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February 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Prize-Winning Plays Will Be Performed at
Tampa Writers Alliance Meeting February 4
Readers’ theatre performances of the
four winning scripts in the Tampa Writers Alliance 2003 Writing Contest
will be presented at the next Tampa Writers Alliance meeting,
Wednesday, February 4, at 7 p.m. in the John F. Germany Main Library,
900 N. Ashley Dr., Tampa. The public is invited to attend free of
charge.
Winners are (first prize) Richard Aellen,
“Writer’s Block”; (second prize) Marc Yacht,
“She’s on the Bus”; (third prize) Denis Patrick
O’Connor, “Best Tent”; and (honorable mention) Warner
Conarton, “The Bloody Pin.”
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March 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Staci Backauskas
helped TWA members and guests understand why "every writer needs an
editor."
The March meeting was held in the Children's/Adult Fiction
Section of the Library instead of our usual space in the Auditorium.
Karen McKinney,
who became President when Bill Penrose's stepped down for health
reasons, turned the gavel over to incoming President Jim Chaplin.
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NEW OFFICERS TAKE OVER
Writing
Teacher Staci
Backauskas to Discuss
‘Editing’ at Tampa Writers Alliance March 3
Writing
teacher extraordinaire Staci Backauskas will discuss "Editing"
on Wednesday, March 3, at the monthly Tampa Writers Alliance meeting in the John F. Germany Main Library, 900 N.
Ashley Dr., Tampa. (The meeting
will be held in the Children's/Adult Fiction Section, not as usual in
the Auditorium.) The public is
invited to attend free of charge.
Owner
of Triple Moon Productions, Backauskas is a writer and consultant with
nearly 20 years of experience in marketing, advertising, training, and
small business. She has written seven books, as well as articles for
numerous national and local publications, including American
Profile, Imprint, Entrepreneur Start-Ups, and The Carrollwood
News. She has been widely published on the Internet as well, and
currently teaches creative writing for Life Enrichment Center in Tampa.
Backauskas
is the author of “Desiree's Dream Job—A
Career Transition Fable” and “Desiree's Dream Kit—A
Practical Guide for Intentional Career Transition.” She is also
the author of a novel, The Fifth Goddess, which details a
woman’s journey toward self-acceptance, examining what happens
when we refuse to confront the pain in our lives
In
addition, Backauskas is the founder of The Follow Your Bliss
Foundation, a non-profit organization distributing scholarships and
providing a support network to those living their dreams. Ten percent
of all monies earned by Triple Moon Productions go to the foundation.
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TWA's new Treasurer is
Frank Cáceres (second from left).
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April 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Three
Performance Poets Appear
at Tampa Writers Alliance on April 7
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Poets
(from left) Melissa Fair, Rhonda J. Nelson, and Stasja McFadyen
at Tampa Writers Alliance meeting April 7, 2004
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Rhonda J. Nelson
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Three
of the busiest performance poets in Tampa Bay will give their takes on
poetry vs. performance poetry vs. the spoken word on Wednesday, April
7, at 7 p.m. at the monthly Tampa Writers Alliance meeting in
the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr.,
As members of Irritable Tribe of Poets, a Tampa-based collective of
instrumentalists and spoken-word artists, they will include examples of their performances with Irritable Tribe of Poets
on CD and/or video. The public is invited to attend free of
charge.
Appearing will be Rhonda J. Nelson, Stazja
McFadyen, and Melissa Fair. The three will share not only their poetry
but their thoughts on how to write for spoken word/performance venues,
where to go to do it, who's doing it, what works and what
doesn’t, and who's coming to hear it.
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The
poets know whereof they speak.
Rhonda
J. Nelson is the creative director/lead poet for Irritable Tribe of
Poets and winner of Writers Exchange 2000, sponsored by Poets &
Writers, Inc. (NY). She was a Florida Division of Cultural Affairs
Fellow for the year 2000-2001 and a two-time recipient of the
Hillsborough County Arts Council Emerging Artist award, as well as a
recent Individual Artist Grant. Collections of her work include: The
Undertow (Rattapallax Press, 2001) and Shadows & Light
(Tampa Bay Review Press, 1991). Nelson
also has two audio collections on CD: Empty
Town, original poems set to music, and Live at the St. Marks
Poetry Project. Additionally, she is
featured on Vital Signs: Primal Sessions, and has a cut
included on an upcoming Southeastern Music Alliance compilation. Nelson’s
poems have been published in such journals as Slipstream, The
Panhandler, Survivor Magazine, Asheville Review, Apalachee Review, The
Pedestal Magazine, Book of Hope, The Dexter Review, New CollAge, and
Sandhill Review.
