The Astute Reader
An interactive presentation
By Sally Stiles

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Sunday, May 7, 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.How to create an effective critique group. How to nurture creativity. How to eliminate common writing errors. How to turn criticism into acclaim. And much more!

The Stryker Center
412 N. Boundary Street, Williamsburg.
2:00 -3:30 p.m.

Presented by author and mentor Sally Stiles for the Chesapeake Bay Writers and the Williamsburg Library

https://www.wrl.org/event/how-to-effectively-critique-a-manuscript/
Newspaper sparks

Newspaper Sparks
with Sally Honenberger
 
Saturday, April 29, 2023,  3:00 p.m.

(Note Day Changed from Sunday) 
Hidden arsonist tendencies when you’re writing? Here’s your chance to try something to fan the flames of creativity. Sally will share newspaper scraps and give a few brief sparks of tinder-ready advice, then you can start your own conflagration of characters and challenges. We’ll write and read and write some more. This is not show off but show down time. We’ll read anonymously, poke the embers a bit with polite critique, and then try another newspaper spark. This will be intense fun, coals under your feet, but no pain. A chance to blaze away and send sparks across the galaxies.
 Location: Settlement at Powhatan Creek, Community Center
GPS: Coordinates get you close - use 4000 River Moor Road. However, after you turn off Monticello road, pass the pond, and get to the intersection of Saunders Bridge and River Moor, turn right at the traffic circle and turn right into the parking lot.

Story Endings with Kristen Overman

April 1, 2023, 1:15 p.m.
Williamsburg Library room B.

There is room for only 20 people so you must sign up to attend.

Write endings that satisfy!

If the opening of the story has a hook, the ending has a release—the feeling the reader has as they put the book down and look around, seeing the world a bit differently, like coming out of a dream. How do we create that sensation, making the reader want to hold the story world in their minds a little longer? In this workshop, we’ll look at different types of endings, what has worked in classic and contemporary fiction (no spoilers!), and then outline a process for tailoring endings that surpass reader expectations.

Kristen has a Bachelor’s degree in English and Political Science. Post-grad, she took advanced memoir and writing the novel classes at Harvard, completed a copyediting certification program, and became a member of SCBWI. She edited and copyedited various projects, including nonfiction, before joining Mary Kole in 2018 teaching the Story Mastermind novel class.
When not daydreaming about driving a Jeep near the ocean, radio on and windows down, she can be found writing, reading, or searching for the ultimate hot fudge sundae. You can read nire at https://www.goodstoryediting.com/kristen
Endings
Open mic 3

Open Mic at the Williamsburg Library

March 19, 2023
1:00 to 3:00


Join us at the Williamsburg Library, Stryker center for a time of sharing. 

This is the best time to read a passage from your book, a poem, or something else! This is not a critique night, it's a chance to share your words, your story, aloud. This opportunity builds confidence as a writer and speaker. It's free advertising for your work. Please email Mary Shipko for more information. shipkom@msn.com 
March 13, 2023, Second Monday Radio Show on Xtra 99.1 FM at 8:05 AM. Neal Steele interviews Drema Deòraich about her book Entheóphage.
February 25, 2023 Coffee Shop Conversations- t 10:30 AM With Charles W. SutherlandTalk about your current work in progress at Column 15 coffee shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA  23185. Show up with a smile.

Williamsburg Book Festival 

Williamsburg Book Festival
Will be on Saturday, Feb 4 - 10 AM to 4 PM
Stryker Center and Williamsburg Community Building

The Williamsburg Book Festival's mission is to promote and support the art of literary composition in the Williamsburg area and expose writers to the reading public.  Our free event includes authors from various genres, speakers, illustrators, and publishers from Virginia and beyond.  We hope you'll join us for a family-friendly day of celebrating books and book lovers as we fill the Stryker Center and the Williamsburg Community Building.


February 1, 2023, Luncheon Meeting, Rocco's Smokehouse in WIlliamsburg.

Scott Ellis will discuss creating audio books.  Arrive 11-11:30 AM, Lunch at noon with program to follow. For last minute reservations, call Carol at 804-725-6163 so she can place your food order .
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Scott Ellis on Creating Audiobooks Wednesday, February 1, 2023 at
Rocco's Smokehouse, Williamsburg

Scott Ellis is an award-winning audiobook narrator and producer. He's narrated over 60 audiobooks and coached several authors through the production or narration of their first audiobook.
     Scott Ellis Reads, his audiobook production company, started in 2019 and has a team of 15 people that work in narrating, editing, marketing, and managing the business.

