Update: March 10, 2013
Lauvonda Lynn Young, President, Blue Ridge Writers Chapter
Chapter members are excited that we will be presenting two programs in the 2013 Festival of the Book (Charlottesville, Virginia). The first is the March 24th (6:00 p.m., Northside Library, 300 Albemarle Square, Charlottesville), "Getting It Together: The Process and Power of Anthologies." This program features Moderator, Sarah Collins Honenberger, Author/Editor; John Amen, Author/Editor; Linda M. Layne, Publisher; Sofia M. Starnes, Author/Editor; and Jack Trammell Author/Editor.
The second program, "The Magic of Words," will be held Sunday, March 24th, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m., at Bozart Gallery, 211 West Main Street, Charlottesville. There will be readings by special guest and award-winning author, Rita Mae Brown. Members of the Blue Ridge Writers who will be reading from our chapter's latest anthology, The Blue Ridge Anthology (Fourth Edition, 2013), which will be launched at this year's Festival of the Book, are Jean Lancaster, Jack Trammell, Phyllis Anne Duncan, Sigrid Mirabella, Lauvonda Lynn Young, Elaine Ruggieri, and Linda Levokove. Phyllis Koch-Sheras also will be reading. Special thanks to Linda Levokove, Event Coordinator for "The Magic of Words", and to Phyllis Koch-Sheras who contributed signifantly to the planning, and to Bozart Gallery for being so kindly offered use of their space. Come join us if you are in the area on the dates noted!
Our plan to to "take the anthology" to local libraries in the areas the Blue
Ridge Writers serve. Two additional reading programs have been scheduled, and others will be in the near future. I'll update you later.
The annual business meeting of the Blue Ridge Chapter was quite productive. Those present decided we should develop a program to be presented during the March 2013, Festival of the Book. A program leader has been identified, and planning is progressing. The focus of the program will be readings by chapter members by authors who are published in our 2013 anthology. Plans are to have a special guest speaker, as well. (Of course, we hope the readings will produce sales of the anthology!) I'll take this opportunity to thank Linda Layne, Cedar Creek Publishing, for publishing the anthology; and to Gary Kessler, the volume editor.The anthology is a wonderful asset to our chapter, and we (members) are so appreciative of Linda's and Gary's contributions and their commitment of time.
Members were in agreement to reinstate the Winter Writing Contest, first established by chapter member, Gary Kessler. This event will be held in November-December 2013.
In addition, chapter members decided we should undertake our first full-fledged fundraising event. While there was excitment about holding this fundraiser in the summer of 2013, we probably will delay undertaking a fundraising project this year.
Our next business meeting will be held February 27th. The guest speaker will be Jonathan Rintels (more information about Rintels is included below).
Feb 10, 2013 - Lauvonda Lynn Young, President, BRWC, VWC
Our Annual Business Meeting takes place on January 23, 2013. This meeting affords members an opportunity to express opinions, make comments and recommendations, or ask questions about any issue. The meeting is extremely valuable to chapter officers in gleaning information that is valuable in future planning. Chapter leadership always is seeking ways to improve the value of membership in the BRWC, and ways to further advance the stature and visibility of the BRWC. The meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. We meet in the Virginia Foundations for Humanities Conference Room, Charlottesville, Virginia (more information is included below).
Chapter member, Jonathan Rintels, will be the guest speaker at our February 27, 2013 meeting. Rintels is the author of LIFEMOBILE, which Robert Bianco, TV Critic, USA Today, states, "In this lovely first novel from Jonathan Rintels, what begins literally and figuratively, as a reclamation project for the much Corvair grows into a sweet, moving celebration of the bond between father and sons - the way their flaws can magnify each other and their virtues can save each other. Written with a deft touch, an engaging wit, and a sure eye for what will ring warm and true, this is an incredibly engaging story anyone anyone would treasure. It might even make you go out and buy Corvair." This meeting also is held at the Virginia Foundation for Humanities (see below for meeting location details).
More information about future guest speakers and other events will be available soon. We're in the planning phase now.
Kudos are extended to (1) Gary Kessler for developing another successful program application for the Charlottesville Festival of the Book, which will be held March 20-24, 2013. The panel entitled, ""Getting It Together: The Process and Power of Anthologies," will be moderated by Sarah (Sally) Collins Honenberger; those comprising the panel are Clifford Garstang, Linda Layne, Jack Trammell, Gary Kessler, and Sofia Starnes, the current Poet Laureate of Virginia. In addition to this panel, the 2013 Blue Ridge Anthology will be launched at the Festival of the book in 2013. (2) Lynn Young's poem, "Appalachian Childhood," has been accepted for publication in the Piedmont Virginian. (3) Sarah (Sally) Collins Honenberrger's third novel, Catcher, Caught, is available in paperback, e-book, and audio. Other members are getting published and receiving other accolades; hopefully others will be recognized in upcoming weeks.
Hearty congratulations to the Blue Ridge Writers Chapter for receiving the Chapter of the Year at the Annual Meeting of the Virginia Writers Club, Inc., in November. Congratulations also to Linda Levokove, current Vice President and Program Chair of the BRWC, who received the Superior Service Membership Award.
I wish everyone a wonderful Holiday Season,
Lynn Young, President, Blue Ridge Writers Chapter
The Blue Ridge Writers Chapter, Virginia Writers Club, Inc. (hereafter, BRWC) currently has about 60 active members, and a total of 90 members.The BRWC serves the cities of Charlottesvile, Staunton, Lexington, and Waynesboro; and the counties of Albemarle, Augusta, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Nelson, Orange, and Rappahannock.
Here is our Mission Statement:The BRWC, a non-profit organization, was founded in 1991 with the primary purpose of serving both aspiring and published writers in Central Virginia. Using programs and activities to encourage interaction between new and veteran writers, major goals include the support and stimulation of the art, craft, and business of writing; mentoring programs for teen writers; workshops and teaching forums for members; and advocacy for the literary arts in the communities served by the chapter.
Our chapter meets monthly, unless otherwise noted, at the Virginia Foundation for Humanities, 145 Ednam Drive, Charlottesville, Virginia (take the first left, after turning off 250W into the Boar's Head Inn Complex). The meeting time is 7:00 p.m.
