Meetings are held on the 1st Thursday of the month at our new location at Revolutions cafe and bakery, 7012 Woodlawn Ave. NE. Seattle. 7:00 pm Coffee & Conversation; program 7:30 - 9:00 pm
Members: free; drop-ins: $5 donation requested.

The SWA 2005-2006 Program

Sept 8, 2005: Richard Gibons led a workshop on using
personality types to build your story characters.

Oct. 6, 2005: Building Your Story from Scratch
Lynn Knight headed a workshop on activating the creative
muse by asking it the right questions

Nov. 3, 2005: Evoking Emotion
Award winning local author Anjali Banerjee
discussed how to use detail and imagery to evoke
emotion in fiction. Her accomplishments include
Pushcart Prize-nominated short fiction, adult
novels published by Simon & Schuster, children’s
novels published by Wizards of the Coast, and
young adult novels published by Random House.
She has taught creative writing to adults and
elementary school students and will teach creative
writing for the Whidbey Writers' MFA program in
January 2006.

Dec. 8, 2005:
Carol Wissmann brings 25 years of sales
expertise to the marketing of her writing to
consumer, business, and university niche
periodicals. Learn the how-to's of writing for this
easily accessible market. Also: Bring 10 copies
of a short work (poem, short story, essay, etc.)
you would like to prepare for entry in competition
or submission to publication markets. At the
conclusion of the meeting we’ll divide into small
groups (by genre) exchange copies of your work.

Jan. 5, 2006: Critique Group Breakout
Regroup and exchange feedback on your work in
critique-group style. Hone your skills (and your
work) through peer review!

Feb. 2, 2006: Give us a Read!
Volunteers interested in reading their work will
gain valuable experience and feedback. Refine
your oral presentation skills in a comfortable
environment!

March 2, 2006:
Priscilla Long, author of Where the Sun Never
Shines: a History of America’s Bloody Coal
Industry, discussed how to make your essays,
fictions, and poems more powerful by working
with the vowel scale and other sounds. Her work
appears in The American Scholar, Ontario
Review, Passages North, and elsewhere. She has
an MFA from the UW, and serves as Senior
Editor of the online encyclopedia of Washington
state history, www.historylink.org.

April 6, 2006: Screenwriting
Published poet, editor, and Gotham Writers'
screenplay writer Karen Delaney joined
PNWA contest finalist Stan Chraminski led
group exercises and provided information on
formatting, style, and much more.

May 4, 2006: The Business of Writing 3
Chris Simmelink revisited last season’s popular
topic, providing more tips and information on
submitting and selling your work to publishers,
editors, and agents. Prepare for what lies ahead!
Topics included the creation of multiple
synopses, summaries, and one-sentence pitches.
The focus was be on marketing yourself,
including how to create a marketing plan and
marketing kit.

May 20, 2006: Writers In Performance
SWA’s annual writing contest!

2004-2005 meeting and summaries

Sept. 9, 2004: Setting Your Writing Goals

A workshop to get the season off to a strong start, with a focus on creating specific, achievable writing goals. Meeting Summary

Oct. 7, 2004: Technology and Writing

A "how-to" on computer and online writing techniques and resources; including writing software; using Word for greater creativity, productivity, and sharpening your craft; useful websites; and researching on the Web. Meeting Summary.

Nov. 4, 2004: Generating Ideas

Sources, guides, brainstorming, mind mapping: techniques to get those creative ideas for both fiction and non-fiction. Be prepared when inspiration strikes. Meeting Summary

Dec. 2, 2004: The Business of Writing

Use your goals to guide your choices, approaching your writing from a business perspective. Includes assessing your marketing potential, finding your niche, evaluating your story idea, and establishing yourself as a business. Meeting Summary

Jan. 6, 2005: Beginnings

Get the reader hooked! How to start fast and create a story your readers can’t put down. Attendees should bring an opening paragraph to critique. Meeting Summary

Feb. 3, 2005: Telling the Tale

Keep your work moving! How to keep things moving, retain your reader’s interest, and deal with writer’s block. Attendees should bring a work in progress. Meeting Summary

March 3, 2005: Endings

Wrap it up with style! Explore the best ways to tie up loose ends and finish with a bang. Attendees should bring a work to critique. Meeting Summary

April 7, 2005: Rewriting and Revising

The real start of your writing! How to rewrite with power, use outside feedback and critiques, and when to hire a professional editor. Attendees should bring a short completed work. (Meeting Summary)

May 5, 2005: The Business of Writing II

Tips on submitting and selling your work to publishers, editors, and agents. How to prepare for the effort, including the creation of multiple synopses, summaries, and one-sentence pitches. Prepare for agent interviews and write query letters. Attendees should bring a completed work to create pitches. (Meeting Summary)

May 21, 2005: Writers in Performance

Our annual writing contest. See our Writers in Performance link under the events heading for details.

2002-2004 Meetings past meeting summaries.