Welcome to all San Francisco Peninsula CWC members and interested writers.

 

There is something about September with the changing of the leaves, the shifting of the sun, and the whiff of Fall in the air, that brings up an uncontrollable obsession of mine for Big Chief tablets and #2 pencils. It is not just the stomping off to school that catches my imagination. It is the anticipation of writing things down--whether lists, names, short stories, poems, or even summer memoirs. And with that I feel an excitement, and even a tingle along my spine, which tells me good things are beginning to happen! And, that actually does happen every time I sit down to write--even now!

Hopefully, you feel a similar excitement about writing and about moving your work forward. Within the CWC this Fall, we have plenty of opportunities for you to whet that nib of a pencil and let the sparks fly. Whether you choose to enter our upcoming Fault Zone anthology contest, join a critique group, work on getting your book published, spend hours researching your next book, or simply feel exhilarated about having your book turned into a movie (that is happening right now to one of our own), I hope your excitement about writing continues to grow. Hopefully, that is why you became a member of the San Francisco Peninsula CWC Branch. We are dedicated to helping you find your way in this most confusing, labyrinthine world of publishing and writing.  

This month we will be making some major moves. The first is in our physical location. We will begin meeting at the Sequoia Yacht Club in Redwood City (same place as our 50 ^th Anniversary celebration) on the 17 ^th of September. (See details and the address in other parts of this newsletter.) And in October we plan to set up mentoring groups with Geri Spieler. Mentoring is for those who have brought their work to a certain point, but need more information to advance it further. It is not the same as a critique group, which is a group that works with you to edit your work to further it toward . . . perfection?  (We all need that!) 

And, another thing: We will be promoting the biennial NorCal CWC Leadership Conference "Building Better Branches." It is an all-day conference at DeVry University in Fremont on October 1 ^st. As you may know, we are part of a larger organization within the CWC called the NorCal Group, which includes all branches from the Monterey Peninsula to the Oregon border. You might be surprised to know that there are about 1,400 of us writers and fellow CWC members here in the North, working hard to bring you better programs and create better branches. So, if learning some new leadership skills piques your interest and you would like to join our team of leaders, all CWC members are invited. Just let us know of your interest and we'll make our way together to this event. This all-day event is free, and includes a light breakfast, lunch, and afternoon snacks. Plus you'll learn from speakers throughout our CWC branches who have had great successes and want to share them. You can also sit down with your peers to share concerns and construct solutions. It should be a worthwhile and rewarding day! Please put the date --October 1--on your calendar now!