Stazja
McFadyen's poetry has been published in anthologies, journals, and
magazines in the U.S., Canada, England, and Australia. Her poem "Flirting With Crawfish” won the 1998
Christina Sergeyevna Award. A book of her poems, Garland, was
published by PoetWorks Press in 2002, and her solo spoken word CD, Business
As Usual, won a 2002 Golden Headset Award. As a spoken word artist,
McFadyen has read her poetry on radio stations in Irvine, CA, Austin,
TX, BBC Bristol (UK), and Tampa. She has also performed at festivals
and spoken word venues throughout the United States and England. In the
Tampa area, her performances have included the Tampa Bay Performing
Arts Center "Weary Blues" program, St. Petersburg Times Festival of
Reading at Eckerd College, the release of Vital Signs: The Primal
Sessions compilation CD at the Gold Dragon Gallery, Confessions in
Poetry showcase at the Globe Coffee Lounge in St. Petersburg, and a
Frida Kahlo tribute reading at Viva la Frida restaurant and gallery in
Tampa.
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Melissa Fair
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Since
1997, McFadyen has published the Map of Austin Poetry
e-newsletter, which is funded by Austin International Poetry Festival
and distributed to approximately 1,000 readers in 12 countries. She
also publishes Best of MAP Featured Poetry chapbook anthology
series. As a poetry e-newsletterist, she was an invited panelist at the
2000 Texas Book Festival. After moving to
Clearwater in 2001, McFadyen began publishing the weekly PoEmPath
e-newsletter for the Tampa Bay area. For two years, she hosted monthly
poetry slams in St. Petersburg and she currently co-hosts with Rhonda
J. Nelson the Palabra Loca monthly reading series at Viva la Frida.
Poet Melissa Fair's work has
been published in the British journal, X, and will appear in
forthcoming issues of the Appalachee Review, Kalliope, and
Mind Purge. As a performance poet,
Fair has appeared at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Skipper's
Smokehouse, and the State Theater, opening for Jim Carroll. She also
appears on the CD Vital Signs: The Primal Sessions, and
performs with Rhonda J. Nelson under the name "The Po-Its" with a
variety of.musicians at benefit events sponsored by WMNF radio.
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May 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Humor
Writer Dennis Fried to Discuss Writing and Publishing at Tampa Writers
Alliance May 5
Florida humor writer Dennis Fried, Ph.D., will
discuss his humorous books and his independent publishing firm, Eiffel
Press, on Wednesday, May 5, at 7 p.m. at the monthly Tampa Writers
Alliance meeting in the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main
Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The public is invited to attend free of
charge.
Memoirs of A Papillon: The Canine Guide to Living with
Humans without Going Mad, purports to have been written by
Fried’s tiny brown and white papillon, Genevieve, who may
accompany him to the meeting. Calling Genevieve’s Memoirs
“the funniest book ever written by a dog,” Fried advises,
“Read this book before your dog does.”
“Wonderfully witty,” enthused Pet Times
in 2000. “…a must for all dog lovers….”
“I got so jealous of Genevieve's success,” says
Fried, “that I wrote my own book, which just came out. A
Tongue in the Sink: The Harrowing Adventures of a Baby Boomer Childhood
is a humorous look at growing up in a small town in the 1950s, with
reflections on the changing nature of childhood and on aging (besides
‘ugh’).”
Fried has published both books through his Eiffel Press and
has done all promotion, marketing, and other chores. “I've
learned a lot about publishing and its challenges,” he says,
adding, “I'll speaking about the history of both books, why I
decided to self-publish, the challenges involved, and the economics of
book selling.”
Holding advanced degrees in physics and philosophy, Fried
says he has “been laughed out of numerous careers, including
college teaching, marketing, advertising, software development, and
stand-up comedy.” He lives in Sarasota with his wife, Katrina,
and his “trainer,” Genevieve.
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June 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
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Motivational Speech
Scheduled for Tampa Writers Alliance Meeting Wednesday,
June 2
"Throw
Your Heart over the Bar," a motivational presentation showing how
individuals can use their gifts, including writing, to bring about the
changes they want, will be presented by Tampa writer, teacher, and
speaker Sandra Kischuk on Wednesday, June 2, at 7 p.m. at the monthly
Tampa Writers Alliance meeting in
the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The
public is invited to attend free of charge.
Kischuk,
who has had multiple sclerosis for over 26 years, uses real-life
examples to show the difference each person can make. At various times,
she has been blind, paralyzed, numb from the rib cage down, unable to
walk, unable to talk, and had no balance. At
one time, her neurologist told her she would never walk normally again. Nevertheless, she dances.
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Sandra
Kischuk addresses TWA
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She also writes.
Kischuk writes résumés for Superior Writing
and has been published statewide and nationally. Her
first novel is currently with a New York agent. Last
year, she won first place in fiction in the Tampa Writers Alliance
annual writing contest, and she has won numerous awards in fine arts.
