WRWA Newsletter.pub - Wisconsin Writers Association

Wisconsin Regional Writers' Association 

The Wisconsin Regional Writer 

Volume 55, Number 4 

On the web at www.wrwa.net 

Winter 2006 

Tax Tips for Writers by John Campbell 

You just returned from the WRWA Fall Conference in 

Janesville. You spent money for registration, hotel, meals, 

mileage, and four books that promise to advance your writing 

career. What can you deduct as a legitimate business expense 

To answer that question you have to understand the tax obligations 

of your particular business entity. Most writers are 

doing business as sole proprietors, earning a little income here 

and there with book sales, non-fiction features, short stories, 

and a few bucks from poetry contests. If you show those earnings 

as income, you should be able to take legitimate business 

deductions. 

The real question is whether you see your 

writing as a business or as a way to pass the 

time, like a hobby If you actually make income 

from your writing, and if that income exceeds 

the expenses you have (or report), then you have 

every right to take your expenses as tax deductions. 

There’s no magic income minimum, but to 

take business deductions against income, you 

eventually have to show a profit or some rookie 

from the IRS is going to call you for a personal 

interview. If you have writing-related expenses 

this year, but no writing-related income, and 

anticipate income next year (for example, from sales of a book 

that is coming out next year), you can defer those expenses 

and take them in the following year. 

You can deduct the full value of almost everything you 

spend to advance your earning potential as a writer. Meals 

away from home and entertainment expenses are the exception. 

Both are only 50% deductible. If you entertained an 

agent or publisher, keep track of whom you were with, the 

business purpose, where you were, date and amount. Attending 

a writers’ conference or seminar, motel and hotel expenses 

are 100% deductible—all the more reason to book with a facility 

that offers a continental breakfast. For use of your automobile 

on business, you’re allowed 44.5 cents a mile this year 

(2006). Effective January 1, 2007, the business mileage deduction 

will increase to 48.5 cent a mile. 

You can also deduct the cost of business telephone calls. 

Simply circle the business-related calls on your monthly bills, 

total them and keep a copy in your business records. At the 

end of the year tally the 12 months and deduct the cost of 

those calls. Fees and taxes on the home phone are not deductible. 

If you do a lot of business on the phone, the best idea is to 

install a line or get a cell phone for business only. Then 100% 

of the telephone charges, including all those miscellaneous 

fees and taxes, are deductible. 

Other tax deductible items include magazine subscriptions, 

dues for business affiliations, postage, computer costs, facsimile 

and copy machine and their maintenance, photographs and 

camera used for business, the cost of a Website and Internet 

connections. 

If you’re self-employed and paying your own health insurance 

premiums, that cost may be deductible on Form 1040, 

but not as a business expense. Moreover, the deduction cannot 

be more than your business’ net profit. It’s not allowed if you 

are covered under other health care plans like that 

of an employed spouse. 

Even though you’re not taking a home office 

deduction, all the supplies necessary to conduct 

your writing business are deductible. You can 

deduct the cost of office furniture all in one year 

or spread it over a period of seven years. That’s 

known as depreciation expense. The IRS has a 

chart for depreciating items like desks, filing cabinets, 

and computers, which is another reason to 

seek the help of an accountant who stays on top of 

changing tax laws. Their cost is deductible. 

One of the more controversial tax deductions is the home 

office. The IRS says it must be space devoted exclusively to 

your business. If that’s the case, and you’re using 600 square 

feet of a residence that’s 2400 square feet, for example, you 

should be able to deduct one-fourth of your rent or mortgage 

payments, the annual insurance, heating, and electrical costs. 

However, if your kids are on that same computer you use during 

the day, and the office is a family room for watching the 

Packer games on evenings and weekends, you better think 

twice about using it as a deduction. 

To allay fears of an IRS audit, good record keeping is essential. 

Unfortunately, writers are generally lousy record 

keepers. For my own use, I composed a form called an Itinerary 

and Expense Sheet. I use one for each week. It has a space 

to show my mileage in and out each day with a line or two for 

a description of the trip and a space for expenses. Receipts are 

stapled to each sheet. From these weekly Itinerary and Expense 

Sheets my company reimburses me for expenses each 

month. 

You’ve heard the expression: An emergency properly prepared 

for never happens. That’s exactly how to handle your 

expense and income records. (Continued on page 4)

Page 2 

Pictures from the Fall Conference in Janesville 

(more on page 35) 

Ben Logan Dorothy Lund Mary Jacobsen Cary Fellman Judy Kolosso LaMoine MacLaughlin John Manesis 

LaMoine MacLaughlin Sandra Tully Berit Pietsch Margaret Been John Campbell 

LaMoine and Judy Julie Eger Cary Cary Neele Suklhatme-Sheth 

[Your editor apologizes for not knowing everyone’s name. I was able to get many by enlarging name tags. But not everyone’s showed.] 

“I can’t help it if your check bounced.” “The fish was that big. Really! Honest!” “You say I misspelled Claudia’s name” 

Jane Osypowski Bette Williams Don Schambow Nate Scholze Boyd Sutton Claudia Anderson

Contents 

Articles 

Tax Tips for Writers ………….……. 4 

Book List ……………………………. 24 

Columns 

Board Decisions & Actions …………… 19 

From Time to Time—Members’ Letters . 23 

Just the FAQs ……………………….. 19 

Midnight Musings ………………… . 17 

Writers’ Markets & Jobs ……………… 28 

Calendar ……………………………… ... 14 

Club News ……………………………. 5-12 

Fall Conference ………………….... 29-35 

Information & Announcements … 14-15 

Members’ Writing ……………….. 20-27 

Marta Hartung Crane ……… …………..20 

Don Schambow ……………………. 20, 22 

Claudia Anderson ………………….. 21 

Patty Miler …………………………. 21 

Art Schmitz ………………………… 22 

Peg Sherry …………………………. 22 

Marsha Jordan ……………………… 22 

Cary Fellman ……………………….. 23 

Pat Fitzgerald ……………………….. 23 

Boyd Sutton …………………………26, 27 

Kathy Conger ………………………. 27 

Mary Downs ……………………….. 27 

President’s Message ……………………..36 

WRWA Officers ……………………...….18 

The Wisconsin Regional Writer is published 

quarterly by the Wisconsin Regional 

Writers’ Association, Inc. solely for the 

benefit of its members. Submission deadlines 

are February 15 (spring), May 15 

(summer), July 15 (fall), and November 

15 (winter). 

Send all e-mail submissions to the Editor 

at bdsutton at centurytel dot net or 

newsletter at wrwa dot net. Send regular 

mail to Boyd Sutton, 23059 Old 35, Siren, 

54872. 

Advertising Rates 

1/8 page $20 

1/4 page $35 

1/2 page $50 

1 page $90 

Same ad run in multiple editions: 

2 editions discount 10 percent 



Members may list books for sale at $5 for 

one edition or $10 for four editions (see 

page 19 for details). E-mail listings or requests 

for ads to the editor at the above 

address. Acceptance of an advertisement 

in this publication does not imply endorsement 

or approval of the product or 

service by the Wisconsin Regional Writers’ 

Association, Inc. or its associates. # 

Editor’s Corner 

Page 3 

This edition marks the end of my second year as 

Editor of The Wisconsin Regional Writer. It also marks 

the real beginning of your Wisconsin Regional Writer 

as both newsletter and literary journal of the Association. 

In effect, TWRW has become the Association’s 

magazine. Although we have published some members’ 

creative writing for several issues now, it has always 

been on a “space available” basis. Starting with this 

issue, four to six pages per issue will be set aside for that purpose. If advertising 

supports the additional pages, I hope to increase that. We are, in effect, bringing 

back some aspects of an earlier WRWA publication—Creative Wisconsin, which 

used to be published as a companion to the Association’s regular newsletter. 

I was disappointed by receiving so few creative submissions for this edition. 

Thanks to members of the Online Discussion Group, submissions picked up near 

the deadline. I hope that WRWA members will begin to realize that their work can 

get published here and will submit it for consideration. Your writing not only gets 

disseminated to members via the hard copy Wisconsin Regional Writer, it appears 

in the online version and is accessible to millions of readers. I Googled some of 

the authors published in the summer and fall editions (which are now online) and 

got links to their stories and poems. All submissions go into a folder. Those not 

selected for one edition remain eligible for future editions. 

Just as you got used to seeing e-mail addresses in a strange new format, our 

webmaster, Ralph Davis, discovered a way to present them online in the standard 

format without risking that they will be harvested by Web bots and sold to spam 

mongers. Accordingly, e-mail addresses will again be listed in the standard format. 

I’m also going back to listing addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses for 

Board members and Club Reporters. These data are all presented on the WRWA 

Web site’s page for Local Groups. It seems silly for me to keep them out of the 

newsletter when the same information is elsewhere on our Web site. 

Readers will see more coverage of how the Internet affects writing. More than 

75 percent of American households now have computers with Internet connections. 

Many publishers accept queries and submissions by e-mail, quite a few only 

by e-mail. Some even allow you to go to their Web sites and submit articles and 

photographs directly to the Web site. Many writers don’t use correct Internet terminology, 

or spell the terms incorrectly. So I’ve included an item in this edition to 

help writers get it right (page 27). Finally, the Internet is an incredibly rich resource 

for writers. Thus, I’m inaugurating a new regular feature, “Useful URLs,” 

to identify especially useful Web sites for writers (page 26). I welcome reader contributions. 

Finally, because this is such a long edition, I have used 10 point type throughout. 

That allows me to get in two extra pages with no increase in cost. If readers 

find that too small, please e-mail or call me to let me know and I’ll return to the 

font size I had been using. 

I hope that all of you have a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, or whatever 

you celebrate at this time of year. 

Boyd Sutton 

Copyright Notice 

WRWA members whose writing is published in The Wisconsin Regional Writer 

retain the copyright to their work. Submission of your work grants one-time rights 

for publication by TWRW. Items printed here should be regarded as “published” 

and authors should make this known when declaring “prior publication” when 

submitting the work elsewhere. Because of our limited distribution, most editors 

probably will not regard that as an issue. Finally, the editor will do his best to uphold 

high standards of quality in the selection of what is printed here so authors 

may be proud of having their writing presented to the full WRWA membership. #

Page 4 

(Continued from page 1) 

Anticipate that you will get a call from someone at the Internal 

Revenue Department; and hope it never happens. But just 

in case, have those records ready. 

To reduce the possibility of an IRS audit, you should establish 

a business entity. It really is not difficult to establish, depending 

on what option you choose. You have the choice of 

doing business as a proprietorship, a partnership, an LLC 

(limited liability corporation), or an S or C corporation. Social 

Security payments and some deductibles are handled differently 

depending upon the entity you choose. 

Most writers do business as proprietorships or partnerships. 

When you’re self-employed as a proprietorship, you have to 

pay double the Social Security contributions you would pay as 

an employee of a company. It’s often referred to as a selfemployment 

tax, which is currently 15.3%. That doesn’t seem 

fair does it The good news it that you can deduct half that 

amount on your 1040 federal tax return. 

Operating your business as a sole proprietor requires only 

an address, phone number, and e-mail address. If you establish 

a partnership (with your wife, for example), you can employ 

your children and not be subject to Social Security taxes for 

them, provided they are under the age of 17. The child must 

perform services for the company and be compensated accordingly. 

What you pay them is a deduction for the business. If 

the child’s total income is under the standard deduction 

($5,150. for 2006) no federal income tax is due. 

There is no requirement for you to obtain an Employee 

Identification Number (EIN—Form SS-4, see http:// 

www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fss4.pdfportlet=3) so long as you 

operate your business as sole proprietor and have no employees. 

Doing so, however, firmly establishes your writing enterprise 

as a business and eliminates the need for you to give 

your Social Security Number (SSN) to everyone who pays 

you for work. You can give them the EIN instead, thus reducing 

the risk of identity theft. 

A partnership does require an EIN, and unless you're part- 

nering with your wife, whom you trust dearly, I would recommend 

a partnership agreement, one prepared by legal council. 

Another option in Wisconsin is to form a limited liability 

corporation (known as an LLC). The filing costs just $135 

(www.wdfi.org), which can be taken as a business expense. 

An LLC limits your personal liability for losses and damages 

caused by you or your employees and agents. There’s less 

paperwork—annual reports and such—with an LLC than with 

an S or C corporation. With an LLC or corporation you must 

apply for an EIN from the federal government. When a publisher 

asks for your social security number, you give them 

your EIN instead. 

As an LLC or an S or C corporation, the company pays 

one-half the Social Security tax and you pay the other half in 

your wage deductions. If you are the only shareholder, you 

can see that both halves are still coming out of your pocket. If 

you’re the only employee, this means a lot more paperwork 

for you compared to being a sole proprietor or a one person 

LLC. In addition, S and C corporations are liable for unemployment 

taxes. On the other hand, if you’re doing business as 

an S or C corporation, the corporation is not relieved of the 

child’s Social Security tax. It’s generally not the way to go as 

a writer. 

If you are earning income from your writing, you should 

seriously examine the value of taking writing-related tax deductions 

and the benefits of establishing a formal business 

identity. Other than S or C corporations, it’s pretty easy— 

something you can do yourself, without the help of a lawyer. 

But tax laws change; so you should always get advice from a 

good tax accountant. That’s deductable, too, by the way. 

[Editor’s Note: This article is based on information in Chapter 

28 (Income and Expenses) in John Campbell’s book, Writing 

in Retirement (www.writingretirement.com), which covers 

the subject in greater depth. Copies may be purchased from 

John at cera@execpc.com.] # 

I don't like morning—it starts too early in the day. Yesterday 

morning was worse than most and started out bad from 

the get go. I always know it's going to be a lousy day when it 

begins with getting out of bed. I've had bronchitis for over a 

week, and to make matters worse, I awoke with a migraine the 

size of Hoboken, New Jersey. I was crabbier than a seaside 

restaurant. 

I'd had surgery on my hand and was taking pain medication 

that made me lethargic, so I just wanted to veg out, watching 

Gilligan's Island reruns and old movies. But right in the middle 

of "It's a Wonderful Life," my TV died. (Merry Christmas, 

Bedford Falls!) I don't know what went wrong with it, but it 

may have had something to do with the flames shooting out 

the back like fourth of July fireworks. 

Do you know how boring and frustrating it is to be cranky, 

tired, and sick but not have a TV for distraction I had to put 

up with my own company. That's as much fun as spending the 

day in a phone booth with a Pitt Bull that has PMS. 

Limburger Attitude by Marsha Jordan 

I decided to make Christmas cookies, but that endeavor did 

not go well. The first bowl of dough was runnier than my 

nose. The second batch was as sticky as used gum on a hot 

sidewalk, and I burned the third batch blacker than a grease 

monkey's finger nails. No wonder I hate to cook. After three 

flops, I gave up and vowed never to touch an oven mitt again. 

I think I'll become a commercial cook, cooking only what can 

be heated in the microwave during TV commercials. 

I grabbed the pitcher of juice and bumped it on the counter. 

The bottom exploded like an overcooked Johnsonville brat. A 

geyser of juice and shattered glass sprayed the cupboards and 

floor. After cleaning that up, I went into the den and slid 

across the room on a pile of dog vomit, smearing it all over 

the rug. Another mess to clean up. 

[Editor’s Note: With apologies to Marsha and to readers for 

having to chase the completion of her story across several 

pages. But that’s one way to use extra space.] 

(continued on page 11)

Page 5 

WRWA Online Discussion Forum: Patty Miler, Reporter pattyapplet@aol.com 

L. A VanVeghel, Moderator VanVeghelL@msn.com 

After suffering several serious problems 

with our Web host, and a lack of 

customer support, we changed Web 

hosts. Thanks for all the hard work by 

our moderator, Larry Van Veghel, and 

our webmaster, Ralph Sharp. Now, 

that all of the computer problems have 

been resolved we are once again chatting 

away about writing. 

We have discussed the post-Fall Conference 

writing spree, our publication 

dreams, translating books to movie 

screen plays, writing a book trailer (the 

jacket blurb), character development, 

and much more. 

The forum’s moderator, Larry Van 

Veghel, was elected to the position of 

Secretary and Media Director of the 

Wisconsin Council of Sport Fishing 

Organizations. With a full-time job, this 

important position in Wisconsin’s premiere 

fishing organization, serving as 

moderator of the Online Discussion 

Forum, and a successful career as a 

freelance outdoors writer, Larry epitomizes 

the old saw, “If you want to get a 

job done, give it to a busy person.” 

Welcome to our newest members: 

Star Davies, Gail Toerpe, Robert 

Barlow, Don Schambow, and Paul 

Vadney (Lois Rentmeester’s husband, 

who jumped in temporarily to help with 

a computer problem one of our members 

was having). 

We are now up to 43 members, including 

at least five members of the 

WRWA Board of Directors. The forum 

is an excellent place to get advice about 

writing, to discuss WRWA issues, and 

to just chat with like-minded writing 

friends. We welcome new members at 

any time. # 

Northwest Regional Writers: Bernice Abrahamzon, Reporter, Frederic, Wisconsin 

Mary Jacobsen, maryj@sirentel.net 

Our clubs October meeting was held 

at the new home of former member, 

Sally Bair, in the woods near 

Washburn, Wisconsin, just south of 

Bayfield. We carpooled for the two 

hour trip and enjoyed potluck lunch 

together before our regular meeting. We 

asked Mary Jacobsen to read her short 

story which one third in the 2006 Jade 

Ring Contest and offered her congratulations. 

Sally Bair has long had a weekly 

meditation column in The Inter-County 

Leader, Frederick, and it now also appears 

in The Daily Press, Ashland. 

Sally continues to find inspiration in her 

secluded sanctuary. 

Three of our members, Alice Ford, 

Kathy Krantz, and Bernice Abrahamzon 

often have essays in “Yarns of 

Yesteryear,” a regular feature in The 

Country Today, published in Eau Claire. 

Several members have published 

items in the “Writers’ Corner” section 

of The Inter-County Leader. 

The Northwest Regional Writers 

awarded a scholarship to member Don 

Miller for lodging expenses at the Fall 

Conference in Janesville. In addition to 

Don, Boyd Sutton, Mary Jacobsen, 

and LaMoine MacLaughlin (Amery) 

also attended, carpooling in Boyd's van. 

Their return ride was more exciting than 

bargained for, as Boyd suffered a burst 

blood vessel in his eye just as the conference 

ended, requiring a three-hour 

side trip to the University of Wisconsin 

Medical Center in Madison. Boyd’s eye 

is OK. No vision loss. 

Bob McLean (Mac) and Bernice 

Abrahamzon enjoyed hearing a presentation 

by Jerry Apps at Frederick, 

sponsored by the local library. Bernice 

wrote the event up for the local newspaper. 

This was the fourth time since this 

spring that Apps came to Polk County 

to address groups. 

Five of our members have had books 

produced through the years by Bill 

Heins Publications (see his ad on page 

25), including Arleth Eriksson, Glendora 

Hauger, Alice Ford, Kathy 

Krantz, and Bernice Abrahamzon. 

Sharen and Ed Kaatz observed 

their 50th wedding anniversary at King, 

Wisconsin, on October 27. Sharen is 

our club’s WRWA Lifetime Member 

and we are very proud of her. 

