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Winter Edition 2015 |
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 Laura Fraser Digital Storytelling:
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Dear WNBA-SF Chapter Members, Does a brand new publishing company intrigue you with books written by and for women? Would you like to read high-quality short e-books you can’t find anywhere else? Even more, would you like to be an author of one of those books, distributed on a digital platform based here in the SF Bay Area? Come to our January 10th meeting at the Oakland Main Library at 10:30 am, and meet Laura Fraser, co-founder of Shebooks.net. She’ll give us the scoop about how she and her co-founder friend, Peggy Northrup, decided to do something about the disparity and bias against women writers, even while women comprise 70% of the e-readership. Shebooks.net publishes established authors and emerging writers. On January 10th, there’ll be a raffle for an Equal Writes T-shirt and a new Shebooks print anthology for sale! FREE treats from Noah’s Bagels. Sign up online HERE and let us know you’re coming. Please note that Shebooks is a new publisher and not the same as She Writes Press, a wonderful hybrid opportunity for women authors. Brooke Warner, co-founder of She Writes Press, is a WNBA-SF Chapter member, and supportive of the feminist press. YOU’LL BE GETTING A SURVEY…AND IT’S AN IMPORTANT ONE! I admit…I delete almost every survey request I get. So I understand. We are all reluctant to fill out surveys! But let me tell you why this one is very important. WNBA is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization whose mission is to support and encourage literacy and women in the world of the book. Lofty goals. So our national board reaches out for support from many areas, and one of them is sponsorship. In doing so, our national board will be asked to give evidence, to convince people, and to produce demographics to visibly show…what we do, who does it, how much we do, and how we do it.  Kate Farrell The survey takes less than five minutes to complete. It will help the WNBA receive future grants, and your response would be appreciated. Thank you for your support. See you in the new year! Kate Farrell, SF Chapter President |
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Dorothy Hearst  Dorothy Hearst This December, Dorothy Hearst will release her third book in the wolf fantasy trilogy, SPIRIT OF THE WOLVES, published by Simon & Schuster. One thing that caught our attention was that the first book in The Wolf Chronicles trilogy, Promise of the Wolves, had a long history. The book began as a short story that never quite worked and was never published. Dorothy put it aside for years, but then the characters came roaring (barking?) back. She describes the inspiration for her series as the wolves just barging in, demanding to be heard. “I wondered why me? Why did they come to me of all the people in the world, when I’d never written anything before? Once I’d accepted the challenge, it felt like a huge responsibility. I had to learn my craft, and I couldn’t give up because the wolves were counting on me. Like many writers, I often feel that I’m an imperfect tool for sharing the messages the universe is trying to send through me. But I’m happy with Kaala’s story. I’m happy I got to tell it and that I turned it into something I’m proud of.”
But the research had to be done. Even if it meant interviewing experts and asking total strangers a lot of questions. |
 Boxes and Boxes of Books Holiday Book Drive for Children Boxes and boxes of classic children’s books: nursery rhymes, finger plays, folk and fairy tales, enduring stories, picture books, board books, early readers, all for early childhood, ages 0-5. were donated this year. Books are in support of an early literacy program at the Living Room sponsored by Women’s National Book Association—San Francisco Chapter. We are most grateful to our local indie bookstore, Copperfield’s Books, Montgomery Village, 775 Village Ct, Santa Rosa, CA, whose staff and manager watched over and encouraged the Book Drive. http://copperfieldsbooks.com/stores/montgomery-village Women’s National Book Association, San Francisco Chapter, sponsors a Holiday Book Drive to benefit the Living Room, Santa Rosa, a daytime drop-in center that provides a safe haven to ease the adversity of homelessness for women. Now we are pleased to announce that the SF Chapter has increased its visits to the Living Room from biweekly to weekly: every Monday at 10:o0 am. We are also collaborating with community partners to purchase children’s books at low cost and to request book donations. Without the efforts and donations of WNBA SF Chapter, there would be no literacy program at the Living Room or focus on children’s books and reading. To support this developing program, SF Chapter will donate 10% of its net income to purchasing books for the Living Room at deeply discounted prices. But we need your support to make this a real success! Book Drive: At all our SF Chapter events throughout the year, we will accept classic children’s picture books and board books in English and Spanish. |
Holiday Highlights:
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ONLY two weeks left to enter the WNBA contest! WNBA Third Annual Writing Contest A fundraiser for our national initiatives.
Flyer Click here for download. We are seeking your best work for our national writing contest. Winning entries will be published in a special issue of The Bookwoman–the national newsletter of the WNBA. First place winners receive $250 cash prize. Second, third and honorable mentions will be published with the first place winners in the contest edition of The Bookwoman. Open to all writers 18 or older writing in English. Read previous winners on our website. 2014 Entry Fee: WNBA Members: $15 per entry Creative Nonfiction: Includes memoir, personal essay and commentary. 2,500 words maximum. Poetry: 3 – 5 pages of poetry. Fiction: Includes short fiction, novel excerpts and flash fiction. 2,500 – 3,000 maximum. All submissions and payments are through Submittable. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable, please inform the contest judge if work is accepted elsewhere. Previously published work accepted. If work is accepted elsewhere please contact the Contest Chair: joan@joangelfand.com. To read more, click HERE. |
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We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo
Review written by Vicki DeArmon
But when the schools shut down, the children play, making games from their dire circumstances. A woman kills herself and the children happen upon her hanging from a tree. The children–named Bastard, Godknows, Sbho, Chipo, Stina, and Darling–reveal the full slate of human reactions. Like a Greek Chorus, they weigh each circumstance and judge it. Seeing the woman, they are afraid and want to run; they evoke the punishment of God as one of them, Bastard, throws a rock at the hanging woman. They leave, only to return to steal her shoes because they can sell them to buy a loaf of bread to relieve their hunger. And then they all move on, in dizzy laughter.
