Workshop, Silent Auction, and Last Hurrah

Our Annual All-Day Workshop along with our First Ever Annual Silent Auction were held yesterday at our usual location inside the beautiful Cultural Arts Centre in St. Peters, Missouri. Our two speakers, Becky Haigler and Barri Bumgarner, were both very knowledgeable, fun, and kept our rapt attention. I heard nothing but rave reviews when the day was over.

Please click on the links for both women. I couldn't do them justice with what I could post here.

Becky Haigler, our first speaker
photo by Becky Povich

Barri Bumgarner, our second speaker

photo by Becky Povich

We had thirty (30) attendees and thirty (30) silent auction items. No, that wasn't planned. It just turned out that way! Of course we would've been pleased with even more people. Maybe next year more will come after word gets spread about this fabulous event and all-around marvelous day.

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Jennifer Hasheider, our incoming president, did an outstanding job on the auction. I cannot praise or thank her enough for taking this on, obtaining such a variety of donations, and creating a stunning presentation.

photo taken by Becky Povich

Silent Auction tables
(The artwork on the walls were not part of the auction.
They were from a recent art contest held at the Center.)
photo by Becky Povich

Both Becky and Barri brought a few of their books for purchase.
photo by Becky Povich

* No meeting in November.*

* Christmas Party in December for Members Only.*

I'm really looking forward to being "just a member" of Saturday Writers in the upcoming year! This has been a fabulous adventure for me, and I've honestly loved doing it, but I need time to work on my own writing. I know Jennifer and the other board members will do a fantastic job. See you in December!

Becky Povich

Contests & Workshop

Check your calendars!

Please remember our 10th Annual Short Story Contest. With a deadline of "postmarked" by November 1st, there's not a whole lot of time left! Click here for all the info.

Also, MWG's Dr. Doris Mueller Poetry & Prose Contest has a deadline of November 15th. Extended to November 20, 2011.You can read all the info for it right underneath our Short Story Contest. Just scroll down a little.

*Note for Members: Don't forget our One Dollar Contest*

Thank you MWG

I'd like to say a very heartfelt thank-you to Missouri Writers Guild.

Saturday Writers was just notified by MWG that we've been approved for a grant to help make this year's workshop possible.

Thank you!

For more information about the workshop and current contest, please scroll down.

OCTOBER WORKSHOP & SILENT AUCTION

OCTOBER WORKSHOP & SILENT AUCTION

October 29, 2011

Where: St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre, 1 St. Peters Centre Blvd, St. Peters, Mo. 63376

When: Saturday, October 29, 2011

Time: Registration begins at 9:00 am. Workshop ends at 3:15 pm

Open to: Members and NON-Members, too.

Agenda: 9:00 am - 9:30 am: Registration, Announcements, Silent Auction Rules, Bidding Begins, Mingle

9:30 am - 11:00 am: Becky Haigler (with a short break)

11:00 am - 11:30 am: Lunch (brown bag) & Silent Auction Bidding, Door Prizes Given Out

11:30 am - 2:30 pm: Barri Bumgarner, (with short break or two), Door Prizes, and Last Minute Bidding

2:30 pm – 3:15 pm: Bidding Ends at 3:00 pm, Conclude Meeting, Mingle, Announce Silent Auction Winners

Workshop Part 1 Writer, editor, and publisher Becky Haigler speaks on -- Jumpstarting Your Muse. (1 ½ hours). Participants are encouraged to share strategies that have proven useful in keeping them engaged with the writing process. Haigler will lead short exercises in writing and brainstorming to “stir up the gift within.” Becky Haigler is a retired public school teacher and an editor/founding partner in Silver Boomer Books. She is a poet and the author of a collection of magic realism stories titled Not So Grimm: Gentle Fables and Cautionary Tales from Laughing Cactus Press.

Part 2: Writer, professor Barri Bumgarner -- What Lies Within. Writing About What You Don’t Want to Know (3 hours). Fear lurks in many places—our checkbook, the lines we see in the mirror, or an eight-legged nemesis scuttling along a baseboard. Tapping in to those fears, recognizing and releasing our inner demons, is the outlet many authors need to access their muse. In this interactive session, author and college writing instructor Barri L. Bumgarner will inspire participants to create possible topics, share ideas, and write. Bring your laptop, your imagination, and the key to unlock what you have hidden.

Barri L. Bumgarner’s “The Dark Side” appears in Mysteries of the Ozarks Vol. III. Her YA novel, Dregs, was runner-up for the Walter Williams Major Work Award in 2008, and her thriller, Slipping, received MWG’s Best Fiction 2006, runner-up. Her true crime book, Shades of Gray: The Steven Rios Story, is set for a 2013 release. Bumgarner teaches at the University of Missouri while completing her PhD.

~~ This workshop is for both beginners and published writers. Don’t be apprehensive about attending! No one will intimidate you or make you read out loud. ~~

SEATING IS LIMITED. REGISTER EARLY TO GUARANTEE A SPACE.

Click here for Registration Form on Page 2

* Annual Short Story Contest *

Annual SHORT STORY Contest Open to Everyone

2011 Saturday Writers 10^th Annual Fictional Short Story Contest

DEADLINE: November 1, 2011 (Postmarked) Word Limit: 2011

Contest is open to all writers. Open subject, open genre. (Please, no pornography or gore.)

Prizes: 1^st place: $100, 2^nd place: $50, 3^rd place: $25. (4^th through 6^th places receive certificates.)

 Entry fee: $7 per story, Maximum of three entries per person (separate fee for each entry, but may be included in one check)

Members of Saturday Writers, MWG, or other MWG Chapters: $5 per story

 Checks payable to: Saturday Writers

· Short stories only (no poems, essays or articles) must be in English

· Unpublished at time of submission and the original work of the contestant (unpublished includes not published on a blog or other internet site)

· Contestants retain all rights to their stories

· Standard manuscript format: 8 1/2 x 11 paper

· Send two copies of each entry

· Typed and double-spaced on one side of the paper

· Pages numbered, title of entry on every page on entry

· Attach a separate cover sheet and include: story title, name, address, e-mail, phone number, and MWG chapter name (if applicable)

· Do NOT send by certified mail!

· Mail fee and two copies of each entry, flat, not folded, by November 1, 2011 to: 

Saturday Writers

10^th Annual Short Story Contest

P.O. Box 2093

St. Peters, MO 63376

Keep a copy of your entry because stories will not be returned. Winners' names will be announced during the December Saturday Writers meeting.

For a list of winners, visit the Saturday Writers CONTESTS page in December. www.saturdaywriters.blogspot.com.

Certificates and prizes will be mailed by the end of December 2011.