The Next Meeting

The Maryville writer's group will next meet on January 23, 2018, on the 3rd floor of the United Methodist Church, First and Main in Maryville. (Use the northwest doors to access the elevator.)

The evening will be open for the critique of members' works in progress. Members may bring a poem, essay, article, or book excerpt for comment. The length of the submission should be 1,000 words or less. We will make an effort to get through as many as possible in the allotted time. If you wish to submit them ahead of time to give members a chance to read and think about them, please do. That will allow more time for discussion during the meeting time.

When critiquing a work, here are a few things to consider:

1. Be objective and forthright, but considerate.
2. Provide constructive suggestions for improvement.
3. Think about the construction, flow, technical aspects of the work being considered.
4. Give input on any emotions, if any, the piece elicits.
5. Is there a working title and does it fit the work?
6. Did it hold your attentions?
7. Based on the provided sample, would you read more?
8. Are there any word choices or phrases that might be improved?

Should You Be Writing Kindle E-Books?

"Should You Be Writing Kindle E-books?" is the title of Lee Jackson's talk, host of our upcoming meeting 7 pm, Tuesday, August 22. We will meet on the third floor of the First United Methodist Church, Maryville. Anyone with an interest in writing is welcome to join us.

Lee has published two e-books and a number of print books. Lee began publishing in the 1980s. Lee spent her working life as a family and consumer sciences high school teacher. She continues to enjoy and write about subjects related to home and family life. Her early sojourn into the world of independent publishing has been an added plus to her life. Cookbooks and children's books are the areas of focus.

Following are a few of Lee's publications and awards:

My apple cookbook, "Apples, Apples Everywhere - Favorite Recipes From America's Orchards" received an award from Mid America Publishers Association.

"Careers in Focus - Family and Consumer Sciences" textbook published by Goodheart-Willcox received the Missouri Writers Guild Major Award.

Books I have published for other authors, Amy Houts and Robert Bohlken, Ph.D., have received awards from Midwest Independent Publishers Association and "Mom's Choice Award" from The Just For Mom Foundation.

Her book, "The Littlest Christmas Kitten", has received great reviews from parents and children, as well as reviewers and the School Library. It received 1st Place Award in Children's Picture Books from Midwest Independent Publishers Association.

Hope to see you there!

#amwriting #Kindle #ebook #author #literature #nonfiction #fiction #MissouriWritersGuild 

Resources for Authors

Finding good research materials when writing historical fiction can be a challenge, depending on how far back your story is set. It's important to remember that the voices and experiences of those old settlers are not all together lost.
National, state, and county documents, letters, photographs, newspapers, and other items are being carefully preserved by agencies and historical societies, like our own Nodaway County Historical Society and the The State Historical Society of Missouri, as well as the US National Archives, The Library of Congress, National Park Service, and thousands of museums and libraries, and other online databases.
Google Books and Internet Archive are great places to read digitized books and publications, even those printed hundreds of years ago. I recently downloaded to my computer a few digitized books from the 1700s and 1800s. It's nice to have these keyword-searchable texts, and it's just plain fun to read them. They can help with character development, help focus an author's attention on the details of day-to-day life, and even provide authors with a more accurate perspective on the attitudes and politics and social norms of a given period.
So, if you're looking to pack some historical fact and detail into your next work of historical fiction, don't forget these resources. And, if you're writing nonfiction, you can't live without them.

#amwriting #fiction #nonfiction #books #readers #history #historical #database #Missouri #UnitedStates #Archives #journalism #newspapers

Congratulations to Our Local Readers!

Congratulations to all those who participated in the Summer Reading Program at the Maryville Public Library, Maryville, MO this summer. Wow, more than 10,000 books read. That's impressive. A special congratulations to the winners of the program awards.🏅We're proud of you all.

And a special thanks to the entire staff at the library that works so hard to make this program a success every year. We don't always say it, but you make the library a great place to be.

Keep turning those pages, readers, and we authors will keep writing so that you will have new stuff to read when you're ready.

#amwriting #fiction #nonfiction #authors #writers #library #readingchallenge#poetry

Maryville Daily Forum

Library names summer reading winners

MARYVILLE, Mo. — The Maryville Public Library’s Summer Reading Challenge drew more than 330 participants this year.

MARYVILLEDAILYFORUM.COM

An Interesting Article on Book Awards for Self-Published Authors

This is an interesting article and the comments from Tara Johnson at Writer's Digest are thought-provoking.

"“Fifteen years ago we got books that weren’t much more than copies from Kinkos,” said Tara Johnson, who manages the self-pub awards program at Writer’s Digest. “Now I would say that 95% of the books that come in look basically the same as the books you might see coming from a major publisher.”

This is an interesting article and the comments from Tara Johnson at Writer's Digest are thought-provoking.

"“Fifteen years ago we got books that weren’t much more than copies from Kinkos,” said Tara Johnson, who manages the self-pub awards program at Writer’s Digest. “Now I would say that 95% of the books that come in look basically the same as the books you might see coming from a major publisher.”

According to Johnson, the number of submissions has grown in step with the level of quality. Nearly 2,900 submissions poured into the Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards in 2014. Writer’s Digest also received about 700 submissions this year for its Self-Published E-Books Awards, which was founded two years ago for self-published authors who choose not to go down the printed path." From the site - [Note: this article was originally published in February 2015 and was updated on April 10, 2017.]

