The Gilroy Writing Project Connecting Local Authors & Creative Developers in Gilroy, the Write Place for Creative Innovation Our Meeting Schedule & Format Local Links for Authors & Creative Developers GWP Online Training's Archive of Guest Presenters

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Interested in authoring and creative media?

Join The Gilroy Writing Project on the third Saturday of each month from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., as we hear experienced writers from print, virtual media, anime, social networking, gaming, and other creative formats, who will share their tips and anecdotes on the creative life.

These are free programs open to all creative individuals, aged 18 and older.

Miss sharing your creative ideas?

Our own work is shared in the last half hour of every meeting, between 3:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. We offer a safe and creative atmosphere for exploration and evaluation of our craft.

Want to meet other imaginative and creative people?

Monthly meetings take place at Gilroy Library, located at 7387 Rosanna Street (corner of 6th and Rosanna), in Gilroy, California. Please call Catherine Denise Alexander at (408) 842-8208 ext. 3413, for more information.

Coffee and tea are provided. Donations of cookies and other refreshments are always welcomed.

• Blogging Tools and Tips for Writers, by Emily Reich Shem-Tov: http://www.chocolatespoon.com/musings/003155.html

• Hands-On Blogging Workshop for Writers, by Emily Reich Shem-Tov:
  • WordPress: http://shemtov.wordpress.com
  • Blogger: http://emilyshemtov.blogspot.co

• Ethics of Online Journalism (wiki), The Annenberg Center for Communication at USC: http://www.ojr.org/ojr/wiki/ethics/

• Fiction Tutorial, by Greg Garrett, Baylor University: http://www3.baylor.edu/~Greg_Garrett/writing.html

• Web Content, Writing for Web Sites, by Shirley Kaiser: http://websitetips.com/web content/

• Writers Resources (Google Directory): http://directory.google.com/Top/Arts/Writers_Resources/

• The Writing Center/Writing Handbook, University of Wisconsin-Madison: http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/

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Guest presenters in order of appearance:

• Betty Auchard
  Auchard is a popular lecturer and author of the award-winning book, Dancing in My Nightgown: The Rhythms of Widowhood, and contributor to the Chocolate for a Woman's Dreams and Chocolate for a Teen's Dreams series.
  
• Jack Hasling
  Hasling is the author of Hillview and Welcome to the Dunes. Read his monthly poem at Jacksverse.com.
• Al Adams
  Adams is a "College for Kids" educator at West Valley College
• Elizabeth Barratt
  Barratt is a Pinnacle columnist specializing in local history and regional lore
• Kat Teraji
  Teraji is a Gilroy Dispatch human interest columnist
• Nina Marie Martinez
  Martinez is the author of the nationally acclaimed novel, Caramba! A Tale Told in Turns of the Card
• Matilda Butler
  Butler is the author of Rosie's Daughters: The 'First Woman To' Generation Tell Their Stories, a collective memoir of women born during World War II. She is the director of WomensMemoirs.com, which offers classes, resources, and products in support of memoir writing for women of all ages.
• Claudia Salewske
  Salewske is an SJSU Faculty Expert in rhetoric and composition and the author of Images of America: Gilroy.
• Martha Alderson
  Alderson is the author of Blockbuster Plots: Pure and Simple; Plot Workbook: Pure and Simple. Oodles of useful information can be found on her Web site, BlockbusterPlots.com.
• Carmen Richardson Rutlen
  Rutlen is the author of Dancing Naked in Fuzzy Slippers
• Paul Cochrane
  Cochrane is the author of The Mind of God: Human Destiny, Music, and the Search for Meaning Amidst Tragedy
• Teresa Yung Ryan
  Ryan is the Award-winning author of Love Made of Heart
• Mary Ellison
  American Academy of Poets award-winner, former director of Poetry Center San Jose.
• Ruben Dozal, Jr.
  Acclaimed Gilroy-area Latino writer and essayist, who has read his work with Sandra Cisneros.
• Beth Proudfoot
  Beth is a local author and Chairperson of the East of Eden Writers Conference, a program sponsored by the South Bay Writers branch of the California Writers Club.
• Cathleen Rountree
  Cathleen Rountree lectures internationally and teaches writing and multicultural studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
  
• Cathleen Miller
  Miller has served as the Distinguished Writer in Residence at St. Mary's College, and is now a professor of English at San Jose State University, where she teaches courses in creative nonfiction.
  
• Martin (Marty) Cheek
  Marty is the author of The Silicon Valley Handbook, and is a columnist with the Gilroy Dispatch and the Morgan Hill Times. Marty has produced a stunning "video poem" entitled We All Must Fall, which includes his voiceover reflections on nature's cycle of life and death, his lush photographs of Coyote Creek in Morgan Hill, and a soundtrack of soft baroque background music.
• Jeanmarie Tarmann-Derry
  As a local author, poet and freelance columnist, Tarmann-Derry has been published in Seventeen and Writing About Our Lives magazines, and freelance columns in the Pinnacle. She teaches English at Gilroy High School.
• The Traveling Steinbeckians
  The "Traveling Steinbeckians" are a group of Open Mic regulars who enjoy the writings as well as the spirit of John Steinbeck. Some have published works on Steinbeck, and all share knowledge of his books, their history, and local lore surrounding Steinbeck and his adventures.
  