In addition, she has written many speeches, including one for the
Indiana Lieutenant Governor.
As an artist, Kischuk had a scholarship in fine arts at
Indiana University and did courtroom art for a CBS affiliate, along
with technical writing, advertising copy writing, and architectural
rendering. A licensed life insurance agent and a certified project
manager, she holds an Associate Degree in Interior Design, a Bachelor
of Science Degree in Business Administration, a Master of Science
Degree in Management Information Systems, and a Masters Certificate in
Project Management.
Kischuk’s newest career is as a coach and
motivational speaker. She has been a coach for the past 18 months,
teaches classes for Baywinds, is scheduled to teach with the Suncoast
Girl Scouts, and is an executive coach at the University of Tampa. She has been the featured speaker at the
Transitioning Professionals of Tampa Bay, Business Network
International, the Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce, and Aston Gardens.
Her coaching newsletter is distributed to over 1,000 people weekly, and
information about her coaching activities is available on her website, www.LivingBeyondLimits.com.
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July 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Warner
Conarton explains the "Drama Circle," which
he developed to help writers add drama and suspense
into their fiction, based on the famous Karpman
Drama Triangle. His presentation was given at the
July 7 Tampa Writers Alliance meeting
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Increasing Drama and Suspense Is
Topic of
Tampa Writers Alliance
Meeting July 7
"Doctor Karpman's Magic Formula for
Drama and Suspense" will be the title of Zephyrhills-based writer and
writing coach Warner Conarton’s presentation to the Tampa Writers
Alliance on Wednesday, July 7. The group’s monthly meeting will
be held at 7 p.m. in
the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The
public is invited to attend free of charge.
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According to Conarton, who is coordinator of the
twice-monthly Tampa Writers Alliance Critique Group, understanding a
common pattern which runs through many relationships can help writers
build drama and suspense. Called the Karpman Drama Triangle, the
pattern is based on the work of California psychiatrist Stephen B.
Karpman, M.D., Ph.D. It holds that one individual often rescues another
from his or her responsibilities, then feels victimized and persecutes
the rescued person. One observer has described the “dysfunctional
dance” of persecutor, rescuer, and victim, as “so sneaky
and ambiguous that it is sometimes very hard to recognize and
acknowledge."
Conarton
has had advanced training in Transactional Analysis (which includes the
Karpman Drama Triangle as a key concept) and is a Certified
Practitioner of Neural Linguistic Programming (NLP), an advanced system
of psychotherapy. He also studied psychology and creative writing at
Michigan State University. Currently still in contact with Dr. Karpman,
Conarton is the creator of the “Drama Circle,” which he
developed to make the triangle more useful to writers.
A
former staff writer for the Miami-Dade County New Bureau where he set
several records for articles picked up by newspapers and magazines
internationally, Conarton was the coordinator of Scriptwriter's
Roundtable at Barnes & Noble on South Dale Mabry in Tampa for two
years and was thrice president of Lansing (Michigan) Writers.
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August 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Writing and Selling
One-Liners Is Topic of Tampa Writers Alliance Meeting
on Wednesday, August 4
"Novelty Writing — or
Don't Give Me a Byline, Just Send Me a Check" will be the subject of a
presentation by former newspaper reporter and columnist Sasha Tomey at
the monthly meeting of the Tampa Writers Alliance on Wednesday, August
4, at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium of the John
F. Germany Main Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The public is invited to
attend free of charge.
“Somebody wrote the
bumper sticker that made you smile this morning. Another somebody wrote
the cute line on your favorite coffee cup. If
you're the queen or king of one-liners, there's money to be made in the
novelty writing market,” says Tomey, who began writing one-liners
for greeting cards and novelty buttons in the early 1980’s.
“For a woman with two babies at home and very little writing
time, it was the perfect writing job,” she says, adding,
“Best of all, it brought checks to my mailbox, and oh, I do love
receiving checks!”
The Tampa resident and Tampa
Writers Alliance member will explain how to ease into the novelty
writing market, giving examples of ideas that sell and describing some
of the pitfalls.
When her children grew older,
Tomey says “by some amazing cosmic miracle I managed to parlay my
greeting card writing into newspaper reporting. Within a few
weeks,” she recalls, “my editor decided I was just the type
of person (totally loopy and living a wild and crazy life) who should
be writing a weekly column.”
For nine years, Tomey was a
reporter and columnist — first, for three newspapers in Virginia, then for a
military newspaper on Guam. In 1998, she began writing for confession
magazines. Her most recent story, "I Killed for Thrills," will be in
the October issue of True Love magazine.
