These guys are still tooting their horns and beating a drum for the amazing workshops and lectures we've had. Check them out!

Linda Rohrbough & Bob May were our speakers for February's meeting. Bob opened for us at 9:15 with his Six Key Elements of Drama.

Pat Carr's workshop at our November 6th meeting will focus on the process of writing short fiction—from the opening sentence, through the action of the plot line, to characters and setting, to the final image. Each participant will come away in the afternoon with the rough draft of a new short story.

Pat has a B.A. and a M.A. from Rice, a Ph.D. from Tulane, and has published fourteen books, including THE WOMEN IN THE MIRROR, winner of the prestigious Iowa Short Fiction Award, and IF WE MUST DIE, a finalist in the Pen Book Awards. She has also published over one hundred short stories in such places as THE SOUTHERN REVIEW and BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES. She’s won numerous awards for her work, including an NEH, the Texas Institute of Letters Short Fiction Award, a Library of Congress Marc IV, and a writing fellowship from the Foundation Ledig-Rowohit in Lausanne, Switzerland. Her most recent books are BORDER RANSOM (TCU Press, 2006) and THE DEATH OF A CONFEDERATE COLONEL, a collection of Civil War stories, which will be published by the University of Arkansas Press in the spring of 2007.

Radine Trees Nehring’s first Ozarks-centered essay appeared in print in 1986. Other writing awards include the Arkansas Governor’s award for best writing about the state, and several honors for nature or Ozarks-value writing, including a Dan Saults Award from Ozarks Writers League. Her mysteries have been chosen for various awards from Oklahoma Writers Federation, and A VALLEY TO DIE FOR earned a Macavity nomination from Mystery Readers International for best first mystery novel.
Stories in her on-going “Something to Die For” mystery series are all set in Arkansas. They feature crimes that—while known in areas outside the Ozarks—are strongly colored by this unique area. She has also published short stories set in the Ozarks. Her current mystery series began with A VALLEY TO DIE FOR, published by St Kitts Press in 2002. A WEDDING TO DIE FOR (set in Eureka Springs, AR) was released in May, 2006. She is a member of Ozarks Writers League, Mystery Readers International, Sleuths’ Inc, Sisters in Crime, and is on the board of Mystery Writers of America, SW, representing the state of Arkansas. She has lived in the Arkansas Ozarks for twenty years with her husband, John.

Suzann Ledbetter’s current novel is ONCE A THIEF. SHADY LADIES, a biography collection is out from Tor/Forge. In April 2007, HALFWAY TO HEAVEN, a continuation of her directional series will be released. She has over twenty books to her credit, both fiction and nonfiction, ranging from biography and humor to historical and historical mystery to contemporary suspense.

John Achor’s careers include twenty years as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, business training, consulting, and as a Community College instructor. His writing assignments have appeared in a variety of local, national and international publications. He concentrates on suspense and mystery novels and has received recognition for his fiction, non fiction and poetry. In May of 1999, he moved to Hot Springs Village, Arkansas where he resides with his wife Pat. He is a member of a number of writers’ organizations including Mystery Writers of America.

Neal Torrey comes from a very diverse background of writing experiences, radio and television copywriter, Broadcast Media Director for an advertising agency, and he produced radio and TV spots for such varied clients as General Electric, Casite Additives, McDonalds, Shurfine Foods, and other name-brand products. In Jackson Hole, WY, he painted the West; landscapes, cowboys, Indians and hunting scenes. While in WY he recorded stories he heard from old cowboys and ranchers in the form of cowboy poetry. He now performs his work with the Missouri Cowboy Poets Association, working in a variety of venues in several states. In 1999 he published THE ARCADE AFFAIR, by Quiet Waters Publishing, a Mystery thriller. His hero in the story was, of course, a cowboy, vested with the die-hard courage of his cowboy ancestors. Neal is in the process of writing a sequel.