NOTE! For last minute reservations, call Carol at 804-725-6163 so she can place your food order.


Depending on meal choice, $15 or $20 for members, $18 or $23 for nonmembers.

Registered for luncheon:
Lee Alexander
John Broadwater
Diana Caron
Mary Crandall
Pam Crouch
Josie Ellis & Scott Ellis
Cindy Freeman
Ted Hale
Linda and Mark Hallam
Nan Harvey
Kathy Kasunich
Eve Monk
Michele Motsko
Peggy Newcomb
Leslie Pearce
Patti Procopi
Mary Shipko
Ann Skelton
Charles Sutherland
Susan Williamson

 
January 14 and 28, 2023, Coffee Shop Conversations-With Charles W. SutherlandTalk about your current work in progress at Column 15 coffee shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA  23185. Show up with a smile.
December 12, 21022, CBW Second Monday Radio Show, 8:05 a.m.
Roger Gosden interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on his children's book, The Boy Who Could Bee.
2022 gala

The All Stars Gala Luncheon at the Two Rivers Country Club in Williamsburg, Wednesday, November 16 was a stunning success!

    Those attending enjoyed a meal of Autumn Salad, Salmon on Autumn Salad, Prime Rib Panini with fruit, or Chicken Salad Wrap with fruit and a desert of  New York Cheesecake with fresh fruit.

    Fifteen members read their work in the All Stars Contest.

    All Star Contest Winners:
    • Sally Honenberger - FIrst Place
    • Ginny Brock - Second Place
    • Roger Gosden - Third Place and Rick Bailey Humor Award

    The 2022 CBW Golden Nib Contest winners:
    Poetry
    • First Place – “Gossip Central”  Norma I. Cofresí, Ph.D.
    • Second Place – “Green Room”   Denise DeVries  
    • Third Place – "Third Place – “We the People” Sharon Canfield Dorsey
    Fiction
    • First place – "The Treasured House"  Donna-Lin Pratt
    • Second Place –" Happy Jack's"   Peter Stipe
    • Third Place – "The Bloody Altar" Robert L. Webb
       
    Nonfiction
    • First Place  – “A Field of Dreams Remembered”   Diana Farrar Caron
    • Second Place – "The Price of Democracy”  Sharon Canfield Dorsey

    All Stars Contest

    The contestants were:

    Patricia Procopi "Old Joe" Fiction
    Peter Stipe   "Guiseppe's"  Fiction
    Diana Farrar Caron "Leonard Baskin's Contempt" Poetry
    Ann Skelton "The Ration Book" Fiction
    Ginny Brock "December 21st" Poetry
    Cindy L. Freeman  "My Angel Incident" Nonfiction
    Sarah Honenberger "Empty Rooms, Crowded Hallways" Fiction
    Mary Shipko "Bewildered" Nonfiction
    Norma Cofresi "Our Daily Bread"
    Roger Gosden "Rehabilitating Peter" Nonfiction
    Peggy Newcomb "A Night to Forge"t Nonfiction
    Sonja McGiboney "A Deadly Love" Fiction
    Susan Williamson "Reptile Peril"  Fiction
    Denise DeVries "Green Room"  Poetry
    Janice Hoffman "These Are the Hands" Poetry

    Attending Luncheon


    Carol J Bova
    Ginny Brock and Karen Kelley
    Elizabeth Brown
    Archie Campbell
    Diana Farrar Caron
    Norma Cofresi & Teo Feliciano
    Pam Crouch
    Denise DeVries
    Sharon Dillon
    Richard Easton
    Cindy Freeman
    Roger Gosden
    Linda & Mark Hallam
    Jan and Ken Hoffman
    Tim Holland
    Sarah Honenberger
    Sonja McGiboney
    Michele Motsko
    Cat Novelliere
    Peggy Newcomb
    Patricia Procopi
    Mary Shipko
    Ann & Rama Skelton
    Peter Stipe
    Charles Sutherland
    Susan Williamson

     

    November 14, 2022, CBW Second Monday Radio Show, 8:05 a.m.
    James Tobin interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on When We Were Wolves.
    Stephen mcguire author interview

    October 20, 2022
    Stephen McGuire - CBW Author Interview

    Please register to attend.