They play the “country game” which reflects the status of their country as negligible in the scope of the bigger world; that is why no one wants to “be” it, they all want to “be” America. They steal guavas from the rich people who live in the nearby town of Budapest, trolling the streets looking for guavas and then squatting in pain to release them when they eat too much. The genius of this book is how the trials of Zimbabwe and its people are revealed through the blithe and unconscious cast of children. But its vibrancy is in the language. When Darling’s father returns from South Africa with AIDS to die at home, she is slow to understand, feeling shame and not wanting to let her friends know. But they discover the truth and push their way into her house to view him in his sick bed, and in their spontaneous song, they shift her understanding from shame to grief and finally, a kind of joy. Vicki DeArmon, Marketing & Events Director, Copperfield’s Books, Seven stores in San Francisco’s North Bay www.copperfieldsbooks.com |
UN DPI/NGO Women’s National Book Association at the United Nations  Yesidi Peacock Angel Help Save the Yezidis! Written by Rabbi Pamela Frydman You know you are a Yezidi if your family is always watching the news, your weekend alarm clock is Mom vacuuming, and your dad tells war stories in which he is the hero. So what’s a Yezidi? Yezidis are a beloved Middle Eastern monotheistic people on the verge of extinction at the hands of ISIS extremists who are also targeting Christians.[1] In August 2014, President Obama authorized air strikes and emergency missions after ISIS forces chased over 10,000 Yezidis up Mount Sinjar in Northen Iraq.[2] Women with two small children had to decide which child to carry up the mountain because their tormenters wouldn’t let them slow down enough to carry both. Over 5000 Yezidi men have been murdered. 7000 women and girls have been sold as sex slaves. In an October 2014 video, the cameraman says, “Today is the slave market,” each fighter will receive “his share.” One fighter wants a girl with blue eyes. Another wants a fifteen-year-old with green eyes. One wants to trade a female slave for a pistol.[3] 10,000 Yezidis on Mount Sinjar are enduring freezing winter weather without shelter or proper clothing. Children are ill or injured. Over 1,000 children have already died. The International Association for Human Values is airlifting food, water, medicine and hygiene products. IAHV airlifted over 400 from the mountain to Syrian refugee camps. Please give generously at http://www.iahv.org/us-en/yazidi-relief/. To raise consciousness about Yezidis in your community, please write me at rebpam@gmail.com. United Nations affiliation: The Women’s National Book Association has been a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) member of the United Nations since 1959. An NGO is defined as “any non-profit, voluntary citizens’ group that is organized on a local, national or international level. Task-oriented and driven by people with a common interest, NGOs perform a variety of services and humanitarian functions, bring citizens’ concerns to governments, monitor policies and encourage political participation at the community level.” [1] Yezidis: http://www.yezidis.org/you-know-you-are-a-yezidi-when/; Christians and Yezidis subject to sex slavery http://tinyurl.com/l5d8fdr. [2] Washington Post: http://tinyurl.com/l64g4b8; New York Times: http://tinyurl.com/nmg2kl2; the Guardian: http://tinyurl.com/kejfsbv; al Arabiyah: http://tinyurl.com/mudefnh. [3] UK Independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-fighters-barter-over-yazidi-girls-on-slave-market-day–the-shocking-video-9836589.html; United Nations press release: http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/dsgsm825.doc.htm |
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 Cafe de la Presse: Kate Farrell, Michael Larsen, Elizabeth Pomada San Francisco Writers Conference, Feb. 12-16, 2015 Volunteer at the WNBA-SF Chapter Exhibit table! Attend sessions while you work. WNBA-SF Chapter members are active at SFWC. Pictured here is our Chapter President at a recent planning session with the founders of SFWC and early members of WNBA-SF, Michael Larsen and Elizabeth Pomada.
The San Francisco Writers Conference is a Celebration of Craft, Commerce and Community for all writers. You will learn from 100 bestselling authors, literary agents, editors and publishers from major publishing houses. With more than 24 respected literary agents looking for new clients at the SFWC, you may find the perfect agent for you and your book. You will connect with leaders in self-publishing and traditional publishing. There will be experts on book promotion, platform building, social media, and author websites. CLICK HERE to see the amazing 2015 SFWC Presenters List. We invite you to download the latest FLYER!
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WNBA — SF Chapter PROGRAM 2014-15Sign up HERE to secure your volunteer spot. Become a part of these events that support and celebrate: “Women in the World of Words”
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WNBA 2014-2015 BOARD President: Kate Farrell Vice Presidents: Open Treasurer: Sherry Nadworny Secretary: Julaina Kleist-Corwin Membership Chair: Jane Glendinning Blog Managing Editor: Open Featured Member Interview Editor: Catharine Bramkamp Social Media Manager: Frances Caballo Past President & Webmaster: Linda Lee |
Annual Membership 2014-2015Welcome new members! Thank you to members who renewed. Your membership dues pay for our FREE public events, for MEMBERS’ ONLY Mixers, for our Literacy Initiatives, SFWC and SFPL sponsorships. The WNBA National Directory is now being upgraded and will soon launch! We hope to see your name and expertise listed there. Consider donating to WNBA National to support its awards program and its upcoming 100th Anniversary in 2017, through this Women’s National Book Association PO Box 237, FDR Station New York, NY 10150 |