AVALON EDITOR ACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS

Under the imprint, Thomas Bouregy & Co., Inc., Avalon Books editor Susan McCarty will accept submissions that follow their guidelines, of the first three chapters and a three page synopsis, from any OWL member at the November meeting. Avalon publishes hardcover secular romances, mysteries, and westerns for the library market, wholesome adult fiction, suitable for family reading, no graphic or premarital sex. Kisses and embraces are as far as the characters can go, and the author must develop love scenes with tenderness, emotion, and perception. Books range in length from 40,000 words to 60,000 words, about 160-210 pages. Categories accepted: Romances, Romantic Comedy, Historical Romances, Mysteries and Westerns. Unpredictable and nontraditional plots are encouraged. I am looking for strong characters, strong developments, with characters that are fun, likable and face real-life situations that are suspenseful and action packed. We’re not looking for perfectionists, but are looking for normal people with real problems, real solutions, and real love. The main characters can be either female or male, or a team of both, but they must be someone with sound values for whom the truth is paramount. At the heart of each story are strong, believable characters that readers can relate to and a well-researched, believable story line, no mechanical plots and old clichés. Vivid descriptions of gory details, and overuse of dialect, should be avoided. Profanity is not allowed, but the author can use euphemisms, important for flavor and authenticity in most westerns. Include a self-addressed envelope with adequate postage for the return of your material if it is not suited to our needs. If you do not want the manuscript pages returned, in your cover letter state that we may recycle, and include only a self-addressed 5 x 10 stamped envelope. If we think your novel might be suitable for our list, we will contact you and request that you submit the entire manuscript. We do not accept on proposal, manuscript must be completed. We now accept both fiction and non-fiction. For more detailed guidelines, check the website: www.avalonbooks.com

President’s Message

The editor, Susan McCarty, is unable to come because of time constraints in her work schedule. However, any OWL member who submits the first three chapters and a three page synopsis of a book suitable for Avalon, with the author following guidelines given, she will immediately open that requested material and begin reading the manuscripts for further consideration. In your submission, also include a self-addressed stamped post card, and she will return those cards to the writers so that they’ll know their submissions have arrived and been opened. If you wish to submit your three chapters and synopsis, please contact the president for details at: jeanie@ozarkisp.net or (870) 448-2499. Your name will go on a submissions list; then you should bring the manuscript submissions with you to the meeting in November, and present them to the president.

If you aren't an OWL member yet, scroll down to the bottom of this page and click on the membership form link.

At the August OWL meeting, Danita Wood will talk about story structure and other areas of writing for magazines.

Danita is editor-in-chief and co-owner of Missouri Life, a magazine that she and her husband bought and revived in 1999. Since then it has won awards from the International and Regional Magazine Association for excellence in design and for reader service and historical stories.

Danita served as the Meredith Chair for Service Journalism at the University of Missouri School of Journalism from 1995 to 2005. There, she taught advanced editing, publishing, writing and reporting, and she has lectured at Folio and other magazine conferences around the country.

Before teaching, Danita spent fifteen years with Meredith Corporation, the publisher of Better Homes and Gardens, Ladies Home Journal, and others. While at Meredith, she was the founding editor of Country America, which reaches a million paid subscribers and was named as one of the Five Best Magazines of 1991. Danita is an award-winning reporter on southern agriculture and the business of agriculture for Successful Farming magazine for eight years.

Danita has three children, two in college and one in high school, and she enjoys gardening and horse-back riding.

Terry Burns is a fifth generation Irish storyteller and a fourth generation Texas teller of tall tales. His presentation will touch on intriguing questions for today's writers. Is the western dead? What's the difference between the traditional western market and the Christian western market? A new way of looking at trying to get published. "The key is being honest about we are up against, and doing the leg work we really don't want to do."

Terry has a new series, Mysterious Ways, from River Oak Publishing, which will produce his eighteenth fiction book. The second book in the series, Brother's Keeper, was released this year, and the third Shepard's Son, is set to be released late in 2006. Mysterious Ways was released in 2005 and promptly nominated for The American Christian Fiction Writers book-of- the-year award as well as the Christy Award.

Terry's trade paperback, To Keep A Promise, was one of five finalists for the 2002 Eppie Award and the paperback was nominated for the 2003 Willa Award given by the Women Writing the West. A second title, Don't I know You?, is out as a mainstream western in paperback. Both titles are scheduled to be released as audio books this year.