    Please join Chesapeake Bay Writers on October 20, 2022, from 7:00 to 8:00 pm Eastern Time for a club meeting featuring Stephen McGuire’s novel, Fractured Power, 
    a dark and haunting psychological thriller. Fractured Power is about Aiden Fletcher, a District Attorney, whose office investigates a rash or murders of women in Knoxville, Tennessee. He uses his position to manipulate the evidence while pursuing a serial killer whose arrest and trial puts Fletcher in the public limelight and forever changes the trajectory of his extraordinarily treacherous life.The book is available in paperback via this link on Amazon.

     
    Steve had a 30+ year legal career serving as an attorney and a federal judge in Washington, DC. He retired in 2008 as the Chief Judge of the Federal Trade Commission, where he received its Distinguished Service Award and was honored by President George W. Bush for his service to the nation’s judiciary. He has had extensive speaking engagements in bookstores, libraries, country clubs, civic associations, art centers, and radio shows primarily in Southwest Florida. Steve lives in Naples, Florida, with his wife, Doris, their golden retriever, Henry, and a mini goldendoodle, Alfie. To learn more, please visit www.stephenmcguireauthor.com   
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    Sunday, October 16, 2022
    2:00 p.m.
    Robin T Williams Presents
    Coloring Outside the Lines

    Character and Dialog
    This workshop is being presented in conjunction with the
    Williamsburg Public Library

    Seating is limited so please register. 

    Coloring Outside the Lines – a fiction-writing workshop led by award-winning author Robin Traywick Williams (“The Key to the Quarter Pole” and “The Last Romantic War”)

    A 90-minute discussion of tools for creating memorable characters and writing compelling dialogue.

    Robin Traywick Williams is a journalist, author, storyteller and horsewoman. She holds a master’s degree in creative writing from Hollins University and is the author of four books. The manuscript for her horseracing novel, “The Key to the Quarter Pole”, won the Best Unpublished Manuscript award given by the James River Writers and Richmond Magazine.

    More information about Robin can be found online.
    https://www.robinwilliamsbooks.com/home
     
    October 10, 2022, CBW Second Monday Radio Show, 8:05 a.m.
    Cynthia Fridgen interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on Choices


    October 8, 2022. Saturday 10:30 a.m. Coffee Shop Conversations-With Charles W. Sutherland. Talk about your current work in progress at Column 15 coffee shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA  23185. Show up with a smile.
    Cat

    Caterina Novelliere on Neal Steele Show
    August 8, 2022

    Caterina Novelliere interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM  on War Rising.

    What is one Horsemen's life worth?
    Peace never lasts long for a Horseman. The years of relative calm Rayne Warwick has enjoyed are coming to an end as trouble stirs in medieval Spain. Unlike the last time remnants from his past surfaced, there is no reburying them. Rayne must disclose who he once was and relive the sins of his prior existence if he wants to protect his family. But if he does so, he fears forever losing Grace, whom he promised never to keep such secrets from.
    Grace knows her husband is far from a saint. No man of war has clean hands. Neither did she once she became the Morte Defensore. After finding herself caught in the crossfire of a demon turf war and a failed kidnapping attempt on their son by a band of time-traveling humans, Grace asks Rayne to share whatever he is hiding about his past. 
    Isra, a female djinn overseeing Lucifer’s affairs in Spain, and Malik, the human ruler of the Cordovan Emirate, manipulate events to bring Rayne back to Al-Andalus. Rayne confronts mortal and immortal alike as Malik and Isra deploy heavy-handed tactics in a deadly gambit to seize control of the Iberian Peninsula.
    Faced with the age-old question of “what is one life worth?,” Rayne hopes Grace values the Horseman he has become enough to forgive his trespasses. Will he crumple underneath the weight of his past, or will he embrace what he once was for a chance to live a life free of his one remaining fear?
    Accompany Rayne into the past to discover how one man evolves into the High Council’s most powerful harbinger: War.

     
    Lauran strait

    Reserve Now for September 14, 2022  Luncheon Program
    Speaker: Lauran Strait 

    Creating characters within a vivid and continuous fictional dream.

    Use the registration below to reserve your spot or click this link. 

    Our guest speaker at the September 14th luncheon will be Lauran Strait. She is a former writing instructor and workshop facilitator at the Adult Learning Center in Virginia Beach and is the co-founder and acting executive director of Hampton Roads Writers as well as the president of the Board of Directors and the annual conference director.

    She occasionally teaches writing workshops for HRW, the Muse Writers Center, and other local writing groups. She also works as a freelance book editor for a few select clients.

