Apr. 2004 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop newsletter

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ERMA BOMBECK WRITERS' WORKSHOP NEWSLETTER

University of Dayton

April 2004

mailto:erma@udayton.edu

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I've never had so much fun working! The 2004 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop was a blast. The speakers were

incredible, as were the 300 attendees who traveled from 38 states and four countries to participate. If you didn't get

to attend this year's workshop, mark your calendar for spring 2006, when we'll hold the next workshop. In a

follow-up survey of attendees, 86 percent of attendees said they plan to return in 2006. Here are a few of their

comments...

"The best just got better. Simply the finest workshop of its kind, hands-down!"

"It was the most wonderful experience of my writing life."

"The most well-organized conference I've ever attended...The only way to improve it would be to serve free scotch during the sessions... "

"I have been to many workshops and conferences over the years and this is the first one I attended that I did not

want to end."

"The keynote speakers were terrific -- I laughed till I cried! -- and the workshops I attended were very helpful

and gave me a lot of great ideas."

In addition to the usual stories and markets, this issue of the newsletter includes some reflections from writers who

attended the workshop.

Keep writing!

Tim Bete

Humor columnist (http://www.TimBete.com) and director, Erma

Bombeck Writers' Workshop (http://www.HumorWriters.org)

P.S. Feel free to forward this newsletter to all your

writer friends.

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CONFESSIONS OF A SEMI-SUCCESSFUL AUTHOR

An incredible article in which an author shares "how much my publishers have paid me for the books I've written...how

many copies each of those books has sold...and the secrets, lies and euphemisms told to me by my publishers, editors,

publicists and agents in their efforts to comfort, pacify and motivate me." Note: If you don’t subscribe to Salon,

you'll need to view an ad before you're allowed to read the article.

See http://www.salon.com/books/feature/2004/03/22/midlist/index_np.html

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NEWSMAN TAKES EARLY RETIREMENT TO BECOME HUMORIST

From Editor & Publisher: "What makes a real newsman decide to write fake news stories with headlines such as

'Crash-Test Dummies Endorse Nader,' 'Did the President Evade Boy Scout Service?' or 'Trump Tells Bush: You're

Fired?'

See http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000446541

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ARTICLE ON HUMOR WRITING IN WRITER'S DIGEST MAGAZINE

The May issue of Writer's Digest magazine features an article on humor writing by Tim Bete. Take a look at the

Niches section of the May issue (p. 63).

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CONFERENCE HONORS HUMOR OF BOMBECK by Kristen Twedt

I spent four days with humor writers last week in Dayton, Ohio. Four days of informative panels and keynote

addresses, book signings and remembrances all in the name of a columnist extraordinaire beloved the world over, Erma

Bombeck.

Read more http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/news/stories/20040404/localnews/166665.html

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THE CLASS CLOWN NATIONAL CONVENTION by Jenn Dlugos

I have gone to many, many writers' conventions, and by far this was the best one. In the interest of time, I'm simply

going to share some of the things I learned here...

Read more http://www.dejennerate.com/erma.html

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A FLEDGING WRITER'S EPIPHANY

Kelly Coleman-Potter was discouraged after attending the 2002 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. She had an epiphany

after this one.

See http://www.humorwriters.org/Epiphany.html

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WHY BOTHER?

Being a writer provides little glamour. It can be a solitary occupation without much financial reward. Why

bother? Workshop director, Tim Bete, answered that question in his remarks at a workshop dinner for speakers and VIPs.

See http://www.humorwriters.org/DinnerRemarks.html

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IN THE PRESENCE OF ERMA by Dickie Anderson

You are never too old to learn or try something new. I preach it all the time. I took my own advice and found

myself flying to Dayton, Ohio to attend the Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop. This is not just anybody’s writers’

conference. This is THE most prestigious workshop for humor writers currently offered. I would be in the company of

greatness.

Read more http://www.humorwriters.org/DickieAnderson.html

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TWO WORKSHOP ATTENDEES WIN AUTHORHOUSE CONTEST

Ken McCall, a journalist with the Dayton Daily News, and Dave Fox, an award-winning humor and travel writer in

Seattle, have won the opportunity to publish their books using one of the largest print-on-demand companies in the

country.

See http://www.humorwriters.org/BookProposalContest.html

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ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS ANNOUNCED

The 2004 Erma Bombeck Writing Competition winners have been posted online. You can read them at

http://www.wcpl.lib.oh.us/adults/erma2004winners.html

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WORKSHOP PHOTOS

We've posted a few photos from the 2004 workshop and will be adding more soon.

