NEW - Poetry class beginning in June

New 

Poetry Class for beginning and intermediate poets

Texts used in this class 

The Poetry Home Repair Manual, Ted Kooser

In the Palm of Your Hand, Steve Kowit

Instructor: Glenda Beall

Mondays, 4 - 6 p.m., June 20 - July 18

Classes will be held at the studio in Hayesville, NC.

Call 828-389-4441 or  Email for directions.

Fee for 8 hours of class - $25.00

To read some of Glenda's poetry visit 

www.profilesandpedigrees.blogspot.com 

April is Poetry Month - Let us Celebrate!

This is what my friend, the poet Scott Owens says about poetry in his poem inspired by Heath’s Orange Moon. He says the art of poetry “is what won’t sit still inside your head / what wakes you up at night / what calls memory back from darkness / what gives words the shape they take / what makes you wonder how much more you could do / and just why you haven’t been doing it.”

Most poets can't help themselves. They must write poetry. I have said that Scott thinks and dreams in poetic verse and language. Poems flow out of him like an artesian well.

In the most recent class I taught at Tri-County Community College, I could not interest my students in poetry. I mean they simply said no. They did not want to write poetry. They were not interested in reading it either even though I told them how much reading poems could help their prose writing. 

I like this statement by Samuel Taylor Coleridge on the subject of writing poetry and prose.

"I wish our clever young poets would remember my homely definitions of prose and poetry; that is prose; words in their best order; - poetry; the best words in the best order."   ... Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Choosing the best words is an important part of making a good poem. I think my favorite part of writing a poem is going back, revising and finding the best word I can to put my reader right where I am when I am writing. 

The poem below tells how a handsome young ski instructor in Colorado teased me, a young married woman and a complete novice at snow skiing. I blame most of this on the altitude.

     High in Colorado

He poses, hip cocked in red and blue,

sun-glistened face of Eros turned to me,

a fledgling atop the icy slope. My

breath quickens in foolish adoration

at the sound of my name from his mouth.

Knees bent, I push on poles and slide

down to him, past him, racing for the edge.

"Sit down," he cries.  My legs collapse,

long shoes shoot sidewise.  I try to rise,

but can't.  He twirls, zips toward me,

digs in.  You know a mogul is a South

Georgia girl who falls and can't get up.

He laughs, his teeth like sparkling icicles.

Giddy Aspen air heliums my brain,

overflows my heart that dances in triple time.

He yanks me up, skims powder to the lift.

At sea level, snow dreams

melt into arrogant soap bubbles

as his smiling face yellows
on a faded brochure beneath my ski apparel.

                                         ... Glenda Council Beall

What do you think? Did the words I used help your image of what happened?

Beginning in March, Glenda Beall teaches writing class at TCCC

Glenda  Beall teaches at TCCC in March

Title: Write Your Life Stories for Your Family or for Publishing

Location: Tri-County Community College, in Murphy, NC.
The dates:Tuesday afternoons, 6 - 8 p.m. March 24, 31 and April 7 and 14. 

I have taught adults to write stories about their lives for a number of years. The stories are often written for grandchildren or other family because the writer wants to leave a legacy of what life was like before cell phones, before computers and video games, before families were too busy and before they were scattered all over the country and around the world. The writer might want to tell about his family history for generations before him. 

Each of us has a unique story, and in this class the student will learn

• where to begin
• how to begin
• how to organize your work
• what to write and what not to write
• how to write so that your audience will want to read your stories

Each student will have several stories completed and written by the end of the course in an entertaining and interesting form. Each student will carry home a number of tools he/she can use in the future. If you have studied  with me in the past, you will not be bored. We will have new exercises and new topics to explore.

Joan Howard and Glenda Beall in Wild Goose Poetry Review now

I am happy to have a poem published online in The Wild Goose Poetry Review, and I am happy to announce that Joan Howard also has a poem in the Wild Goose.

Click on this link to read our work. http://wildgoosepoetryreview.wordpress.com/.

Let me know what you think.