Burns as published over 200 articles and short stories, as well as four nonfiction books and a book of poetry. Affiliations include: Western Writers of America, American Christian Fiction Writers, Fellowship of Christian Writers, and Panhandle Professional Writers.

Terry lives in Amarillo, Texas with his wife, Saundra. His works can be found at www.terryburns.net

Our keynote speaker has an impressive list of awards and publications to her credit. Jodi's first book, Beneath the Texas Sky, won the National Press Women's Novel of the Year. The Tender Texan, her first national bestseller, won the equivalent of the "Oscar" when it was named the Romance Writers of America's annual Rita winner.

Jodi's session is titled, Seasons of Writing. She'll look at the stages of a writer's life, comparing them to the seasons of the year. We'll be given the tools we need to go from stage to stage in our careers as well as information that will not only help us in the quality of our work, but in the quantity. Jodi is also going to talk about critique groups and explain how helpful they are, why we need them, and how to organize one. She says she'll also tell us how to "kill" a critique group when it no longer benefits our work as a writer. This is a "don't miss" program. Get more information about Jodi at jodithomas.com

Linda Apple is a long-time OWL member, and one of OWL's most beloved success stories. She is a motivational speaker as well as an inspirational writer. Her Chicken Soup stories have been read nation wide with one of her stories chosen for the ten-year edition, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Living Your Dreams. Linda's talk, My Recipe for Chicken Soup: The Secret Ingredient to Writing Creative Non-Fiction, is sure to be a winner!

Ellen Withers will teach OWL members important lessons about freelancing so that they can build their own business as a writer. Ellen contributes to the Arkansas Democrat Gazette as well as several national and regional magazines. In addition to OWL, Ellen is a member of American Pen Women, OWFI, Fiction Writers of Central Arkansas and serves on the board of the Arkansas Writers Conference.

Nancy Knight says she never planned to be a writer, but in 1980, she felt there was something she was supposed to do. She joined a critique group and began to write her personal experiences. six years later she published her inspirational memoir, From New Jersey to Joy. A singer, public speaker, and freelance writers, Nancy will share her unusual life story and spiritual journey with humor and hope. Nancy leads a local writer's group and is a member of OWFI. She has been published in several well-known magazines and has won numerous awards.

A native of Arkansas, Velda Brotherton has been writing for 20 years. As well as writing a historical column for several newspapers for the past ten years, Velda has published six western historical romance novels. Her non-fiction books include Washington County, Arkansas and Springdale: The Courage of Shiloh, available through Arcadia Publishing; Wandering In The Shadows of Time: An Ozarks Odyssey is a reissue of the original published in 1994, and is available online through 1^st Books.Velda also has short stories in several anthologies including Mysteries of the Ozarks and Echoes of the Ozarks. Velda has taught workshops and ongoing classes in writing for the past ten years. Velda is a must hear at any conference, so don't miss her breakout session in the afternoon after our auction.

Cherry Weiner was born in Australia, but has lived in the U.S. since 1972. She began her career as an assistant and secretary to a well-known New York Agent. When she left her job, she didn't intend to continue as an agent, but the authors and editors she had met hounded her to open her own business. She felt that one year did not enough experience make, but when people kept sending her manuscripts, how could she say no? After a short partnership with an ex-editor, Cherry opened the Cherry Weiner Literary Agency in 1977. She was named Agent of the Year in 1997, and again in the year 2000 by the Word Craft Circle of Native American Writers and Storytellers. For the last two years, Cherry has averaged a book sale every 4 working days.

Cherry handles most adult fiction, and young adult science fiction and fantasy lines. She does not handle poetry, very young children's books or picture books, and she says it takes a "special hook" to interest her in non-fiction.

Her favorite talk session topic is...no topic. She loves to do questions and answers, and does a wonderful job covering everything you want or need to know about the publishing industry.