    Her print and online work appears in Dog-eared, The Gator Springs Gazette, Atomic Petals, Retrozine, The Copperfield Review, A Woman of a Certain Age, Moondance Magazine, Monkey Bicycle, Insolent Rudder, LongStoryShort, Edifice Wrecked, The Virginian Pilot, Whistling Shade Literary Review, Somewhat.org, The Green Tricycle, Reading Divas, The Angler, Salome Magazine, Quiction, Bewildering Stories, Tiny Lights—a flash in the pan, Down in the Cellar, Tuesday Shorts, Six Sentences, and HeavyGlow. Some of her other fiction and creative nonfiction appear in anthologies such as Random House’s Knitlit the Third—We Spin More Yarns, Better Non Sequitur’s See You Next Tuesday, and Smith Magazine’s Six-Word Memoirs on Love & Heartbreak.

    More information about Lauran can be found online. https://www.tidewaterfamily.com/learning-fun/lauran-strait-the-craft-of-writing https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauranstrait less

     
    (Cancelled) September 12, 2022, CBW Second Monday Radio Show, 8:05 a.m.
    Patti Procopi interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on I'll Get By.

    September 10, 2022
    Buckroe Beach Festival 

    CBW table email Ted Hale for more information:  
    ted@tedbhale.com

     

    2022 Local Author Showcase Event Applications are Open!https://www.library.nnva.gov/330/Local-Authors-Showcase

    2022 Local Author Showcase Event Applications are Open!
    Newport News Public Library will host 3 days of discussions followed by a Showcase for Local Authors in Hampton Roads starting November 2 - 5. Interested published and/or self-published authors are encouraged to apply here.
    To Participate:
    • Local Authors must live in the Hampton Roads Area.
    • Authors must complete an online application here or a paper application may be picked up from Virgil I. Grissom, Main Street, or Pearl Bailey Library between July 1 - July 31, 2022.
    • Authors must drop off one copy of their work at a Newport News Public Library branch of choice.
    • Selected authors will have the opportunity to have panel discussions, book signings, and sell copies of their book.
    • All selected authors will be notified by Aug 29, 2022
    (See application for additional information)

    Saturday, August 27, 2022 Coffee Conversations

     10:30 AM at Column 15 Coffee Shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA there will be "coffee conversations" with writers.
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    Vwc symposium 2022 cover correct logo half

    Virginia Writers Club Symposium 

    August 6

    Three of our members have been chosen to speak at the Virginia Writers Club symposium. Bradley Harper is the keynote speaker and he's giving a workshop. Patti Gaustad Procopi is presenting a workshop on writing memoirs-fact or fiction. James Tobin (aka J. E. Tobin) will present, Illusions of speech? Writing great dialogue.


    You can find more information on the VWC website.
    https://www.virginiawritersclub.org/2022-VWC-Symposium/ 

    Member Reyn Kinzey joins Lacroy "Atlas" Nixon

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    Jeff schnader the serpent papers

    Jeff Schnader on Neal Steele Show
    July 11, 2022

    Jeff Schnader interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on  The Serpent Papers.
    Dun ottar castle

    Bradley Harper - Tales from Scotland

    July 6, 2022, Wednesday,  7:00 p.m

    This is a zoom social specifically to learn about Bradley Harper's experiences in obtaining his MA in Creative Writing at Napier University in Edinburgh, Scotland.
    If you've ever wanted to study abroad, here is a chance to ask questions of an author who is in the midst of this educational journey.
    The session will be an informal interview and all guests are welcome to ask questions.

    Bradley will be the keynote speaker at the Virginia Writers Conferences on August 6th.
    Read more about Bradley and his books, A Knife in the Fog, Queens Gambit, and his other literary contributions on his website. https://bharperauthor.com/


    Join Zoom Meeting
    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81504520005
    Carronia incursion

    Ted Hale on Neal Steele Show (Postponed) 

    June 13, 2022, CBW Second Monday Radio Show, 8:05 a.m.
    Ted Hale interview with Neal Steele on 99.1 FM on his series, Carronia Incursion.
    Adam h

    June 11, 2022 11:00 to 2:00
    Zoom Lunch and Learn
    Online Marketing with
    Adam Alexander Haviaras

    Join Adam Haviaras in our intensive, Zoom online Marketing presentation.

    Adam Alexander Haviaras is the author of the #1 best-selling Eagles and Dragons historical fantasy series, as well as other works of fiction and non-fiction set in the ancient and medieval worlds.