Thanks,

Glenda

Senior Friends has a website and pictures of Carol and me.

I discovered quite by accident that Senior Friends where Carol Crawford and I spoke on March 21 has a nice site.

You can see what a busy group they are and see photos of Carol and me here.

The candid shot of me at the podium shows me licking my lips, a habit I don't notice usually.

Electronic Submissions Class for Writers by Robert S. King

Times they are a'changing said the singer in the sixties, but he didn't know nuthin' about changes.

Changes in the publishing world are occurring so fast we can hardly keep up with them. One of those changes for writers and poets is the way we submit our work to magazines and journals. 

Gone are the days when we made copies, addressed envelopes to send in our work and envelopes to return our work. Now, we submit online without printing a page. But different publications use different methods of submission. We often refrain from submitting if we have to deal with learning a new process. 

That is why I am glad we have Robert S. King, a publisher, poet and editor with the expertise to teach us this new technology. Robert stays abreast of what is new, and he is teaching a class at Moss Memorial Library in Hayesville, NC. See the details below.

Robert S. King  Moss Memorial Library, Hayesville, NC - Saturday, April 20  -  10 -1:00 p.m.  $30.00
Mail check to Writers Circle, 581 Chatuge Lane, Hayesville, NC 28904 -

Most publishers today allow electronic submissions, either by dedicated software online or by email. Learn how to use the most popular online systems and also how to compose email
submissions with or without file attachments. In addition, you will discover how to use the most popular market lists so that you can identify the magazines or publishers best suited for your writing.

About the Instructor
Robert S. King is a widely published poet and editor. He is the
author of six poetry collections, the latest of which is One Man’s
Profit (Sweatshoppe Publications, 2013) and is the former
Director of FutureCycle Press and the former President of the
Georgia Poetry Society.
See his website at www.robertsking.com

Call 828-389-4441 for registration information. Send your registration now. Note that it is for Robert King class.

Congratulations, Barbara!

Writers Circle student and Netwest member, Barbara Gabriel's poem Covenant has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Scott Owens, editor of Wild Goose Poetry Review.

I feel like a matchmaker. Barbara met Scott at one of his workshops at Writers Circle Studio. Her poetry impressed him, I believe. She submitted her work to Wild Goose and it was published. 

I am delighted Scott sees this outstanding poem and poet as worthy of nomination for a Pushcart Prize. Of course, both Scott and Barbara are winners in my book.

Saturday afternoon
October 27, 1:00 - 4:00

Ronda Birtha –  

Self-publishing Using Amazon's CreateSpace

We will discuss how and why it may be useful, how it has benefited authors, and how cost-effective it may be, as it has a "built-in" advertising infrastructure. Discussion on E-books.

$25.00 registration fee

Now taking registrations for this class. Mail your check to Writers Circle, 581 Chatuge Lane, Hayesville, NC 28904

Ronda knows her stuff and is passionate about helping others learn.  She's practical, fun and nice too. … Karen Holmes

 I gained valuable social networking information through a class taught at Writer's Circle by Ronda Birtha, a teacher in best sense -- easy to learn from, informed and patient.        Maren O. Mitchell

Will Wright will teach poetry at Writers Circle

Call for registration now 404-316-8466 or 828-389-4441 
Registration fee: $30

Will Wright, poet, editor

What makes “good poetry” good?

WritersCircle Saturday, October 13, 10 – 1 pm.  Contact kpaulholmes@gmail.com for information or visit Writers Circle

Will describes his workshop:
 In the overwhelming world of poetry publishing—the innumerable journals and editors, as well as the innumerable poets attempting to publish—it’s often discouraging, even disenchanting, to attempt to figure out how to find one’s way into publication. As an editor myself, a lot of poetry hits my desk from all over the world, and much of it, unfortunately, is little more than lineated prose; that is, there is not much, if any, attention to craft.
There are certain things poets can learn about the craft so that their work is noticed.
I will dedicate half of the WritersCircle meeting to how good poetry works in distinction to lineated prose or “flat” poetry.

