips and Tricks” at the CWC–Fremont Zoom meeting on Saturday, February 24, 2:00–4:00 p.m. Dave writes super action-comedy stories about Super Holly Hansson and her super friends and fiends. He has self-published Super Holly Hansson in Super Bad Hair Day! and has been published in local anthologies, including three Fault Zones!

Want to jump-start your writing? Let Megan MacDonald help you “Lean into Your Writing.” Whether you already have an idea or are just starting out, Megan will discuss:

•        How to make time for your writing

•        Where to find your writing community

•        What to do when you’re ready to share your work

Come to Writers Helping Writers in Palo Alto n Thursday, March 21, 6:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m., at the Rinconada Library!

Check out our critique group matchmaker Miera Rao’s Featured Member interview by the Women’s National Book Association’s San Francisco Chapter. Miera shares her journey to writing and the inspiration for her poem “Désolée,” which won the Effie Lee Morris Award. Find out what else she keeps under her hat!

Don’t forget the Women's National Book Association—San Francisco Chapter’s Pitch-O-Rama on Saturday, April 20, 8:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. PST on Zoom. Read all about it on our website.

Colleen Olle’s picture book Sophia and Sinclair Get Lost! took center stage in two recent interviews, one conducted by Lauri Fortino for her Frog on a (B)Log website and another by Gina Soldano in her Why We Write series.

At the 20th annual San Francisco Writers Conference (February 15–18) at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco, Carole Bumpus will speak on two separate panels. On Friday, February 16, she invites writers to “Nonfiction: Package Your Content for the Market” and “Nonfiction: Finding Resources, Becoming a Resource.” She will also be available for consultations during the day and in the evening will present her books at the Wine and Book Tasting event.

On Thursday, February 15, at 6:30 p.m., at our Writers Helping Writers’ event at the Rinconada Library in Palo Alto, Kate Adams, editor-in-chief of Fault Zone: Detachment, will present “Playing with Poetry: Having Fun with Meter and Rhyme.” Join Kate and fellow writers to experiment with the building blocks of formal poetry by playing with lines, stanzas, and quatrains.

Novelist and member D.L. LaRoche has a new short story in the Winter 2023 Issue of October Hill Magazine. Hoagy, a young man assuming the adult mantel, prefers dancing the river to time in prison.

Member Audrey Kalman and her Birth Your Truest Story writers’ community co-creator offer a Writing & Hiking Retreat March 25–28 in Stinson Beach. Revitalize your body, mind, and spirit and recharge your writing practice with a joyous creative idyll at this sanctuary by the sea. 4 days/3 nights of craft sessions, prompted writing, free writing time, and sharing interspersed with nature hikes. Group size is limited; registration deadline is February 10. Additional info and registration here. Contact info@birthyourtrueststory.com for any questions.

On Thursday, February 8, at 6:30 p.m., at our Writers Helping Writers’ event at the San Mateo Public Library, Kate Adams, editor-in-chief of Fault Zone: Detachment, will present “Playing with Poetry: Having Fun with Meter and Rhyme.” Join Kate and fellow writers to experiment with the building blocks of formal poetry by playing with lines, stanzas, and quatrains.

Member and professional publicist Sarah Sherwood will be co-teaching The Artist’s Way Women’s Circle, an intimate and confidential workshop, in which you will rediscover your creative self and heal through writing. It costs $180 and takes place over twelve Sunday mornings, from February 18 to May 5, in beautiful Half Moon Bay. More info on content, plus sign-up form here.

Marianne Brems’s poem “Angry Wet Wind” was published on January 12 in Panoply, A Literary Zine.

Audrey Kalman is offering a 90-minute online workshop through the Birth Your Truest Story online writers’ community. Your Big Why: Writing Into Who You Want to Be in 2024 will use inspiring readings, brief meditations, and writing prompts to help you examine the emotional and practical sides of remaining in touch with your creativity throughout the year. Wednesday, January 31, 4–5:30 p.m. $19.99. Register here: https://bit.ly/BYTS-YourBigWhy

Our branch’s latest anthology of members’ prose and poetry, Fault Zone: Detachment, is published and available for order! Both paperback and digital editions are open for preorders, and the hardcover edition will be ready soon. Our members-only holiday party will feature readings and the chance to purchase copies at a tidy member discount from the online price. Check out and order our book on the Paper Angel website.

Jim Hanna’s piece of creative nonfiction, “Lady, This is for You,” appears online in A Thin Slice of Anxiety, a journal that challenges the norm of what is published in most mainstream journals. The essay depicts an incident of institutional racism in a Midwest prison where James worked as a counselor.

Fault Zone editor Kate Adams will read her poetry at Feldman’s Books on Curtis Street in Menlo Park, just off Santa Cruz Avenue, on January 5, 2024, at 6:30 p.m.. 

Katherine Russell Becker is thrilled to announce that her debut novel, Playing God, will launch on January 15, 2024. “I hope you will share in my joy, and I thank you for your encouragement and support in helping me realize my dream to become a published author.” Her book is available for preorder on Amazon and will also be sold in Barnes and Noble bookstores and Powell’s Books.

Join us at the next Writers Helping Writers’ event on Jan 11, Thursday, 6:30pm, at the San Mateo Public Library. Joan Gelfand, author of You Can Be A Winning Writer: The 4 C's System to Author Success: Craft, Commitment, Community & Confidence, will discuss:

• Getting published

• Promotion

• Community groups

• Confidence & building a fan base.

Joan has been speaking on these topics for over ten years and has taught at the Writing Salon, at writing conferences, and at many CWC chapters. Copies of her book will be on sale.

Want to move past writing blocks, find your creative edge, and go deep into your imagination to produce powerful writing? Darlene Frank’s “Spark Your Creativity: A Writing Journey into the Deep Imagination” will help! This online workshop takes place January 6, 13, and 21, 2024. Includes publication of your work in Spirited Voices magazine. Details are here.