Boyd Sutton’s “Community Voices” 

column in The Inter-County Leader, 

“Casting an Informed Vote,” was published 

a week before the election. It can 

be viewed at http://www.the-leader.net/. 

Click on Community Voices (left column), 

then on the title of Boyd’s column. 

Eunice Kanne just turned 99 and is 

our club’s most senior member. She 

faithfully attends our monthly meetings 

and does the writing assignments. She 

continues to produce a weekly column 

in the Burnett Sentinel and has authored 

five books: Memories of the 20th century, 

From Far North Norway, Were 

They Really the Good Old Days, Big 

Gust, and Pieces of the Past. Every one 

sold out. She taught school for 52 years. 

She got her first computer at age 84 

“because it was easier to write my second 

book that way,” and recently announced 

that she now has a “more up to 

date computer.” So all you old fogies 

out there take note. It’s never too late to 

learn new tricks. #

Page 6 

Writers on the Rock: Ruth I. Sellnow, Reporter Watertown, WI writersontherock@yahoo.com 

http://my.exepc.com/~jayfox/writersontherock 

Susan Kileen was co-chair for 

WFOP Triad contest this year. 

Ruth Sellnow has two published articles 

in the Autumn, 2006, issue of The 

Historical Review, a publication of the 

Watertown Historical Society. The titles 

are “Mondays in Watertown” and 

“Historical Changes in Shopping and 

Food Styles.” The issue was mailed to 

members of the society on October 20, 

2006. 

Our members are willing to listen to 

writers read their writing and to give 

constructive criticisms or helpful sug- 

gestions. The styles, philosophies, and 

genres of interest are as varied as the 

members of our group. We are presently 

meeting monthly at the Watertown Public 

Library. # 

Janesville Area Writers’ Club: Edna M. Thorp, Reporter mefarley@ticon.net 

Janesville, WI 53548-2987 

We were honored to have the WRWA Fall Conference held in Janesville in September. We enjoyed the conference, especially 

the interesting and knowledgeable presentations of the speakers, and hope to be chosen again for this event. 

Sherry Derr-Willie is writing a series of four books. The first in the series, Double M: The Malins, came out in September. 

Seducing Sir Gwain was published in October. 

Early in the fall Sherry was asked by the Leon Saxeville Township Library to autograph a quilt block. She is one of 42 authors 

who did so. The quilt, fashioned from these autographed blocks, was auctioned off on November 11 th . Sherry and the other authors 

were invited to attend the festivities on that weekend. The library is in Pine River, Wisconsin # 

Unpolished Gems Writer’s Group: Betty Smedlund, Reporter Pfrolic@aol.com 

Kimberly, Wisconsin 

Poetry by Barbara Jo Gauthier and 

Betty Smedlund was published in the 

thirty-second issue of Fox Cry Review, a 

literary magazine published annually by 

the University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley; 

Barbara Jo’s was titled “Nights Cattle 

Roamed” and Betty’s, “Packing Up.” 

The Poetry of Jan Elias and Don 

Wydeven was published in the fall issue 

of Irish Stew. Titles for their work are 

“Class Conflicts” and “What About 

You,” respectively. 

Two articles by Betty Smedlund 

were published in The Post Crescent, 

Appleton’s daily newspaper: 

“Northwoods home is No Golden Pond” 

and “Motherhood more than a part-time 

job.” 

Amy DeBroux’s article, “Adopting a 

Child is a True Family Experience,” was 

published in The Post Crescent Newspaper 

on October 5. 

During the months of June, July and 

August, Barbara Jo Gauthier, Mary 

Pribbenow, Betty Smedlund, and Don 

Wydeven read their poetry and flash 

fiction at Barnes and Nobel to celebrate 

Irish Stew and its publisher, Joanne 

Flemming. 

Two dinner theatre performances of 

“A Night of Fairy Tales and Bedtime 

Stories For Children 21 to 121” will be 

held at the Atlas Coffee Mill & Café in 

Appleton. On the nights of November 

11 and 14, Amy DeBroux, Barbara Jo 

Gauthier, Betty Smedlund, and Don 

Wydeven will perform their twisted 

versions of Grimm’s fairy tales as the 

evenings’ entertainment. 

Don Wydeven continues to facilitate 

meetings of the Pros on Prose Writing 

Group that meets at Barnes & Noble 

twice monthly. # 

Fond du Lac Area Writers: Jane Osypowski, Co-Reporter martyandjane@powerweb.net 

W972 Birchwood Drive, Cambellsport, WI 53010 920-553-3044 

Gary Scheinoha has had letters to the editor published in The (Fond du Lac) Reporter and The Campbellsport News. Evelyn 

Scheinoha also had a letter to the editor published in The Reporter. C. Ross Purcell is putting together a monthly publication 

entitled Reed. Jane Osypowski’s poem, “Blind Words,” was published in Free Verse. 

We discussed character types at the August meeting and wrote pieces based on character type for September. In October, we 

wrote and shared Halloween stories. 

John Silah has created a web site for our group. It is a link on the Fond du Lac Community Theater’s site and can be found at 

www.fdlct.com. Go to the bottom and look for The Fond du Lac Area Writers. We regularly meet on the fourth Tuesday of each 

month at Moraine Park Technical College in Fond du Lac. #

Page 7 

Hayward Northworders: Dorothy Lund, Reporter dlund10@centurytel.net 

Hayward, WI 

President Laura Burlage has come out with a C.D. of songs she has composed and recorded called “Legends of the Trubadors,” 

produced by Heartistry Music. She has been busy travelling and speaking in carrying out her duties as Wisconsin't Honey 

Queen. 

Sue Burgess and her husband, Tom, have researched and produced a collection, Tales of La Courte Oreilles, stories of those 

who settled on its shores. 

Barbara Rang, a Peace Corps volunteer in her early adult life, has published The Road Taken: Two Years in the Tropics. 

Betty Haling is known for her chapbook of poetry, A Look at Life. 

Don and Doris Black write a monthly column, “Tales from the Black Forest,” which goes out to forty regular readers and is 

published in a church newsletter. # 

Dorothy Lund is winner of the WRWA Jade Ring award for her article "Cameo of Dad." She earlier took a first place for her 

short-story, "Mushroom Mixup" in the Bo Carter Memorial Writing Contest sponsored by the Waukesha Writers' Workshop. Her 

flash fiction story, “The Mission" was selected for publiication in spring 2006 edition of The Wisconsin Regional Writer. # 

Pauquette Wordcrafters: Marge Inselman, Reporter minselmanwriter@mymailstation.com 

W5538 Hwy 60, Poynette, WI 53955 (608) 635-4657 

umn of the Portage Daily Register. Muriel Getchel, "My 

Hero, My Friend, My Sister.” Bea Heberlien, "Tis the Season 

of the Golden Crow." Marge Inselman, "A Magic Christmas 

Eve." This December and January, several more articles will 

appear, written by Idella Anacker, Lou Roach, Dave Manthey 

and Charlotte Clark. Titles were not available when 

this report was submitted. 

The Pauquette Wordcrafters meet Wednesdays, bi-monthly 

at 9:30 a.m. in the Portage Public Library. New members are 

always welcome. 

[Editor’s Note: Correction for Summer Newsletter: Sarah 

Mautz had a poem published in the magazine Purpose. Her 

poem was titled "Mary's Nard". In the summer newsletter the 

word nard was spelled nerd. Nard means a fragrant lotion 

used in ancient times.] # 

St. Croix Valley PEN and ThINK: Beverley Larsen, Reporter, Hudson, WI 

bjlarsen@pressenter.com 

Bev Larsen notes the enthusiastic 

beginning of a new writers’ group in 

Hudson, Wisconsin, just across the river 

from St. Paul, MN. Our group is called 

Pen and ThInk. We have a day group 

and an evening group. The day group 

meets the second Tuesday from 9:30 to 

11 at the Hudson Library—a nice big 

room with soft chairs!! The first gathering 

was at a local coffee shop to determine 

interest and we had 11 show up! I 

immediately knew we had a good start 

to successful writing. The library is free 

Millie Stanley spoke to about 40 people at the Pardeville 

Garden Club at the John Muir Memorial Park in Montello, 

WI. Her talk was based on her book, The Heart of John 

Muir's World, Wisconsin Family and Wilderness Discovery, 

published in 1995 by Oak Press, Madison. 

Lou Roach's article, “Personhood Demands Accountability,” 

was published in the Writers' Write column of the Portage 

Daily Register. Lou also earned First Honorable Mention 

in the Jade Ring contest for her article "Film Maker Best 

Flourishes in An Unlikely Place.". She also had a poem in the 

2007 WFOP Poet's Calendar titled "Seasonal Dilemma.". 

Idella Anacker has a Haiku poem in the 2007 WFOP 

Poet’s Calendar. Idella is included in John Campbell's book, 

Writing In Retirement, for an article she had in Working 

Writer. 

The following also had articles in the Writers' Write coland 

convenient for all. The first meeting 

for the evening group will be at the Hudson 

Bagel and Coffee Shop on the third 

Wednesday of each month starting in 

November. 

We reach south to River Falls and 

North to near Stillwater at the present 

time and have grown from one man to 

four in just three months! We have 

about 15 members now and I think we 

have a good mix of writers, genres, and 

backgrounds. The group ranges in age 

from 17 (Hudson high school girl) to a 

retired journalist who is probably 80 

The best part is the fabulous cooperation 

that I have from the members. Election 

of officers was very easy because they 

volunteered and are very involved! 

Yeah! 

Bev Larsen, Sandra Whalen, and 

Lonna Possehl agreed to be board 

members through December 31, 2006. 

We look forward to some great opportunities 

with several members eager 

to “get their works in print.” #

Page 8 

Poco Penners: Audrey Stensvold, Reporter, 24 120th St., Deer Park, WI 54007 

Lonski@amerytel.net 

Carolyn Lumsden has been our most prolific writer these 

past months. Carolyn and husband Gary joined efforts on a 

series of three articles published by Engineers and Engines 

magazine. "My Grandfather's Steam Engines." Part one was 

published in the June/July 2006 issue. "Changing Times" (part 

two) was in the Aug/Sept 2006 issue. The third one will be 

published soon. A short fiction story, "Summer Love," was 

published in the The Wisconsin Regional Writer summer 

2006 issue. Carolyn also submitted a poem, "Seduction," to 

the International Library of Poetry. She recieved the Editor's 

Choice Award and Certificate. This will be included in their 

book and also be a part of a CD poetry collection, "The Sound 

Of Poetry," read by a professional reader. 

Several of our members have been published in the Writers 

Corner of The Inter-County Leader: 

"I Must Have Moved," Carolyn Lumsden 6/7/06 

"Picnic Thoughts," Brenda Mayer 8/2/06 

"A Brain Too Big," Audrey Stensvold 8/2/06 

"For The Birds," Joyce Thompson 9/27/06 

"A Freckle Faced Boy," Carolyn Lumsden 

"Under The Red Water Tower," Brenda Mayer 10/25/06. # 

Round Robin Groups: Credessa Williams, Reporter 920-748-9443 

N4849 Robinson Road, Black River Falls, WI 54615 

Winners of the 2006 end of term contests are: 

Article Club: “Meeting New Friends,” by Lee Ann Balman, 

Independence, WI. “Life is a Journey,” by Wilma Leonard, 

Baraboo, WI. “Return to Pearl Harbor,” by Lee Nelson, 

Waco, TX. 

Word Spinners Poetry Club: First Prize – “Recessional,” by 

Barbara Germiat, Appleton, WI, and “Grandfather’s Favorite 

Cousin,” by Connie Sanderson, Eastman, WI. Second 

Prize – “Egret-Waiting,” by Peg Sherry, Madison, WI. Third 

Prize – “Golden Orchestration,” by Phyllis Reisdorf, Madison, 

WI. Honorable Mention – “To Live-The Rest of It,” by 

Inez Stewart, Baraboo, WI. 

Coordinators for the 2006-07 term are: 

First Flight Club: Lee Balman, Independence, WI. 

Article Club: Grady Gutknecht and Betty Steele, Black 

River Falls, WI. 

Children’s Writers Robin: Darlene Buechel, Chilton, WI. 

Essay Club: Joan Rozanski, Milwaukee, WI. 

Novel Club: Dee Jucius, Salem, WI. 

Word Spinners Poetry Club: Patricia Weisberg, Milwaukee, 

WI 

Short Story Club: Shirley Rice, Logansport, IN # 

St. Croix Writers: Jo Stewart, Reporter 715-378-2723 

P.O. Box 102, Solon Springs, WI 54873 

One of our newest members, Harry Sarazen, won second 

place in the Nostalgia category with his essay, “A Close 

Shave." Congratulations to all the Jade Ring winners. 

Occasionally I get asked, "Does the Club News section 

only want news of those who have been published" That 

sometimes seems to be the case, but I know that it is not the 

purpose. When our group was formed in 1989, we had 14 

charter members. We now have 40 members who attend the 

meetings when they can. We are enriched by each member's 

contribution whether or not it reaches publication status. 

Some of our members who have been published recently 

are an Ann Penton (in Free Verse), Bonnie Johnson (in the 

St. Paul Pioneer Press, "Bulletin board"), Thomas W. King, 

Harry Sarazen, and Joe Stewart (in the Daily Telegram, 

Superior, "Senior class" feature), and Mary Ellen Ryall, 

(Washburn County Register, “Senior Focus”). Mary Ellen is 

editor of Butterflies and Gardens. Jackie Remlinger a new 

member of St. Croix Writers, is a newsletter copy editor. 

Authors reading their original works at the Joan Salmen 

Memorial Library in Solon Springs in July, August, and September 

were Kate Karras, Renee Butterfield, and Kathy 

Swanson. 

[Editor’s Note: Club News is a place to celebrate more than 

just getting published. Club Reporters should include significant 

activities, accomplishments other than publication, and 

whatever it is that your club is particularly proud of. But 

please try to keep it short. We have a limited number of pages 

and are trying to set aside space to publish articles and features 

and more members’ writing.] # 

Fox Valley Writers’ Club: Marain Athens, Reporter mathens@juno.com, Appleton, WI 

See the club’s web site at http://www.focol.org/foxvalleywriters/ 

Fox Valley Writers Club member Randal Files had a script accepted in Tennessee. It has been filmed and is in the editing 

stage now. He is not sure of the release date yet. #

Shawano Area Writers (SAW): John J. Mutter, Jr., Reporter jjmutter@athenet.net 715-524-4520 

N2787 McDonald Road, Shawano, WI 54166 

Page 9 

On the weekend of August 11-13, Shawano Area Writers 

had a table set up at the 28th Annual Shawano Folk Music 

Festival, where they sold their books and handed out information 

about SAW and their 40th anniversary. SAW was part of 

the Saturday program, as they talked for an hour about, "The 

Writing Life." Linda Kunda, Marcie Leitzke, Trilby 

McIntosh, John Mutter, Jr., Marianne Severson and Irma 

Timmons read some of their work to the audience. 

Irma Timmons wrote a play entitled, "History of Churches 

in Shawano County." The play was performed at the Shawano 

County Fair in early September. 

Jan Schreiber and John Mutter, Jr., each had a letter to 

the editor printed in the Shawano Leader. 

Ward K. Peterson was 

presented an award in appreciation 

for sharing his 

life through his writing, 

especially his book titled 

“Grandpa Remembers.” 

Shawano Area Writers 

President John Mutter 

said he appreciated Ward 

“opening up your life through the written word, growing up in 

rural Wisconsin,” and added, “It was a life well lived.” 

John also presented 

an award to 

charter member 

Marcie Leitzke at 

the celebration the 

club had at the Farm 

Inn to mark the 40th 

anniversary. John 

presented her with a 

certificate signed by 

him and by Shawano 

Mayor Lorna 

Marquardt. As he presented the award, he noted all the information 

and entertainment Marcie has provided over the years 

with her poetry, columns, and other writing, adding that she 

“made the world a better place.” # 

Waukesha Writer’s Workshop: Mickey Burgermeister, Reporter 262-679-0862 

S69 W17349 Kirkwood Drive, Muskego, WI 53150-8851 

Gloria Anzilotti of Waukesha and Florence, Italy, reports 

the sale of a poem, “Only More in Store,” to The Shoenstatt 

Family quarterly magazine, Fall 2006 issue, a Waukesha publication. 

Ramon Klitzke won the Minocqua Beef-A-Rama Poetry 

Contest. He was awarded $50 in Beef-A-Rama dollars to be 

used at the annual Beef-A-Rama celebration on September 30. 

He also served as Celebrity Judge on the Roast Beef Cooking 

Competition. 

At the Fall Conference of the WRWA, three Waukesha 

Writer’s Workshop members were named as winners in the 

Jade Ring Contest. In the Article category, Mickey Burgermeister’s 

“The Creek” won Third Place. Ramon Klitzke was 

award Third Place in Nostalgia for a piece entitled “The 

Switchyard.” Nancy Schultz’s “Lady Brett Ashley” received 

Honorable Mention in the Essay Category. 

At the September meeting of WWW we were honored to 

have past-member Carol Ortman as guest speaker. She is 

known for her articles published in the Appleton Post Crescent 

when working as a stringer. She has won awards for fiction, 

non-fiction and poetry in Door County, Canada, North 

and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and in an International 

contest. Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar published her poems 

in two consecutive years. Presently she is writing lesson 

plans and teaching at the Hart Park Senior Center Writers’ 

Workshop. Her current title is “Treat Your Readers As 

Friends – How to Connect to That Invisible Audience.” # 

Writers of Wausau (WOW): Dee Schofield, Reporter 1310 McIndo St., Wausau, WI 54403 

d.schofield@verizon.net 

Writers Of Wausau presented their annual writing awards at The Wright House Restaurant. The winners are: Joann Opsahl for 

Most Published, Shirley Schroeder for Fiction, Lori Brzezinski and Nina Green share the Poetry award, and Susan Engebrecht 

won the Nonfiction category. 

We are now meeting at the Marathon County Public Library, 300 N. 1st St. Wausau. #

Page 10 

Writers Ink of Cudahy and Milwaukee: Gail Larson Toerpe, Reporter, gtoe@aol.com 

3034 Wentworth So., Milwaukee, WI 53207 www.writersink.writernetwork.com 

L. A. Van Veghel: WI Fishing Club Newsletter; Numerous 

articles WI Fishing Club website; WI Council of Sport Fishing 

org.;Midwest Outdoors; WRWA Writing Discussion site, 

website article; Press releases; Article Great Lakes Fishing & 

Hunting; 2 articles WOCA Recrod; Washington Island Observer. 

Marjorie Pagel: History of Friends of the Franklin Library; 

Franklin Historical Society published 50 year history; 

Press releases for Women's Club & Writers Ink; Editor Newsletter 

(4 times year) for Women of the ELCK Greater Milwaukee; 

History of H.C. Woman's Club-Special & Newspaper 

contribution; Article about Pastor's family; e-publication 

through Milwaukee church groups and two-page spread in 

HAB. 

Jason M. Waltz: The Custer-Hawk Gazette 

Gail Larson Toerpe (President, Wirters Ink) Oak Creek 

Historical Soc. Newsletter; Observer; Press Releases for Oak 

Creek Hist. Soc.; Photo in Minneapolis Star-Tribune Travel 

section; Letter to Editor, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Gail, 

publisher/editor of the Washington Island Observer, wrote 50- 

60 articles and contributed several photos for the paper this 

year. She has owned the paper since her husband gave it to her 

as a gift 15 years ago. 