    Adam has studied ancient and medieval history and archaeology at the University of Toronto, Canada, and St. Andrews University, Scotland. He lives with his wife and children in Stratford, Ontario where he is currently writing another ground-breaking work of historical fiction.
    If you like ancient history and fiction set in Greece or the Roman Empire, Greek and Roman mythology, or stories like Gladiator, The Last Kingdom, and The Mists of Avalon, then you’ll love Adam’s books.
    Adam has published a book on marketing. While it is specific to marketing historical fiction, much of the information is applicable to any type of marketing. Check it out.

    Writing the Past: The Eagles and Dragons Publishing Guide to Researching, Writing, Publishing and Marketing Historical Fiction and Historical Fantasy 

    Adam is always happy to connect with readers, writers and those who love history in general. You can find him on Twitter (@AdamHaviaras), on the Eagles and Dragons Facebook page, or on Instagram (@adam_haviaras)
    Most of all, don’t forget to sign-up for the Eagles and Dragons Newsletter here: https://eaglesanddragonspublishing.com/newsletter-join-the-legions/
    Thank you for reading.
    www.eaglesanddragonspublishing.com

    Luncheon, June 8th, 11:30 a.m.
    The Theme of Forms
    and
    the Form of Themes

    with
    Dr. Jason Ray Carney
    Rocco's Smokehouse Grill

     

    Jason carney
    Dr. Jason Ray Carney, Senior Lecturer, Christopher Newport University, Department of English

    In his preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde refuted the idea that art should have a theme: "All art is quite useless," he asserts. "The type of all the arts is the art of the musician." In other words, for Wilde, literary artists should emulate composers of non-lyrical music and seek to create pure forms: beautiful but hollow linguistic artifacts without meaning and without theme. Wilde's claim is rhetorical, a grand pronouncement to make a less exciting, more commonsense, point: literary forms do not merely vehiculate themes--although they can and sometimes do. But how do they? Of course, writers don't bake literary pies to fill with thematic pudding. But is it nevertheless worth a writer's time to think about theme? And if a writer brings to mind a particular theme when composing, how might they artfully give form to that theme in a manner that harmonizes with their artistic vision? These questions and more will be explored in this brief presentation of literary history, theory, and praxis.  

    Bio: Jason Ray Carney is an author and a recognized expert of popular literature and pulp fiction. He earned his Ph.D. in English from Case Western Reserve University. His monograph, Weird Tales of Modernity (McFarland, 2019), analyzes interwar science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Reviewing Carney's book, The Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts stated, "Carney’s book is a valuable addition to the literature on its topic. It deserves a wide readership, and a prominent place in the scholarship of American fantastic literature in the early twentieth century." Carney is the Area Chair of the "Pulp Studies" section of the Popular Culture Association. In March of 2021, Carney guest edited a special issue of The Journal of American Culture on "pulp studies." Carney co-edits the academic journal, The Dark Man: Journal of Robert E. Howard and Pulp Studies. In addition to academic conferences ranging from the Modernist Studies Association to the International Association of the Fantastic in the Arts, Carney is a regular guest at various fan conventions, such as the San Diego Comic Con. Carney serves on several academic review boards for presses and journals and is a member of the Robert E. Howard Foundation.
    June 18, 2022, Saturday 10:30 a.m.
    Coffee Shop Conversations-With Charles W. Sutherland. Talk about your current work in progress at Column 15 coffee shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA  23185. Show up with a smile.
    RSVP 

    Coffee Shop Conversations-With Charles W. Sutherland.

    May 21, 2022, Saturday 10:30 a.m.
    Coffee Shop Conversations-With Charles W. Sutherland. If anyone would like to have an informal discussion of their upcoming books or articles or exchange ideas or receive an evaluation … or criticism… of style or concepts, I will be available at 10:30 AM on the first and third Saturday of each month at Column 15 coffee shop, 701 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, VA  23185.  It’s a new coffee shop, a nice atmosphere for writers, and outdoor tables as well.
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    Saturday, May 14, 2022Workshop
    1:30 - 5:00
     p.m.
    Writing Workshop with Nathan Richardson

    A writing workshop based on Ekphrastic writing that will help authors articulate their passions and learn to look at things from different points of view. 

    Ekphrastic writing is, in a short, succinct definition, writing that is based on a piece of art.  It is usually in the form of poetry. 


    James City County Library,  Grace & Stanley Kitzinger Community Room, 7770 Croaker Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23188


    Nathan M. Richardson is a published author, performance poet and Frederick Douglass Historian.  His poetry collections include "Likeness of Being", "Twenty-one Imaginary T-shirts" and "The 7 Last Poems of an Unarmed Citizen."  His work has been widely re-published in anthologies, magazines and newspapers such as the Channel Marker, The Cupola, Coastal Virginia Magazine and the Washington Post. Nathan teaches a variety of workshops for emerging writers.