• Xochiqueztal Candelaria
  Candelaria has written articles for the online journal: Solo Ella and has been anthologized in June Jordan's Poetry for the People: A Revolutionary Blueprint, published by Routledge Press and in the 2002 Women in Literature and Letters Anthology: Mamibaile. She currently teaches creative writing at Gavilan College.
• Victor Turks
  Turks is a freelance journalist and writing instructor at City College of San Francisco. His articles have appeared in San Francisco's Nob Hill Gazette.
• Lori Hope
  Hope is an independent writer, producer, and public affairs consultant, who was formerly with NBC. (See the author's site, LoriHope.com, for more information.)
• Julia Montes
  Montes is a bilingual sports and general reporter with the El Tecolote online newspaper.
• Ruben Dozal, Jr.
  Dozal is a poet who has spent many years as a farm worker, husband, and father, who continuously recorded his impressions of the Mexican-American struggle to thrive and survive with powerfully heartfelt language. We celebrate the publication of his first book, My Dad's Thoughts: Bits and Pieces of Life, with a book signing and reading. Dozal is a success story from Gilroy's Vision Literacy program and his longtime tutor, Kristianne McKee Maas.
• Christopher (C.W.) Gortner
  Gortner is the critically acclaimed novelist of The Secret Lion, who specializes in researching and writing historical fiction. See his site, Leonibus.com, for more information.
• Kimberly Jean Smith
  Kimberly Jean Smith is a writer and coordinator of the Gavilan College Writing Center. She teaches English classes and has advised the college's independent student newspaper The Rambler. Her writing has been published in magazines and newspapers, including Girlfriends Magazine, Metro Santa Cruz; the Salinas Californian; Homestead Review; Portland Press Herald; Casco Bay Weekly; Independent Film & Video Monthly; and Outweek Magazine.
• Susan Cabrera
  Cabrera is a poet and former researcher with the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University, where she received her master's degree in Counseling Psychology. She has published two books of poetry: The Morning Star: Inspirational Poems and Life in the Fast Lane: Contemporary Poems. More information can be found at her site, LSCabrera.com.
• Simon Wood
  Horror and thriller writer Wood warns us that his books explore the "dark side." His new novel, Working Stiffs: some jobs are worth killing for, is coming out soon. For more information see his site, SimonWood.net.
• Barbara Santos
  Santos was CO-director of the Maui Writers Conference for many years and is currently marketing director of the San Francisco Writers Conference. She is the author of The Maui Onion Cookbook (Celestial Arts/Ten Speed Press) and The Maui Tacos Cookbook with co-author celebrity chef Mark Ellman (Pendulum Publishing). She writes feature articles about food and business for all kinds of publications including The San Francisco Examiner, Maui News and dozens of travel magazines. For more information on the SF Writers Conference see SFWriters.org.
• Beth Wyman
  Wyman, author of Hiram Morgan Hill, is an expert on California Carnegie Libraries and their development.
• Dave Keane
  Keane began his writing career authoring manuscripts for picture books and had several books in publication within three years. His "Joe Sherlock" series of chapter books, which he also illustrated, was recently picked-up by HarperCollins and a 3rd and 4th book in the series are soon to be published. To learn more about Dave Keane please see his Web site at: MrDaveKeane.com.
• Emily Reich Shem-Tov
  Emily is an accomplished blogger who has worked on an array of online projects from Tokyo to Paris, with a brief stopover at the White House Office of Political Affairs. Learn more about Emily at: chocolatespoon.com.
• John Carlos Frey - Producer/Director/Screenwriter
  Frey is a native of Mexico whose directorial debut, "The Gatekeeper," garnered ten national and international film festival awards for Best Film or Best Director. Frey has also acted in major productions on stage and screen. His documentary film, "The Invisible Mexicans of Deer Canyon," has recently been released. Learn more about Mr. Frey at: InvisibleMexicans.com.
• Becky Levine
  Becky is a writer and freelance editor who has provided critiques for other writers at the East of Eden Writers Conference. Learn more about Becky at BeckyLevine.com
• Jana McBurney-Lin
  Author of My Half of the Sky, Jana spent eight years in Singapore with her Fujian-born husband, while serving as an editor for ALC Press in Japan. She has served as President of the California Writers Club Peninsula Branch and founded Kids’ Camp, an annual conference for young writers. Engber presented a talk entitled, Living Globally, Writing Locally.
• Martha Engber
  Author of Growing Great Characters From the Ground Up, Engber is a journalist by training and freelance writer by profession. She has written hundreds of articles for the Chicago Tribune, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and other publications. She had a play produced in Hollywood and a short story nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She's had numerous short stories published in the Berkeley Fiction Review, Bookpress, Anthology, and other literary journals. More information can be found about Martha on her Web site: http://www.marthaengber.com/
• Mystery Author Panel
  Cara Black (Murder on the Ile Saint-Louis), Rhys Bowen (In Dublin's Fair City), John Billheimer (Stonewall Jackson's Elbow: An Owen Allison Mystery), and David Corbett (Done for a Dime), appeared at Gilroy Library to discuss their books and take questions from the audience.
• Jordan E. Rosenfeld
  Rosenfeld is the events coordinator for BookSmart, an independent bookstore in Morgan Hill, and the author of two books for writers, Make a Scene: How to Craft a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time and Write Free: Attracting the Creative Life. She is also a contributing editor to Writer's Digest magazine, a book reviewer for KQED Radio, and has been published in The San Francisco Chronicle , The St. Petersburg Times, Marin magazine, Petaluma magazine, and Seattle Conscious Choice, among others. Learn more at: www.jordanrosenfeld.net and www.writefree.us.
• Louise Ure
  Ure's debut mystery, Forcing Amaryllis, won the Shamus award for Best First Novel. Her next book, The Fault Tree, comes out on January 8, 2008. Ure will explore the mystery writing process, finding an agent and networking. For more information, see LouiseUre.com or Murderati.com.
• Linda Joy Meyers
  Myers, author of Don't Call Me Mother: Breaking the Chain of Mother-Daughter Abandonment, and Becoming Whole: Writing Your Healing Story, helps writers explore their personal history and begin their healing journey. Learn more about Myers at: MemoriesandMemoirs.com
• Reese Erlich
  Erlich reports regularly for National Public Radio, Latino USA, Radio Deutche Welle, Australian Broadcasting Corp. Radio, and Canadian Broadcasting Corp. Radio. He also writes for Mother Jones, the San Francisco Chronicle, St. Petersburg Times, Dallas Morning News, and the Chicago Tribune. The Iran Agenda: The Real Story of U.S. Policy and The Middle East Crisis, is his latest book.