My only question is, why is there still a distinction made between "traditionally published" and "self-published" when it comes to the contests? A good or bad piece of work, regardless of the publishing mechanism utilized by the author of the work, should be granted the same consideration when being evaluated.

Just my opinion. What are your thoughts on this, members? Many of you are both traditionally published and self-published. Does it concern you or bother you to know that your self-published works may be considered less credible or of lower quality, without closer scrutiny, merely because they weren't "traditionally published"?

DIY: Book Awards for Self-Published Authors

With hundreds of thousands of self-published books hitting the shelves every year, indie authors need to find a way to stand out. Book awards for self-published writers are one way to do that.

PUBLISHERSWEEKLY.COM

Author's Directory at the Missouri Center for the Book

If you have been published through a "traditional" path to publication, and received payment for your work through that publisher, then you may be eligible to be listed in the Author's Directory at the Missouri Center for the book at http://books.missouri.org/Author.

Quoted from their site: "NOTE: The Missouri Center for the Book encourages all writers to pursue their muse. However, the designation "Author" connotes a category of achievement validated by the acknowledgment ...

See More

Authors Directory | Missouri Center for the Book

This database contains information about authors who live in Missouri. You can find out about their publications, the genre and audience they write for, whether they accept speaking engagements, and…

BOOKS.MISSOURI.ORG

Missouri's First Poet Laureate Reads Queen Anne's Lace

Missouri's first poet laureate, Walter Bargen, reads his poem, "Queen Anne's Lace." 

You will find this an interesting video. If you love poetry and you're in the area of the Mid-Missouri Arts Alliance on August 13, 2017, you might want to check out their upcoming event, Through the Eyes of a Poet. You can also find them on their website, here.

Amusing Myself

Maryville chapter member and writer/poet, Carol Carpenter, has joined the vast network of bloggers on the world wide web. Her new blog is titled Amusing Myself, a blog whose purpose is to contain "Poetry and writing thoughts, and ideas from a self-confessed poet."

We encourage you to stop by in your online blog travels and check out Carol's pages.

Carol Carpenter's Poem is Published

We want to congratulate poet Carol Carpenter on the recent publication of her poem Early Summer on the Naturewriting site. We invite you to check out her poetry and others by clicking here.

Doug Meyer to Speak at Next Meeting

The Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Writer's Guild will next meet on the Third Floor of the United Methodist Church  in Maryville, on June 27, 2017 at 7:00 p.m.

The featured speaker for that evening will be Doug Meyer, the owner of Meyer Auto Center in Maryville. Mr. Meyer is the author of "Selling in Your Town," published by Archway Publishers, a division of Simon & Schuster, in August of 2016. He will be speaking about his book and about his experiences of publishing through Archway.  

Mr. Meyer owns and operates several small businesses located in rural communities across three states and has a breadth of knowledge related to the art of selling in those communities, as well as the importance of community involvement and networking. Mr. Meyer contends that it is possible for small businesses in rural communities to compete in the larger marketplace.

These are all issues that translate into the book industry, whether operating a brick-and-mortar shop or a virtual online sales venue. We hope that you will join us for this next meeting.

You can read more about his book on Amazon.com. Mr. Meyer's book is available for $3.99 Kindle and $8.99 in paperback through the site. 

Kelsey Noble is Blooming With Books!

We are pleased to announce Kelsey Noble is the final winner of the Blooming With Books basket donated by the Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Writer's Guild. Enjoy the basket of books and goodies Kelsey. We're sure you'll find hours of entertainment inside. Congratulations!

Amy Houts Featured on KQ2

Author Amy Houts was recently interviewed by KQ2 television of St. Joseph. In her interview, Amy talks about what encouraged her toward a life of writing, and now publishing. She released her first cooperative board game titled Find My Heart, in May of 2016. She has her own publishing imprint, Houts & Home Publications, LLC., and her own website, Houts & Home. Take a moment to watch her interview and read the article. You can find her books available on her website and on Amazon.

KMA Radio Interview with Irene Alexander

Irene Alexander, educator, poet, and children's book author from Barnard, Missouri, recently gave an interview to our own local KMA radio station. It's a great interview. Listen here!

Congratulation's on the new book Mama B! Click on the image below. You can purchase Irene's latest print book and e-book on Amazon.com, print books through Irene's website www.authorirenealexander.weebly.com, or on the publisher's site, Amazing Things Press.

Blooming with Books Silent Bid Fundraiser

 

Amy Houts Featured in Daily Forum Article

A very nice article recently appeared in the Maryville Daily Forum about member author Amy Houts. Take a few moments to peruse it. What a talented and creative author.

Marketing and Reviews

There was much discussion at last night's meeting of the Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Wrtier's Guild. The topics included reviews, obtaining them and how they affect sales positively or negatively. Targeted marketing and social media marketing options for writer's were also discussed, including local print, radio, and television.

As a follow-up, here is a link to the Poets & Writer's Review Outlets database for any authors interested in finding reviewers for their books. This is a great magazine, too, for anyone looking for addition information.

Be sure to read their submission criteria. There are many who will not accept self-published books for review. There are some who will, like The Washington Post and Bookreview.com and others.