See http://www.humorwriters.org/2004WorkshopPhotos.html

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10 TOOLS FOR HUMOR WRITING

Humor columnist David Leonhardt offers his top ten favorite tools for writing humor.

See http://www.publishingcentral.com/articles/20040219-87-15cb.html

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HUMOR WRITER OF THE MONTH: AGNES DIGGS

Agnes Diggs is a staff writer/columnist for the North County Times. In one of her recent columns, "You can run,

but you can't hide from your genes," Agnes shares her thoughts on the "nip-and-tuck generation" and whether

"beauty is only skin-deep."

See http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2003/09/20/news/columnists/agnes_diggs/9_20_0323_04_03.txt

If you'd like to be considered as our featured writer, send an e-mail with a link to one of your columns to:

mailto:bete@udayton.edu

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WRITER'S DIGEST BOOK GIVEAWAY

Each month we give away a book on writing to a few of the subscribers to this newsletter. If you're subscribed,

you're entered to win! This issue's winners are:

* Carrie Metz-English from Hurley, SD

* Patricia McLean from Philadelphia, PA

Each has won a copy of "Writing articles from the Heart." They've also won an Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop mouse

pad.

Thanks to Writer's Digest for providing the books for our giveaway. To learn more about the book we gave away this

month, see http://www.writersdigest.com/store/booksdisplay.asp?id=10672

Stay tuned! You could be one of next issue's winners!

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MARKETS, CONTESTS AND MORE

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THURBER WRITING CONTEST: Tell your humorous tale of life's ups and downs, a la James Thurber and you could win. May 14 deadline. See http://www.thurberhouse.org/LiteraryPicnicsPG3.htm

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DOG AND CAT LOVER'S SOUL: Have a story about a dog or cat?.Check out the guidelines for these Chicken Soup books. See http://www.yourpetstory.com

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CAUTION: CHILDREN PRAYING: Looking for true stories about children praying and the effects of their prayers. See

http://www.homestead.com/WayneHolmes1/Caution_Children_Praying.html

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MOTHERING MAGAZINE: Looking for articles on mothering, health, etc. See http://www.mothering.com/writers/writers-guidelines.shtml

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WHAT I'VE LEARNED SO FAR: Mike Ball is working on a book that will introduce the world to 24 of the funniest people

nobody ever heard of. The book will be a showcase of two dozen of us relatively undiscovered laugh junkies, people

who will do anything for a fix -- and do it well. See http://www.learnedsofar.com/laughsform.html

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ROCKING CHAIR READER: Slice of Americana anthology series. Deadline is April 20, 2004. See

http://www.adamsmedia.com/rocking.html

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FOOD WRITING CONTEST: Write your best humor food piece and win $50. See http://www.food-writing.com/pages/6/index.htm

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NETWORK WITH OTHER HUMOR WRITERS: Network with other humor writers. Join the e-mail discussion group for past

attendees of the Erma Bombeck Writers'

Workshop and those who would like to attend in the future. To join, visit the Yahoo! Group at

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/humor_writers

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SUGGEST A RESOURCE: If you have a favorite book or Web site, let me know at bete@udayton.edu.

mailto:bete@udayton.edu

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2004 WORKSHOP SPONSORS

University of Dayton National Alumni Association:

http://alumni.udayton.edu

Ohio Humanities Council: http://www.ohiohumanities.org

1stBooks: http://www.1stbooks.com

National Society of Newspaper Columnists:

http://www.columnists.com

Andrews McMeel Publishing: http://www.amuniversal.com/amp

Dayton Daily News: http://www.daytondailynews.com

Books & Company:

http://www.booksandco.com/events/dayton04.html

ThinkTV: http://www.thinktv.org

Washington-Centerville Public Library:

http://www.wcpl.lib.oh.us

WHIO-TV: http://www.whiotv.com

WYSO public radio: http://www.wyso.org

Dayton Marriott:

http://marriott.com/property/propertyPage/DAYOH

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OTHER ERMA BOMBECK WRITING WORKSHOP LINKS

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WORKSHOP FACULTY

http://www.humorwriters.org/Speakerbios.html

ERMA MUSEUM http://www.ErmaMuseum.org

FREE SCREEN SAVER

http://www.humorwriters.org/Screensaver.html

FREE NEWSLETTER http://www.humorwriters.org/Newsletter.html

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