Excitement ran high at the February 3 business meeting. In recognition of his years of service to the Workshop, Del Cain was granted a lifetime membership. Del accepted the honor with his usual poet's grace.

In other news, because of her steamy romance novels the Fort Worth Star-Telegram called Candace Havens a person to watch. Jason Myers' was named as a finalist in a competition called Genre Wars. His short story, titled "A Reply", will be included in an upcoming anthology. Pat Hauldren displayed a published edition of a book she copyedited for Cyberwizard Productions. And DFWWW welcomed two new members.

Finally, as a testament to the power of social media, Twitter, FaceBook and blogs were abuzz this past weekend, and the 2010 DFW Writers' Conference almost sold out. If you've been sitting on the fence, now is the time to register, before all of the seats are gone.

The Ruth Millican Center was packed as 62 members and five visitors attended the January 27 meeting of the DFW Writers' Workshop.

On Saturday, January 30, the Hallmark Channel will replay Bound by a Secret, a movie based on the novel Ida Mae Tut­wei­ler and the Tra­ve­ling Tea Party by Workshop member Ginnie Siena Bivona. Beginning February 15, Candace Havens will teach her "Fast Draft and Revision Hell" class online for the Orange County Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. Also in February, Stephen Manning will teach a class titled "Blogging with Wordpress Deep Dive" through Texas Christian University's Extended Education program.

Finally, everyone was reminded that 2010 membership dues should have been paid by January 1. In order to participate in the read-and-critique sessions, all outstanding dues must be paid.

It seemed as if the news and announcements would never end at the January 20 meeting of the DFW Writers' Workshop, but that's not a bad thing.

A. Lee Martinez' book, Monster, is now available as a mass-market paperback. Kyle White sold his first novel, Attack of the Crystal Spiders, a Middle Grade science fiction work, to Wild Child Publishing. The American Library Association named Rosemary Clement-Moore's novel Highway to Hell as a 2010 Best Books for Young Adults. One of Kenneth E. Ingles' short stories is a finalist in the current Writer's Digest contest. Candace Havens inked a three-book deal with Harlequin. She will also sign copies of her newest work, Take Me If You Dare, on Saturday, February 6 at 2:00 p.m. at Barnes & Nobel in Hurst.  

Finally, three new members were welcomed to DFWWW, and the Workshop's extensive reference library reopened after a year-end inventory. Books may be checked out for three weeks.

There was no red carpet at the October 14 meeting of the DFW Writers' Workshop, but there should have been one. Dignitaries such as the Mayor, City Manager, Deputy City Manager, Parks Director and City Council members joined the Workshop to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of DFWWW meeting in the City of Euless.

President Russell Connor commented that the Workshop has existed for 32 years, 20 of which have been spent in Euless. During that time, DFWWW members have produced 292 traditionally published books. The Ruth Millican Center, home to the Workshop for all 20-years, was packed as everyone enjoyed a good meal to celebrate Euless' support of the arts.  

Since DFWWW members are always a busy bunch, there was also plenty of news. Yvonne Isaacs announced the publication of her book Seven Tiny Miracles. R. Douglas Weber, who will be featured in the Discovery Channel program "Hunting for the Lost Symbol", mentioned that the show has been moved to Sunday, October 25. The Burleson Star interviewed Glenn Norton about his work-in-progress, A Knight in Tarnished Armor. A. Lee Martinez commented that he is now a regular contributor at his publisher's website, OrbitBooks.net.

Rosemary Clement-Moore has an essay in the book A New Dawn released this month. Candace Havens bragged about the cover of her newest work from Harlequin, Take Me If You Dare, due in February 2010. Both Rosemary and Candace will teach a class at the Mansfield Public Library on November 6 at 7 p.m.



Of course, even with all the festivities the read and critique sessions still happened as planned. The dedicated authors of the DFW Writers' Workshop never take a break from honing their craft.

During the October business meeting, members of the DFW Writers' Workshop were reminded that nominations for the 2010 Board of Directors will be opened in November. The current occupants of each office described his or her duties.

Other volunteers needed to keep things moving smoothly are:  An elections coordinator (see Russell Connor), people to help with the registration desk during the 2010 DFW Writers' Conference (see Alley Hauldren), agent attendants (see Larry Enmon), and classroom monitors (see Carolyn Williamson).

