Spokane Authors and Self-Publishers (SASP) began in 1998 when Chuck O’Conner, Elmer Freeman, Joe Meiners, and Dan Vollmer, Spokane area authors formed a club in order to share their knowledge and experience with those interested in writing and alternative ways of publishing. Today, SASP is a large non-profit organization dedicated to anyone with interests in any aspect of writing and art. Members now include aspiring (and successful) authors, poets, journalists, illustrators, editors, publishers, printers, writing instructors, and many others. Monthly luncheon meetings provide inspiration and education by way of knowledgeable and entertaining guest speakers, and the cheerful camaraderie of people sharing common interests and goals. Membership is open to all who love writing, art, and interesting people.

Spokane Authors and Self-Publishers meets the first Thursday of each month, September through May, in the banquet (back) room of the Old Country Buffet

5504 N. Division St.

Spokane, WA 99208

(509) 484-5026

Speakers’ presentations begin at NOON. The room opens at 11:00 AM to allow members and guests to dine, converse, join, pay dues, browse, and perhaps buy other member’s books that are on display. Generally a short business meeting is held, either before or after the formal presentation. New members and guests are introduced, members relate their accomplishments, and various door prizes are awarded.

All members and guests are requested to buy lunch upon entering the establishment, and to leave an appropriate tip for the waiter/waitress.

Members need to be present to win door prizes.

Current membership benefits include a listing on the SASP website, www.spokaneauthors.org. Many members provide short biographies and links to external personal websites, creating more marketing exposure. Current members may list and describe their published works on the SASP website and offer their work for sale at meetings.

Guest speakers at our monthly meetings inform, inspire, and entertain members and guests with a variety of topics, all designed to provide knowledge pertinent to writing and publishing.

SASP members are encouraged to purchase or trade completed works of and with fellow members. They are also encouraged to donate examples of their work for use as door prizes. Those who win other members’ works are expected to provide a review of that work.

Dues for SASP membership are $15.00 per calendar year. Dues may be paid directly to our Treasurer at our monthly meetings. Alternatively you may remit your dues to: Spokane Authors & Self-Publishers

P. O. Box 18573

Spokane, WA 99228-0573

2010 Officers

President:

Dave McChesney (509) 325-2072

daveeva@comcast.net

Vice-President:

Bob Weldin (509) 327-2897

minersquest@comcast.net

Secretary:

Robert Pillsbury (509) 842-6803

rvpsasp07@comcast.net

Treasurer:

TBA

Public-Relations:

Russ Davis (509) 768-6206

info@graydogpress.com

Newsletter Editor:

Jim Parry 509) 325-9922

parry9922@q.com

Web Master:

TBA

Advisory Board:

Jolene Feher (509) 489-0544

fehersong@yahoo.com

Gail Mangano (509) 535-1434

mamamia3224@comcast.net

Bob Manion (509) 448-2901

gunnerbob@comcast.net

OUR NEXT MEETING!

Please join us for our second meeting of 2010 on Thursday February 4^th at 12 noon. We’ll be at our usual location (Old Country Buffet, 5504 N. Division St., Spokane, Washington.) Ms. Doreen Fox Kelsey will be our speaker.

Speaking about the TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF A FINANCIAL WRITER, Doreen Fox Kelsey draws on 32 years of experience in the financial industry to educate and advocate for consumers on matters of financial importance. Kelsey Consulting Services serves both consumers and industry. Before starting her business, Doreen held management positions at several financial institutions, including ten years as vice president of marketing. In 1997, she was selected as the Credit Union National Association’s Marketing Professional of the Year.

In her spare time, Doreen enjoys volunteer work with Rotary International and the Nalta Community Health Foundation in Bangladesh. She has traveled to Southeast Asia three times since 2005, participating in various humanitarian service projects, including micro-credit projects in the Philippines and Bangladesh.

Doreen has written financial columns for several local magazines: Prime, Spokane Metro, Business Catalyst and Building.

She is the past president of the Financial Literacy Foundation and a certified money management volunteer with Consumer Credit Counseling.

A Spokane resident for fifteen years, Doreen shares a home with her husband Tony Kelsey. Their grown children live in Washington, Colorado, Florida, and British Columbia.

Board of Directors and the Advisory Board meeting(s) will follow the general membership meeting!

THE PRESIDENT’s PAGE

January 2010

Spokane Authors and Self-Publishers began 2010 with a bang! Lien Le (Sam) presented a heartfelt and moving description of the events behind his book, THE SPIRIT STILLS THE STORMS. It is currently being adapted into a screenplay, and hopefully we will soon have an opportunity to see the movie.

The beginning of the year also had a somber note, as we learned that Elizabeth Michael, our most recent Treasurer had passed away on New Year’s Day. Services were held in Colville, Washington on the 9^th of January.

Welcome to our new Board of Directors members, Treasurer Suzi Johns, Editor James (Jim) Parry, and Public Relations Officer Russ Davis. Jolene Feher, Gail Mangano, and Bob Manion comprise our newly established Advisory Board. The hope is that the next few months will see us ease these folks into their roles with the group. We are still searching for a web-master, hopefully someone a little more technical savvy than the individual currently fulfilling the duties.

New and returning members include Ana and Ari Alvarez, John Heffernan, Patricia Kowal, and Virginia Meyer. Also added to our roster in thanks for speaking were Mr. Patrick McManus, and Mr. Lien (Sam) Le. Be sure to tell all your writer friends about our group, and bring them along to our next meeting. We just may be the organization they are looking for!