Art Schmitz: In the Spirit, Chit Chat sub; We're Coming 

Over, Christmas Time in the City. # 

Writers Ink of Cudahy and Milwaukee 

Club Spotlight 

Writers Ink was 

formed on September 

26, 1977, 

to provide an inexpensive 

forum 

for writers and 

would-be writers 

to discuss writing 

techniques, how to 

sell articles, and 

how to go about 

getting published. Members are men and 

women of varying ages, 25 through 94, 

and come from all walks of life. They 

are informal and friendly, but nonetheless 

earnest and dedicated. Some write 

seriously for publication, while others 

for personal satisfaction. Their varied 

vocations, interests, and perspectives are 

mirrored in their subject matter and writing 

style. Some have had a book or two 

published, several have seen hundreds of 

their articles in print, while still others 

are contributing editors to national publications. 

There are, however, some still 

waiting to be discovered. 

Some of the original members were: 

Lorraine Sordahl, Dolores Tichkowski, 

Sister Mary Julitta, Sister 

Mary Joanne, Shirley Belleranti, and 

Shirley Mudrick. Of these, the first 

three were the actual originators but the 

others came in shortly thereafter. They 

have always met at the Bank One building, 

for which our group is most grateful. 

We have had many prominent 

speakers over the years, some of whom 

include: Bill Nelson (Milwaukee Journal), 

John Gurda (Milwaukee historian), 

Elaine Bergstrom (science fiction 

author), Alan Borsuk, Joel McNally, 

Gary Markstein (Milwaukee journalists), 

Roy Reiman, Bob Ottum 

(Reiman Publications), Wayne Frank 

(author and past Milwaukee alderman), 

Martha Bergland (author of several 

books), and the list goes on. 

Many success stories, too, have come 

out of our group. Patricia Lorenz 

(author, lecturer, many published arti- 

cles in Chicken Soup books as well as 

Christian periodicals), Sharon Hart 

Addy (five children's books published), 

Jack Byrne (became a writers agent 

after joining), May Thibaudeau (our 

oldest member, in her 90s, has published 

several histories, including one on Frederick 

Layton from which information 

is used by the Smithsonian Institution in 

D.C.), Yarn Spinner Paul Larson, from 

Arizona, Nancy Allan (had her own 

column in CNI newspapers for many 

years), Larry Van Veghel, (sports 

writer, published in many periodicals), 

and Gail Toerpe, who owns and edits 

the community newspaper on Washington 

Island (The Washington Island Observer). 

Many more of our members 

have had success and many choose only 

to write without any thought of being 

published. 

We enjoy the many readings and critiques 

and are pleased to have so many 

wonderful speakers. We also have a 

"brag session," which we call a "Round 

Table." Our group is always looking for 

speakers for Monday nights. E-mail our 

President, Gail Toerpe, at 

Gtoe@aol.com if you know of someone 

who would like to present a topic. # 

New Members Needed—Recruit New Members 

Any member who brings in five or more members between January 1st and March 31st will receive a free book 

and will be spotlighted in a future edition of the newsletter. Please be sure to have the new member list your name 

in the appropriate block on the membership form to receive credit.

Northern Lakes Writers’ Guild: LaMoine MacLaughlin, Executive Director 715-268-6811 

lammacl@amerytel.com www.northernlakescenter.org 

Page 11 

At the end of September, Northern Lakes Director 

LaMoine MacLaughlin attended the Fall Conference of 

WRWA in Janesville and helped with the presentation of 

the association’s Jade Ring Award for Poetry. He had 

been asked by the association to judge the material for 

this year’s award and found the winning entries to be 

remarkable. It was his task to select three winners and 

three honorable mentions from among 140 entries. 

In October, The Northern Lakes Writers’ Guild 

teamed with the Northern Lakes Theater Guild to open 

the Northern Lakes 2006/2007 concert and performance 

season with two interesting events: the first, an evening 

of old-time radio and the second, an evening of scary 

stories and poems. 

At the Guild’s October meeting there was discussion 

of material published in The Hometown Gazette, which 

publishes local writers’ work as part of its regular coverage 

of news and local highlights focusing upon the Clayton 

area. Published this past issue were Ed Moersfelder, 

Jeanne Murphy, Ralph Weber, and Patricia Hansen. 

During November, Northern Lakes’ Director LaMoine 

MacLaughlin was asked to become a regular columnist 

for another local publication, What’s Playing, a bimonthly 

magazine that highlights local arts and cultural 

events, including creative writing by writers from our 

area, and is published by Schoolhouse Productions in 

Clear Lake. The November/December issue includes 

MacLaughlin’s poem, “A Christmas Swallow,” which 

he read at last years’ WRWA fall conference in Wiscon- 

sin Rapids. The beauty of our natural surroundings will 

be the focus of MacLaughlin’s column. Anyone interested 

in contributing should e-mail manuscripts to 

LaMoine at the above address. 

In December, the Writers’ Guild will be finishing 

work on selections to be published in Northern Lakes’ 

Soundings, the literary publication of the Northern Lakes 

Center for the Arts. The upcoming January 2007 issue 

will complete 16 years of publishing original stories, 

poems, and essays by local authors. The magazine has 

been published semi-annually since 1991. So this past 

quarter there have been several opportunities for members 

of the Northern Lakes Writers’ Guild to publish 

their work and to share it with the general public. 

We are beginning to organize the annual regional 

gathering of northwest area writers to be held on Saturday, 

April 21 at the Northern Lakes Center for the Arts 

in Amery. It will include a workshop by Wisconsin author, 

Jerry Apps. Plan on attending. This annual event 

is held in rotation by the Northwest Regional Writers, 

the Poco Penners, and the Northern Lakes Writers’ 

Guild and is open to all writers. 

The Northern Lakes Writers’ Guild, an affiliate of the 

Northern Lakes Center of the Arts, is located at 113 Elm 

Street in Amery, Wisconsin. For more detailed information 

about activities of the Northern Lakes Writers’ 

Guild, please call the Northern Lakes Center for the Arts 

at (715) 268-6811. # 

(Limburger Attitude, continued from page 4) 

The last straw was when I went to the drug store for antibiotics. 

When the pharmacist told me it would cost $60 for three 

days' worth, I got madder than a constipated rattlesnake. And 

like a rattlesnake, I wanted to bite somebody. I didn't have that 

much money on me, so I had to leave without the pills. 

When I got back home, I stomped around complaining 

about everything that annoyed me. Being crankier than a giraffe 

with strep throat, I couldn't think of a single thing that 

didn't bug me. 

Coincidentally, while listening to the radio, I heard a country 

song entitled, "I hate everything." My sentiments exactly! 

Then I recalled a funny story about a kid pulling a prank on 

his grandpa. While the old man slept, his grandson wiped 

Limburger cheese on his mustache. When grandpa woke up, 

he complained that the room smelled bad. When he walked 

into a different room, that one smelled the same way. Finally, 

he went outside to get away from the odor, but it followed 

him. Grandpa exclaimed, "The whole world stinks!" 

Yesterday, even without Limburger cheese on my face, I 

felt like the whole world stunk. 

Of course, I know that this kind of thinking results from 

focusing on the negative and not seeing the positive. When I 

do that, I say things like "always, " "never," or "everybody." 

For instance, "EVERYBODY else has a better life than I do." 

Or "Things NEVER work out for me." And "Why do bad 

things ALWAYS happen to me" I know very well that everybody 

doesn't have a better life. Bad things don't always happen 

to only me, but yesterday, it sure did seem that way. 

When I have a "Limburger attitude," and feel like the whole 

world smells bad, I need to challenge my false self talk. To 

adjust my "stinkin' thinkin'," I remind myself that I cannot 

control my circumstances, but I can control my attitude. Reversing 

a Limburger attitude requires developing an attitude of 

gratitude. When I feel that everything is bad and the world 

stinks, I need to stop and make a conscious effort to focus on 

the positive. I think of the good things for which I can be 

(completed on page 18)

Page 12 

Members at Large: Please send your items to the Editor at bdsutton@centurytel.net or via mail at 

23059 Old 35, Siren, Wisconsin 54872 (715) 653-4376 

Charles P. Ries had his short story, “Dad Drives,” appear 

in the Peninsula Pulse’s Special Summer Literary Issue; and 

his short story, “Albino Prunes,” receive an Honorable Mention 

in the Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Association 2006 

Jade Ring Contest. Charles’ poetry reviews have been accepted 

in Poetic Diversity, Lummox, Poesia, and Blind Man’s 

Rainbow. Charles’ poetry will appear in Strong Verse, The 

Café Review, League of Laboring Poets, Back Street Quarterly, 

World Poetry Press, Presa, Voices of Israel Anthology, 

and Concrete Meat Press. He will be featured reader on December 

8, 2006, in Santa Clara, California, at the Wired 

Wash Poetry Reading. 

Lifetime member Dorothy Carey (Green Bay) recently 

published a genealogy of the Laurie and Drumb families, 

early Door County settlers. Other recent credits include 

awards from the Cultural Arts Program of Wisconsin Regional 

Activity Personnel (WRAP) for a short story, “The 

Teacup,” and an article entitled “All the Best Men Are Married.” 

Dorothy’s writing swept the organization’s competition 

for the second year in a row, earning the Best of Show award. 

Two of her short stories, “The Water Boy,” and “Michael,” 

appeared in the Door County Peninsula Pulse. 54301. 

Marsha Jordan’s essay, “Hunky Magoo,” won honorable 

mention in the most recent "America's Funniest Humor" contest 

(http://www.humorpress.com/Results/Essays-200608-09/ 

c-HonMens/JordanMarsha-Essay-200608-09- 

HunkyMagoo.htm). Her essay, “Storm Debris,” is among 

several of her essays that have recently been published on the 

Sermon Illustrator (http://www.sermonillustrator.org). She 

also was interviewed by “Once Upon a Romance” (http:// 

www.onceuponaromance.net/MarshaJordanInterview.htm). 

Nancy Rafal attended the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival 

in New Jersey. She read several of her poems at a Grist 

Mill open mic event. Nancy's essay, “Kangaroo Lake As I 

See It,” is published in The Nature of Door (CrossRoads 

Press, Ellison Bay, WI). The book is a collection of essays 

and poems focusing on protected areas of the Door Peninsula 

and is sponsored by the Door County Land Trust. E-mail 

Nancy for more information at mrsticket@dcwis.com. 

Birney Dibble, long-time WRWA member and two-time 

Jade Ring winner (Juvenile Fiction, 1980, and Adult Fiction, 

1985), released his latest book, THE SAME GOD this past 

summer. It compares the Bible with the Koran, matching 

verses under chapter headings such as Heaven and Hell, War 

and Retaliation, Predestination, Attitude Towards Females, 

the Resurrection, Divorce, the Creation Stories, and many 

other ideas, concepts, and beliefs. It also compares the stories 

of Moses, Abraham, Jesus, and half a dozen other characters 

who appear in both books. Unlike most of the articles and 

books comparing the two books, this one does not take sides 

or point a finger at either religion. It merely juxtaposes 

verses, allowing the reader to make up his own mind about 

the similarity or dissimilarity of the passages. See 

www.dibblebooks.com for a brief description of all seven of 

Birney’s books, as well as a brief autobiography. 

H. B. Huisinga’s story, "Spirit Cemetery," was recently 

published in The iNK, Freeport, Illinois’ community newspaper. 

See HB’s Web site (http://www.hbhuisinga.com/) for all 

the latest news about HB’s book, Deracination, and other 

publication successes. 

Ruth Wucherer, Milwaukee, sold an article, “New Hi- 

Pines Eagle River Campground in Eagle River, Wisconsin, 

Becomes Fully Operational in the 2006 Season.” It was published 

in the September 2006 issue of Camping Today magazine 

(page 32). Ruth teaches a non-fiction article-writing 

class in the Milwaukee Public Schools and hands out a few 

extra copies of The Wisconsin Regional Writer to her students. 

They have expressed interest in writing, but none have 

taken advantage of our new student rate to become members 

yet. Keep trying, Ruth. # 

Notes from the Group Coordinator: Earle Garber, groups@wrwa.net 715-421-0244 

483 Airport Ave., Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494 

This past summer has been one great one for new groups. It is after all about helping people who would write find a home. 

The St. Croix Valley PEN and ThINK group is well on its way. Contact is Bev Larsen 715-378-2723 in Hudson. 

Aspiring Authors of the Stevens Point Area (AASPA) announced a first meeting at the George White Portage County Library 

October 30, 6:30 p.m. Writers; all ages are welcome. Contact Alicia Razni 344-9451. 

Writers in the Burlington area have a leader who is canvassing local membership and preparing a flyer for non-members to 

form a group. Contact Elizabeth Bruno 767-1357 ext 11. 

Inquiries have been received from members in Green Bay and DePere. We’re looking for help in Packerland! # 

Wisconsin Fellowship of Christian Authors (WFCA) Announce "CELEBRATING THE WORD" -- Writers' Conference 

April 21, 2007, at Appleton Alliance Church, 2693 W. Grand Chute Blvd, Appleton, WI 54913 

www.wisconsinchristianauthors.com

Page 13 

Welcome 23 New Members 

Michael Farmer 

James Kaiser 

Barbara Seguin 

David White 

Art Gallardojohnson 

Gene Cooper 

Jamie Rhodes 

Kathleen Phillips 

Jamilah Kolocotronis 

Lauretta Kaplan 

Dana Van Haden 

Gloria Anzilotti 

Edward Moersfelder 

Bailey’s Harbor 

Milwaukee 

Beloit 

Milwaukee 

Ellsworth 

Luck 

Lake Geneva 

Waukesha 

Milwaukee 

Coloma 

Mauston 

Waukesha 

Amery 

Corey Jahnke 

Patty Schopp 

Renae Boydston 

Greg Koepel 

Amy Jo Barhite 

Susan Litehiser 

John Downs 

Arden Thorsbakken 

Judith Mazzie 

Shirley Babcock 

Cameron 

New Berlin 

Whitewater 

Marshfield 

Green Bay 

Solon Springs 

Crivitz 

Eau Claire 

Brookfield 

Rhinelander 

Please send Club News to bdsutton@centurytel.net or 23059 Old 35, Siren, WI 54872. Keep to no more than 300 words. 

Items may be sent as e-mail text (preferred), as an e-mail attachment, or through regular mail. One picture sent with club 

news will be used if space permits. Some reporters have asked whether to report only on WRWA members in their clubs. 

Definitely not! Club News items in the newsletter are just that, news about the clubs and their members. There is no requirement 

that the reporter or anyone else in the club be a member. We want the clubs to report because it helps to build a sense of 

the larger writing community in Wisconsin and because it helps WRWA members who do not already belong to a club find 

one in their area. So please feel free to note the accomplishments of people who belong to your club and are not WRWA 

members. # 

WRWA Board Approves Honorary Life Membership Policy 

WRWA Honorary Life Membership is a respectful tribute 

for meritorious service. 

1. Meritorious service is demonstrated by: (1) making extraordinary 

and/or distinguished contributions as an active 

member of WRWA. This might be accomplished by working 

within the structure of WRWA as Board Member, Officer, 

Committee Member, Conference Chair, or as a member fulfilling 

tasks, projects, or activities authorized, encouraged, 

and assigned by the Board; (2) possessing extraordinary and/ 

or distinguished credits, awards, or other evidence 

that identifies the candidate as a recognized, wellknown, and 

published writer, poet, or author. 

2. The Board shall appoint an Honorary Life Membership 

Committee consisting of at least three members. 

3. Any WRWA member may propose a candidates name to 

the Life Membership Committee for consideration for Life 

Membership status. A member proposes a candidate by submitting 

a written summary of the candidate’s activities, 

achievements, contributions, and other qualifications, using 

the above criteria as a guide. This written summary can be 

used for publicity in the Newsletter, the Web site, etc. 

4. The Committee shall consider the merits of all the proposed 

candidates and make its recommendations to the Board. 

The Board shall elect Honorary Life Members by a majority 

vote. 

5. Honorary Life Members shall owe no Annual Dues from 

the date of their election and shall enjoy all the privileges and 

benefits of membership in WRWA. 

Notes: 

1. There is no reference to longevity. Longevity doesn’t equal 

extraordinary or distinguished service, nor does it necessarily 

produce noteworthy contributions and achievements. One 

member may make extraordinary and distinguished contributions 

within a very short period of time while another member 

may be a member for forty years and do nothing extraordinary 

or distinguished during that time. 

2. In number 2 above, there is no reference to WRWA membership. 

This would allow the Board to] bestow Honorary Life 

Membership status on a writer, poet, or author who is not a 

WRWA member, but who (for whatever reasons) members 

and/or the Board desire to honor the person with this status. 

3. By submitting the qualifications and achievements in writing, 

the Association has a written record for examination by 

both the Committee and the Board as well as a written record 

of facts that can serve as the basis for either the nominator or 

someone else to write a story for inclusion in the newsletter, 

for the President or other presenter to use during the presentation 

ceremony, and for any other publicity, including the 

WRWA Web site. A short blurb and picture of each Life 

Member on the Web site would be an excellent way of honoring 

selectees. #

Page 14 

What’s Happening at Redbird 

Studios in Milwaukee 

YOUNG AUTHORS 

See the web site for descriptions and registration 

forms 

www.redbirdstudio.com/YoungAuthors 

To writers awaiting The Redbird Review 

- Young Author Edition: 

We are awaiting delivery of the books 

and will mail them to you as soon as possible. 

YOUNG AUTHORS ROUNDTABLE - 

Grades 7-12 

with Kim Suhr, Director of Young Author 

Programs 

SUNDAY AFTERNOONS (2nd Sundays) 

1:00-3:00pm 

$65 includes all 4 meetings in session 

Jan-Apr Session: Jan 14, Feb 11, Mar 11, 

Apr 1 

YOUNG AUTHORS' SUMMER PRO- 

GRAM -- Dates for '07 

Mon-Fri 9am-2:30pm $325 ($100 deposit) 

Students entering: Grades 7-9 July 9-13 

Grades 4-5 July 16-20 

Grades 6 July 23-27 

Grades 9-12 July 30-Aug 3 

4. ADULT PROGRAMS 

WRWA 2007 Calendar 

January 1 Al P. Nelson Feature Article Contest Opens 

January 12 Site Committee Meeting at Holiday Inn, Manitowoc, 10 a.m. 

January 15 Florence Lindemann Humor Contest Opens 

Jan 15-Mar 15 Spring Conference featured on Home Page 

February 15 Spring Newsletter Sub 

March 15 Lindemann and Nelson Contests Close 

March 15 Jade Ring Contest Opens 

Mar 15-May 15 Spring Conference and Jade Ring Contest Featured on Home Page 

April 1 Deadline for entries for SOAR Scholarship from WRWA 

April 2 Spring Conference Flyers Mailed 

April 21 Northwest Area Writers’ Conference, Amery, WI 

May 4 Board Meeting at the Holiday Inn, Manitowoc, 1 p.m. 

