**************************************************************
ERMA BOMBECK WRITERS' WORKSHOP NEWSLETTER
University of Dayton
August 2003
mailto:erma@udayton.edu
**************************************************************
Registration for the 2004 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop will open next month! You'll be able to register online using a credit card.
We have an incredible lineup of speakers scheduled for the two-day event (March 26-27, 2004), which will begin with a networking party on the evening of March 25. Speakers
include writers as well as agents and editors. Here are just a few...
* Craig Wilson (USA Today columnist and author of It's the Little Things: An Appreciation of Life's Simple Pleasures)
* Karyl Miller (Emmy award-winning writer-producer who worked on "The Cosby Show" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show")
* Dan Zevin (humor columnist and author of The Day I Turned Uncool: Confessions of a Reluctant Grownup)
* Nancy Cartwright (voice of Bart Simpson and author of My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy)
* Bruce Cameron (syndicated humor columnist and New York Times best-selling author of 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter)
* Laura Pulfer (Cincinnati Enquirer columnist)
* Jeff Herman (founder of The Jeff Herman Literary Agency and author of Writer's Guide to Book Editors, Publishers, and Literary Agents)
* Don Novello (author of The Lazlo Letters book series and best known for his Father Guido Sarducci skits on "Saturday Night Live")
* Katie Struckel Brogan (editor of Writer's Market and former associate editor of Writer's Digest magazine)
* Tony Cochran (creator of the nationally syndicated Agnes comic strip)
* Mary McCarty (Dayton Daily News columnist)
* Lee Salem (executive vice president and editor of Universal Press Syndicate)
* Kevin Williams (executive editor, Oasis Newsfeatures)
* Newspaper editors from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Florida Today, Detroit Free Press and Dayton Daily News
The September issue of this newsletter will provide details on how to register for the workshop. The cost will be $249. In the meantime, this issue is packed with useful articles.
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE NEW LITERARY LOTTERY
Good news for aspiring novelists: Advances for first-time authors have blown sky-high. The catch? If the book doesn't sell, the fallout can kill your career.
See http://alumni.udayton.edu/rd.asp?cd=EBWWlitlot&rf=EBWW0803
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FINDING FELLOWSHIPS & GRANTS
Aviya Kushner shows where writers can find writing fellowships and grants.
See http://www.writersweekly.com/articles/072303-01.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ALABAMA WOMAN WINS WORST WRITING AWARD
A lizard lover from Alabama won an annual contest celebrating bad writing with a ghastly simile comparing doomed romance to processed cheese.
See http://alumni.udayton.edu/rd.asp?cd=EBWW0803c&rf=worst
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SCREEN SAVER INSPIRES COLUMN
The Erma Bombeck screen saver for writers inspired Michele Marr to write a column that appeared on the LA Times Web site.
Read the column: http://www.latimes.com/la-hbi-soul10jul10.story
Get the free screen saver: http://www.humorwriters.org/Screensaver.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MIDWEST LITERARY FESTIVAL
The Midwest Literary Festival will run Sept. 12-14, 2003 in Aurora, Illinois, just 37 miles west of Chicago. Speakers include Anne Lamott, author of Bird by Bird: Some
Instructions on Writing and Life.
See http://www.midwestliteraryfestival.com/index.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NO CLIPS? NO PROBLEM.
Michele Blandino explains how she avoided the "write for free trap."
See http://www.writersweekly.com/success/071603-03.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GOOD-HUMOR MA'AM
Patricia Wynn Brown, who spoke at the 2002 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop and will keynote at the 2004 workshop, has created "Hair Theater" to raise money to purchase wigs and hats for women and girls who lose their hair during chemotherapy.
See http://alumni.udayton.edu/rd.asp?cd=EBWW0803b&rf=EB2
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NSNC ADDS DISCUSSION GROUPS
The National Society of Newspaper Columnists has added four new discussion areas to its Web site. Members and non-members may read and post to discussions on ethics, the annual conference, Web site marketing and syndication.