Congratulations to all our newly published and about to be published authors, and those who have passed significant hurdles on the road to publication.

We had a terrific selection of door prizes to give away. Russ Davis and Gray Dog Press donated a copy of the latest issue of SPOKE-WRITE, which was won by John Church. Doug Huigen took home a pack of Lee Moore’s famous home-made greeting cards, and Joan De Groot had the lucky number for a copy of DIVINE POWER by Soul Karriem. Barbara Cagle won an additional copy of the same book. Returning member Patricia Kowal donated a copy of STILL POINT. Elizabeth Deuber now has a chance to read that story. Lester Smith departed with a framed drawing of HMS Island Expedition, by Dave McChesney. It is one of the principal vessels in his Stone Island Sea Stories series of books.

The beginning of another year should serve to remind everyone that we are into a new membership season, and that dues are due. If you have already paid, thank you. If you haven’t, please consider sending them to the organization’s mailing address or bringing them to our next meeting. Our by-laws provide a grace period for membership renewal through March. After the April meeting, those who haven’t renewed will be dropped from the web-site membership list. At that same time, those who have not renewed since the 2008 calendar year will also be deleted from the master roster, the e-mail group listing, and any traditional mailing lists. And please, if you would like to be or continue as a SASP member, but feel you can’t pay the dues, contact one of the group’s officers.

Also, should you have anyone in mind that you believe would be a good presenter for a future meeting, contact one of the officers. And if there is any specific topic you would like to see addressed by a future presentation, let it be known.

Join us again on Thursday the 4^th of February when Doreen Fox Kelsey will speak on the Trials and Tribulations of a Financial Writer.

(As this is about to be posted, information has been received that our current Treasurer-Select will not be able to assume those duties. Therefore we are once again in need of a Treasurer, as well as a Web-Master.)

ISN’T IT A SMALL WORLD?

Yesterday after our postal person loaded a large stack of our next-door neighbor's mail in our box, I took it over to him. When he answered the door, after a short wait, he said he couldn't have gotten there sooner because he was assembling a movie production for a Vietnamese gentleman.

"Is his name Sam?" I asked.

To say he was floored by that question was an understatement. I told him how I knew and how wonderful Sam had been addressing our Thursday group, and how enormously impressed we all were by him. I mentioned that I thought the movie was in the hands of someone in California and he countered that he's working with him on it. My neighbor has worked in movie production all his life; he moved to Spokane about 15 years ago. He handed me The Spirit Stills the Storms to read whenever I have time. Amazing, eh?

Regards,

Nancy Wright

UPDATES

We are once again in need of a Treasurer. While the organization’s finances are currently being handled with no problem, it will be to our advantage to have a second individual on the account. On a month to month basis, the primary need is for someone to arrive early and help with greeting members and guests.

Again we are still looking for a web-master.

Don’t forget to bring your submissions for the:

SASP Volunteer peer review program

Paul Lecoq

Rationale:

Self-publishing allows you to avoid the arduous job of making your writing great – if you so choose. To go beyond family journals, to compete in the marketplace, you must become competent. Having others evaluate your work, bringing others into the process of creating, builds that competence.

Process:

Before each meeting I will set up a table for the review. Participants will stack five copies of their work in the following format on the table. Leave a copy of your cover sheet for reviewers to sign upon.

· Cover sheet – listing your name, title, audience and purpose

· five pages, double or 1 ½ line spacing to allow specific comments

You leave your work for others to critique. During the break, you take three other people’s work for you to review. Interested members who aren’t submitting may also review. Reviewers, put your name on the register for the manuscripts you take. You agree to dedicate an appropriate time to review each before the next meeting. (Please don’t wait until the night before.)

Review for:

Grammar, spelling, structure, content,

persuasiveness, and style. Point out both the good and the less than great. Be honest but helpful.

Return your reviews to the next meeting and leave them in one stack per writer.

Reading the reviews:

Don’t take criticism personally; it’s the quickest way to learn. There will be differences of opinion and style. If someone wrote something, he must think it’s important. Pay attention even if you don’t take the advice. Don’t just look at it as editing; apply what you learn throughout your manuscript.

News

Listed below are our members’ accomplishments, book signing dates, and other items of note:

Contests:

It’s time once again to start polishing up your work for entry into the annual

Pacific Northwest Writers Association’s Annual Literary Contest.

The twelve categories include full length fiction and non-fiction, as well as poetry, screenwriting, short stories, and short non-fiction work.

For more information go to

www.pnwa.org

From CRESTED BUTTE WRITERS

The Sandy’s back, bigger and better than before! Genres, 5 fantastic final judges all eager to find new talent! Check out our beautiful new website at www.thesandy.org. It’s chocked full of useful information as well as specific instructions on rules, submission guidelines, and category final judges.

The Deadline is February 15, 2010

A Local Publisher

Recently, Ditto’s Print and Copy Center has expanded to become Gray Dog Press.

Besides publishing SPOKE WRITE, The Spokane/Coeur d’ Alene Journal

of Art and Writing, Russ Davis and his crew offer three levels of printing and publishing for local writers. Depending upon the writer’s desires and the marketability of the work, Gray Dog Press will print self-published work, publish in partnership with the author, or publish totally at their expense.

For more information, go to: