James A. Forrest

When:  January 6, 2010 – 6:30 p.m.

Where:  Selby Library – Sarasota

Our guest will be Lt. James A. Forrest of the Srasota County Sheriff’s office.  Jim is a published author and a hard-working member of the board of Mystery Florida. He is an expert in the field of law enforcement and when it comes to police procedures in fiction, he knows what he’s talking about.
 
He will speak on the subject of police procedures in the world of fiction, and how we writers can make it sound real.
 
This is sure to be an outstanding session.

Click on Bookcover Image For Website

Contest Winners Announced

2009 SFW short story winners are:

1st place “Little White Lies” by Amy Radcliffe

2nd place “The Commute” by Amanda Kopacz

3rd place “Salesmanship” by Bill Carrigan

4th place “Yogi and the Ranger” by Dona Lee

Congratulations to all!!!

Holiday Book Festival Planned:

When: Dec. 17th 10 – 4

Where: 2280 Aaron Street, Port Charlotte

Info: 941-625-4175 Ext 253

It’s not too late for authors to participate. Please call for Details.

Book Festival Flyer

Other News

SFW Family Grows

Congratulations are in order for Greg Cherniak and his wife who recently became the proud parents of their second child, a baby boy: George Burton Cherniak, born 9:09 am on Nov., 19th.  8 lbs 11 oz.  21.5″ long.  We wish them all much health and happiness.

Christmas Party Appreciation

Major Thanks to Grace Bizzaro for all her hard work in making this year’s Christmas Party a big success. Without her tireless effort it would not be possible. Thank you, Grace for all you do for our club year after year.

    Christmas Party

For information on the SFW Christmas party please check the Christmas Party Page link to the right. Also there is more information in this month’s newsletter, which can be found on the newsletter page. A SFW party is the prefect opportunity to relax and commiserate with your fellow writers. We hope everyone can attend.

Also at the party the winners of this year’s summer writing contest will be announced. The suspense is unbearable, but we’ve all waited this long so a few more days will not hurt. Good luck to all who entered.

If you wish to participate in the book exchange, please remember to bring a gift wrapped book (minimum value of around $15 is suggested).

Odds and Ends

Anyone who has already had a chance to read our newsletter by now knows that our own Susan Klaus had a most unique opportunity to meet and chat with Stephen King. I hate her. Enough said.

Terry Griffin has completed his latest novel, Wyatt’s Revenge. The book launch is scheduled for Saturday, December 13th at the Mar Vista Pub and Restaurant on Longboat Key between 3-5 pm. (See newsletter for more details.)

Update: Wyatt’s Revenge Winner National Best Book Award 2009

Click Bookcover Image for Link to Terry’s Website

Last but not least – Congratulations are in order for Jerry Keane, who was a finalist in the Scope’s 6-Word Novel contest. Well done. For more information please click on the following link:

Scopes Contest.

SFW would like to wish all its members and their families a wonderful holiday and good fortune in 2010.

Mythic Journeys is an inventive fusion of documentary, story, artwork and animation. Despite the fact that myth has always existed, surprisingly few people today are aware of even the classic myths or the potential myths have to impact their lives. Myths are the reservoir of human wisdom – the story and the meaning of life. Every human being has asked the questions who am I, what is my purpose, why am I here? The answers are in the myths that have been passed on from generation to generation. Mythology is a tool that can bridge cultures, communities and generations. Through this film we hope to inspire people to activism and show that by helping others we ultimately help ourselves.

View Movie Trailer

Read Press Release

Click Image for Website

Featuring the Artwork of our recent speaker, Janny Wurts.

Author, illustrator, creative genius. How many of us wish we could say that about ourselves? Me too. Fortunately, we all will have the pleasure of the opportunity to meet just such a person at this month’s general meeting to be held at the Selby Library downstairs conference room on November 4th at 6:30 p.m.

Janny Wurts is an internationally renowned author and illustrator whose fantasy books have been sold both in the U.S. and overseas. She will be speaking on the nuts and bolts of generating and sustaining creativity, with time for questions and answers afterward, as well as time to purchase some of her exciting books.

Please do not miss out on this unique opportunity to hear and learn from a truly gifted and talented person.

Check out her website here.