    Nathan is now in the 7th year of The Frederick Douglass Speaking Tour -a living history performance in which he captures completely the physical and spiritual essence of the former slave, writer, orator and abolitionist Frederick Douglass. With more than 300 performances seen nationally and internationally, the series has also achieved film credits with the National Park Service, Alabama Public Television and RTE - Irish Public Service Television. You can find more about Nathan Richardson and his work at www.scpublishing.com  
    Windows from heaven

    May 9, 2022, Christian Pascale on 99.1 FM 

    May 9, 2022, Christian Pascale on 99.1 FM 
    Neal steel interviews about his new book,  The Windows of Heaven.

    The year is 2050, and earth does not look the same. Surge Saturday, the day the tsunamis hit, devastated thousands of cities. Governments were toppled and lives were lost. For siblings Tom and Helene, everything changed. They didn’t have the luxury of staying in their family home and learning to navigate this strange new world. A vile group has taken hold of the government, and people are being forced into intellectual subservience. Anyone who disagrees with the new leadership is sent to their death.
    Tom and Helene know they have to run, but where can they go? There aren’t many safe places left, and even those are at risk.
    They decide to find their way to Blacksburg, Virginia, and are soon befriended by others who are on a mission to make things right within the world again. But can this ragtag group of philosophers and healers and everyday people actually save the world, or will the newly formed dark forces triumph?
    Open mic group

    OPEN MIC NIGHT

    Thursday, APRIL 28, 2022, 5:30 - 7:50 p.m.
    OPEN MIC NIGHT  Gloucester Library Community Room

     

    Nathan Richardson at the CBW Luncheon

    April 20-2022
    Nathan Richardson was a pleasure to have at our luncheon today.  His love of poetry and the written word and his enthusiastic recounting of stories made us all want to write more.  Truly an inspiration to us all, Nathan will be coming back in May to help us all use words that will help us articulate our passions. 
    Nathan richardson

    April & May 2022
    Nathan Richardson to offer Poetry Sessions

    Wednesday, April 20, 2022
    11:30 a.m.
    General Meeting & Luncheon Nathan Richardson "The Oral Tradition of Poetry."  Poetry Session - Part 1.  Rocco's Smokehouse Grill

    Register using the luncheon form below. 

    Writing Workshop: Ekphrastic writing.
    May 14 at James City County Library



    Nathan M. Richardson is a published author, performance poet and Frederick Douglass Historian.  His poetry collections include "Likeness of Being", "Twenty-one Imaginary T-shirts" and "The 7 Last Poems of an Unarmed Citizen."  His work has been widely re-published in anthologies, magazines and newspapers such as the Channel Marker, The Cupola, Coastal Virginia Magazine and the Washington Post. Nathan teaches a variety of workshops for emerging writers.

    Nathan is now in the 7th year of The Frederick Douglass Speaking Tour -a living history performance in which he captures completely the physical and spiritual essence of the former slave, writer, orator and abolitionist Frederick Douglass. With more than 300 performances seen nationally and internationally, the series has also achieved film credits with the National Park Service, Alabama Public Television and RTE - Irish Public Service Television. You can find more about Nathan Richardson and his work at www.scpublishing.com  

    April 11, 2022, Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda on 99.1 FM  

    Catena poetica
    Neal steel interviews Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda about her book,

    Catena Poetica: An International Collaboration

    If technology means any set of skills, methods and processes that help humans carry out their goals, then it should also be possible for us to think of poetry as a form of technology. How else to explain how the words of those who lived and wrote hundreds of years ago still offer their potent magic and understanding to us today? An amazement: that we can enter into this bright chain of conversation, ranging back to when our "[a]ncient ancestors wondered who/ carried the sun" and "called it forth/ from the darkness of its hiding place." This is exactly what poets Flor Aguilera, Joyce Brinkman, Gabriele Glang, and Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda do in this international poetic collaboration called Catena Poetica. Following in the tradition of collaborative poetry such as renku or renga, they add their own distinctive shapes and sounds. Back and forth, between Mexico, the US Midwest and East Coast, and Germany- in these poems they circulate the warmth of color and spice, the mysteries of music, water, and clouds. What comes to us is more than the well-made thing: it's alchemy.

     
    Banner book parade

    Book Parade 

    Saturday, March 26, 2022, 10:00 to 4:00
    BOOK PARADE

    Check out the titles that will be there.  Yours could be there too!