May 5 Spring Conference at the Holiday Inn, Manitowoc 

May 6-Jun 15 Jade Ring Contest and Fall Conference Featured on Home Page 

May 10 Jade Ring Contest Postcard Reminders Mailed 

May 15 Summer Newsletter Submission Deadline 

June 15 Jade Ring Contest Closes 

June 15-Sep30 Fall Conference Featured on Home Page 

July 30 Fall Newsletter Submission Deadline (note change) 

September 18 Deadline for Fall Conference Registration with WRWA 

September 28 Board Meeting at Voyageur in Reedsburg, 1 p.m. 

Sept. 29-30 Fall Conference at Voyageur in Reedsburg 

November 1 Winter Newsletter Submission Deadline (note change) 

Dec 1—Jan 15 Round Robin Group Featured on Home Page 

Please submit calendar items to the Newsletter Editor for consideration. We’d like 

to include contests and regional conferences sponsored by WRWA affiliated 

clubs that are open to all members and other events of broad interest to 

WRWA members. # 

See the web site for descriptions and registration forms 

www.redbirdstudio.com 

SHUT UP AND WRITE! 

Our premier seminar, with Judy Bridges 

Eight Mondays 6:30-8:30pm $345 ($100 deposit) 

Jan/Feb Session Jan 8, 15, 22, 29, Feb 5, 12, 19, 26 

Mar/Apr Session Mar 12, 19, 26, Apr 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 

THE GROUND FLOOR WRITERS' ROUNDTABLE 

A workshop/roundtable group, with Jo McReynolds- 

Blochowiak. 

Meets on the ground floor of our building. W/C access. All 

levels welcome. No pre-requisite. 

2nd & 4th Thursdays 12:30-2:30 pm $85 (Rm 103, Marian 

Center) 

Jan-Feb: dates tba 

POETRY ROUNDTABLE 

A "home port" for poets, with John Lehman. 

First Thursdays 6:30-8:30pm $85 

Jan-Apr Session: Jan 4, Feb 1, Mar 1, Apr 5 

WRITING FICTION FOR TEENS AND YOUNG READ- 

ERS: 

The Secrets of Getting Published with Debbie Lynn Jacobs 

A workshop for adults writing for teens and younger readers 

Saturday, Feb 17, 9:30am-3pm $85 

ROUNDTABLE CRITIQUE GROUPS with Judy Bridges and 

Robert Vaughan 

Dedicated writers receive supportive feedback and build a 

network of writing friends. 

Pre-requisite: Shut Up & Write! or equivalent 

Returnees get first dibs in wait listed classes, then "Shut Up" 

grads, then new friends. 

Tuesday Afternoons with Judy Bridges 12-2:30 $85 (waiting 

list) 

Jan-Feb: Jan 16, 30, Feb 13, 27 

Wednesday Evenings (The Inkslingers) with Judy Bridges 

6:30-9 $85 (waiting list) 

Jan-Feb: Jan 10, 24, Feb 7, 21 

Thursday Evenings with Robert Vaughan 6:30-9 $85 (4 mtgs.

Page 15 

(Redbird Studios continued) 

One per month) 

Jan-Apr: Jan 18, Feb 15, Mar 22, Apr 19 

Friday Mornings with Robert Vaughan 

9:30-12 $85 (waiting list) 

Jan-Feb: Jan 5, 19, Feb 9, 23 

Judy Bridges 414-481-3195 

3195 S. Superior St. #429 

Milwaukee, WI 53207 

jb@redbirdstudio.com 

Want help starting a writing 

club 

Contact Earl Garber at: 

groups at wrwa dot net or at: 

Groups 

483 Airport Avenue 

Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494-6515 

715-421-0244 

We have several helpful resources for 

starting up a club, including sample Articles 

of Organization, tips on managing 

a club, and a form to help WRWA keep 

track of affiliated clubs. # 

Call for E-mail Addresses 

All WRWA members who use e-mail 

please send your e-mail addresses to 

Robin Butler, Membership Secretary, at 

thebutlers1408@comcast.net. It will 

be used only to contact you on WRWA 

business and will not be shared outside 

of WRWA. 

New and Renewal Membership Application 

Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Association, Inc. 

(This application reflects the new rate structure adopted January 2006.) 

Your membership includes a quarterly newsletter with information on activities of other writers, 

conferences, annual contests and, when space is available, selected writings by WRWA members. 

_______ I want to become a member. _______ I want to renew my membership. 

_______ I do NOT want my name shared with other writing resources 

(To check your renewal due date look at the top left corner of your newsletter mailing label.) 

I have enclosed $ ______ for ____ year(s) regular adult WRWA membership. 

($25 for one year) 

I have enclosed $ ______ for ____ year(s) student WRWA membership. 

($12.50 for one year—must be a full-time student.) 

I have enclosed $ ______ for ____ year(s) family WRWA membership. 

($35 for one year for a two-member family living at one address.) 

($40 for one year for a four-member family at one address.) 

I have enclosed $ ______ for ____ year(s) class WRWA membership. 

($25 for one year. One student per class may attend WRWA conferences.) 

(One copy of the WRWA Newsletter will be sent to one address.) 

Name: ___________________________________________ 

Telephone________________________________________ 

Address__________________________________________ 

City _____________________________________________ 

State ___________________ Zip code _________________ 

E-mail ___________________________________________ 

Did a WRWA member encourage you to join Yes _____ No ______ 

If so, who was it _____________________________________ 

Do you belong to a writers’ group Yes __________ No __________ 

If so, what group ____________________________________ 

If no, would you like information on clubs near you Tes ______ No ______ 

( If you need financial assistance for membership, contact the Membership Chair. All inquiries 

are kept confidential.) 

Make checks payable to WRWA, Inc. and send to: 

Robin E. Butler, Membership Chair 

1408 Columbus St. 

Manitowoc, WI 54220-5602 

(920) 682-1795 membership@wrwa.net 

WRWA Annual Membership 

Rate Structure 

Regular individual membership 

$25.00 

Family, two people, one address 

$35.00 

Family, four people, one address 

$40.00 

Student, individual membership 

$12.50 

Student, classroom membership 

$25.00 

(One student may represent the 

class at WRWA conferences) 

ATTENTION "SNOW BIRDS" AND OTHER TEMPORARILY 

“AWAYS” 

We need to be sure you won't miss getting the WRWA newsletter when you 

head South (or in some other direction) for the winter and leave the rest of us to 

shovel snow. Because the newsletter is bulk-mailed, the Post Office will not 

forward it. Please send your temporary away address to Robin Butler, membership 

chair, at thebutlers1408@comcast.net and note the usual duration of your 

enjoyable absence from the rest of us, e.g. "Oct 1-May 1" etc. Even if you sent 

that information last year, please send it again. My record-keeping system has 

changed and a repeat of your alternate address will provide a check. Thanks for 

your help in keeping the WRWA membership records current and correct. 

Robin

Page 14 

New Magazine Seems Tailor-made for Many WRWA Writers 

Thanks to WRWA member Dave Rank for this tip for a new 

publishing opportunity. 

DRG Publishing is launching a new magazine, Town 

Square, which celebrates life and nostalgia in small town 

America, and they're looking for writers to share stories and 

photos! 

Town Square is a magazine in which readers share the joys 

they find from simply living in their towns. This magazine 

wants to highlight vibrant, active, smaller communities where 

people know their neighbors, count many of them as friends, 

and often depend on them. The publishers says, Town Square 

will be filled with stories and photos from people who live in, 

or used to live in, smaller communities and absolutely loved 

it, showcasing people from coast to coast, sharing the joys of 

small-town life. 

To submit an article, all it takes is a letter or picture that 

describes what you believe to be the best parts of living in 

your hometown. Are you part of a quilting circle Do a bunch 

of you meet at a local diner and crochet Maybe a bunch of 

you meet at a friend’s house every week to scrapbook. Whatever 

it is, tell us about it and send in a picture of you doing 

what you do. Is there someone in your town who always 

brightens your day Maybe it’s the mail carrier who always 

hands you the post with a smile, or the counter lady at the 

local bakery who slips in an extra cookie for your child. Is 

there an annual event that brings everyone in your town together 

Share photos of past events and tell a little bit about 

your annual church rummage sale, pumpkin festival, fireman¹s 

picnic, carnival and fair. The more unusual the event, the bet- 

ter. Be sure to include the dates of your next event so readers 

can be invited to join in the fun. Do you have a signature dish 

you¹re practically required to bring to every potluck gathering 

Do you have a few surefire favorites that draw raves and 

requests—and guarantees an empty dish to bring home Share 

the recipe with the rest of us—along with a photo of the last 

gathering you brought your dish to! 

Don¹t be shy. Send them in! You can start by checking out 

www.TownSquareMag.com. You can send your submissions 

directly from our Web site, by e-mail to stories@townsquaremag.com, 

by regular mail to Town Square 

stories, 306 East Parr Rd., Berne, IN 46711, or by fax to 260- 

589-8093. 

[Editor’s Note: This magazine seems tailor-made for many 

WRWA writers, so I e-mailed Town Square for submission 

guidelines and heard back from Managing Editor Dianne 

Schmidt: “We do not have formal writer's guidelines because 

we are not looking for professional writers. We are looking 

for fun, heartwarming, unique stories of small town life and 

activities. We will include stories of various lengths from only 

2-3 paragraphs to up to about 600 words. We will consider a 

story whether it is submitted electronically or sent by mail 

(even handwritten is ok). If writers in your association are 

from small towns they may have some great stories to send to 

us. For all stories published we will send the contributor 2 

comp copies of the magazine as well as a special gift. If a 

story is submitted that we feel makes a good one-page feature 

and includes photos we will also pay a nominal fee 

(approximately $50-$75) as well.”] # 

Quality Women’s Fiction Now Based in Waukesha 

Less than two years after opening her creative writing studio, 

AllWriters’ Workplace & Workshop, Waukesha writer 

Kathie Giorgio now takes on independent magazine publishing. 

The British literary journal, Quality Women’s Fiction, 

was originally launched in December 1994. Giorgio’s short 

stories appeared in the magazine several times. When the 

chance came to own and publish an already established magazine, 

Giorgio jumped at the chance. “QWF is an excellent 

international literary magazine, and I plan on taking it to the 

next level, and the next and the next,” she says. “I am very 

excited to be at the helm of a magazine that supports and encourages 

women writers.” 

The magazine now finds its home in Waukesha, Wisconsin. 

The first American published issue, which will be QWF’s 50 th 

issue, is planned to come out in January 2007. Submission 

guidelines and subscription rates are listed on the AllWriters’ 

Workplace & Workshop website, http://www.allwriters.org/ 

qwf.asp. 

All Writers’ Workplace and Workshop offers on-site and 

online writing courses in all genres and abilities of creative 

writing. It also provides coaching and editing services. A 

schedule of classes and registration is available online at 

http://www.allwriters.org. For more information, call (262) 

446-0284. 

Wisconsin Wrights New Play Project 

UW-Madison Continuing Studies in Theatre, in partnership 

with the University Theatre and the Madison Repertory Theatre, 

is proud to announce the Wisconsin New Play Project. 

Created to foster the development of new works, Wisconsin 

Wrights features an opportunity for three playwrights to receive 

workshops and readings of their work as part of the University 

Theatre Summer 2007 season. In addition, one of the 

three selected plays will be featured as part of the Fall 2007 

Madison Repertory Theatre Madison New Play Festival. 

Deadline for submission: January 15, 2007 

Complete details about eligibility, submission guidelines 

and requirements, and the play selection process are available 

at the Wisconsin Wrights website. 

http://www.dcs.wisc.edu/lsa/theatre/new-play-project.htm 

WFOP Poetry Contest 

Muse Prize for Excellence in Poetry 

Sponsored by the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets 

Opens December 1 and closes February 1, 2007 

Rules and Entry Form posted at: wfop.org 

Prizes: 1st place - $200.00 and trophy, 

2nd - $100.00 

3rd - $75.00 

skileen@globaldialog.com

Page 17 

Midnight Musings by Bill Nelson A Handfull of Gems for Resourceful Writers 

“Every paragraph, every sentence, 

every word must carry its weight— 

must do a job.” 

That’s a snippet from Paul Raymond 

Martin’s The Writer’s Little Instruction 

Book, one I copied in a notebook and 

later posted on my computer. 

As a lifelong writer, I’ve kept an 

ever-growing notebook of written and 

spoken wisdom on wowing—or at least 

intriguing—readers. It’s a connection 

that starts by impressing an editor and 

earning publication. 

The insights might come from a TV or radio interview with 

an author. Or a magazine or newspaper feature on or by a 

writer. Or an informational piece on the Internet. 

Sometimes, in my next stint at the keyboard and if the project 

warrants it, I’ll incorporate one of the concepts. 

So, here’s a sampling of the pearls of wisdom highlighted 

in my notebook over the years: 

Don’t be impatient. Writing takes a long time and is a LIFE- 

TIME COMMITMENT. If that’s your inclination, keep at 

it. FOUR of our deepest desires are to think well of ourselves; 

to have others think well of us; to have things to 

look forward to; and to be constantly challenged. Writing 

delivers all FOUR. 

Good writers see the world as their journalism laboratory, a 

storehouse of article/story ideas. They have an eye for the 

offbeat and they’re voracious collectors of information, 

which means that they take notes like crazy. 

They immerse themselves in the story/article. They live it, 

breathe it, dream it. They plan and rehearse the story passionately, 

writing it in their minds, considering their options, 

always looking for new directions and fresh information. 

“Seize the subject,” a Roman statesman once 

said, “and the words will follow.” 

They love to tell stories. They are constantly searching for 

the human element, for voices that enliven the writing. 

Figure out the obvious way to write an article/story. Then 

don’t write it that way. In other words, when others zig, 

that’s often a good time to zag. 

Art requires an instinctive knowledge of what to include and 

what to leave out. (Luckily, you get better as your experience 

grows.) 

Good writers understand that an important part of the writing 

process is the mechanical drudgery of organizing the ma- 

terial. They respond to this by developing careful filing 

systems and plotting out the basic course of their material 

early in the process. 

They regularly rewrite. They love computers because they 

permit maximum playfulness during revision. They can 

move paragraphs around, invert word order for emphasis, 

find stronger verbs and occasionally purge the entire story 

to achieve a fresh start. As you’ve heard several times in 

Midnight Musings, good writers tend to be Bleeders, not 

Speeders. Hemingway put it nicely when he said, “Easy 

writing makes for hard reading.” 

To amplify Paul Raymond Martin’s advice, cut out every 

unnecessary word, phrase, sentence and paragraph. Except 

for the first few takes of Genesis, every story ever 

written would be better if it was 10% shorter. Remember, 

too, that personal is better than impersonal; simple forms 

are best (limit the use of words bearing prefixes and suffixes), 

and short is better than long. Another tip: Listen to 

what your ears tell you. They’re a great ally to the eyes. 

(Read your work aloud.) 

Good writers take chances in the writing. They love the surprising 

and the unconventional approach. They prefer 

failing in print from time to time because those failures 

represent the price of inventiveness. 

Remember, too, that good writing, like music, has rhythm. 

Vary your sentence lengths and structures. Short, punchy 

anecdotes, strong quotes and, where appropriate, a touch 

of humor help keep the reader reading. An old-time city 

editor once wrote: “Writers must learn to avoid adjectives 

and to swear by the little verbs that bounce and leap and 

swim and swoop.” 

Yes, it’s true. The standards of skilled writers grow higher and 

higher so that early drafts seem painfully weak and incomplete. 

But that adds to their impetus in tackling subsequent 

drafts. 

Fiction has its origins in personal experience. It may be necessary, 

however, to modify that experience to make it usable. 

Also, fiction must grow toward universality—an 

I’ve-experienced-that-too-feeling—even though the piece 

is based in personal experience. 

All writers, even the most successful, need editors to provide 

objectivity and another viewpoint. 

Stories/articles are never really finished until they are published. 

All good writing is in some sense experimental, which makes 

writers creative people and their profession constantly 

challenging. # 

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Page 18 

2006 Board of Directors, Committees, and Other Contacts 

President 

Donald Schambow 

18045 W. Crabtree Lane 

New Berlin, WI 53146-2702 

(262) 782-5737 

President@WRWA.net 

Vice-President 

Nate Scholze 

9708 Idell Ave. 

Sparta, WI 54656-4424 

(608) 269-8541 

Vpresident@WRWA dot net 

Secretary & Membership 

Chair 

Robin Butler 



(920) 682-1795 

Secretary at WRWA dot net 

Membership@wrwa.net 

Treasurer 

Jim Williams 

P.O. Box 115 

Nashotah, WI 53058-0115 

(262) 966-3491 

treasurer@WRWA.net 

Board Members 

Roxanne Aehl 

Sauk City, WI 53583 

(608) 643-3229 

bookfair@WRWA.net 

Claudia Anderson 

N630 Howard Road 

Whitewater, WI 53190-3020 

(262) 473-7764 

The_writing_unicorn@yahoo.com 

John P. Danish 

6400 W. Lakeland Dr., Apt. 3 

Milwaukee, WI 53219-4158 

(414) 545-5304 

johnpdanish@yahoo.com 

Earle W. Garber 

483 Airport Ave. 

Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494 

(715) 421-0244 

Groups@WRWA.net 

Barb Jensen 

410 Winnebago Ave. 

Portage, WI 53901-1230 

(608) 742-6848 

Lindemann@WRWA.net 

Jack Magestro 

739 Winston Way 

Hartland, WI 53029-2537 

(262) 367-5469 

magestro@earthlink.net 

Dorothy Schwenkner 

543 S. Fremont Street 

Janesville, WI 53545-4213 

(608) 754-5223 

Bette Williams 

P.O. Box 115 

Nashotah, WI 53058-0115 

(262) 966-3491 

publicity@WRWA.net 

Immediate Past President 

Kathleen McGwin 

N4549 County Road Y 

Montello, WI 53949-9333 

(608) 297-9746 

mcgwin@verizon.net 

Round Robin Chair 

Credessa A. Williams 

N4849 Robinson Road 

Black River Falls, WI 54615 

(715) 284-5948 

Nominating Committee 

Claudia Anderson 

Local Groups Coordinator 

Earle W. Garber 

Groups@WRWA.net 

Lifetime Members 

Jerold W. Apps 

Patricia Dunson Boverhuis 

Dorothy Carey 

Betty Epstein 

Elayne Clipper Hanson 

Lorraine Hawkinson 

Sharen Kaatz 

Darlene Kronschnabel 

Ralph “Bud” Mason 

Kathleen McGwin 

Margaret Nelsen 

Libbie Nolan 

Publicity 

Bette Williams 

Publicity at WRWA dot net 

Ambassador of Goodwill 

Ralph “Bud” Mason 

8526 W. Keefe Avenue 

Milwaukee, WI 53222-2821 

(414) 463-3652 

goodwill@WRWA.net 

Poet Laureate Representative 

Charles P. Ries 

5821 W. Trenton Pl. 

Milwaukee, WI 53213 

(414) 607-0183 

CReis@literati.net 

Conference Registration 

Jane Osypowski 

W972 Birchwood Drive 

Campbellsport, WI 53010 

(920) 533-3044 

registration@wrwa.net 

WRWA Historian 

Lorraine Hawkinson 

3836 Rutland-Dunn Road 

Oregon, WI 53575-2409 

(608) 873-3129 

Newsletter Editor 

Boyd Sutton 

23059 Old 35 

Siren, WI 54872 

715-653-4376 

Newsletter@WRWA.net 

bdsutton@centurytel.net 

Web Master 

Ralph Sharp 

Webmaster@WRWA.net 

Online Forum Moderator 

L. A. Van Veghel 

5557 S. Disch Ave. 

Cudahy, WI 53110-2603 

(414) 769-6846 

VanVeghelL@msn.com 

Conference Sites Chair 

Barb Jensen 

Spring Program Chair 

Roxanne Aehl 

Fall Program Chair 

Nate Scholze 

Jade Ring Contest Chair 

Jennifer Turner 

5135 Bush St. 

Stevens Point, WI 54481-4919 

jadering@WRWA.net 

(715) 342-0795 

jadering@WRWA.net 

Al P. Nelson Contest Chair 

Bill Nelson 

2365 Mary Beth Court, Brookfield, 

WI 530054968 

nelson@WRWA.net 

Florence Lindemann Contest 

Chair 

Barb Jensen 

lindemann@WRWA.net 

(Limburger Attitude, continued from page 11) 

thankful. If nothing else, I can be thankful that I woke up this 

morning. (Well, maybe there are some days when that doesn't 

SEEM like such a positive thing.) 

