NEWSLET-

TER

New critique opportunity!

In response to member comments and suggestions, the Board has added a new mode of cri-

tique: written. We’ll supply the initial 3 x 5 cards, but you may use notepads or any other

paper ($5 bills? great!). If you have a lengthy critique or word/phrase replacement sugges-

tion, please consider using this time-saving mode. Comments must be addressed and signed.

DUES NOTICES Please pay your dues in the month noted.

Failure to renew means you cannot read or

critique at meetings. Those with unpaid

February dues cannot participate.

MARCH

Lindy Currin, Cindy Gleason, Lennie Hay, Annemarie Micklo

FEBRUARY

Richard Budin, Don Hackett, Donna Lengel, Angie Legakis MARCH MODERATORS

MARCH 4: Lennie Hay

MARCH 11: Bill Boden

MARCH 18: Lee Summerall

MARCH 25: Nancy Frederick

WELCOME!

Sue Keranen

Cheryl Klufio

Craig Lane

Angela Prins

Norita Reynolds

See page two for details

NEW, IMPROVED

AMAZON CONNECTION

COMING!

Listen for details!

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS!

SUE KERANEN, a lifelong writer, enjoys photography and the outdoors, and looks forward to becoming

more serious in her writing.

CHERYL KLUFIO, in her words, is “passionate about words, pictures, and music, and has a zeal for people

and places”.

CRAIG LANG, in his own words: “I have lived an interesting life. I’ve danced with Princess Grace, received a

letter thanking me for reporting on drugs in Vietnam from Dean Rusk,. I’ve made and lost three different for-

tunes.”

ANGELA PRINS, retired teacher from Canada, is a lifelong writer currently taking a memoir class. She enjoys

reading, swimming and biking.

NORITA REYNOLDS, snowbird, travels both domestically and internationally. She enjoys history, writing,

drawing and hand work. Her present writing interest is family history.

Pinellas Writers Board of Directors

Anne Younger, President

Richard Erlanger, VP

Carol J. Perry, Secretary

Judy K. Hunt, Treasurer

Lee Summerall, ex-officio

Sallie Palmer and Gary Grain,

at large

CALL FOR ENTRIES!

Writers-Editors Network

34th Annual International

Writing Competition

DEADLINE

MARCH 15, 2017

Fiction, non-fiction, poetry,

children’s literature

Visit www.writers-editors.com

for information & entry form

SPRING CLASSES 2017 Classes are held in the Community Meeting Room at PANERA’S BARDMOOR, in the shopping

center at Starkey Rd and Bryan Dairy Rd. Classes start at 1:00PM and last two hours. You’re encour-

aged to order and eat your lunch with the group between 12:15PM and start of class. If there is a par-

ticular aspect you’d like covered, contact the presenter in advance.

JAN 21: THE SCOOP ON AGENTS, with Carol J. Perry. What does an agent want and how can you give it to them? Multi-published author Carol will help you define and refine the approach to this essential in-dustry contact.

JAN 28: STORYBOARDING, with Jack Romig: An intense two hours learning a process invaluable for setting a scene, cor-recting POV problems, and smoothing transitions. Supply list provided; homework will pay off. Prepare to work hard!

FEB 11: QUICK PLAYS, with Maureen Jenkins. Everyone has a story to tell. Tight dialogue and action are hallmarks of ten-minute plays, but are also essential to the fiction writer. Improve your storytelling skills and write a play!

FEB 18: DIGITIZE YOURSELF, with Steve Keteltas. Expand your internet exposure beyond text and photos to audio and video. Things you can do with the tools you already have or can get for free.

FEB 25: FROM COPS TO COURTROOMS, with Judy Hunt. You may be writing fiction, but you still must get facts right. From first contact to arrest to arraignment to sentencing to ap-peal, former Federal Prosecutor Judy Hunt gives you the scoop.

MARCH 18: HOW TO GIVE A KILLER READING, with Pat Callan. Slay your audience! With hundreds of readings under her belt, Pat will teach you tricks that can increase your comfort level and make you a sought-after speaker. Bring two pieces, one light and one more serious.

MARCH 25: CHARACTER AND PLOT ARCS, with Lee Summerall. A story has two arcs, one is external (the plot) and the other is in-ternal (the character’s journey). Learn how to meld them for a stronger, more readable, story. Bring an outline of your WIP for discussion and editing.

Are you confused?

Q: Why did the Board change how cri-

tiques are delivered to readers? A: For 30 years Pinellas Writers has wres-

tled with the problem of maximizing members’

access to quality critiques versus time con-

straints.

We’ve tweaked time up and down, toyed

with the allowable length of critiques,

considered how best to distribute written

material, in particular poems. No roomful

of writers has ever been listened to more

carefully. We recognize that we have an

obligation to work out the most acceptable

scheduling methods possible.

We’ve been at it for three decades, and we

have never been able to satisfy everyone.

Presently we have an exceptional group of

writers in all genres who deserve to read their

work and be critiqued as freely as possible.

We also have an obligation to get as many

readers before attending members as possible,

and to allow those members to give feedback

to readers.

Time is our enemy. Our current dues set-up

allows us to have sessions for 2.5 hours every

Saturday that the center is open.

Effective the March 11 meeting, we will intro-

duce a new critique method which any critiqu-

ing member can employ: written critique.

The “old” method of verbal critique remains

unchanged. We would ask, however, if you

have a “laundry list” of items to discuss, or a

suggested edit of a particular phrase, that you

use the 3X5 cards provided. Better yet, bring

your own note pad and scribble your thoughts.

All written comments must be signed by the

critique. No anonymous comments, please.

(No double-dipping, either)

The advantages of this additional mode are

many:

1. The writer will have a permanent rec-

ord to refer to when editing her/his work.

2. Critiquers will have more time to get

their thoughts in order.

3. More detailed critiques can be made,

with more examples if desired.

4. Less time will be taken during the critique

periods, opening up more time for readers.

As with all critiques, rebuttal is not encour-

aged; if the writer’s mind is on answering a

critique, it’s less likely to absorb the critique.

The purpose of critique is for the writer to lis-

ten to what the audience heard and understood.

A work destined for the larger world must

stand on its own.

The Suggestion box is always available to

members, and the Board takes all signed com-

ments seriously. Thanks to Maureen Jenkins

for instituting the comment that led to our new

written remark/critique method.

Do you see room for improvement? Use the

Suggestion Box to get your views before the

Board.

THE WRITE STUFF

by

Lee Summerall

(as pictured below writing dystopian poetry)

A BEGINNER’S VIEW OF WRITING

The art and craft of writing is, to the average

reader, a simple task. A reader finishes a book

and says, “I could’ve written that. Hell, I have

an idea that’ll be an instant best seller, be sold

to the movies, and make me a ce-

lebrity and a gazillionaire.”

And then she proceeds to start her

heartbreaking work of astounding

genius. She sits down in front of a

computer, cracks her knuckles with

gleeful anticipation, and…

Royally screws it up. Ho-hum. Been there,

done that, they oughta make a tee-shirt that

says: It ain’t easy being a writer.

The worst part is that most early writers have-

n’t a clue what they’re doing wrong. Why

their work is unintelligible to listeners. Why

their words don’t flow, their characters don’t

behave, their plots don’t mesmerize.

Getting the feedback, and understanding what

it means, is one of the hardest tasks a writer

faces. And will face throughout her career.

Everyone who writes well once wrote badly.

Every competent writer slogged their way

through thousands of words of utter drivel be-

fore arriving at a readable work. Every suc-

cessful writer suffered through critiques that

would send a less sensitive soul screaming for

the hills.

They oughta make a tee-shirt that says: Writ-

ers are as tough as railroad spikes.

I have originally said tough as nails but that’s

a cliché and you know about cliché, right?

To the average reader, sitting down and dash-

ing off a novel is a simple task. A writer, at

almost any stage, knows it’s damned hard,

frustrating work.

How to short-cut the road to competency?

Listen to critiques. Really listen.

Take to heart a critique you’ve

heard from three or four people.

Your words, your babies, are not

sacred. In the larger service of the

story, you may have to get rid of

your very favorite paragraph, even

kill off a beloved character. Being

merciless, to both yourself and your story, is a

necessity to success.

They oughta make a tee-shirt that says: Only

rhinos have thicker skins than writers.

This year’s classes have provided Pinellas

Writers with many routes to increased compe-

tency. From agents to plays, from crime tech-

nical stuff to story arcs, craft-oriented subjects

can take your writing to the next level. And

the nuts-and-bolts of publishing and publicity

were within your grasp with a session on

agents, and one on digitizing yourself (and on

the cheap, too). And such a bargain: $10 each!

They oughta make a tee-shirt that says: Take it

to the next level with Pinellas Writers.