NEW!!!   You can access the NorCal Events Calendar using this link.  With Zoom, we can attend more meetings than before.

Our next General Meeting is Saturday, September 25 at 2 PM. The speaker is Adam Plantinga. See details below.

The September 2021 Ink Spots Newsletter is now available on the Newsletter Page.

Ditto the September President’s Message from Terry Tosh. See below.

New!!! See all the Shelter in Place (SIP) notes here. Click on the one you want, or scroll down to see them in reverse order.

We are now up to SIP Note 46!!!

Send questions and comments about the FAW Website to Scott Davidson  

New!!!! See all our upcoming events on the FAW Calendar. 

 

                ✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽

Come to the Zoom Social Write-in, second Saturday of Each Month.

Our next is June 12

 

President’s Message  –       September 2021 Hello, my great FAW friends! It’s really weird to write this message for the September news- letter three weeks before we have our August meeting, and only 1 week after scurrying  to draft the August message at the last minute, but things will settle down a tad, me thinks, and it will soon be old hat. I feel somewhat like I’ve been asked to predict the future, since we moved the newsletter submission deadline to the 10th, and the newsletter then gets published on the first of the following month, but in the immortal words of someone, “It is what it is.” At the time I write this, we are not much closer to getting together in-person anytime soon, so I will guess that our search is still on for just the right place for our needs. The Artist Walk has potential, though there are some draw- backs—like insufficient parking and the uncertainty that we could be displaced at any given meeting date, if they schedule an event on the same day…as well as the uncertainty of seating and tables. Anyone who has an idea for a new venue, please give us a shout, and we’ll check it out. (Yes, I know it, I’m a poet.) So, anyhow, here we are, rushing headlong into the “Holi- day Madness” period of the year, and who knows what waits around the next corner? Let’s all hope, together, that it’s good stuff for all of us and the world, with plenty of success stories from our club members, and wonderful new opportunities for everyone. Perhaps we could take a few minutes during our meeting on the 28th to discuss what we might want to do this year for our Holiday Party. It’s never too early to start planning a party. Mark your calendars for our October 23rd meeting; Joan Gelfand will be discussing the craft of writing. I do feel confident enough to predict that Nancy has once again outdone herself with Ink Spots, and deserves all of our admiration and thanks for her masterful achievement. Thanks for your support as we move forward. I appreciate every one of you.    Terry Tosh     Now Held Online     Writer’s Salon 7-9 p.m. new location! Slap Face Coffee and Tea 37324 Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94536  fourth Monday of the month.           🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

Get Involved with FAW Fremont Area Writers has lots of great volunteer opportunities!  If you’d like to to make a positive contribution to these projects please, contact Sue Curtzwiler smcurtzwiler@comcast.net

 

 

 

News! 

                                                 👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍👍🏼👍

 

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Elevator-Speech-Polishing Event frequently

Frequently, visitors and new members get an opportunity to practice their 30-second “elevator speech”, introducing themselves and their projects. 

An elevator speech isn’t social chit chat or  a biography.  It’s a quick teaser to use at professional events, like conferences, where agents and publishers are looking for product to sell.  Each of them is looking for specific types of product that they have a market for.  If they don’t need what you have to sell, you need to move on and keep moving until you find your possible connections. 

Once you’ve each introduced yourself with your name and role (Author, Agent, Publisher) you have 30 seconds to let them know what you have to offer: Your book’s genre, target audience, plus a couple of interesting details  and what support you’re seeking.

IF that’s what they’re looking for, you exchange more information.  If not, you exchange quick pleasantries and move on until you find a more suitable match.

You may need to present to many, many people before you meet one who’s after exactly your project.  with the right needs.  While it’s important to be congenial, it’s not time for normal socializing .

After thirty seconds, if you haven’t already moved on, your contact will either be interested or be scanning the room for their next prospect.

THIRTY SECONDS!  You can polish and refine this vital skill and get feedback afterward, at  break.  Going over that time at a conference  risks losing your new contact’s interest or creating a situation where they feel like they can’t get away from you. 

Going over that time at an FAW meeting will only get you buzzed, because, though we love you,  we have other agenda items and only if everyone sticks to thirty second introductions, afterwards we’ll only have 30 minutes of meeting time left! 

So start planning your next elevator speech now.  Time it out, and we’ll see you at the next meeting!

✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽

Anyone have a productive Agent that would be a good speaker for an FAW meeting?  We need someone who’s current and can give productive tips to our members about how to choose the right agent, then how to work with them.  Please email Knuti

Kudos! 

 

                                                   
Kudos…

I