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| Updated 3/9/2004 |
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On Sunday afternoon, October 26, a small but entusiastic audience gathered in the second floor loft of Trembling Aspen Gallery (Buena Vista) for AUTUMN EXPRESSIONS--a reading of poetry and short prose by members of the Writers Exchange. The owners of Trembling Aspen, Deborah Orth and Malcolm Goggin, were featuring a special wildlife sculpture display at the gallery in october so participants in the event were seated among ironwood carvings by T. Suby and Ramon D.C. during the two-hour reading. The affair was a stimulating mix of visual and literary art.
Presenting their own works were: Maria Weber, Diane Stuart, Debbie Cason, Ann Cogswell, Kathy Keidel, Jim Jones, Elaine Soto, and Paulette Karlin. Poetry by Janie Van Der Schouw was read by Margery Dorfmeister, who also acted as emcee. The committee providing the fall decor and serving Halloween-inspired refreshments was composed of Maria Weber, Elaine Soto, and Margery Dorfmeister. Folding chairs, loaned to us by the Congregational Church, were transported and set up by John Dorfmeister and Jim Basset.
It had been a full two years since Writers Exchange had scheduled a public reading. All those attending AUTUMN EXPRESSION agreed it had been too long and that we need to hold one at least once a year.
Two scholarships were applied for and awarded to writers from the CLARYC BURT MEMORIAL FUND during 2003. One went to Joanne Puckett (Buena Vista) who participated in the Amy Frykholm Fiction Workshop sponsored by Writers Exchange in May at Thunder Lodge. The other went to Elaine Soto (Hartsel) who attended Literary Sojourn at Steamboat Springs in September.
Five WE members were invited as guests on POEMS AND STORIES, a monthly radio show hosted by Ann Klaiman on KHEN RADIO in September. KHEN is a public supported station in Salida. The experience of reading one's original work over the air was a new experience for some. The hour-long format gave ample time for each to read and a chance to chat with Ann about the organization's purpose and activities. It was also a good opportunity to promote the three Valley Woices anthologies. Those who took part in the venture were; Diane Stuart, Maria Weber, Janie Van Der Schouw, Jessica Saunders and Margery Dorfmeister.
A DAY OF WRITING is our next scheduled quarterly event. It will be hosted by Jessica Saunders in Salida on February 7, 2004 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Poet Laurie Hendrie will be on hand to guide us through part of the day's writing. For more details please contact Jessica at 539-3700 or Marcy Adams at 395-3476.
Ripples Anthology Valley Voices - Ripples, with a deep blue cover and a much cleaner manuscript, is now available for distribution. Anyone with the earlier edition (bright pink) may have all copies of that edition replaced free of charge. Additional copies may be purchased directly for $8.95 + 0.63 tax each, or purchased and shipped (US Mail) for $11.50 each (including tax and S&H). Copies of our two earlier anthologies, Mountain Dreams and Passages are available directly for $6.95 + 0.49 tax each or for $9.25 each shipped (including tax and S&H). Contact Mike Dolan at 395-8765 to order your books, or send check and order to Writers Exchange, PO Box 245, Buena Vista, CO, 81211.
The Winter Meeting of the Chaffee County Writers Exchange was held at Thunder Lodge on February 7, 2004, commencing at 10 a.m. with a writing session guided by Jessica Saunders. Those present were Marcy Adams, Marge Dorfmeister, Jim Jones, Kathy Keidel, Barbara Munyon Jessica Saunders, Audrey Smith and Maria Weber. Also attending were Carol Cartwright (Salida), Sharon Morris (Como) and Caye Terry (Buena Vista), all of whom became members that day.
The business meeting was convened at 1:15 by Marcy Adams, following a potluck lunch break. Minutes of the August 18 (2003) general meeting and the November 13 (2003) board meeting were read and approved. In the absence of Tom Rampton, the Balance Sheet he had prepared for the November meeting was presented as the most current treasurer's report. The balance that day was $7,838.15. Barbara Munyon questioned why we do not have some of our money in savings. It was explained that the CD we had previously had matured and the money was transferred to the checking account. And Barbara also questioned why the item in the amount of $82.33 was listed as a fixed asset, saying that it should be listed under current assets. She also stressed the need for both a balance sheet and an income statement to be presented at each meeting.
Under Old business, Maria said she had printed and distributed an edition of the short stories written by those who attended the Thunder Lodge Fiction Workshop in May (2003). They were paid for by the writers themselves.
Marcy appointed Marge and Jessica to work with the questionnaire that Mary Ann Grindle had given us to help her prepare for the 501 (c) (3) application.
The election which will take place at our May meeting was discussed. Marcy and Tom are willing to continue in office for another year. Maria has agreed to run for vice president and Edie Sillars to fill the secretaries post. Jessica moved (Maria seconded) "that we have mail-in ballots with suggestion for names other than those proposed." The motion passed and the secretary was instructed to send out ballots by April First. The ballots will have a space for write-in nominees and are to be returned by April 10th.
The group informally agreed they would like to see the four-meeting-a-year format continue through the next term. Barbara moved (Audrey seconded) that "the wording in the proposed by-laws read that the Writers Exchange shall meet a minimum of four times a year to better facilitate the varying lifestyles of its members." The motion passed.
May Program-Maria volunteered to investigate one of two persons she had met at recent seminars that she thought would make good workshop leaders. She was put in charge of the May meeting.
The business meeting adjourned at 2:15. Jessica then introduced Salida author Laura Hendrie who spoke on her life as a writer of novels and poetry. She read from the opening chapter of the book she is currently working on and answered questions until4 p.m.
Submitted by Margery Dorfmeister, Secretary
If you have ever given serious thought to writing, whether for your own personal benefit or to share with others, you should consider joining Writer's Exchange. We are a group of individuals at all levels of experience who are interested in improving our own writing skills and sharing what we learn and experience with others. We sponsor regular writing exercises, workshops and seminars, readings, and the occasional anthology. Writing can be a very lonely and sometimes disheartening experience. It truly helps to have a support group whose members understand what the struggling writer is going through and can offer appropriate encouragement and help.
Do you have BOOKS TO SELL? One page on our site is the BOOKSTORE page where we can list YOUR books along with our anthologies, with ACTIVE E_MAIL AND WEB LINKS to your own on-line account for information and ordering. (Sorry, no shopping cart services are allowed on our free web site.)
Our web site also includes a MEMBERS page with addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail links, and even short biographical sketches of our members, but only with individual permission, of course. Our LIBRARY page provides library listings for public library resources of interest to writers and for our members' books available for loan to other members. Our LINKS page provides active links to many worthwhile web sites for authors and writers.
To join, send a check for the $10.00 annual dues (May 1 through April 30) to Writer's Exchange, PO Box 245, Buena Vista, CO 81211. Please include your address, phone number, and e-mail address, along with a description of the area(s) of writing (eg. Poetry or science fiction) that you are most interested in.
The Chaffee County Writer's Exchange was established in 1996 under the auspices of the Chaffee County Council for the Arts. We meet on the third Monday of every month from 3:00-5:00 in the Buena Vista Community Center.
In the short time since our organization, we have published two anthologies containing the collected writings of members and non-members throughout central Colorado and are currently working on a third. We have sponsored several workshops on different aspects of writing which are open to the community at large and have been very well attended. Twice each year we hold a reading, open to the public, in which Writer's Exchange members read their own prose and poetry and perform original musical pieces.
We also sponsor weekly and monthly hands-on writing workshops for members in both Buena Vista and Salida. We encourage sharing of experiences, tips, suggestions and encouragement among members as we each face the daunting task of improving our writing skills and marketing our works.
We heartily welcome visitors at our monthly meeting!
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| info@WritersExchange.org | Writer's Exchange PO Box 245 Buena Vista, CO 81211 |
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