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"'You can always edit a bad page. You can't edit a blank page." – Jodi Picoult
CONTENTS OF THE MAY ISSUE
Writers' Night OUT! - Monday, May 15
Writers' Night IN! - Monday, May 22
Want a Place to Sell Your Books?
A Tale of Self-Publishing Success: Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Grants Available to Low-Income Writers
Open Mic Every Thursday
Calling All Book Authors! Tune-In Tuesdays
Kudos
Upcoming Events
Spread Your News on the Update and Our Website!
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WRITERS' NIGHT OUT
MONDAY, MAY 15 @ 6:00 P.M.
730 TAVERN, CENTRAL SQUARE, CAMBRIDGE
Come join the National Writers Union Boston Chapter for another fun night of socializing and discussing the writing life. It’s May, and the weather has been sunny and warm, and what could be better than hanging out with other writers and talking about your work in progress, the summer season, and anything else that comes up in conversation?
Please contact Shannon O’Connor to RSVP.
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WRITERS' NIGHT IN (ON ZOOM)
MONDAY, MAY 22 @ 5:30-6:30 P.M.
It's that time of year in New England when we take a leap of faith and finally put the snow shovels away. The trees are all leafed out, green has gone from a miracle to a color, and on college quads everywhere frat boys engage in the Ritual Shirtless Frisbee Toss.
It can be tough when you're trying to write with birdies chirping and basketballs bouncing on the playground next door. But part of what makes us writers is our steely resolve and ability to concentrate no matter what the distraction. Except for those times when a deadline looms, the urge to stroll to the local ice cream shop strikes, and the words of Oscar Wilde come to mind: "I can resist anything but temptation."
We hope you give in to the temptation to take a break for our "Writer's Night In" Zoom get-together on May 22. NWU members and friends welcome. For the Zoom link, please contact Charles Coe.
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WANT A PLACE TO SELL YOUR BOOKS?
Authors Without Borders (AWB) is a regional consortium of book writers and authors, founded in 2007 by four authors whose mission is to jointly market their books and assist other writers in navigating the course to marketing and publication. “We like to help writers avoid some of the pitfalls we experienced.”
AWB has opportunities for authors to sell their books:
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Fairhaven Homecoming - June 24, one day 10-4 pm. One spot open. $30.
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Acushnet Apple Peach Fest - Weekend after Labor Day - September 9th and 10th. Two-day event 10-5 pm. Saturday one spot and Sunday two spots open. $30 per day.
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Durfee-Fall River December 2nd and 3rd (inside gym), 9-4 pm, Saturday one spot and Sunday two spots open. $30 per day.
Please email [email protected] for more information.
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A TALE OF SELF-PUBLISHING SUCCESS:
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING
by John L. Hodge
We may never know the impact on her life of the first published collection of her poems. Her father paid to print fifty copies of the collection and presented it to her for her 14th birthday. It was distributed to friends and family and not sold. After she became an invalid due to an accident when she was fifteen, she went on to write and publish poems and essays throughout her life -- not only the love poem that begins “How do I love thee. Let me count the ways,” one of many sonnets written about Robert Browning who became her husband, but also a passionate opposition to slavery ("The Runaway Slave at Pilgrim’s Point," 1850) and a portrayal of a woman’s struggle to become independent in a world that oppressed women (“Aurora Leigh,” 1856). She is recognized today as one of England’s finest poets.
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GRANTS AVAILABLE TO LOW-INCOME WRITERS
TO ATTEND CONFERENCES OR WORKSHOPS
The Boston Chapter Steering Committee is offering $100 grants to up to five NWU members in good standing. These grants are available to those who face challenging financial circumstances and would like to attend a writing conference or workshop (one of those listed below or one of your choice), or to take advantage of some other professional development opportunity.
If you would like to apply, or would like more information, please contact Steering Committee Chair Willie Wideman-Pleasants.
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OPEN MIC EVERY THURSDAY
The NWU New York Chapter, which for many years hosted open mics at the Muhlenberg branch library, is now holding virtual open mics weekly: every Thursday from 6:30 to 8:00 pm.
All writers from all genres are welcome. You can read for up to seven minutes. Just RSVP on meetup.com to view the link to join.
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CALLING ALL BOOK AUTHORS! TUNE-IN TUESDAYS
FIRST TUESDAY OF EVERY MONTH
Royalty, Compensation & Distribution Issues for Book Authors
Join a discussion about the most pressing issues for book authors today. Share your experience and knowledge, and advance your career, in this virtual event hosted by Book Division Chair Dan McCrory and NY Member Timothy Sheard. Planned topics for the next several sessions are listed here.
To REGISTER for the Zoom program, email chair Dan McCrory.
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JOHN L. HODGE published Jim Crow of the Mind and the New State Laws Designed to Preserve the Idea of White Male Supremacy. In fifteen states, including New Hampshire, it is illegal for public school teachers to discuss in the classroom the content of this and similar books. The book examines these new laws and explains their historical roots and why they imperil the nation. Click here for ordering information and more details.
SHANNON O'CONNOR had a flash fiction piece published in Oddball Magazine.
Please send any news of a publication, award, or writing-related appearance that has already happened to editor Barbara Mende. (A piece on your own blog or website doesn't qualify.) Send 50 words or less, plus your name and a link to the publication, event, or website where readers can find more info about you or the happening. Don't send notices of work that will be published in the future. Do send news of future events, but see the "Upcoming Events" block for that.
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USE THE UPDATE AND OUR WEBSITE TO SPREAD YOUR NEWS
Are you speaking or reading from your work in the near future? Do you want to publicize an event that writers would be interested in zooming in to? Can you provide a service, such as editing or indexing or publicity, for your fellow union members? Do you just want to introduce yourself to the NWU membership?
Our Boston Chapter website, which you can reach at
nwu.org/chapters/boston/ or www.nwuboston.org, is here for you to use. Not only that, but if you send us an announcement of a specific event by the second Monday of each month, we'll try to include it in these updates.
Please send us news of any upcoming events that you'd like us to publicize, along with Zoom links or PDF posters if you have them. If you'd like to promote your services, plug your latest book, tell us about something writing-related that happened to you, or post anything else you can think of, we'll try to give it a place on the website.
And we'd love to hear from you if you'd like to contribute to these updates. Do you have information or a viewpoint on some phase of writing or publishing that you'd like to pass along? Do you have tips that you'd like to share with your fellow writers? Send them in! And don't forget, if you've published something or participated in an event or made an appearance, we'll post it under Kudos.
Send all your news for the Update and website to your webmaster.
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Chair: Willie Wideman-Pleasants
Editor and Webmaster: Barbara Mende
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