Cherry's personality and quick wit make her a favorite speaker at many of the best and biggest conferences in the country. Her knowledge of writing comes easily after a life time of being an avid reader. She was one of those kids who spent her nights with a blanket over her head and a flashlight in her hand as she read about the wonders and mysteries of the world in a good book. She says she read anything and everything, even that brown paperback called the Carptetbaggers that she stole from her parent's shelf. She would slip it to her room, read for awhile, and have it back by morning so they never knew.

Cherry's key to taking on a new client? Total enthusiasm and belief in the work.

Five minute pitch sessions will be available to all OWL members. And for the first fifteen people who reply, Cherry will read fifteen pages of your manuscript ahead of time. To schedule your pitch session or request information about sending an early 15 page manuscript, contact LouTurn@aol.com No unsolicited manuscripts will be accepted by Ms. Weiner.

Cherry has a wonderful article, WHY AN AUTHOR NEEDS A LITERARY AGENT, at http://www.archebooks.com

Clarissa (Chrissy) Willis has over fifteen years experience working with children with special needs and their families. She began her career as a kindergarten teacher and worked in the public schools as a speech pathologist. In addition, she was the educational director at a private facility for children with severe behavior disorders and worked as an early interventionist. As the Executive Director of the Southern Early Childhood Association (SECA), she was invited to attend the White House Symposium on Brain Research in Washington, D.C.

Her publications include three books: (1) Your Child’s Brain: Food for Thought; (2) Teacher’s Resource Guide for Children with Special Needs (McGraw-Hill); and (3) You Can’t Leave ‘Till You do the Paperwork: Matters of Life and Death. She also provides workshops and keynote addresses on brain research, early childhood special education, autism, inclusion, and child development. Dr. Willis has especially enjoyed her work with children in Alaska and with the Hopi and Navajo Nations.

At ETSU, Dr. Willis is the Principal Investigator for Tennessee’s Early Intervention System District 1 (TEIS), which provides services to children and families in eight counties of east Tennessee. She oversees the TEIS-Technical Assistance Project, a state-funded grant to provide technical assistance and training to all nine TEIS districts, and the East Tennessee Autism Training Project (ETATP), which provides in-depth assistance to teachers working with children with autism. She is currently the state president for the Division of Early Childhood (DEC), a subdivision of the Council for Exceptional Children.

Dr. Willis lives with her husband, Mike, in Johnson City, Tennessee. Her hobbies include fiction writing and collecting antique books about children. Her daughter is a middle school science teacher in Arkansas.

Chrissy has served on the board of OCW for longer than she'd like to remember. Ozark Creative Writers is strictly an organization set up to hold one conference a year. During the second week-end in October, writers from all over the world meet in Eureka Springs, Arkansas and mingle with writers, editor, publishers, and just plain likeable folks to learn about the craft of writing. The agenda and entry form for next fall's conference can be found at www.ozarkcreativewriters.org OWL's own, Dusty Richards, has also served on the board for many years, and OWL's Vice-President, Regina Williams, is slated to be one of next October 2005s speakers. Check it out and put it on your calendar.

Sherry Organ has taught at Harding University, in Searcy, Arkansas since 1997. Mrs. Organ teaches Advanced Composition, Creative Writing, and general education English courses and serves as faculty adviser for Scribblers, a student creative writing group.

Do you recognize this OWL member? Granny Dingle is a composite of elderly women who might have lived among the hills, hollers and creek banks of the Missouri/Arkansas Ozarks. Although she lacks formal "book-larnin," she is an intelligent woman, as were most of the Ozarkers of those times. Her collection of songs is an example of the creative process a woman might have utilized to get comfortably through what was a very hard life. She worked from dawn to dark every day of the year. She lives with her child's family, as she has been a "widder-woman" for many years. She is useful and productive and is basically a happy person. Granny sings, as did her predecessors, with no musical accompaniment and in "jest a reg'lar" voice.

Betty Henderson does a program planned for adults that tells, through songs, how life would have been for an elderly woman living in the Ozarks from the late 1800's through the 1940's. Come see Granny Dingle at Ozarks Writers League February meeting.

March 9-11--San Antonio Convention Center, Womenspeak 2007, international, speakers, workshops www.womenspeak2007.com