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September 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Tampa
Writers Alliance to Hear About
Detective Work at September 1 Meeting
An insider’s look at
police detective work will be offered by Tampa Police Detective Chuck
Massucci at the monthly meeting of the Tampa Writers Alliance on
Wednesday, September 1, at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main Library,
900 N. Ashley Dr. The public is invited to attend free of charge.
Talks by crime specialists
have been among the Tampa Writers Alliance’s most successful
programs in recent years, popular with both mystery writers and writers
in other genres. Massucci’s wife, Julie, also a Tampa police
detective, has previously addressed the group.
Massucci has been a member
of the Tampa Police Department for 15 years and a detective for nearly
six years and has had major experience with the Narcotics Bureau. He
worked with the QUAD Squad for six years and with the Federal Narcotics
Task Force for four years. Operating undercover during this 10-year
period, he worked on several cases that involved wire taps, national
distribution groups, and international suppliers. Since June of 2003,
he has been assigned to the Homicide Bureau where, as he puts it,
“I have gained extensive experience in the investigation of
death!”
Massucci holds a
bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s degree
in history from the University of South Florida.
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October 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
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Tampa Writers Alliance
Plans
"An Informal Members Night"
at October 6 Meeting
At
right TWA member Martha McIntosh of Tampa reads from a manuscript for
children
sharing memories of a Depression-era childhood. Below, visitor Debbin
Smith of Clearwater reads her poem "I Dance to Life. "Other
contributors included President Jim Chapin, Vice President Sandra
Kischuk, Joan Strauman, and Warner Conarton.
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"An Informal Members Night" at the monthly
meeting of the Tampa Writers Alliance on Wednesday, October 6, will
offer an opportunity for anyone who wishes to take the floor and do
whatever he or she would like to do...i.e., read their poetry,
discuss the state of TWA, pass on to others something they
have learned or heard about, conduct quizzes, tell jokes, socialize and
get to know one another. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main
Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The public is invited to attend free of
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November 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Kevin Astl to Explain "Why Does A Writer Need A Lawyer?" on November 3 at Tampa Writers Alliance
Entertainment
attorney Kevin D. Astl of Wesley Chapel will discuss legal issues for
writers in a talk on "Why Does A Writer Need A Lawyer?" at the monthly
meeting of the Tampa Writers Alliance on Wednesday, November 3. The
meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium of the John F. Germany
Main Library, 900 N. Ashley Dr. The public is invited to attend free of
charge.
A graduate of the
University of South Florida, Astl earned his a law degree from Mercer
University in Macon, GA. He specializes in music industry law; however,
his practice includes many areas of entertainment law, including film
and television. He also works as a writers’ agent. His talk will
cover what he does as an agent, what happens when a writer is presented
with a contract, and other ways an attorney assists writers. His wife
is writer Cathie Astl, member-at-large on the Tampa Writers Alliance
Executive Committee.
A frequent speaker at
professional meetings, Astl has appeared several times on WTVT-FOX
13’s, “Ask-A-Lawyer,” a televised, on-air
question-and-answer session, and on radio call-in shows.
In addition to
his legal practice, he is a musician, songwriter, and drummer. He is a
member of various legal associations, as well as the National Academy
of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS); the American Society of Composers, Authors,
and Publishers (ASCAP); and the
Florida Motion Picture & Television Association (FMPTA), where he
serves as a member of the Board of Directors and legal advisor to the
Tampa Chapter,
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December 2004
TWA PROGRAM ARCHIVES
Popular Florida Novelist Tim Dorsey to Speak at Tampa
Writers Alliance Meeting December 1
“Vulgar, violent and gaudier
than sunsets on the Keys,” says the New York Times about
best-selling Tampa novelist Tim Dorsey’s books, while the Chicago
Tribune discovers in Dorsey’s hilarious Florida tales
“…some of the most wacky villains and situations since
Hiaasen stuck a plastic alligator down a stranger’s
throat.” In February, a seventh Dorsey novel, Torpedo Juice,
is scheduled for publication, and the author will discuss his new book
and his writing career at the monthly meeting of the Tampa Writers
Alliance on Wednesday, December 1. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m.
in the Auditorium of the John F. Germany Main Library, 900 N. Ashley
Dr. The public is invited to attend free of charge.
A lifelong
Floridian, Dorsey is a former Tampa Tribune reporter who left the paper
in 1999 to write full time. His outrageously funny crime novels
include, in order of appearance, Florida Roadkill. Hammerhead Ranch
Hotel, Orange Crush, Triggerfish Twist, Stingray Shuffle, and
Cadillac Beach. However, the story chronology does not follow the
book publication chronology, Dorsey explains, which is way “dead
people show up in the later books.” Dorsey’s novels have
been published in five countries, and he now writes a monthly column,
“At Bay,” for Tampa Bay Illustrated magazine.
Dorsey lives in Tampa with his wife and two daughters.
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