Stuart M. Kaminsky

The following was posted by Stuart Kaminsky’s daughter, Natasha Kaminsky,  on Facebook over the weekend:

I’m posting with great sadness. My father passed away peacefully October 9, 2009. My mother, Enid Perll, and I, encourage you to donate to a charity of your choice in his name. He also strongly supported the United Negro College Fund, Hospice Care, Congregation Shaare Zedek (St. Louis, Mo) and Congregation Temple Beth Shalom (Sarasota, Fl). I will be checking his facebook consistently for months to come and answering questions to the best of my ability. Thank you for your well wishes and prayers.

This is truly sad news.  Former SFW President and current Vice President, Pat Gray, has eloquently summed up the feeling of so many of our members with the following:

“Stuart has a lot of great friends in this town.

He was our speaker more than once, and a friend to many of us.

He did a tremendous amount of work to promote and support local writers at all levels.

He was the closest thing Sarasota had to a John D. McDonald in quite a few years.

He was a fine man, period, but in the literary world of Southwest Florida, he was a towering figure, a truly great man.”

The following statement was released by the Mystery Writers of America:

“MWA is deeply saddened by the loss of Stuart Kaminsky, Edgar award winner, past MWA president, and 2006 MWA Grand Master. Stuart made numerous contributions to the mystery genre and offered unselfish support to fellow writers. He will be missed by those of us whose lives he has touched.”

Other Links on Stuart Kaminsky:

Sarasota Herald Tribune Obituary

Article published Apr 30, 2006- Sarasota Herald Tribune

Kaminsky on Wikipedia

Stuart’s literary work is immense. We have lost not only a great friend, but the kind of writer that comes along only once in a generation.

SFW offers its deepest sympathy to the Kaminsky family.

 Jeanne Corcoran

General Meeting

6:30 pm Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Selby Library Auditorium

Downstairs

Our October speaker is Jeanne Corcoran, director of the Sarasota County Film & Entertainment Office. She will speak about “crossovers” between the print and novel universe into television, feature films and other electronic “scripted” media such as webcasting.

Prior to moving to Sarasota, Jeanne was head of the Nevada Film Commission and has worked extensively with the film industry for many years. She is very well respected (and well connected) in the industry. If you have not previously heard Jeanne speak, (or even if you have) do not pass up this splendid opportunity. It is sure to be a fun and informative evening.

We recently announced that our esteemed Pat Gray had been selected for Publication by Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.  Here is a link to the story followed by some brief comments from Pat. Enjoy!

Click Trainman to read the winning story.

Comments from Pat Gray

It was selected as the winner and published in their Oct 2009 issue. The contest is a simple one. They print a photograph of someone or something. The image is in Black and White, usually faded and somewhat indistinct (I had to touch it up to get it as clear as you see here.) The lack of clarity is probably deliberate since it leaves more to the imagination. You submit a story that must relate directly to the picture. The story must contain a crime and be no longer than 250 words. The winner receives $25.00, which I got promptly, and two copies of that issue (which I have yet to receive).

I encourage everyone to try this contest. On the one hand, of course, it’s only a contest, and a short-short at that, with a very small prize. On the other hand, it is publication credit in one of the most respected genre-based short story magazines. They run the contest most of the time. In this area, the best place to buy the magazine is at Books-A-Million.

Thanks for a great effort and congratulations again on this wonderful achievement!

Workshop Event

6:30 pm Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Selby Library Auditorium

Upstairs conference room

Instructor: Bill Carrigan

Our esteemed grammarian will be our guest teacher.

Workshop: Fashioning Frictionless Fiction

The workshop will cover finding flaws in your fiction and how to fix them.

Bill Carrigan, long-time member of SFW, author of seven novels, many published short stories, and his familiar ’style sheets.’ Bill’s background as a professional science writer and editor will be crunched into a single entertaining, informative hour. Don’t miss this workshop if you take your writing seriously and want to brush up on the basics.

   Somewhere they’re playing Taps….

This belongs in the Sad Announcement Category - Sarasota News and Books will close at the end of August. This is a real tragedy for writers and readers and people who simply liked to sip coffee and read the news. Any writer who may have books on consignment should contact the owners and make arrangements for their return.

For more information on Sarasota News and Books closing, including a message from the owners, click here to read a post that appeared on the Herald Tribune website.

Other news:

SCOPE invites you to write a six-word novel: an entire story in exactly six words.

FLASH FICTION!  Can you say it in just six words?

The classic example is by Ernest Hemingway: For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

Clikc here for more information – and good luck to all those who enter.