When I count my blessings, I feel bad about the way I 

whine and feel sorry for myself. I have a lot more than many 

others do. I have much to be thankful for and nothing to complain 

about. 

Negative self talk can make me feel like the whole world 

stinks, but positive thinking is just as powerful. Practicing 

thankfulness often turns my outlook around. A Limburger 

attitude can become an attitude of gratitude. #

Board Decisions and Actions 

by Boyd Sutton, based on Board Minutes by Robin Butler, Secretary 

The WRWA Board of Directors has 

met three times since the last summary, 

on June 23 rd , and on September 22 nd and 

24 th . In addition, your Board has begun 

to conduct business via e-mail when 

necessary, so some decisions and actions 

are taken between formal Board meetings. 

Each newsletter will include a 

summary of key decisions and actions. 

For additional information, please contact 

the WRWA Secretary, Robin Butler. 

Beginning with the spring 2007 edition 

of The Wisconsin Regional Writer, 

the Board will publish the Association’s 

annual Income and Expense report so all 

members can have access to that information. 

The Spring 2007 Conference will be 

May 5, 2007, at the Holiday Inn in 

Manitowoc. The Fall Conference will be 

September 28-29, 2007, at the Voyaguer 

Inn in Reedsville. The Writers’ Roundtable 

will be held starting at 6:30 p.m. 

on Friday evenings for those who come 

Friday. The Board decided to begin its 

regular semiannual meetings at 1 p.m. so 

Board members have plenty of time to 

conduct a full business meeting and so 

that members who wish to do so can 

attend the Writers’ Roundtable on Friday 

evening. 

A formal policy for Honorary Lifetime 

Membership was approved and is 

presented on page 13 of this newsletter. 

Jim Williams and Jack Magestro will 

act as an Ad Hoc committee to investigate 

ways in which WRWA members 

can financially support the mission of 

WRWA through such avenues as wills, 

memorials, endowments, etc., and will 

report to the Board at a future meeting. 

If any members have experience or specific 

thoughts along these lines, please 

contact Jim or Jack. 

Effective immediately, the Board will 

meet formally in person only in conjunction 

with the Spring and Fall Conferences, 

unless there is a special reason to 

have an additional in-person meeting. 

As much business as possible will be 

conducted via e-mail in order to speed 

up decisions and actions. The Secretary 

will retain a written record of such business 

and will report it in conjunction 

with the minutes of the semiannual inperson 

meetings. Members should raise 

issues requiring Board attention to any 

Board member. 

Starting with the 2007 Spring Conference 

and continuing thereafter, the cutoff 

for conference registration will be 

five days before the hotel requires a final 

meal count. That will make the cutoff 

dates a little earlier than they have 

been. The Registration Chair, Jane Osypowski, 

suggested that the Board look 

into the possibility of accepting credit 

Page 19 

cards for conference registration and 

meal fees. 

The Family Membership fee was increased 

from $30 to $35. All other membership 

fees remain the same, subject to 

review next September. 

A committee was established to implement 

the proposal, approved at the 

General Meeting on Saturday, September 

23 rd , to establish a First Chapters 

contest. As he made the proposal, Boyd 

Sutton will chair the committee. Additional 

members are Claudia Anderson, 

Jeffifer Turner, and David Rank. Anyone 

who wishes to express an idea or 

viewpoint on a First Chapters contest 

should contact one of the committee 

members. The committee’s implementation 

plan will be delivered to the Board 

for action in early 2007. 

Roxanne Aehl, Robin Butler, Barb 

Jensen, and Jim Williams were welcomed 

as new Board members. Their 

terms expire in September 2010, The 

Board elected officers to the following 

positions, their terms as Board officers 

(not Board members) to expire in 2008: 

Don Schambow, Predident; Nate 

Scholze, Vice President; Robin Butler, 

Secretary; Jim Williams, Treasurer. 

The next regular Board meeting will 

be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, May 4 th , 

2007, at the Holiday Inn in Manitowoc. 

# 

Just the FAQs by J.R. Turner 

Q. Do I need an outline for my novel, or is it okay to just write the book 

A. Writing anything is so subjective, it would be unfair of me to dictate which style is best for any author. The rule of thumb is to 

write the way that most inspires and excites you. However, there are pros and cons to writing with or without an outline. Writing 

free form can lead to confusion, difficulty in creating a concise plot, and character mistakes—such as blue eyes in chapter one and 

grey eyes in chapter seven. On the other hand there are those who, once they’ve completed an outline, feel the story is already 

written and they lose the excitement of seeing the book unfold before them. 

I recommend playing with different approaches until you find one that suits you. I found an outline with Roman numerals and 

chapter headings too constrictive for my tastes. Eventually I developed a way to free-write, while still having a simply structured 

synopsis to follow. Study different styles of outlining, how to draft a synopsis, and visit author Web sites or read biographies, 

preferably in styles that resonate with you. Other options may be using a “book bible,” which is a compilation of scene summaries 

written once the scene is completed or keeping charts that maintain important details about your characters. Many character chart 

templates can be found online and in writing how-to books. Try combining different aspects until you discover what works best 

for you. 

Have a question for award winning author J.R. Turner Send an email, subject heading to Just the FAQs, to jturner4@charter.net 

or snail mail J.R. Turner at 3135 Bush st. Stevens Point, WI 54481 We’d love to hear from you!

Page 20 

It seems fitting to me that we begin this special edition of 

Members’ Writing with a tie-in to our past. As many of you 

know, the WRWA used to produce a magazine to publish 

works by members. The first one was named Pen and Plow. 

That was followed by Rural Wisconsin in Prose and Verse, 

and finally by Creative Wisconsin. 

The first Editor of Creative Wisconsin was Al Nelson and 

the first edition went out to 2,300 people. Unfortunately, it 

folded after the summer 1961 edition, as it had simply become 

too expensive to produce. Hopefully, by combining creative 

writing with the newsletter, we’ll be able to sustain the effort 

this time. 

Here is the cover from the Autumn 1956 edition, followed 

by a poem—Gone—that appeared in that edition. 

Gone 

by Marta Hartung Crane 

Orion lies high in the early morn, 

Sharp geometrical night shadows fade. 

Out of the freezing north, come grey-black geese winging 

southward — seeking 

Rest spots and earth-giving food for the migrants. 

Behind bulrushes that streak perpendicularly along the brack 

ish marsh 

Lurk well-fed, strong unkind humans 

Bearing steel, death-poised, waiting to strike 

Overhead, the metered flight of grey-black wings. 

Leaders ahead signal the flight to stop. 

Ranks break. Their calls spiral earthward. 

Blasts shake the air 

Tumbling, zigzagging, now in faulty lines 

Wings list downward — necks no longer stretch. 

Frightening screams of fellow geese rise upward. 

Gurgling water — gasps. 

The flight has ended. 

Ruthlessness has again destroyed the destiny of 

The wing-ed ones. 

# 

Building Castles With Heirs 

by Don Schambow 

Sunlight warms the November air. 

I survey a recently raked lawn. 

Gentile breezes rustle fallen leaves. 

An unwelcome chore awaits me. 

With trusty rake in hand 

I attack the wretched task, 

Removing leaves from a twice-raked lawn. 

It had been a beautiful day! 

At my side are my two faithful companions, 

Pre-school grandsons. 

The younger squeals with glee 

As, with each swing of his toy plastic broom, 

He scatters the leaves I’ve gathered. 

Despite his efforts the piles grow, leaf upon leaf. 

“Look, Grandpa, we’re building castles.” 

It is a beautiful day! 

# 

Submission Guidelines 

WRWA members whose dues are up to date may submit articles, essays, historical/remembrances, short stories, or poems for consideration to 

The Editor at 23059 Old 35, Siren, WI 54872 or via e-mail to newsletter@wrwa.net. I strongly prefer e-mail submissions, but will accept typescript 

submissions. If sending via e-mail, please include the manuscript in the body text and not as an attachment. If typescript, please submit on 

clean white paper, single-spaced, using 12 point Times New Roman or Courier New font. The maximum length is 800 words, though shorter is 

preferable and will have a higher chance of being printed. I will, on occasion, take longer items, but only rarely. Short stories, historical/ 

remembrances, and poetry may be submitted without prior coordination. If you wish to submit an article or essay, however, it is best to discuss 

that with me in advance via e-mail, letter, or phone. I will only accept articles and essays about writing. I will try to acknowledge receipt of all 

submissions. That’s easy via e-mail. However, if you send something via regular mail, please include your phone number, as I will not respond 

by mail. No manuscripts will be returned. The editor retains the right to edit any submission for clarity, punctuation, spelling, and grammar, but 

will not edit for style, length, or content. Submission constitutes the author’s permission for one-time publication rights in The Wisconsin Regional 

Writer. The author retains the copyright and all future rights. #

Her owl-like eyes pierced the darkness, hoping, praying for 

movement of any kind. Anything to reassure her that it was 

indeed another day. Another dance. The bars before her were 

invisible, yet she knew their distance. One push too far and 

the cold, hard steel would leave an indentation in her delicate 

features. 

So she waited. She was wide awake; she had been for almost 

an hour. Time had no meaning to one waiting in the 

shadows, for soon there would be release from the oppressive 

darkness. She softly begged to be set free. But no one answered. 

No one cared. 

A noise from afar startled her – could it be Could it finally 

be time The hallway clock chimed in the shrouded 

distance. She counted the bells. One, two, three, four – oh, 

please! It’s time! For the love of life let me out! But life 

droned on mechanically, second to second, moment to moment, 

unbearable in its agonizing monotony. She stood up, 

she sat down. Comfort had no meaning in her restricted existence; 

all she sensed was that it was time. 

Footsteps approached, across the upper floor, down the 

stairs. She stood, she danced, she sang. Hurry! Set me free! 

The blackness was pierced by the bright light of a thousand 

suns, and she trembled with excitement. She rocked the walls 

of her confinement back and forth, pushing on the walls, her 

body fully thrust against the bars. She had behaved long 

enough. Been subservient long enough. The need for freedom 

pulsed through her veins, overwhelming her senses, taking 

any sane thought and drowning it in the cauldron of insanity. 

Set me free! 

Her metal cage creaked as the door swung open. Madness 

rose to the forefront as she tore out of her unholy confinement. 

She had to get away. Far away. Dizzy with excitement, she 

searched for a way out. Another door opened, and, finally 

free, she made a mad dash out into the glowing light of dawn. 

The smell of grass and flowers became overwhelming as she 

ran into the arms of Mother Nature and all her blessings. The 

chill of the morning made the hair on the back of her neck 

stand up, invigorating her, breathing life into her once stale 

body. Running through the field and down the lane, she became 

one with the rising sun. 

Somewhere from behind she heard her name being called. 

Sweet and melodious, she heard the nymph singing her name 

over and over. Calling her, pleading with her to return into 

the folds of warmth and protection. At first she ignored the 

siren’s song -- after all, she was free! She was one with the 

earth and the sun and the wind. Her primal nature overtook 

The Taste of Freedom by Claudia Anderson 

Page 21 

her senses – surely she couldn’t be any closer to heaven than 

out here under the pink ribbons of dawn. 

Yet the musical voice called her name, teasing her, taunting 

her with the promise of a future filled with pleasure. Should 

she listen Should she surrender all that she was, just for a 

moment’s gratification 

The voice became louder, more insistent. She tried to bury 

her face in the dew covered grass, but the message was relentless. 

Was there a subtle change in the tone of the voice Did 

she detect a tinge of sourness in the sweet melody of love 

For one fleeting moment she wanted to take off – to run with 

wild abandon helter skelter until she couldn’t run anymore. 

But the voice reminded her of a more pressing need. Her 

body had shrunk under the stress of a night in the dark, and a 

deep, demanding hunger filled her senses. The voice promised 

satisfaction beyond her wildest dreams. Her willpower, 

her wanderlust, were emotions of the past. The only thing that 

kept her alive now was the burning urge that ran through her 

loins. 

Invisible fingers slowly pulled her back to the arched entrance 

of her captivity. She turned one last time, her brown 

eyes looking at the open field, sighing softly at the freedom 

that could never be. Turning, she disappeared beneath the 

arches that bridged reality and fantasy. 

The voice was high pitched and excited now, and the reward 

for her obedience appeared before her. Yes! Sustenance! 

Sprawling, half crawling, she devoured her food, eating 

with wild abandon, not caring who watched or how she 

looked. She surrendered to the physical, to her hunger, filling 

herself with all that she could bear. Then…cold water. All 

she could drink. She drowned herself in the sparkling liquid, 

quenching her desires, her needs, mouthful after mouthful. 

Filling herself, she found she could not stand still. Not 

after the spiritual high she just experienced. She needed to 

dance! To run! Freedom! Madness! Forever! 

The sun beamed in the front window, the morning light 

falling warm and bright across a huge, round floor pillow. 

Freedom could wait; something more important waited for 

her. Something just on the other side of freedom, on the other 

side of the room. It was her destiny to find the final piece of 

the puzzle, the final reward at the end of the rainbow. How 

could it be so simple How could the answers be in front of 

her all this time 

There was nothing better than curling up on the pillow and 

chewing her bone in the sunlight, a doggie treat or two thrown 

in for good measure. 

No, there was nothing better. # 

Rose 

by Patty Miler 

red, yellow, pink 

soft, tender 

fragrant petals 

strewn down isles 

a sign of love 

Morning Coffee 

by Patty Miler 

gazing out window 

stirring hot, black, eye opener 

watching the day 

come to life

Page 22 

Abloom 

by Art Schmitz 

She woke and lifted up her head 

And cocked one eye which plainly said 

Is someone here to look at me 

Or must I cry in misery 

Her glance went round and saw me there 

She took the time for a longer stare 

Then opened her lips in pleasure wide 

And smiled as I stood by her side 

Her warm and fuzzy form I took 

To the shoulder and my elbows crook 

Then jauntily we turned around 

To mother with a happy bound 

Mother laid her down with care 

And peeled off this and that from there 

Revealing a red spotted shape 

Recipe for Editing a Poem 

by Peg Sherry 

Poise your sharpest knife, slice the meat, trim the fat, 

parcel out the customary bits, tossing scraps and bones. 

Chop celery; chop strong onions; weeping tears, add feeling. 

Boil the richest stock, then simmer slowly, slowly. 

Sniff. Inhale the rising steam, envision blackened stoves 

hot with crackling wood, iron pots that bubble broth. 

Listen to the essence sigh. Hum, hum low and long 

till deep within the soup its spirit sings your song. 

A Cute Little Stinker 

By Don Schambow 

Our olfactory senses sound alarm whenever he is near. 

He exudes an offal odor, 

qualifying him for the endangered species list. 

His capacity to offend knows no end. 

Does he associate with unsavory characters 

Possessing very good traits, 

among his own he’s regarded with pride. 

His mate finds him attractive. 

His offsprings idolize him 

and emulate all his moves. 

He embraces black and white. 

Is his vilification unmerited, 

existing only in the eye of the beholder 

We tend to avoid, reject, exterminate him, 

change our life styles, alter our activities, and 

beat a hasty retreat; if it’s likely we might meet. 

How do we communicate with those 

who don’t speak our language 

Do we try to live in peaceful coexistence, 

to see the world through his eyes, 

to share his point of view, 

to avoid the territory he often roams 

He merely attempts to survive and 

live life as normal as possible. 

We invade his territory, 

threatening his home and life style. 

He retaliates in the only way he knows. 

And, if he didn’t create such an awful smell, 

We’d call him a cute little stinker. 

Emergency Room by Marsha Jordan 

I was driving home from church one snowy Sunday when 

my van skidded on a patch of ice and overturned. As the ambulance 

transported me to the hospital, police phoned the husband 

to notify him. 

I lay in the emergency room eagerly waiting for him to 

come. "What could be keeping him" I asked the nurse. 

"Well, the police said they can't reach him," she explained. 

"But I know he's home," I told her. "He wasn't planning to 

leave the house today. He's working on his boat." 

"I need to check on your x-rays," she said, walking to the 

door. "I'll see if there is any news on your husband too." 

When she came back, she told me, "The police are still trying 

to reach him. They've called several times but they got no 

answer. They even went to your house, but nobody came to 

the door when they knocked. They did talk to your neighbor, 

though. He said he'd go into your house, find your husband, 

and let him know you're here." 

I fumed for hours until that evening when the husband finally 

arrived. I was more than a little perturbed. 

"Where in the world have you been" I demanded. 

"I was in the basement all day," was his innocent reply. 

"Weren't you curious about why I didn't come home from 

church this morning" I asked through clenched teeth. 

"I was busy and didn't notice the time," he said. "I thought 

you were just on an all-day shopping marathon." 

My temper was ready to blow like a bald tire on a Volkswagon 

bus. "Why didn't you answer the door or the phone" I 

snapped. 

"I didn't hear them," he said defensively. "The neighbor 

didn't come over and give me the message till five o'clock." 

"Five o'clock" I shrieked. "It's seven thirty now! What 

took you so long to get here" 

He winced as if he knew his answer wouldn't please me. 

Then he stammered, "Well…I had to…stop…at the junk yard 

to see the damage to the car." 

Lucky for him I was restrained by a back brace. If I hadn't 

been strapped to the table, he might have needed emergency 

surgery—to remove my purse from his forehead. #

Page 23 

From Time to Time—Members’ Letters Robin E. Butler, Membership Chair 

Elayne Clipper Hanson of Portage writes: “I have been a 

member since 1967. I served on the Board from 1969 to 1999. 

I was president seven or eight years and during our 50 th anniversary 

celebration. It was during my tenure that we [had to 

reorganize the WRWA], renewing incorporation with the 

state, getting past records up to date, etc., an extremely trying 

and busy time. I spent almost full time on the organization 

[bringing] it from an almost deficit [condition] to one where 

we had C Ds in savings.... Don Schambow used to be my pastor 

in Portage years ago.” When Don (a former Lutheran pastor) 

became president, Bill Heins (a former United Church of 

Christ pastor) was still treasurer and I (a former Presbyterian 

pastor) was just secretary, all we needed was an ex-clergyman 

vice president to fill out a “divine” executive committee. Contrary 

to what you might believe, we have been unable (so far) 

to perform miracles. 