    For authors this is:
    Time to showcase your book,
    Time to let everyone know how you did it.
    Time to set up a table
    Get tips from other authors
    Time to network
    Time to sell books

    For Readers and Aspiring writers: It’s all the same plus you might find your next favorite book.

    Everyone! Help spread the word.  Location is the Midtown Row Clubhouse
    221 Monticello Ave. Williamsburg VA 23185
    Register Now

    #writing # publishing #Book #author #Williasmburg #Bookparade #Virginiaauthor #writer #festival #booksale

    March 14, 2022 Carol J. Bova on
    99.1 FM

    Braking the eighth by carol j bova
    Neal Steel interviews Carol J. Bova about her latest book: 

     Breaking the Eighth.

    Sheriff Jim Holt's involvement with Brenda is heating up, but romance has to wait. An audit at the Church of Chestnut Springs reveals years of embezzlement by a trusted former employee, and the close-knit town reels in shock. Jim confronts the media swarming the site of the arrest, and they retaliate with lurid front-page headlines targeting him and Brenda.

    The Mayor is furious about the negative publicity, but Jim pushes back. The mayor’s up for reelection; if he wants Jim's support, he'd better stand up for the sheriff and his deputies.

    Events escalate when the case reaches court, and the embezzler reveals a shameful secret and an old wrong with no solution.

    Amidst all the turmoil, can Chestnut Springs uphold its reputation as a place for life, love and second chances?

    March 5, 2022 - Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival

    Registration

    Two of our members (Can you find out who they are by clicking the link?) will be represented in the Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival (SMAF)! This year's festival is scheduled for Saturday, March 5, 2022, at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts. 
    Self publishing cover ebook

    CBW Meeting and Biennial Election
    Wednesday, February 16, 2022 11:30 a.m.
    with Program on Self Publishing

    Author of 15 children's books, Sonja McGiboney will discuss her journey.  "From Story to Print and Beyond."  Where the author is in control of everything that happens to their book.  From writing to printing and finally to marketing.

    For last minute reservations, call 804-725-6163.
     

    I used to wear shoes like that
    Neal Steel interviews Peggy Newcomb about her latest book:

    I Used to Wear Shoes Like That: Family - Friends - Love - and A Naked Man in an Elevator

    "I Used To Wear Shoes Like That is warm walk down memory lane with an author, Peggy Newcomb, who loves her family, appreciates life, and finds humor in every-day situations. Her colorful stories about growing up in the country are reminders of a less-complicated time. Her love story with husband, John, and their three adopted daughters, is filled with the usual joys and challenges we all experience, spiced with the humor of a woman who is at peace with herself and her life but also, always ready for a new adventure. Her travel stories make us wish we’d been there for all the fun. So, pour a cup of tea, put your feet up and enjoy this lovely ride!"  
    Sharon Canfield Dorsey,

    Book is available on Amazon 
     

    January 10, 2022 Nan Harvey 

    Nan harvey
    Neal Steele interviews Nan Harvey about her latest book "A History Not Past."

    Nan Harvey, an architect, renovated many houses before finding her dream home in Northumberland County in the Northern Neck of Virginia.
    After settlement, her father presented her with the genealogical data he had gathered on their ancestor Robert Lindsay, “the immigrant,” the founding member of the Lindsay clan in the colony.
    She continued her father’s research as she settled into her new home, then traveled to The Mount in Fife, Scotland to become familiar with the Lindsays’ origins. Using court records and historical accounts, she was able to recreate this common man’s life weaving in her experiences of sailing on the Chesapeake Bay and hands-on barn construction during a Northern Neck summer.

    Nan is a regular with our Rappatomac Writers Critique Group. See more at https://www.nanharvey.com/.
    A History Not Past is available in paperback on Amazon 

     Dec 13, 2021 Sonja McGiboney

    Ca
    Neal Steele interviews Sonja McGiboney about her new book,  Jazzy's Twelve Days of Christmas.

    Listen Now. 

