SCWA / The Quill / December 2021
December 2021
Come Write by the Beach!
SCWA will present a three-day, in-person conference Oct. 21-23 in Pawleys Island, featuring workshops on publishing and craft with keynote faculty Ashley M. Jones, Leigh Stein and many more. Editors and agents also will be in attendance. An additional virtual conference is under development and will offer complementary programming. Members will have access to discounted early-bird rates and prizes. Keep watching the SCWA website for more details on registration, accommodations and the sessions to be offered.
Message from the President
The SCWA board has been focused on the development of plans for 2022, and on behalf of the board, I’m pleased to announce that we have created a robust program for our members for the coming year.
Here are some highlights:
Events & Education – SCWA will continue its successful virtual workshops and writing programs focusing on writing craft and publishing.
Starting in January, SCWA members will have free access to the popular Writing Conversations and Become an Author series plus a new program called Shared Writing. These will occur quarterly.
SCWA also will introduce new paid programs at discounted member rates consisting of four-week, virtual, in-depth workshops focusing on topics such as novel writing, finding an agent, and indie marketing and bookselling.
Additional quarterly programs will include free open mic sessions and paid in-person and virtual workshops to be held in locations across the state. Members also have access to more than 40 recorded writing workshops and events in Recorded Events on the SCWA website.
Publications – SCWA’s digital journal, The Petigru Review, will return in 2022 with the opportunity for members to publish their work. A new position of managing editor has been created to ensure high standards and additional promotional opportunities for the journal and its contributors.
SCWA once again will co-sponsor, with the South Carolina Academy of Authors, the McCray Nickens Fellowship in Poetry and the Coker Fellowship in Fiction, providing the opportunity for members to compete for paid awards. These contests are open now. For details, visit MySCWA.org.
More details will be provided soon as each of these major member programs is set to launch.
Board recruiting – The window to submit applications to become a member of the board closed Nov. 15. Interviews are under way and new board members will be proposed at the Dec. 21 board meeting and announced shortly thereafter. We appreciate all who applied.
2022 BOD Meeting Schedule – A schedule has been approved for the 2022 board meeting dates. Members are welcome to participate in any board meeting as we have reserved an item on every agenda for member discussion. The new schedule is posted on MySCWA.org.
Congratulations are to SCWA board member Len Lawson and longtime SCWA friend Gary Jackson for their recent publication of The Future of Black – Afrofuturism, Black Comics, and Superhero Poetry. Members are reminded to post their awards and publications on MySCWA.org and on our Facebook group and page. Also, look on our website for publication opportunities and contests, such as the playwright and screenplay competition by the Del Shores Foundation for the LGBTQ+ community.
Guest posts – This feature of The Quill will have a new look in 2022. While we work out more details, I am pleased to share with you the selection for December – an essay by member Jayne Bowers.
In closing, my term as SCWA board president concludes this month, so this will be the last time I'll issue the Message from the President. A couple of parting comments: First to our members, you inspire me with your writing – I try to read all members' published works – and with your participation in our programs. You've made the work worthwhile. To our board members and our administrator, Laura Corbin, it's been a true pleasure to serve with you. Thank you for your trust, support and dedication without which we would not have succeeded. I appreciate every one of you.
Mike Lee
President
SCWA Board of Directors
Events and Education
JANUARY, FEBRUARY EVENTS
SCWA members answered our survey and we listened. Check out our upcoming January programs, free to members, along with our paid February month-long novel workshop for all levels. You can find details and register on our Events Calendar. Be sure to keep checking back for more upcoming events and educational programs.
January Programs
February Programs
Membership News
SCWA IS THRIVING, THANKS TO MANY
We are pleased to announce that SCWA now has 423 members, exceeding our goal of 400 members. With more members comes critical mass, which leads to momentum! What an exciting time for the SCWA, which is fast becoming a persuasive and influential force for advancing writing as a craft, hobby and/or career in our state and region.
We have many people to thank for reaching this important milestone. First, we thank our members. Without you, there would be no SCWA. Without you attending and promoting our programs and services to others, we would not be able to attract new members or maintain those whose membership is long standing. Thank you to our chapter leaders scattered throughout the state. You are an important part of the lifeblood of the SCWA. Your commitment and leadership are vital. Without you, the SCWA would be a thing, not a living, vibrant network of people who share a passion for the written word and wish to share it with the world. You get the ball rolling and keep things in motion.