See http://www.columnists.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PROMOTE YOUR BOOK!
Roger Parker shares "10 Great Ways to Promote Your Book on the Internet."
See http://www.bob-baker.com/qt/10ways.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NEED A STORY OR POETRY STARTER?
The Instant Muse Poetry and Short Story Generators provide random thought starters to prime your creative pump.
SHORT STORIES: http://www.webcom.com/wordings/artofwrite/storystarter.html
POETRY: http://www.webcom.com/wordings/artofwrite/poetrygenerator.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHERE THE AGENTS HIDE OUT
Can't find an agent? They're hiding in plain sight on the Web -- if you know where to look.
See http://wordthunder.com/scr03a.shtml
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THREE MYTHS ABOUT BOOK DISTRIBUTION
Brian Jud provides an inside view of how books make it to the reader.
See http://www.bookmarketingworks.com/3Myths.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HUMOR WRITER OF THE MONTH: GINA ROZON
Gina Rozon's columns have aired on CBC Radio One (Saskatchewan) since 2001. The print version of her column (Humour Me) has appeared in the La Ronge Northerner since
1999.
See http://www.ginarozon.com
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
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOOK GIVEAWAY
Each month we give away a book to one of the subscribers to this newsletter. If you're subscribed, you're entered to win! This issue's winner is Diana Conley from Hamilton,
Ohio. Diane has won a copy of "Write the Perfect Book Proposal: 10 That Sold and Why" by Jeff Herman and Deborah Levine Herman, as well as an Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop mouse pad.
Stay tuned! You could be next issue's winner!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MARKETS, CONTESTS AND MORE
-----------------------------------------------
PERSONAL ESSAYS: Thirty-five markets for your personal essays. See http://www.kporterfield.com/journal/Journal_Markets.html
-----------------------------------------------
FAMILY TRAVELS: The e-zine that improves family vacation experience by providing insider information. See http://www.thefamilytravelfiles.com/presswriters.asp
-----------------------------------------------
SHORT STORY CONTEST: Writer's Digest is looking for fiction that's bold, brilliant...but brief. See http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/short_story.asp
-----------------------------------------------
SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK AWARDS: Writer's Digest is searching for the best self-published book of the past few years. See http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/self_published.asp
-----------------------------------------------
SCREENPLAY COMPETITION: No matter what you write or where you live, the 7th Annual International Screenplay Competition could be the ticket to achieving your dreams of the Silver Screen. See http://www.writersdigest.com/contests/internat_screenplay.asp
-----------------------------------------------
CUP OF COMFORT: Seeking submissions on sisters, spirituality and mothers & sons. See http://www.humorwriters.org/cupofcomfort.html
-----------------------------------------------
GIANT MONSTERS: Tales of giant monsters and vastly oversized creatures whose form, function and meaning are limited only by your imagination. See http://www.roberthood.net/daikaiju-antho/
-----------------------------------------------
GET PUBLISHED! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! Get published! To find out how, visit http://www.1stbooks.com/erma.html
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
-----------------------------------------------
SUGGEST A RESOURCE If you have a favorite book or Web site,
let me know at bete@udayton.edu. mailto:bete@udayton.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OTHER ERMA BOMBECK WRITING WORKSHOP LINKS
-------------------------------------------------------
ERMA MUSEUM http://www.ErmaMuseum.org
FLIGHT HUMOR CONTEST http://www.flighthumor.org
ERMA T-SHIRT
http://alumni.udayton.edu/rd.asp?cd=ermashirt&rf=EBWW0203
FREE SCREEN SAVER
http://www.humorwriters.org/Screensaver.html
FREE NEWSLETTER http://www.humorwriters.org/Newsletter.html
WORKSHOP SPONSORS http://www.humorwriters.org/Sponsors.html
CONTACT US http://www.humorwriters.org/Contact.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright 2003, University of Dayton
