Vice President of Membership: Lauren Danhof

President: Sally Hamilton

Vice President of Events and Programs: Matthew Rollins

Vice President of Digital Media: Lauren Lanza Osias

Vice President of Community Outreach: Jenny Martin

Secretary: John A. Brown

Board members present: John Bartell, David Jayce

Business Meeting Called to Order: 6:06 PM

Officers Absent: None

BJ Sloan gave the treasurer's report:

• Workshop Account: $23,474.54
• DFWCon Account: $70,843.03
• Money Market Account: $64,610.51
• Money Marketing Account Interest: $576.31
• Total: $158,928.08 as of April 2025

Lauren Danhof:

• We have 198 members. Up from 189 in March.
• Discussed an idea for delegating recruitment of future keynote speakers via QR code.

Lauren Lanza-Osias:

• Folks are still increasing follower/sign-up counts for DFWWW social media

Jenny Martin:

• Has created a form that will standardize stuff for the speaker’s bureau. 
• We got contacted by a festival coming up in Bishop Arts District
• Candidates for Writer’s Block speakers were discussed.

Katie B:

• Both keynote speakers for DFWCON have been locked in.
• Also the Friday Special guest has also been locked in.

Matthew Rollins

• Writer’s Block is locked in for June 22nd. Most likely from 2 - 4 PM but that could possibly change.
• A lead candidate for the Writer’s Block speaker has also been determined.
• Half Price Books flagship Dallas store has agreed to do a local author evening with DFWWW. 
• It will be August 16th so that gives us some prep time. It will most likely be cost free for the presenting authors and DFWWW members.
• There may also be a scavenger hunt minigame involved. An email list for this event will be worked on regarding this event beforehand.

David Jayce:

• Has an idea for a new major event to complement a Fall-based DFWCON: he proposed a Spring-based writer’s retreat via a 6-day sailing cruise.
• A cost spreadsheet and itinerary for this event was presented as part of the proposal.
• Basically, there will be writing sessions on the days in tandem with editing sessions with professional editors who would have been notified before the cruise.
• Various details and caveats were brought up and discussed regarding this proposal.
• The Officer’s Board voted unanimously in favor of pursuing next steps regarding this proposal.

Business meeting adjourned: 6:57 PM

Regular Meeting Start: 7:09 PM

Number of members in attendance: ~50

Visitors:

• Trevor, he was here 2 weeks ago, and was looking to write his own TV show.
• Kelly, heard of us via Hailey, has a few ideas for what she wants to write.

New Members:

• N/A

Rejections:

• John Brown had Hunting Sirocco rejected by Kristin Nelson
• Travis Hightower had his work rejected by Scrita (?) management
• Chicago Press rejected Storm’s Coming by ???
• John Bartell got his work rejected by a poetry magazine
• Helen Dent had a bunch of no’s for Iris
• Kate Cornell had some form rejections as well
• Stanislav had his short story rejected by narrative magazine

Submissions:

• Kate/Joe Zimmerman submitted their work
• BJ Sloane submitted Forgotten Son to the Texas Writer’s Awards
• Matthew Rollins submitted Steelwing 2 to the Texas Book Festival
• Krista Carol submitted her book to the Texas Book Festival as well
• ??? submitted her work to Keeler, Nashville
• Kate Cornell submitted her book to some more agents
• Stanislav submitted Retrieval to Future Factor magazine
• Ryan Bruder submitted his short story to two short story contests

Acceptances:

• BJ Sloane will be presenting a writing class in Amarillo
• Carolyn got a cover for her book Double Jeopardy
• Sarah got her manuscript for Kinder Dragons officially approved
• Bryan Tracey has an advanced reader copy for his book now
• He will also be on a panel at ThrillerFest

Book Reviews:

• N/A

Additional Announcements:

• Jenny Martin says that on Thursday April 24th, she will be teaching a class on writing voice. It will be at 6:30 PM at the Fort Worth East Regional Library.
• On April 11th and 12th there will be a Fronterra Art Festival in the Bishop Arts District.
• BJ Sloane is reminding that anyone who purchase a DFWCON ticket early gets free merch to go with it.
• Matthew Rollins announced that Steelwing 2 released yesterday. On Sunday from 1-3 at the Half Price Books store he will have a signing for it.
• Lauren Lanza Osias says that one of her friends' sons is in remission from his leukemia diagnosis. However he will most likely need a stem cell transplant. It will be on May 3rd in Fort Worth for anyone who wants to help with stem cell donations.
• Carolyn Rae says that April 26th, the Holtham City Library will hold an event 
• George got a scam call from someone wanting to “talk to him about his book” in an interview where he would pay $2000. Obviously this is a scam. Be aware.
• Rosemary mentioned her services as a professional editor. 

Meeting Adjourned: 7:40