We also have our board of directors to thank. They have worked tirelessly to increase and expand SCWA’s opportunities for writers, through a pandemic, no less. Instead of declining, we have thrived during a very difficult time. We are fortunate to have a growing and deepening pool of talent and expertise, writers who are willing to contribute to setting the direction of our organization by serving on the board and to making things happen on the ground through direct delivery of programs and services.
Last, thank you to our president, Mike Lee, who has led us toward excellence with his vision, his passion and his energy. No one has contributed more hours, more encouragement, or more patience to the SCWA while he has been in office. Our growth is a large part of his legacy, and we express our gratitude in no small measure.
Write on, South Carolina!
Questions or suggestions about SCWA membership?
Email scwamembership@gmail.com.
Come Write With Us!
Currently an adviser to the SCWA Board, Jayne Bowers is a semi-retired educator who finds time each day to write a little something, even it’s just a few lines in a journal. She’s been fortunate enough to have been published in moonShine Review, Main Street Rag, The Petigru Review, Teach.Write, and Guideposts. She’s the author of Eve’s Sisters, Crossing the Bridge: Succeeding in a Community College and Beyond, and a family memoir titled Our Living Seasons. The Camden Chapter of SCWA created and published two anthologies, Serving Up Memory and What I Wish I Could Tell You, volumes that Bowers co-edited, formatted and contributed to. Gaining experience with Camden’s anthologies nudged her to say yes to co-editing the first online edition of The Petigru Review and the revival of Catfish Stew. These days she’s concentrating on being a good literary citizen and a grandmother extraordinaire.
WRITER FRIENDS
Jayne Bowers
Sometimes the right words from the right person spoken in the right tone at the right time can make a whale of a difference in attitude, confidence, and motivation.
In a recent phone conversation, an old friend said, “I’ve been meaning to tell you something for a while, but I keep forgetting.”
“Oh yeah? What’s that?” I asked, blithely walking along a tree-lined trail, chatting with her and enjoying the breeze and birdsong.
I paused to take photographs of gossamer webs coating some fall leaves and heard her say, “Your writing has really improved.”
“What? Really? You mean that?”
“Of course, I mean it. You know I always speak the truth.”
“Oh my gosh. Thank you. That means a lot coming from you,” I said, staring off through the woods like I’d been struck by lightning. A former professor, this friend has done a lot more writing than I—and a lot more grading of it, too.
“I’ve been thinking of doing more than keeping a journal, but I’m not sure I want to join a group, not yet anyway. Seems like it’s worked for you,” she said.
“I ain’t lying. It was scary at first,” I admitted, “but I knew I’d never get any better if no one ever looked at my work and added their two cents’ worth.”
Here’s what I told her, something I wish I’d known sooner:
I can’t say this enough: Find a writing group. Mine has helped me immeasurably. Even now I can hear someone asking, “Is immeasurably really the word you want to use?” But you know, that type of questioning doesn’t bother me, mainly because I know they want me to succeed. And vice versa. Plus, because of my group’s hints, suggestions, and firm recommendations, I have learned things to do and things to avoid. For starters, I use more action verbs and try to avoid passive voice.
The next time we talk, I’ll tell my friend that it’s important to find a group that’s a good fit for her personality, genre, writing style and purpose. In the meantime, I’m telling you.
Personality: There may be people who are abrasive and rude and people who want you to read their work but who give group members’ work a lick and a promise. And then, there might be someone who’s ultra-sensitive when someone points out the overuse of a word or a dangling participle.
Genre: While not everyone likes cozy mysteries, memoirs, or poetry, most of the time you can work things out. Turnabout’s fair play, and if you want others to slog through the third or fourth revision of a memoir chapter, then you need to make an effort to return the favor and read their poetry.
Writing style: Breezy, smooth, ponderous, dense, or what? Can you work with different styles, realizing that style and voice are related and that you, too, might have a few, er, issues?
Purpose: Some writers simply want to write for writing’s sake while others are bent on publication.
Because of my friend’s generous words, I revised, edited, and tweaked a story and sent it to a magazine that night. She’s still thinking about joining a group and says she wants to Zoom with my chapter.
What about you? Is there someone you could give a little nudge to? Has there been someone who bolstered your confidence? Is there something in your files that you could dust off and polish?