Irene Luethge of Sheboygan writes: “I was awarded a membership 

in May 1988 as a winner in the Yarns of Yesteryear 

contest. I have enjoyed and found useful most of the articles in 

the WRWA newsletter ever since. That [contest] put me in 

touch with the Sheboygan Writers’ Club. I joined and found it 

highly enjoyable and helpful over the years since. Their critiques 

of my two manuscripts resulted in the publication of 

two books. I reread my collection of WRWA newsletters from 

time to time and continue to find helpful contents.” Again, a 

long-time member from a one-year prize membership. Seems 

like an issue for the Board to consider reinstituting. 

Kimberly Link of Cambria writes: “I enjoy writing and 

want to do more of it. Barb Jensen encouraged me to join a 

few years ago while teaching a creative writing class in Portage 

at MATC.” That reminds me to remind other members to 

get out and recruit more new members. 

I DO ENJOY the notes from renewing members, and the 

help I get from members I contact now and then to clarify, or 

verify, records. I've been checking the winter addresses of 

"snow birds" recently and got this note from Peter Sherrill, 

who is not a "snow bird" but has a technique for enduring 

Wisconsin winters. He says: "I just burrow my head a little 

deeper under the covers." (I've tried that, but then my wife 

complains that I'm pulling all the covers.) 

SPEAKING OF "snow birds," if you haven't sent me your 

alternate address, or if you've changed it, be sure to let me 

know. Our newsletter is bulk-mailed which means the Post 

Office will not forward it. If I have your alternate address, and 

know the period of time you will be in the Sunny South, I will 

adjust the newsletter mailing list accordingly and you will 

receive The Wisconsin Regional Writer wherever you are! 

I GET SOME COMPLAINTS, too, now and then, and constructive 

criticism, and problem-solving suggestions. I don't 

have the authority to deal with most of these items, but they 

are not lost. Board and non-board WRWA members are constantly 

working "behind the scenes" to solve problems and 

innovate solutions and changes. I won't embarrass anyone by 

mentioning names but here are a few member concerns and 

comments I have rephrased: 

1. WRWA seems to concentrate on short stories and poetry. 

2. How about an "Advisory Board" of experts to answer questions 

about copyright, tax deductions, recommended agents 

and editors, publishing and self-publishing 

3. Most conferences are too far away. 

4. No listing of members who could be contacted for advice 

on writing matters. (This member would be willing to pay for 

it.) 

5. Maybe a presentation on public speaking do's and don'ts, if 

taken to heart by some speakers, would make a more satisfied 

audience. 

6. Do we have members who would be willing to just read 

(and comment on) 

someone else's manuscript, for a fee 

I do pass on such matters to the Board of Directors where 

each member's input is definitely taken seriously. There is one 

thing we never get enough of, though—suggestions as to 

HOW these ideas might be implemented. Yours are always 

welcome. 

Rosemary Varney writes that she "really like[s] the newsletter 

layout and content." Take a bow, Boyd. 

SOMEONE SENT me a newspaper clipping of the obituary 

of Florence R. Poehlman. It was just a small piece of paper 

fluttering unnoticed to the floor at my desk. When I eventually 

noticed it, I could no longer identify whose envelope it fell 

from. I'm sure there's a story here, so whoever sent it please 

contact me. 

Dolores George writes that she has been a member of 

WRWA since 1948, the year WRWA came into existence. 

Maybe she can be persuaded to share memories of some of the 

early days of WRWA with the rest of us 

David White says he heard "a couple of guys on the radio" 

coming back from a trip to LaCrosse Saturday, Oct. 12 and 

that apparently inspired him to join WRWA. Welcome David! 

The "guys on the radio" were our President, Don Schambow, 

and Vice President, Nate Scholze, who were being interviewed 

about WRWA on the Wisconsin Public Radio network. 

RECENT NEW MEMBER Liz Fentress of Louisville, 

Kentucky, is responsible for making WRWA international. 

She persuaded Sue Chenette of Toronto Ontario, Canada, to 

join also. Welcome to you both! 

SHERRIE HELLRUNG, a former Wisconsinite now living 

in Florida recently contacted me in search of information 

about her aunt. Mrs. Ben Crane, who published some poems 

many years ago in Creative Wisconsin, a magazine then published 

by WRWA when it was "Rural Writers" instead of 

"Regional Writers." With the help of two Honorary Lifetime 

Members, Lorraine Hawkinson, our wonderfully knowledgeable 

historian, and Libbie Nolan, who was a staff member of 

(Continued on page 24)

Page 24 

(Continued from page 23) 

Creative Wisconsin when the poems were published, the information 

requested was found and relayed to Mrs. Hellrung. 

Libbie wrote: "Believe it or not, I am a charter (1948) member 

of WRWA and, as a board member, made the motion to 

change our name from "Rural" to "Regional." Bob Gard and 

Al Nelson were old friends!" 

ANOTHER HONORARY LIFETIME MEMBER, Sharen 

Neumann Kaatz, writes: "Starting in 1987 I served WRWA as 

Club Liaison [now served by Earle Garber] for many years. I 

was the contact for new members and clubs. I served WRWA 

for eight years on the board of directors and planned and directed 

two WRWA conferences—back when the local club 

was responsible for the entire conference—speakers, food, 

hall, help, and all. I formed a writer's club in Eau Claire which 

produced two other WRWA board members. After my eighth 

year Bill Bottoms was elected, followed by Rev. Bill Heins. I 

think you will find me in the WRWA history booklet." 

YOU SEE, FOLKS, "talking" to WRWA members like this 

is just one of the intangible rewards of being your membership 

chair. # 

The WRWA Book List 

Pathways Through Life - Writers & Artists from the Lowell Center, 2005, $15, lschill@lowellcenter.org or mail to 

Lowell Center 220 Third Avenue South, Wisc.Rapids 54495; 34 short life stories, 15 paintings; their lives and skills. 

Deb Baker, Murder Passes the Buck, $12.95, Midnight Ink, www.debbakerbooks.com 

Hilarious romp in the Michigan back woods. First of the Yooper mystery series, featuring 66-year-old Gertie Johnson. 

Deb Baker, Dolled Up for Murder, $6.95, Berkley Prime Crime, www.debbakerbooks.com 

Death on Phoenix’s Camelback Mountain and an expensive French fashion doll add up to murder. 

Ludmilla Bollow, DR. ZASTRO’S SANITARIUM—for the Ailments of Women, $16, Behler Publishing, bollow@earthlink.net 

A novel—reviewed in Pub Weekly and Midwest Books. 

Ludmilla Bollow, IN THE RESTROOM AT ROSENBLOOMS, $8, bollow@earthlink.net 

A play, an hilarious comedy, numerous productions and reviews. 

Mary T. Carlson, Journey from Cornwall, 2000, 272 pages, $5.00 from englishmary@charter.net or Box 214, Abbotsford, WI 54405 

A novel about two families, Cornish immigrants to Wisconsin and an English family in World War II. 

John Manesis, With All My Breath: Selected Poems, 2003, 109 pages, $13.00, or CD at $10, Jmanesis@earthlink.net 

Portraits and insightful treasures invite the reader on an alluring nostalgic trek with humor and poignancy. 

John J. Mutter, Jr., To Slay a Giant, 2000, 6 x 9 in., 176 pages, paperback, $20.20, www.burstonellc.com. 

The Fight to Protect the Wolf River From the Proposed Crandon Copper Mine. A lengthy battle, that we won! 

Burnette V. Mutter, The Hobo Poet, 2001, 6 x 9 in., 96 pages, paperback, $15.70, www.burstonellc.com. 

Poetry about the seasons, life, childhood fantasy, holidays, nostalgia. There's something for everyone. 

John Mutter, Jr., Out in the Country, 2005, 8 ½ x 11 in., 96 pages, paperback, $16.15, www.burstonellc.com. 

33 stories about nature and rural living, including 3 award winners. Animals, trees, and life experiences. 

Dan Ritter, a.k.a., God, 2005, 157 pages, $17.84, www.xlibris.com/ritter 

The Old Testament is great literature; as religious premise it is counterproductive. 

James P. Roberts, Darkling I Listen, and for Many a Time...and Other Imaginations, 2005, $15 paperback, $30 hard cover. 

23 science fiction/fantasy/horror tales. Orders to James P. Roberts, 324 Kedzie St., Madison, WI 53704, or jrob52162@aol.com. 

Shirley J. Starck, Gabrielle’s Gamble, 2005, 95 pages, $12.00, shirlee@cvol.net - 12-year-old Gabrielle leaves parents and Germany behind in 

1860, seeks better life in Wisconsin, encounters challenges, finds adventure. 

Jean Willett, DEAR MOM, or Why Raising Four Boys Was Neither Boring nor Monotonous, 2005, 472 pages, $21.88, dannjean@sbcglobal.net. 

Humorous with universal appeal to all generations 

Billie Williams, Watch for the Raven, 2005, 151 pages, $12.95, www.billiewilliams.com 

1853 Colorado, Indian friend/enemy hauls 15-year-old hurt boy to Indian cap. Survival adventure begins. 

Billie Williams, Skull Music, 2005, 289 pages, $14.95 print, www.billiewilliams.com 

Love/obsession, Scientific experiment/medical breakthrough, insurance fraud/espionage; a bizarre mystery. 

Billie Williams, Purple Haze, 2005, 214 pages, $ 5.99 electronic only, www.billiewilliams.com 

Can twisted serial killer murders be solved before another dies Only clues: feather, froth, and haze, all purple. 

A one-time listing costs $5, but $10 will get up to three books listed in every edition for a full year. Send your listings to the Editor via e-mail or letter. Make 

checks out to WRWA, Inc. Cost must include shipping. Contact may be a web site, your e-mail or regular mail address, or your phone number. Each line may 

be no more than 115 characters, including spaces and punctuation. #

How To Send Blind Copy E-mail Messages 

by Cary Fellman 

Like me, occasionally you receive a Cc: (carbon copy) e- 

mail with a whole bunch of e-mail addresses in the “To” box. 

This means your e-mail address is included within the group 

and has been made visible to everyone on the list. 

This is both bad and good. Why bad Because my e-mail 

address is available to all those people without my permission. 

Why good I now have the e-mail address of everyone else on 

the list. That could be useful to me when my books are published 

and I”m doing an e-mail advertisement. Would it be 

ethical for me to use that information I”m not sure! But I’m 

collecting addresses like mad. 

When I send the same e-mail to a bunch of people, I send 

blind carbon copies (Bcc), thereby protecting other people’s e- 

mail addresses. 

Here is the step-by-step process I use so you can do it, too, 

whenever you wish. I use Microsoft Outlook Express provided 

by Compaq. Your system may be different, but will be 

similar. 

It takes some time so, if you have limited Internet minutes, 

you can do this work off line. 

Get to your “read mail”, then click on “create mail.” 

When “create mail” box pops up, click on Cc: (carbon copy). 

You will then see Bcc: (blind carbon copy). Click on the Bcc. 

Your e-mail address list of names will pop up. 

Highlight a name and click on Bcc: and that name will appear 

in the Bcc: box. 

Keep doing that until all names you want to include are entered. 

Click OK and the names will appear in the Bcc: line of your e- 

mail so you can check to see if you’ve included everyone that 

you want to send the message to. But only the specific receiver’s 

name will appear on each individual e-mail sent. 

If you regularly send e-mails to a certain group of names, another 

way to do the above is to create a group list. Here’s how: 

Click on Addresses. 

When the address window pops up, click on “new.” 

Chose “new group” and type whatever “group name” you 

wish to use in the offered box, then click on “select members.” 

“Members” list pops up. Highlight a name you want on the 

group list and click “select.” 

Do this, one at a time, for each name to be included. 

When the list is complete, click O.K. The group list will pop 

up. If complete, click O.K. 

The group name, in bold, will be on your e-mail address list. 

When you want to send a Bcc:, click Cc: on the e-mail you are 

writing. A “select recipients” box will pop up. Type in the 

group name or scroll down to the group name, highlight it and 

click Bcc: and then O.K. 

This brings you back to the “create” e-mail box where the 

name will appear in the Bcc: line. 

This many seem complicated, but give it a try. And, if you 

don”t know who I am, and your spam blocker doesn’t trash 

me, and my e-mail tells you about my new book, please send 

money with your order. # 

Page 25 

Book Reviews by Pat Fitzgerald 

Stark Knight, by J.R. Turner. Sara Stark and Drake Knight combine 

forces in this thriller to save America from nuclear disaster. 

They seek the fortress of Victor Acosta, who possesses the weapon 

to wreak havoc on the United States. Acosta is also responsible for 

the death of Sara’s father, making their mission both an act of patriotism 

and personal. If that’s not personal enough, Sara and Drake 

must confront their ever-growing sexual attraction, a situation complicated 

by the fact Drake once considered Sara “a sister to him, but 

no blood relation.” J. R. Turner keeps the action flying and tension 

flowing to her novel’s last seconds. Stark Knight is available 

through Echelon Press at Turner’s 

web site: www.jennifer-turner.com 

Innocent People, by Linda Jamilah Kolocotronis. Sadia Abdullah 

watches the September 11th attacks “on the couch in my living 

room, in my small Midwestern town,” but the disaster affects Sadia 

differently than most Midwesterners. She, her husband, Salahuddin, 

and their five sons are Muslim. The boys’ Islamic school temporarily 

shuts down due to threats. Salahuddin’s restaurant also suffers 

threats. Fearing being mistaken for a terrorist rather than a loyal 

United States citizen, Sadia contemplates leaving her home minus 

the scarf she’s worn since accepting the Islamic faith. But Sadia 

manages to handle 9-11's aftermath with dignity and the quiet humor 

of a loving wife and mother. Ms. Kolocotronis has written a 

compelling story of a family’s love for one another and how they 

cope, grow and move forward during a disrupting time for all 

Americans. Innocent People may be purchased through http:// 

jamilahkolocotronis.writerswebpages.com. #

Page 26 

This edition of The Wisconsin Regional Writer marks the 

addition of a new regular feature, “Useful URLs.” A “URL” is 

a Uniform Resource Locator—Web speak for the address of a 

Web site. The World Wide Web (WWW) includes literally 

hundreds of millions of sites. Many are helpful to writers. I’d 

like to encourage all WRWA members to submit the URLs for 

sites that you believe would be of broad interest and value to 

members. Please submit only those sites relating to writing. 

Send the URL and a brief description (use the items below for 

examples). I will try to include a few in every edition and will 

acknowledge the member who contributes each one. Here are 

a few of my favorites to get us started. Remember, I’m looking 

for quality, not quantity. 

————— 

http://www.worldwidewords.org/ 

Michael Quinion’s World Wide Words provides a rich source 

of information on word origins and meanings. The site includes 

articles, questions and answers, reviews, topical words, 

turn of phrase, and weird words. Have you ever wanted to 

know where such terms as these came from. 

Bulldozer; Hokey-pokey; Mongo; Bellwether; Across the 

board; Ultimo; High dudgeon; Swan song; Biosimilar; 

Gringo; On the ball; Darknet; The elephant in the room; Barbarian; 

Since Hector was a pup; Pulchritudinous; Losing one's 

marbles; Fink; Geronimo; Impignorate. 

If so, this is the site for you. 

————— 

http://www.quoteland.com/ 

Quoteland.com helps you find just the right quotation for the 

point you want to make. It’s also useful if you want to be sure 

you get it right. And, who said that You can look up quotes 

by topic—love, friends, dreams, happiness, sports, and many 

more—by author, and by other criteria. The site also supports 

a variety of user forums, such as “Who said it” “I need a 

quote,” and “Scholarly Pursuit.” 

---------- 

http://www.fictionfactor.com/ 

This is an online magazine for fiction writers. It contains articles 

on the craft. You are offered the opportunity to “Select a 

Writing Category.” Your selection takes you directly to articles 

on the subject of your choice, such as author interviews, 

Useful URLs Compiled by Boyd Sutton 

writer alerts, markets (by category), nuts and bolts, creating 

characters, novels, short fiction, children, romance, horror, 

fantasy, agents, copyright, and many more. 

---------- 

http://www.poynter.org/ 

This site is for people who think of writing as journalism. You 

don’t have to be a professional journalist to gain value from 

this site. And it isn’t essential that you be writing for newspapers. 

The site offers articles on writing, such as “Sentence 

Length and Power,” by Peter Clark. It allows you to post 

questions about writing and get answers from staff and others. 

There is a lot on this site and it often is a challenge to find 

what you are looking for, but the result is certainly worth the 

effort 

---------- 

http://rhymezone.com/ 

This multifaceted site is an online dictionary (and much, much 

more) with several great features. You can type in a word and 

instantly find other words that rhyme with it, synonyms, antonyms, 

definitions, related words, similar sounding words, 

homophones, and quotations in which the word is found. The 

site also offers a way to search for words and phrases found in 

Shakespeare, to search for famous quotations by many authors, 

to search for words or phrases in the Old and New Testaments 

of the Christian Bible, the Constitution, the Declaration 

of Independence, and the complete Mother Goose stories. 

Hey! I didn’t put the site together. I’m just telling you what’s 

there. Cool! 

---------- 

http://www.imdb.com/ 

You might be surprised that I list this site—the Internet Movie 

Database—as a writers’ resource. Well, this site gives you the 

plot, characters, actors, producers, directors, and more for just 

about every movie or TV program ever made in the US. Just 

think, how often have you read a book or watched a movie in 

which the dialogue involved some reference to movies, TV 

programs, famous episodes, special characters, and the like A 

lot! You can search by titles, episodes, names, companies, key 

words, characters, quotes, bios, plots, or all of the above 

(inclusive). # 

Wisconsin Center for the Book: Annual Book Mark Poetry Contest 

The Wisconsin Center for the Book/Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters announces its Annual Book Mark Poetry 

Contest. Submissions must be postmarked by June 1, 2007, and the winner will be notified August 1, 2007. The grand prize is 

1,000 bookmarks with your poem & photo and a reading at the Wisconsin Book Festival. The contest is for Wisconsin poets only. 

Guidelines for submission: 

1) Submit 3 unpublished poems, 18 lines maximum for each poem, any style or theme, and a $10 entry fee payable to WCB/ 

Wisconsin Academy. 

2) Enclose a single cover letter with your name, address, and phone. Names should not appear on poems themselves. 

3) Send copies only; poems will not be returned. 

4) Mail contest entries and fee to: Mary L. Grow, WCB Book Mark Poetry Contest, 307 S. Lexington Street, Spring Green, WI 

53588. 