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Links to local and national creative resources for authorship and design:

• AllArt.com: A list of reference resources for writers, including grammar, thesaurus, and interesting topic helps, such as the online CIA World Fact Book, Allegories of the Holy Grail, and Detective's Database.
• BlockbusterPlots.com: A very useful collection of plotting and writing tips from local author and lecturer, Martha Alderson. She also offers a free monthly eZine with many excellent resources and topics for writers.
• Bookstand Publishing: A Gilroy, California business which has published books for authors throughout the nation as well as internationally. They have the capability to feature books with major bookstore e-retailers, such as BarnesandNoble.com, and have resources for writers seeking to self-publish.
• Bookwire.com: An R. R. Bowker site with links to a wide variety of resources for experienced and aspiring writers, as well as industry links.
• California Writer's Club: For the education of writers and help in marketing their work.
  • South Bay Writers: The Silicon Valley Branch of the California Writer's club and sponsors of the East of Eden Writer's Conference in Salinas.
• Center for Literary Arts, San Jose State University: The Center for Literary Arts (CLA) provides readings, lectures and seminars that allow the San Jose community to interact with writers of contemporary literature who have demonstrated exceptional voice and vision.
• ForWriter's.com: A comprehensive list of links to national writer's organizations and writer's markets. An excellent resource page.
• Poetry Center San Jose: Poetry Center San José promotes and supports the literary arts in San José. Over the past two decades, PCSJ has brought hundreds of exceptional writers from around the country to read from their works and, in many cases, to conduct workshops for local writers.
• SFnovelist: F or writers of "hard science" science fiction novels.
• SFStation.com's Literary Arts page: A San Francisco-based calendar with local events and links to local writer's groups, literary venues, author appearances, workshops, and archived poetry, book reviews, features, and profiles.
• Sisters in Crime: Their mission: "To combat discrimination against women in the mystery field, educate publishers and the general public as to inequities in the treatment of female authors, raise the level of awareness of their contributions to the field, and promote the professional advancement of women who write mysteries." They also have a wonderful speakers bureau through the Northern California Chapter of Sisters in Crime.
• Wild Writing Women: Their magazine,Taking Flight, won the NATJA award for best online travel magazine of 2004. The Wild Writing Women also won the Society of American Travel Writers Foundation Lowell Thomas Gold award for Internet Publications/Web site published in 2004-2005 from the Society of American Travel Writers, with particular mention of the magazine. The"WWW" also offer workshops and salons in the San Francisco area. See their Web site Wild Writing Women for more information and details on upcoming events.
• WomensMemoirs.com: In this comprehensive and well-conceived site author Matilda Butler offers classes, resources, online tips, and products, all in support of memoir writing for women of all ages.

(Please e-mail your suggestions for additional links to calexand@library.sccgov.org)

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Books by Gilroy Writing Project presenters:

All GWP featured books are available at Gilroy library or by reserve through the Santa Clara County Library Catalog.

Books can also be purchased at Booksmart located at 17415 South Monterey Road, Suite A, in Morgan Hill, CA 95037, (408) 778-6467, or at Barnes and Noble located at 6825 Camino Arroyo in Gilroy, CA 95020, 408-846-5777.