The poem needs to be coherent, and it must cater—in some form—to both the heart and the intellect. 
I hope to embolden and encourage poets during this class and to help them identify ways to improve their work and more carefully attune their voice so that they stand out from the crowd. I welcome writers of all levels to join the class and what I hope will be a convivial, helpful conversation.



William Wright, Series Editor and Volume Editor of The Southern Poetry Anthology, is author of five collections of poems: the full-length Night Field Anecdote (Louisiana Literature Press, 2011), Bledsoe (Texas Review Press, 2011), Dark Orchard (Texas Review Press, Winner of the Texas Review Breakthrough Poetry Prize, 2005), and the chapbooks The Ghost Narratives (Finishing Line Press, 2008) and Sleep Paralysis (Winner of the South Carolina Poetry Initiative Prize, 2011, forthcoming from Stepping Stones Press). Wright recently won the Porter Fleming Prize in Poetry. 

100 Thousand Poets and you?

    Come be part of an international literary event!

September 29 is an internationally special day for poets and writers. Many of you may have heard of the 100 Thousand Poets for Change initiative. Basically this is an international fellowship of poets and writers who are concerned about the state of our world and nations. If you are not aware of this movement, please visit the official website at   http://www.bigbridge.org/100thousandpoetsforchange/?page_id=13931

As of today, more than 700 communities worldwide have scheduled events on September 29, and more are added daily. So let's get together and have our own voices heard!

As part of this international event, FutureCycle Press (Robert S. King) and Writers Circle (Glenda Beall) have scheduled an open-mic reading on Saturday, September 29, 2012, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The event will be held in the Grove Enterprises building located at 7540 Highway 64 West, Brasstown NC 28902. Brasstown is situated between Murphy and Hayesville NC and is about two hours from Atlanta or Knoxville. There is plenty of parking.

You are invited to come listen and/or read your original works of poetry or prose. Authors may also bring their books for sale at a table we provide. FutureCycle Press is particularly pleased to announce that it will have its new anthology, American Society: What Poets See, available for sale at the reading.

If you wish to read, please bring poems or prose pieces that do not exceed three minutes each. Depending on the number of readers, we may have time for more than one title per reader, so bring two or three of your works. Before the reading, please time your work to make sure it fits the allotted minutes.

We are not requiring that you read specifically on the subject of social issues, though you are encouraged to do so. It is more important that you show up and participate in whatever way you feel comfortable.

Please invite your friends and family as well. It would be helpful if you can let us know ahead of time if you plan to come and especially if you plan to read. An RSVP is not required, but having an idea of the numbers will help us plan the program. Please email Robert,rsking@futurecycle.org, if you plan to come. Also mention if you will bring books to sell.

We hope to see you there!

Robert S. King and Glenda Beall

_______________________

Directions to Venue:

From Murphy NC, take Highway 64 East toward Hayesville. Go 6+ miles and look for Grove Enterprises sign on left. Turn left at the driveway, go up the hill, turn left into the parking lot, and park on the side of the building facing highway 64. Once inside the building, please register at the front desk.

From Hayesville, NC, take Highway 64 West toward Murphy. Go 7+ miles and look for Grove Enterprises sign on right. Turn right in front of the sign, go up the hill and into the building's parking lot on the left. Park on the front side of the building facing Highway 64. Once inside the building, please register at the front desk.

Signs will be posted outside the building to help guide you.

Poets, Send It Out Now! Royston Class

August 
Rosemary Royston


Send it Out, Now!
Saturday, August 25, 10:00 – 1:00 PM,  2012

This class is for Intermediate to Advanced poets, or those who write poetry but have not had the courage to submit their work. 

What to Bring:

1) The print journal and/or a printout of your work in the online journal, web address included.

2) 3-5 poems that you are ready to submit.

3) Envelopes and stamps.

Purpose of the Class: You will leave with at least one new journal to which you can submit your finished poems, along with a resource list of journals and websites that are helpful to the publishing poet. The class facilitator will lead a discussion on how to ascertain what a particular journal is looking for, which contests are worthy of your time and money, and the in’s and out’s of good practice in submitting. This will be a discussion-based class, with time set aside to read at least one of your poems

Registration fee: $25.00

Contact Glenda: nightwriter0302@yahoo.com or call 828-389-4441 for mailing information.