5) E-mail to Mary Grow - growml@merr.com, Margot Peters - margot @gdinet.com, or James Gollata - james.gollata@uwc.edu 

[Thanks for the tip from Chris Byerly, Frederic Public Library.] #

Preferred Spelling of Internet and Other Computer Terms Compiled by Boyd Sutton 

Many terms pertaining to the Internet, computing, and electronic 

devices have entered our vocabulary and our writing in 

recent years. I thought it might be helpful to have a handy 

reference to how these should be spelled. I used The Associated 

Press Stylebook as the guide, because it is the “bible” of 

journalism editors. Use these spellings (and capitalizations) 

and you can’t go wrong. Note carefully which words are capitalized, 

which are hyphenated, which are combined as one 

word, and which are considered two words. I have also noted 

where Webster’s Dictionary is different. When there is a difference, 

I suggest you stick with the AP Style Book. But, in the 

final analysis, the editor to whom you submit will select his or 

her preference. 

cell phone (two words, not as in Webster’s) 

chat room (two words) 

cyberspace 

dot-com (adjective describing companies that do business 

mainly on the Internet) 

double-click (not doubleclick or double click) 

download (not down load) 

dpi (not DPI--dots per inch) 

e-mail (not email) 

end user (noun) 

end-user (adjective) 

firewall (not fire wall) 

freeware (free software—not free ware) 

home page (not homepage) 

Internet (not internet) 

JavaScript (not Java Script—it’s a scripting language 

developed by Netscape) 

kilobyte or KB 

The Old Maple Tree 

by Kathy Conger 

Resplendent in flaming fall foliage, 

she stands poised 

on our front lawn, 

impeccably attired, 

A callous wind plucks at her brittle sleeves, 

rustels, her crimson petticoats, 

sets are too shivering until she. 

drops her fading frock 

round her ankles in a heap. 

And there the old gal stands, 

like a naked mannequin 

waiting for the first snowfall, 

next season’s gown. 

{The editor thanks Susan Twiggs and other members of the 

Marshfield Poetry Society for judging.] 

Winning Poems, Spring 2006 Contest 

Page 27 

listserv (a software program for maintaining discussion 

groups through e-mail, such as the WRWA online forum) 

login, logon, logoff (noun) 

log in, log on, log off (verb) 

megabyte or MB 

megahertz or MHz 

Net (not net) 

offline, online (one word, no hyphen, exception to Webster’s) 

plug-in (a smaller, add-on computer program) 

shareware (software that may be tried without cost but 

requires a registration fee if kept) 

source code (a set of instructions or tags in a programming 

language) 

URL (Uniform Resource Locator, Internet address for a 

Web site) 

Usenet (a worldwide system of discussion areas called 

newsgroups) 

Wikipedia (a free collaborative online encyclopedia built 

collaboratively using Wiki software) 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page 

World Wide Web (a subset of the Internet, the WWW is 

a global system of linking documents, images, sounds, 

and other files across the Internet; developed in 1991, 

but not fully available until the mid-1990s) 

Web 

Web site (not web site, not website) 

Web page (not web page, not webpage), but... 

webcam, webmaster are correct 

Inebriate 

by Mary Downs 

I am high 

on the color of autumn— 

the rich rosé of maple leaves, 

the amber chablis of birch, 

burgundy sumac burning a ridge 

below the hill. 

I am exhilarated with the sweet 

purple wine of wide asters 

marking the wayside, 

the orange liqueur of pompous 

pumpkins mocking the sun, 

the chartreuse of gaudy gourds. 

I drink to the riot— 

refill my cup, revel 

in the bacchanal as long 

as time shall last. #

Page 28 

Writers’ Markets by Sylvia Bright-Green 

Farm & Ranch Living 

5925 Country Lane 

Greendale, WI. 53129 

E-Mail Queries: Yes 

editors@farmandranchliving.com 

Guidelines Online: http://tinyurl.com/ 

ynewqx 

This bimonthly magazine features articles 

for and about families who farm or 

ranch fulltime. Its focus is people. Articles 

include humor, inspirational, interview, 

profile, personal experience, nostalgia, 

and photo features of farmers/ 

ranchers and their properties and homes. 

Article length is 750-1200 words. Query 

via standard mail or e-mail and state 

availability of photos. 

Buys: First Rights 

Pays: On publication-- up to $300. 

---------- 

Her Sports 

245 Central Ave., Suite C 

St. Petersburg, FL. 33701 

E-Mail Queries: editorial@hersports.com 

Guidelines Online: No 

http://www.hersports.com 

For women in their 20s through early 50s 

who love individual sports, this magazine 

covers issues of importance and intrigue. 

Articles include pieces on health, nutrition, 

sports, sports training, travel, profiles 

on everyday athletes as well as professionals, 

and inspirational articles. 

Does not want anything about team 

sports. Length runs 800-1200 words. 

Query via standard mail or e-mail and 

include published clips. 

Buys: First Rights 

Pays: On publication--$200-$350. 

---------- 

Ugly Duckling Presse 

106 Ferris Street, Second Floor 

Brooklyn, New York, NY 11231 

http://www.uglyducklingpresse.org/ 

"Ugly Duckling Presse is a nonprofit art 

& publishing collective 

producing 

small to mid-size 

editions of new 

poetry, translations, 

lost works, 

and artist's books. The Presse favors 

emerging, international, and "forgotten" 

writers with well-defined formal or conceptual 

projects that are difficult to place 

at other presses. Its full-length books, 

chapbooks, artist's books, broadsides, 

magazine and newspaper all contain 

handmade elements, calling attention to 

the labor and history of bookmaking. " 

Full Guidelines: 

http://www.uglyducklingpresse.org/ 

submissions.html 

---------- 

New Directions Publishing Corp. 

80 Eighth Avenue 

New York, NY 10010 

USA 

http://www.ndpublishing.com/home.html 

New Directions was founded in 1936, 

when James Laughlin (1914 - 1997), then 

a twenty-two-year-old Harvard sophomore, 

issued the first of the New Directions 

anthologies. “I asked Ezra Pound 

for career advice,” James Laughlin recalled. 

“He had been seeing my poems 

for months and had ruled them hopeless. 

He urged me to finish Harvard and then 

do 'something' useful.” Intended as a 

place where experimentalists could test 

their inventions by publication, the ND 

anthologies first introduced readers to the 

early work of such writers as William 

Saroyan, Louis Zukofsky, Marianne 

Moore, Wallace Stevens, Kay Boyle, 

Delmore Schwartz, Dylan Thomas, Thomas 

Merton, John Hawkes, Denise 

Levertov, James Agee, and Lawrence 

Ferlinghetti. Soon after issuing the first 

of the anthologies, New Directions began 

publishing novels, plays, and collections 

of poems. Ezra Pound and William Carlos 

Williams, who once had difficulty 

finding publishers, were early New Directions 

authors and have remained at the 

core of ND's backlist of modernist writers. 

And Tennessee Williams first appeared 

as a poet in the early Five Young 

American Poets. 

Full guidelines: http:// 

www.ndpublishing.com/contact.html 

---------- 

Northern Woodlands Magazine Seeks 

Submissions 

Our audience consists of conservationminded 

people with an interest in all aspects 

of the forests of the Northeast. We 

are not a trade magazine for the forest 

products industry or an advocacy magazine 

for preservationists. Write to us with 

a story idea that fits our audience. We 

like to surprise our readers with stories 

they won't find anywhere else. Or, submit 

a short piece for Knots and Bolts 

(200-600 words). We cover a wide range 

of short subjects in that section and it's 

the best bet for new writers breaking in. 

Either way, send along some clips or 

other writing samples. 

Pays $50-100 for columns and book reviews, 

$.10/word for feature articles. 

http://www.northernwoodlands.org/ 

writers_guidelines.php 

---------- 

LAKE SUPERIOR MAGAZINE 

http://www.lakesuperior.com/editorial/ 

editguidelines.html 

The magazine about the world's largest 

fresh-water lake and the people who list 

and visit there. We may pay up to $600, 

according to length, importance of story 

and writer's experience. Top dollar is 

earned by a well-written and researched 

manuscript-photo package. The average 

feature runs 1,600 to 2,200 words. Departments 

and Columns average 900 to 

1,400 words and usually pay from $65 to 

$125. # 

Creative writing—short stories, poems, articles on writing 

(see page 20 for submission guidelines) 

Historical articles about the WRWA 

Club Spotlight articles (see page 10 for example) 

Useful URLS (see page 26 for examples) 

Computer/Internet tips for writers 

Questions for “Just the FAQs” column (see page 19) 

WRWA Members Are Encouraged to Submit... 

Your comments and ideas (to newsletter@wrwa.net) 

If you see certain authors appearing in The Wisconsin Regional 

Writer more often than you might expect, it is because 

they are submitting. This is your Association and your newsletter/journal. 

Please help make it the best it can be by participating.

WRWA Fall Conference in Janesville 

Thank you to the following businesses and individuals 

whose contributions greatly enhanced the success of our Fall 

Conference. 

Janesville Businesses and Individuals (for contributions to the 

conference “Goodie Bags”) 

M & U Bank, 1005 Main St., Janesville – pens and note pads 

Johnson Bank, 1 S. Main St., Janesville – pens 

Minuteman Press, 303 W. Milwaukee, Janesville – note pads 

Book World, 2457 Milton Ave., Janesville – Bookmarks with 

20% off Coupons. 

Sherry Derr-Wille – WRWA Member – 1116 Yuba St. Janesville 

– Calendars 

Janesville Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, 51 S. Jackson 

St. – Brochures of Janesville and Rock County, Car Fresheners, 

and the “Goodie Bags.” 

Edna Thorpe and Janet Fugate – Name Tags. 

Thank You 

Door Prize contributors: 

Page 29 

Swiss Colony – two tins of butter toffee 

Lois Bonde – book - Hot Bytes 

Ralph Mason – 10 books – One World, One Heart 

John Campbell – book – Jade Ring Anthology 

Boyd Sutton – book – Come Read With Me, Northwest Regional 

Writers’ 5 th Anthology. 

Kalmbach Publishing Co. – Kristina Badura, Events Marketing 

Coodinator – 100 copies of The Writer magazine for attendees, 

a gift certificate for a free subscription, and another free 

subscription through a drawing. 

An especially big THANK YOU! Cary Fellman for serving as 

Jade Ring Contest Chair for the last three years. 

Thank all of you for all you do and for this extra effort to give. 

Don Schambow 

Jennifer Turner presents Launching a Career – A Novel Journey by Bill Bright 

The line-up of speakers at this fall’s 

WRWA Conference in Janesville was 

absolutely capital. Not least of these was 

J. R. (Jenny) Turner: authoress, homemaker, 

and dynamo. 

I’ve read one of Jenny’s books, Stark 

Knight, and am now reading the second in 

the series, Silent Knight. I know Jenny 

from earlier conferences, and she’s an 

active part of our online WRWA group. I 

already liked her. So.it’s fun to be able to write about this Energizer 

Bunny’s presentation. 

She first talked about when she started writing and told us a 

cute story about her childhood introduction to writing. Then 

she told us why she writes: “We write to understand life better, 

ourselves.... Most authors struggle with life and how to 

put it down on paper,” she said, and illustrated. 

Jenny intimated that she doesn’t have a particular fondness 

for doing research—unlike the rest of us, I’m sure. She joined 

the Romance Writers of America, whereupon she was roped 

into mentoring others while still paying RWA a fee. That, she 

claims, despite the fact that she needed help herself. 

Jenny revealed her favorite writing books: James R. Frey’s 

How to write a damn good novel (I and II), Alice Orr’s No 

More Rejection, and Donald Maass’ Writing the Breakout 

Novel. 

Jenny said that she stayed constantly engaged and challenged 

herself: contests, Website with giveaways, blog, 

listserves, forums, networking, being constantly on the lookout 

for “what’s hot and new” for subject matter and professional 

direction. She told us of the struggle to find an agent, 

and deciding against the traditional publishing market after a 

string of refusals and confusing incidents wherein agents and 

editors kept disappearing on her. She finally landed a contract 

with Echelon Press. Now, Bullet Proof Bride, Stark Knight, 

and Silent Knight are all available for those of us who enjoy 

action, adventure, and romance. My Biker Bodyguard is just 

around the corner. 

Jenny gave us an exercise to pick our three favorite authors, 

and from these decide what we’d be best at writing. Why 

Because these are the things that excite us. 

Jenny talked about promoting yourself: podcasting, networking 

online, speaking, newspapers, etc. 

A few items discussed during Q&A: podcast promotion 

through U-Tube trailers, romance writer’s groups, contracting 

without the help of an agent, the time of day to write, using 

Lulu.com for self-publishing a book. Other items can be seen 

at Jenny’s blog. 

Nuggets from Jenny: 

•It’s important to understand who you are (to know what to 

write). 

•Publishers publish their submission guidelines, but they 

don’t really know what they want: sometimes editors 

change, the company changes policy regularly, etc. 

•It’s affirming to (re)visit the geography of your writings. 

•Exciting for me = exciting for the reader. 

•Self-esteem and courage aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive. 

If you can’t get the confidence to say who you are 

(to an audience), how will you ever get the confidence to 

be who you want to be 

Jenny’s blog: http://jr-turner.blogspot.com (Here you’ll 

also be able to find the answers to questions asked during the 

conference.) 

Jenny’s website: http://www.jennifer-turner.com

Page 30 

Writing Poetry Successfully: 99 Propositions - Tom Montag by Joan T. Zeier 

Tom Montag advised us to pick and 

choose from his 99 propositions, and use 

those which work for us. I managed to 

scribble down about 96 keepers. Contemplative, 

witty, hard-edged, or metaphoric, 

they all rang true—even the ones that contradicted 

each other as truths sometimes 

do. 

Still, his opening proposition, repeated 

at least four times, is surely his central 

theme: Listen to the poem. What is it trying to say Let it 

follow its own form. It is a chrysalis—a midwife—a radio. 

(It’s not too hard to figure out those metaphors.). It is all 

about the poem, not about you. The poem knows. Listen to 

it, not to those around you who have their own agendas. 

Tom’s presentation offered several pithy quotes. 

•“Use a word just for its sound (as important as meaning); If 

sound is not as important to you as meaning, you may not 

be a poet.” 

•“Poetry is not self-expression, not therapy. Put your feelings 

in your diary.” 

•“Trim the first lines. Be ruthless. Poetry is subtraction, not 

addition.” 

•“Three essentials are measure, sound, and image.” 

Literary Agent, Jack Byrne by Deb Baker 

Milwaukee literary agent, Jack Byrne, 

presented a comprehensive analysis of an 

agent’s role in the publishing process, 

beginning with guidelines to selecting an 

agent. He cautioned against unscrupulous 

agents who charge reading fees or suggest 

payments to book doctors. A reputable 

literary agency does not expect any 

monetary output until the manuscript is 

•“If it ain’t broke, break it (use surprise and change).” 

Using the examples of Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, 

and Lorine Niedecker, Montag tells all writers, “Believe in 

yourself when no one else does. And always, listen to the 

poem.” 

[Editor’s Note: All 99 of Tom’s most excellent Propositions 

can be found at http://middlewesterner.typepad.com/ 

middlewesterner/2006/09/writing_poetry_.html.] # 

sold. 

A literary agent’s help isn’t necessary for short fiction, 

technical writing, or poetry, but a writer should have representation 

for full-length fiction and non-fiction proposals. The 

principal reason is to protect the writer’s rights, negotiate advances 

and payout schedules, and to act as a buffer between 

the writer and editor. 

To stand out and improve your chances of finding an agent, 

write a great cover letter and submit only your best work. # 

Chris Roerden—Voice: Sounds from the Submission Pile by David Rank 

There's a reason 99 percent of manuscripts 

never get past the first read at a 

publisher or literary agency, Chris Roerden 

said in her Saturday afternoon presentation, 

"Voice—Sounds from the Submission 

Pile," at the WRWA Fall Conference: 

Most writers fail to polish their 

work from "average" or "amateur" writing 

to an "above average," professional 

level. 

Roerden, who has a 40-plus year background in writing, 

publishing, teaching, and editing, said slush pile screeners, the 

first readers of unsolicited manuscripts, have a job to do, and 

that "is to lower the piles as quickly as possible. They dismiss 

(manuscripts) very quickly. They have to, that's their job." 

Screeners do that by looking first for sloppy appearance— 

manuscripts not formatted as the publisher or agent requested, 

or the genre of the work is not clearly and precisely defined. 

Pass those initial tests, and the screeners will actually start 

reading your work, Roerden said, looking for signs of weak 

writing that will get the work rejected. Some signs of amateur 

writing include a description or back story “dump” and extraneous 

information told too early. "Not in the first chapter," 

Reorden said. 

She told us to avoid chit-chat, unfocused dialog; eliminate 

past perfect tense; dull writing; unnecessary transition scenes. 

These are other "clues," that a manuscript is not professional 

enough to publish. 

Roerden's latest advice book for writers is Don't Murder 

Your Mystery: 24 Fiction-Writing Techniques to Save Your 

Manuscript from Turning Up DOA, in which she lists the simple 

mistakes that can get your work rejected. # 

Remember to enter the Lindemann and Nelson Contests 

Al P. Nelson Feature Article Contest opens January 1, closes March 15 

Florence Lindemann Contest opens January 15, closes March 15

Page 31 

Patricia Fry—The Right Way by Dorothy Lund 

Patricia Fry has contributed articles to 

two hundred magazines and written 

twenty-five books. She is an editor, ghost 

writer, promoter, and self-publisher. The 

president of Small Publishers Artists and 

Writers' Network (SPAWN), she is the 

author of The Right Way to Write Publish 

and Sell Your Book. 

Patricia began her presentation by informing 

us that if we wanted to write a 

book, we should look upon the actual writing as our last step. 

She eased our puzzled minds by outlining the steps that should 

come first. 

•Study the publishing industry; know which publishers deal 

with the type of book you plan to write and how friendly 

they are to your subject. Know your options. 

•Write a book proposal, keeping in mind why you want to 

write this book and what needs it might satisfy for readers. 

Focus your work on today's market and reader's demand. 

Identify your target audience. 

•Ask yourself, “What is your platform or ways of reaching 

your audience” Possibilities could be joining or creating 

organizations dealing with your subject or doing writeups 

for newsletters, magazines and the Internet. Always 

look for promotional opportunities you can build into 

your book. For instance, a character in your novel may 

have a secondary dimension involving an infirmity, such 

as diabetes, or a special interest, such as horse training, 

bird watching, or collecting antique cars. These are mar- 

kets to pursue. 

•Start talking about your book; set up speaking gigs, workshops, 

mailing lists, and a Web site. Become a storyteller. 

Get yourself out there. 

Patricia concluded that if writers are going to successfully 

write, publish, and sell their books, they must shift from the 

creative right-brain process to the rational left brain. This can 

save time in the long run, and, by focusing your writing in the 

proper direction, you may very well facilitate the creative 

process and make things easier and more gratifying when you 

switch back to the right side of your brain and write your 

book. # 

Get Published in 

2007 

Order Patricia Fry’s Book: 

The Right Way to Write, 

Publish, and Sell Your 

Book 

(as discussed at WRWA Fall Conference) 

$19.95, 328 pages, Matilija 

Press, 2006 

www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html 

Jack Magestro: Changing the Paradigm of Publishing by Claudia Anderson 

A feisty and articulate speaker, Jack 

Magestro tackled the topic of publishing. 

He explained that there are two ends to 

publishing: self-publishing—or vanity 

publishing—on one end, and traditional 

publishing in the other. Vanity publishing 

(Print on Demand and other forms of 

self-publishing) entails the most risk for 

the author, as the editing, design, distribution, 

and publicity fall largely in the 

author’s lap. The rewards for selfpublishing 

are lower publishing costs, higher percentage of 

sales returned to the author, and the ability to promote yourself 

the way you want. 