In other news, Alley Hauldren's short story "Catsup" was selected to appear in the editor's choice edition of an upcoming issue of Bewildering Stories. Rosemary Clement-Moore has a book signing for her Young Adult novel, The Splendor Falls, on Saturday, October 10 from 1 p.m to 3 p.m. at the Barnes & Noble store in The Parks Mall. Candace Havens was featured on the front cover of last week's edition of DFW.Com Ink magazine.

It seemed as if the announcements and news would never end during the September 9 meeting of the DFW Writers' Workshop.

Leading the pack, A. Lee Martinez displayed the German audio version of his novel The Automatic Detective. Mike McMullen sold a flash fiction story to A Thousand Faces magazine. Kenneth E. Ingle's publisher has commissioned him to writer a thriller, and he has a book signing for his first release, First Contact, Saturday, September 26 at the University of Texas at Arlington bookstore.  

On Saturday, September 12, Candace Havens will teach two classes at the Heart of Texas Chapter of Romance Writers of America in Waco. Kyle White announced he's been selected to teach a class at next year's Books, Authors n' All that Jazz festival in Weatherford. Rosemary Clement-Moore's book, The Splendor Falls, arrived on shelves Tuesday, September 8, and the paperback version of her earlier work, Hell Week, is now out.

Finally, five new reference books were added to the DFWWW library. Members were reminded to take advantage of the many titles available to help them learn more about the craft of writing.

While the August 12 meeting was a slow news night, Workshop members did announce two, upcoming book signings.

 Candace Havens will autograph copies of her newest title, Dragons Prefer Blondes, at Legacy Books, 7300 Dallas Parkway in Plano at 2 p.m. on Saturday, August 22. Candace will be joined by two other writers. The event is billed as "a lively afternoon's conversation with a trio of authors behind hot, very popular paranormal romantic adventures".   

 A. Lee Martinez will autograph (and probably illustrate the inside pages with fire-breathing ducks or whatever else tickles his fancy) copies of his recently released novel, Monster,also on Saturday, August 22. He says the Borders located at 5500 Greenville Ave in Dallas has an impressive display of his books. In typical A. Lee Martinez fashion, the event starts "some time in the afternoon".   

Exciting news from the Romance Writers of America conference held this past weekend.  DFWWW's own Rosemary Clement-Moore and Candace Havens were recognized.Rosemary Clement-Moore won a RITA (think Oscar for non-romance enthusiasts) for her Young Adult novel, Hell Week, book two in the Maggie Quinn series. Hopefully, she'll bring the golden statuette to a future Workshop meeting so we can all 'ooh' and 'aah' over it. 

 

Candace Havens won Pro Mentor of the Year. Candy said, "I was in such shock that I was only half listening when they gave it to me."  The award is no surprise for anyone who has read her books, or taken one of her free classes offered through Write Workshop.  

Congratulations, ladies. We're proud to have you both as members of the DFW Writers' Workshop. 

Exciting things are happens to members of the DFW Writers' Workshop as evidenced by these announcements during the July 8^th meeting:

George Goldthwaite was offered a contract by Books In Motion, an audio book publisher, for his western novel, From Youth to Vengeance.  It is tentatively scheduled for a December release.   New member, Jenny Martin, received a request for the full manuscript of her novel, Holy, Texas, by literary agent Nadia Cornier with Firebrand.  Del Cain had a poem published in the Texas Poetry Calendar 2010.  A. Lee Martinez received a great review in Locus: The Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy for his recently released novel, Monster.  Candace Havens newest work, Dragons Prefer Blondes, was released this week.  She will sign copies at the Barnes & Noble in Hurst this Saturday, July 11 from 2 p.m - 4 p.m.  She is also hosting a blog tour, with more information at CandaceHavens.com.

All proof that DFW Writers' Workshop members continue to publish a wide variety of works, despite the economic downturn.    

 

 

 

Got this from Candace:

Tomorrow, Saturday (May 9) at noon, there is a multi-author signing at the Hurst, TX Barnes & Noble. It's going to begin with a high-tea, we're trying all the B&N teas, and there will be scones. :-) I'll be there with Juliet/Jillian Burns, Jax Cassidy, Amie Stuart, Karen Kelly, Cindy Dee, Karen Whiddon and others.

Proceeds benefit the Bedford Public Library and there will be cool prizes!

Candy Havens
www.candacehavens.com