Correct time for Creative Writing Class beginning June 15

Corrected time for six weeks Creative Writing Class taught by Glenda Beall starting June 15.
It has been changed from an afternoon class to a morning class.
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM.
I look forward to seeing you there.

Glenda Beall
828-389-4441

http://www.profilesandpedigrees.blogspot.com/

Social Media? Who Needs It?

Ronda Birtha talks about her upcoming class on Social Media to be held at Writers Circle, 581 Chatuge Lane, in Hayesville, NC 28904

A pre-class prep talk to ease the nerves of non-tech-savvy attendees. This is not a technology class!
Overview: 3 hours.
1. Introduction to Social Media for marketing (1 hr)
Why Social Media is Necessary for your Marketing Strategy?
What do you mean, ‘be social’?
2. What you need to Start and Maintain a Blog (1hr)
3. Getting started with Facebook (1hr)

What kind of writer are you? Is your satisfaction complete when you pen your last word, or make your final edit? Are you the kind of writer that is completely satisfied with having friends and family read your manuscript? Or do you want more? Do you want people to talk about your book (favorably, of course)? Word of mouth has always been a powerful tool, but let’s consider how it works today.
When someone has some juicy information, a valuable recommendation, meaningful insight (or, not so meaningful), even a scathing review, it is talked about, not just in someone’s ear, but online, in the powerful and pervasive social media context. If you want people to talk about your book then that is where you have to get the conversation going: in the social media pool.
If you are concerned about getting started because of having limited computer knowledge or experience, rest assured, the most difficult part of engaging in social media is the commitment you will need to stick with it. The first word in Social Media Marketing, is, indeed, Social, and that is where our classroom conversation will begin.
What does it mean to be social, how does one become social? The answers to these often-neglected, yet highly important questions, will help fortify your nerve and strengthen your resolve to stick with your social media marketing efforts.
Technologically speaking, what do you need at minimum to start?
Access to a computer that has an internet connection (preferably more than dial-up). Computer access will not be needed for this class, however, so breathe easy (at least for now).
I don’t want to oversimplify the process or the methods, especially since many aspects of social media marketing are still very much an art form and not a science (like medicine), and are prone to surprise and confound us. But if we remember that many things in life surprise and confound us, we will not inflate our expectations. There is no magic button that will set everything up for us. There is no secret preference that we have to click on to make people visit our site, comment on our blog, respond to our Facebook status updates. It takes work, and effort … like most worthwhile things.
So bring a positive attitude and a pen to take notes.


Ronda L. Birtha is a freelance photographer, writer and social media consultant. She can be contacted at rbirtha@rondabirtha.com. Her photography can be viewed at www.rondabirtha.com

The class on Social Media will be held May 14. 10:30 - 1:30 PM.
E-mail Glenda Beall for registration information: glendabeall@msn.com

Classes at the Writers Circle

For the past three Wednesdays, Mary Mike Keller has taught a most interesting class at Writers Circle. With a class filled to the max, she held the interest of all the women and one man with her vast knowledge of research on the Internet and her findings of her own family. She gave each person in the class individual attention so that today, on the last day, everyone had written a story of their ancestor researched during the time they were enrolled. And each one was written in a different style.
I know Mary Mike will be in demand in the future for more classes on finding ancestors and writing their stories.

Coming next week, Tuesday, June 8, I am teaching a class, Why Do You Write?, and registration has begun. We will write, share our work, and discuss why we want to write, how to best write our true stories, whether memoir or another type of non-fiction.

On Saturday, June 12, William Reynolds will teach a class on self-publishing your book. Most important, he will teach what an author must know before he begins his book. He will discuss marketing your book once it is published.

Contact me by email: nightwriter0302@yahoo.com for more information on registration. And be sure to let me know if you want to be on our address list for coming classes.