    The Twelve Days of Christmas have gone to the dogs. That's right! Jazzy is a cute, brown and white dog who sings her version of the traditional holiday song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas." She starts by getting the biggest bone. Each verse, like in the original song, adds something new and more of them until Jazzy reaches the number twelve. Jazzy loves everything, including the cookies!
    The illustrations are colorful and the text is easy to read. Children will learn numbers and sequences. The repetitive verses make it a great tool for reading. Though it is forty-two pages long, it will go by quickly. Be prepared to sing your way to the end over and over again. Try singing it softly. Perhaps have a singing match. Can you sing it from memory? There are so many ways to have fun with this book.
    The illustrations are created from photos, or photo composites, taken by the author. Jazzy is a Boxer-Labrador-Pit-bull mix breed dog. All she ever wants to do is sit in Sonja's lap or work for treats. She loves being the star.
    Email Sonja via her website and ask for some coloring pages to go with the book. She will send you a PDF of pictures to color. https: //www.jazzysbooks.com/
     

    Nov 8 2021 Denise DeVries

    Steamboats and ghost crabs
    Neal Steele interviews Denise DeVries about Steamboats and Ghost Crabs.
    As long as she has plenty to read, nine-year-old Olivia Brown doesn’t mind spending the summer at Aunt Lila’s rural home. An hour into the drive from Arlington, though, she’s already tired of hearing complaints from her brother Aiden, who’s 11 and easily bored. She’s also concerned about getting along with her twelve-year-old cousin Virginia Temple and her brother Jacob, age 10, who will be joining them from Florida.
    Shortly after their arrival at the old house on the Rappahannock River, Aunt Lila gives Olivia a key that will lead the four cousins to adventure, making their visit to Hull Crossing and the nearby Northern Neck much more interesting.
    Image
    It was a beautiful day to share a good meal, friendship, and stories with fellow authors.  What a talented group of writers.  Attendees voted for the winning entries.  The winners of the 2021 Gala are:

    1st Place:  Sarah Honenberger
    2nd Place:  Sonja McGiboney
    3rd Place:  Robert Webb

    For the Rick Bailey Humor Award, there was a tie:
    Denise Devries and Cindy Freeman

    Congratulations to the winners but also to everyone who presented their stories.  I enjoyed each one of them.
                                              Sonja McGiboney
                                              CBW Director-Membership

    Oct 2, 2021 Williamsburg Book Festival

    Members of the CBW participate in the Williamsburg Book Festival.
    The Williamsburg Book Festival's mission is to promote and support the art of literary composition in the Williamsburg area and expose writers to the reading public

    Luncheon meeting with Connie Lapallo

    Connie lapallo color picture page 001

    Sept 18, 2021 Connie Lapallo retraced her path from page to screen

    Our first in-person event since February 2020 was an outstanding success!

    Some writers dream of seeing their books on the big screen. For Connie Lapallo, the dream has come true. In September, she shared how it happened at CBW’s Literary Luncheon Meeting in Williamsburg on Wednesday September 15. Lapallo described how she came to write three novels about the women and children of Jamestown in 1608-1649. Her son, Adam Lapallo, who wrote the screenplay shared how the film based on her novel Dark Enough to See the Stars became a finalist in the 2021 Richmond International Film Festival and recently won a second award.

    As Lapallo explains, success didn’t happen overnight. “I started collecting family tree information when I was eleven years old, directly from my great-grandmother who lived with us. Her turn-of-the-century memories fascinated me. Sometimes she told older family stories that her grandmother had passed on to her.” She continues, “I began researching in earnest in 1976 for a 9th grade family tree project inspired by the Bicentennial and Roots. Thirty-five years later, I’m still at work on the assignment!”

    One day, in 1994,  while researching at the Library of Virginia, Lapallo noticed a familiar name. It was an ancestor, Archer Cox, who lived in Mecklenburg, Virginia, in the early 1800s. The book traced him all the way back to Jamestown. “Suddenly I had links taking me all the way back to a woman named Temperance Bailey and to her mother, Cecily (or Sisley).” Cecily was one of nearly a hundred women and children who left England for Jamestown in 1609. As Lapallo learned, eleven year-old Cecily had been a Jamestown mystery for professional genealogists for 120 years. “Who was she, and why had she come to Virginia alone?”

    Cecily’s trail continued in a used bookstore in Williamsburg when Lapallo found a volume called Ancient Adventurers, by Samuel Bemiss. In a passage recalling Jamestown’s Starving Time, Bemiss wrote, “Ann Burras, Temperance Flowerdieu and Sisley Jordan can represent all the unsung heroines of that heroic age.”

    Lapallo spent eight years working on Dark Enough to See the Stars in a Jamestown Sky, her first novel. Her daughter Sarah designed the book cover. It took Lapallo another five years to complete the sequel, When the Moon Has No More Silver. Since completing the third novel in her trilogy, she has begun writing a biography of Sir Thomas Gates. Learn more at Connie Lapallo's website.