On the other end of the scale, traditional publishers take all 

the risk—finding editors, typesetters, graphic designers, and 

others who do the legwork to promote your book. Their 

amount of involvement is the reason why it is hard to get a 

publisher to take a risk on a new author. 

To make publishing our writing easier, Jack suggested we 

find a way to manage the risk, finding a middle ground between 

doing everything ourselves and waiting for someone 

else to do all the footwork for us. That means doing some of 

the work ourselves. Suggestions included finding someone to 

edit your writing objectively, designing your own work 

through programs such as InDesign or Microsoft Word, submitting 

your work to objective readers and working their comments 

into your manuscript, and even producing a full mockup 

of your book, similar to a galley proof. 

Jack suggested there are several programs on the Internet 

that can help you create a professional-looking document. 

Www.lulu.com has a free utility that helps distill (translate) 

Microsoft Word documents into PDF files. Once you convert 

your document, he recommended having the PDF file mailed 

to you so that you can see how it looks. Then you can have 

your manuscript printed and bound with a soft cover in up to 

five copies for a very low cost just to demonstrate the final 

product. According to Jack, the closer you are to producing a 

manuscript in its final form, the more likely you are to get it 

read by an agent or publisher, and the less risk there will be, 

both for you and the publisher. 

Final submissions and production depends on how much 

we are willing to risk; how much we are willing to put out to 

succeed. Self publishing can be a bonus to getting picked by a 

larger publisher if you have a selling record. But preparing a 

professional looking document will take you one step closer to 

being considered by a larger publisher. #

Page 32 

Article - Jennifer Brantley 

Positives: It was an honor for me to read these submissions 

and I thank all of the entrants for their work. Overall, I 

thought the contributions were quite interesting and very enthusiastic. 

Of the top 10, it was difficult to make the sometimes 

minor distinctions among award winners. All the essays 

were rich with information and some of the essays that did not 

win awards were still very moving, even you want moving me 

to tears, but I looked for a blend of professionalism good writing 

and emotion. 

Negatives: In the midst of good writing, clichés and grammatical 

mistakes, as well as proofreading errors, can mar an 

otherwise good submission. Some of the submissions seem 

too brief to give this reader a full flavor, providing instead a 

surface treatment of what could be some interesting subjects. 

Perhaps my biggest complaint, however, has to do with source 

of information. If an article is factual-based, then the sources 

need to be clearly delineated. In some cases, the writer is relying 

on interviews and personal knowledge. These seem clear. 

In other cases, the source of the information is very unclear. 

Essay - Carolyn Wedin 

It is an indication of the high level of the set of essays that I 

had a terrible time choosing the winners. They are all winners 

in various ways, and I would have had no trouble writing winning 

paragraphs about any one of them. There is a lot of variation 

in writing style and in subject, which is as it should be, 

and different essays would be effective with different audiences. 

A couple of things I noticed might be of some help or 

interest in the non-stop, never-ending task we all face of improving 

or writing. First, many essays had, I thought, relatively 

ineffective conclusions. It is difficult to come up with 

the right sentence or phrase to pull the whole thing together 

and yet not say too much. Second, in the abstract, but all too 

real matter of tone, there was sometimes a bit of a "tin ear," I 

thought, with the author coming off as haughty or judgmental. 

This was especially true in the essays on poetry, which tended 

to dismiss or condemn whole undefined categories, such as 

"academic poetry." Perhaps, it bears repeating that one can 

more effectively comment negatively on something very specific, 

but better yet, convey the positive and let the reader supply 

the other side. 

Nostalgia - Wilma Bednarz 

Your subjects and ideas were good. However, some of you 

showed little knowledge of preparing a manuscript, even using 

single spacing. Chances are, with the number of manuscripts 

an editor must read in a day, they would not read a 

single-spaced manuscript. Always set your first manuscript 

aside for a few days and then go back to it. Read it aloud to 

yourself while taking notes. Now is the time to make changes. 

Listen to your verbs. Are they strong enough to make the 

reader see how, for instance, "the trapped bird flutters in his 

cage" Are you using too many "was" and "were" Get rid of 

them with a strong verb. Remember, strong verbs are more 

Judges’ Comments on the Jade Ring Entries 

descriptive than nouns or adjectives. Also, I want to remind 

you that your first sentence should hook the reader. Read 

books on writing. One of my favorites is William Zinsser’s 

"On Writing Well." Good luck to all of you. 

Adult Short Story – Anthony Bukoski 

As judge of the adult fiction competition for 2006, I faced a 

daunting task—to read 43 manuscripts totaling 430 pages, 

then to choose the several works I fell to stood out. As you 

know, rules limited judges to selecting first, second, and third 

place winners, plus three honorable mentions, a difficult undertaking 

when I found at least 10 manuscripts, I thought especially 

worthy of notice. Each of the 43 submissions, by the 

way, pleased me in some way, so I want no one to leave discouraged. 

I also want you to know I am grateful for the opportunity 

to have read your work, which was filled with humanity, 

goodness, and warmth. 

On the other hand, I can offer these general, critical observations 

that might be of use to you. I thought that too many 

stories relied on unlikely plot coincidences or introduced characters 

that were merely types, not fully developed characters. I 

felt that too many stories dealt with "big" problems (love and 

death, for example), a difficult thing to do convincingly, especially 

with stereotypic characters. And finally, I felt that conflicts 

were sometimes too easily, too patently, resolved, and 

thus lacked the mystery of accomplished artistic creation, or 

that stories concluded with unearned surprises. 

Juvenile Short Story – Cornell M. Brellenthin 

it is always exciting to read what young voices are writing 

today. Perhaps the most significant strength in this group of 

2006 fiction entries is the appreciation these writers have the 

skills, crafts, and labors of their own family enterprises: readers 

who have never worked in a bakery or on a bass boat can 

learn a great deal of what it must be like to live and work in 

such environments. Many young writers, too, are able to 

imagine themselves beyond familiar places, finding themselves 

behind the eyes of so many of our four-legged friends, 

whether wild or domesticated, to observe the human condition 

with objective eyes. Some writers are able to travel even further, 

into fantastic places and times where we learn that the 

power of "magic" is in love and compassion—all the time 

keeping readers grounded with reminders of the mundane. 

These 2006 fiction entries display remarkable innovation and 

the writers have a knack for descriptive writing, richly engaging 

the the senses—sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste—and 

the use of simile and metaphor is fresh and exciting. Perhaps 

what sets the winning an honorable mention stories above the 

rest is the additional attention to all the formal elements of 

fiction that are so critical in telling a good story—plot development, 

characterization, setting, and a strong sense of voice. 

Each of these elements must work together to underscore the 

theme, and in a winning story will also create just enough 

attention to keep readers turning the page! #

Some Reflections on the WRWA Jade Ring Contest, 2006 – Poetry Category 

by LaMoine MacLaughlin, First Poet Laureate of Amery, Wisconsin – 2006 Poetry Judge 

Page 33 

The Poetry Category of the 2006 Jade Ring Contest included 

135 entries by 52 writers. I was delighted to be able to 

judge this category and, after review of the material, I would 

like to offer several recommendations. Specific comments on 

each winning entry are included at the end. 

First, I would suggest that in the future a separate category 

be considered for humorous verse. Judging humorous verse 

along with more serious poetry is really weighing apples 

against oranges (or perhaps watermelons against cherries). 

The humorous verse will usually be judged second best. Humorous 

verse possesses its own unique set of standards and 

should be appreciated for those special qualities and characteristics 

contained within its special genre. I mention this because 

there was some very good humorous verse among the 

poems I read and judged, but they don’t show up on the final 

screen. Humorous verse deserves its own separate category. I 

believe that WRWA should separate humorous verse from the 

rest of poetry for the same reasons that it separates prose into 

various categories. 

Second, and I suppose this is one curse of living in the age 

of Harry Potter, so much of what tries to pass as poetry in our 

time gives evidence that contemporary writers trying to write 

poetry do not read very much poetry—at least their poetry 

reflects that they have given up reading the great past masters. 

Our manic preoccupation with development of an individual 

style does not give us the right to suspend the principles of 

good writing, which have always involved clarity of expression, 

considerate communication with our audience, and careful 

crafting of our material. I remember one of my teachers 

reminding us that the more we try to be different, the more we 

look like everyone else. There is no place for purposeless misspelling, 

and improper usage is grammatically incorrect in 

poetry as well as in prose. The basic principles of good writing 

apply equally to prose and to poetry. We don’t have 

enough time to read everything, so I would urge writers to 

develop their models by reading the best. Read Blake, and 

Keats, and Whitman, and Dickinson, and Yeats, and Frost, 

and Roethke, and Wright. And when you finish them, reread 

them. 

Third, and I suppose this is another curse of our early 21 st 

century, so much of what tries to pass as poetry in our time 

gives evidence that it is written totally as individual expression 

with little or no care for writing as communication designed 

to reach another human being as audience. An audience 

presumes a concern for community and for communication, 

and many writers have written of the disintegration of the 

concept of community during the last half of the 20 th century. 

The danger, of course, is that the concept of community will 

eventually drop from our vocabulary and it will altogether 

vanish from our consciousness. Moreover recent disasters 

have shown the extreme fragility of the fabric of community 

in urban areas. As human beings we all need community, real 

community, and it is far too important a concept to be allowed 

to disappear. 

Sometimes, as contemporary poets, we seem to have lost 

our sense of audience and believe that if a reader doesn’t un- 

derstand our poetry, that is not our problem; we have done our 

part. Sometimes it seems as if aspiring poets believe that writing 

poetry frees them from the need to communicate. 

Writing poetry is serious work and does not free anyone to 

be a bad writer. As writers, we all need community, real community, 

to keep us honest and to keep us truly communicating 

with other human beings. Sometimes we refer to virtual 

(almost, but not quite) reality and at times we seem unable to 

distinguish it from genuine reality. As writers, and perhaps 

especially as poets, we need to reclaim our local communities 

as the source of our audience and our touchstone for authentic 

communication. Without a real audience, so much that tries to 

pass as poetry degenerates into cutesy-pie word-play or incoherent, 

meaningless babble. How about considering the following: 

Talk with your Mayor about establishing the position of Poet 

Laureate in your village or city. Shamelessly proselytize for 

poetry. Become your town’s wild poetry prophet. 

Visit your local schools and help teachers spread poetry 

throughout their classes. 

Run for school board or city council. I might even accept 

church council. You might not win, but try it anyhow. Do 

something to enter deeply into the life of your local community. 

Read Vachel Lindsay’s “The Gospel of Beauty.” 

Get a group of friends together and share one of your poems 

with them. Ask them to respond to the poem. Or perhaps 

read it aloud in a local park or coffee shop for people you 

don’t know. Ask them to respond. 

And let us never forget William Faulkner’s 1949 Nobel 

Prize Acceptance Speech in which he eloquently states the 

reasons why poetry is so important: 

I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. 

He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures 

has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a 

soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and 

endurance. The poet’s, the writer’s, duty is to write about 

these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by 

lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and 

honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and 

sacrifice which have been the glory of his past. The 

poet’s voice need not merely be the record of man, it can 

be one of the props, the pillars to help him endure and 

prevail. 

Finally, having said all this, I must commend those poets I 

have selected as my top three choices and honorable mention 

recipients. Their poetry ranges from traditional forms to free 

verse, but all of it is thoughtfully developed and carefully 

crafted. I have reread all of these poems dozens of times and 

they remain new and fresh with each reading—a hallmark, I 

believe, of good writing. Bravo! And thank you. 

Winning Entry Poems: 

First Place: “The Ascent of Icarus” (Jade Ring Winner) 

This very carefully crafted sonnet of rhyming couplets 

(continued on next page)

Page 34 

(Poetry continued) 

sings a consistent music from beginning to end. We are 

carried aloft toward the heavens with the same delight 

and power sensed by Icarus himself and we experience 

with him his final triumph rather than the usual apparent 

tragedy. 

Second Place: “The Clutter Brothers” 

This seriocomic narrative proceeds well toward its conclusion 

within the amazingly tight structure created by the 

poet. The line repetition from stanza to stanza and returning 

to the beginning, a kind of rondel or rondeau, can be a 

stifling straight jacket, but it works very successfully 

here. 

Third Place: “Crossing A Great Distance” 

These four stanzas present images which very effectively 

reflect its title in a manner reminiscent of Wallace Steven’s 

“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird.” 

Honorable Mention: 

Honorable Mention One: “Summer of Horses” 

I love this strange, almost haunting story, in many ways 

reminding me of John Keats’ “La Belle Dame Sans 

Merci.” 

Honorable Mention Two: “Origins” 

I feel that this very successful litany perfectly unites form 

and content, carrying the reader along in the musical 

droning of the chant. 

Honorable Mention Three: “A Proper Farewell” 

Some rather prosaic introductory remarks develop into an 

interesting middle, an almost sacrificial offering, and lead 

the reader to a very poignant conclusion. 

The chance to dine with fellow writers and discuss all we 

had learned over the past two days made The Jade Ring Banquet 

an apt wrap-up for the 2006 Fall Conference. Postbanquet 

honors began with the presentation of the Robert E. 

Gard Foundation’s Award for Excellence to Ben Logan, author 

of Wisconsin’s all-time best selling book, The Land Remembers. 

LaMoine MacLaughlin, board member of the 

Robert E. Gard Foundation, introduced former Award for Excellence 

winner, Harvey Stower (current Mayor of Amery, 

WI). Stower presented the award, thanking Logan for showing 

us all how the land remembers. During his acceptance speech, 

Ben Logan reminded us that history reveals itself by the telling 

of stories, and if we stop telling our stories, we cease being 

a people. 

Cary Fellman took over mistress of ceremony duties to 

announce the Jade Ring contest winners. 

ARTICLE 

Jade Ring, Dorothy Lund, “Cameo of Dad” 

2 nd Nancy Bauer-King, “Tobacco Ties” 

3 rd Mickey Burgermeister, “The Crick” 


John Friedell, “Call the Question” 

Lou Roach, “Filmmaker’s Best Flourishes In a Most Unlikely 

Place” 

Betsy Foley, “A Woman Ahead of Her Time” 

Contest Judge: Jenny Brantley 

ESSAY 

Jade Ring, Judy A. Kolosso, “One Less” 

2 nd Julie C. Eger, “La Que Sabe’s Bag of Tricks” 

3 rd Sylvia Oberle, “An Afternoon and Evening at the Free 

Clinic” 


Dee Trein-Jucius, “Am I Old” 

Mary Farley, “Perennial Springtime” 

Nancy Schultz, “Lady Bratt Ashley” 

Contest Judge: Carolyn Wedin 

NOSTALGIA 

Jade Ring, Barbara Megna, “No Proper Goodbye” 

Jade Ring Awards Banquet by Pat Fitzgerald 

2 nd Harry Sarazin, “A Close Shave” 

3 rd Ramon A. Klitzke, “The Switchyard” 


Ruth G. Smith, “Our Way of Life” 

Margaret Nelson, “The Dutch Knew How” 

Lola M. Huber, “Grandpa Added The Spice” 

Contest Judge: Wilma Bedmarz 

JUVENILE SHORT STORY 

Jade Ring, Brenda Nelson-Davis, “Elena and the Worries” 

2 nd William G. Ladewig, “Turtle Hunting on the Bayou” 

3 rd Cathy Conger, “Having Hula” 


Mary Jo Stitch, “The Bakery” 

Steve Betchkal, “How the Bear Ran Out of Patience” 

Rachel DeRosa “The Sock-Nest Monster” 

Contest Judge: Cornell M. Brellenthin 

ADULT SHORT STORY 

Jade Ring, Les Huisman, “The Ice Cream Man” 

2 nd Neela K. Suklhatme-Sheth, “Two Tigers Cannot Share 

One Hill” 

3 rd Rebecca K. Blemberg, “After the Shooting at 12 th Street 

Station” 


Charles P. Ries, “Albino Prunes” 

Mary Jacobsen, “The Red Patch” 

Richard E. Carter, “Reunion” 

Contest Judge: Anthony Bukoski 

POETRY 

Jade Ring, John Manesis, “The Ascent of Icarus” 

2 nd John L. Campbell, “The Clutter Brothers” 

3 rd Berit Aaker Pietsch, “Crossing A Great Distance” 


Margaret Been, “Summer of Horses” 

Sandra Tully, “Origins” 

Judy Kolosso, “A Proper Farewell” 

Contest Judge: LaMoine MacLaughlin #

More Pictures from the WRWA Fall Conference 

Page 35 

We did it again, friends. We came, we talked, we listened, we read, we networked, we enjoyed each other’s company. 

There is something very special about the fellowship of writers. We are blessed to be able to enjoy it whenever two or 

more of us get together. Let us all look forward to seeing each other again at the Spring Conference in Manitowoc. #

Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Association 



For and About Wisconsin Writers 

President’s Message - Donald Schambow 

We need your help. But first, let 

us deviate to give thanks to the 

many people who contributed to 

the success of our Fall Conference 

and Jade Ring Contest. (Please see 

the detailed list of those deserving 

special thanks on page 29). 

We need your help. As successful 

as the Fall Conference and Jade 

Ring Contest were, let’s strive to 

increase participation in our conferences 

and contests. Every body, organism or organization 

that continues to grow and live depends upon each member’s 

essential contributions. Help us discover and implement 

changes that will encourage you and others to participate. 

Please share your suggestions with me, Board Members, 

someone. WRWA is your organization. You are a vital, invaluable, 

irreplaceable member. Nonparticipation lessens 

WRWA’s ability to reach its potential and jeopardizes its 

growth. Help us help you by making WRWA an even more 

effective and helpful organization, for you and for other 

members. 

Responding to members’ requests to hear/read winning 

entries in the Jade Ring Contest, we are assembling, printing, 

and distributing booklets containing winning entries from the 

2006 Contest. As we benefit from reading past issues of publications 

to which we plan to send submissions, it is also 

beneficial to read and study Jade Ring Contest winning entries. 

Due to editors’ differing interpretation of what published/ 

previously published means, some winners opted not to have 

their entries included. The following have indicated their 

willingness to have their manuscripts included: Mickey 

Burgermeister, Nancy Bauer-King, John Friedell, Dorothy 

Lund, and Lou Roach – Article; Mary Farley, Sylvia Oberle, 

Nancy Schultz and Dee Trein-Jucius – Essay; Cathy Conger 

and Bill Ladewig – Juvenile; Lola Huber, Ramon Klitzke and 

Ruth Smith – Nostalgia; Margaret Been, John Campbell, and 

John Manesis – Poetry; and Rebecca Blemberg and Neela 

Suklhatme-Sheth – Short Story. 

The booklet will be an exquisite but economical 81/2 by 

11 paperback. Bill Heins is assembling and printing them. 

Nancy Rafal is designing a suitable cover. I have established 

a special bank account for the Jade Ring Booklet. If you 

choose to purchase a booklet for $10, please make out your 

check to Jade Ring Contest Booklet and mail to Don Schambow, 

18045 W. Crab Tree Lane, New Berlin 53146-2702 by 

December 30 th . 

To help keep our Web site current and relevant, I’m looking 

for volunteers to form a committee to identify deserving 

members and generate short articles recognizing their 

achievements for inclusion on the “Spotlight On Our Members” 

page of our Web site. 

Keep up the good writing and enjoy the holidays. 

Don

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