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“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.”
~Thich Nhat Hanh ~
Dear Members and Friends of Women Who Write—
I once scoffed at the cliché expression “attitude of gratitude,” considering it Pollyannish. And then came the pandemic. Suddenly, the ordinary felt extraordinary— a walk in the park, a dog at my feet, a scrumptious new recipe, a friendly greeting by the masked barista who passed me a cup of Chai Latte, extra hot, through the drive-in window.
Nevertheless, I wished for a return to normal life. I looked forward to becoming a three-dimensional person, rather than a two-dimensional image in frequent Zoom videoconferences. That person has a crinkly neck. I have missed eye contact, a touch on the shoulder, a view of people from top of head to tip of toe. And I crave returning to a favorite pastime—eavesdropping in public places.
Once we are out of this Covid-hole, I plan to continue the practice of observation, using my whole body to experience the world. Along those lines, here is a terrific craft essay, “Good Noticing: A Whole Body Strategy,” by Tarn Wilson on Brevitymag.com
PLEASE JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT MEMBERSHIP MEETING ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9 ON ZOOM BEGINNING 6:30 PM.—
Writing Prompt—This month’ writing prompt is ‘gratitude.’ Watch and listen to Ross Gay read his poem, “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude.” Then sit down to freewrite an experience or list of gratitudes. Write an ode or an elegy or a praise. Write about an object, experience habit, person, animal, tree, family recipe. Trust your muse!
We’ll begin the meeting by reading aloud these flash piece (750 words or less).
Peer commentary—After reading aloud our writing prompts, we’ll begin peer commentary on four short stories, personal essay/memoir, and/or poems. Send your work-in-progress to by noon on Tuesday. We’ll screenshare it on Zoom, as you read. Prose writers, please send no more than five double-spaced pages using 12 pt. font. Poets, please send no more than three pages of poetry.
We look forward to seeing your face and hearing your voice. Guests are welcome to attend twice before they pay the membership fee of $50: membership is $25 for students currently enrolled in school.
Enter the zoom room a few minutes before 6:30 pm—
The meeting link was sent in the November Newsletter, or you may email us at for the link.
If you have trouble signing in, please text 502-417-3424
DECEMBER MEETINGS ARE IN-PERSON!
Image by Ray Hennessy on Unsplash
Mark your calendar for our retreat (12/11) and holiday party (12/14)!
Saturday, December 11— Our winter retreat is at the Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve in Oldham County from 9 AM to 5 PM. Cost is $20 for members; $35 for nonmembers. Box lunch included
Prior to the retreat you’ll receive readings and a writing prompt. Walk the beautiful wintry landscape of the nature preserve. Write whatever you wish during our quiet writing time. Gather for conversation and a box lunch and readings at the end of the day. We will meet at The Fieldhouse at 9 AM. WWW will limit attendance to 15 persons to ensure adequate social distancing. Register for the retreat to reserve your space!
Tuesday, December 14— will be an in-person Christmas party from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at Molly Malone’s Irish Pub & Restaurant at 933 Baxter Ave in Louisville. We have a private room and we can order from the menu. After dinner, we’ll enjoy an open mic for five-minute readings by WWW members. Please RSVP to . We invite you to excerpt longer pieces!
WE WANT TO SUPPORT YOUR WRITING LIFE.
Photo by Johnny Briggs on Unsplash
Here are a few submission opportunities.
- Submit to the Women Who Write blog— We accept short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry (less than 1,300 words of prose) from current members. Please pitch a blog idea or paste your writing in an e-mail to Help us provide content and encouragement to writers. You can read our most recent blog post, by Alisa Childress, WWW secretary, “Soundtrack of a Life.”
- Landslide Lit (erary) is a Medium.com publication by WWW members Kimberly Crum and Bonnie Omer Johnson. The platform publishes poetry, fiction, and short memoir. See a recent submission here. Learn more about submissions here. Kim and Bonnie offer a Medium.com tutorial and editing suggestions for submissions.
- Consider submitting to Image Journal, which publishes fiction, poetry, and personal essays re: “sustained engagement with Judaism, Christianity, or Islam. That engagement can include unease, grappling, or ambivalence as well as orthodoxy.”
- Consider submitting to Minerva Rising’s on-line journal, “The Keeping Room.” The journal publishes “short stories, essays, free writing, poetry, and photo essays that touch on topics related to Women’s Wisdom, Lessons Learned, Self-care, Bodies, Relationships, and Community.”
- The HerStry blog invites themed submissions and a $20 payment when the creative nonfiction essay is published. Stay posted for 2022 themes and submission dates. The literary blog also wants submissions for non-themed personal essays year round, no payment!
- Funds for writers newsletter—provides paying markets for writing
- Submit to this new literary journal, Dead Skunk Magazine.
- Literary Mama publishes creative nonfiction by mothers of any age, about motherhood. They accept submissions on a rolling basis.
- Brevitymag.com accepts flash nonfiction submissions year-round. Well respected for short creative nonfiction (750 words or less). Hard to get in, but why not try? Brevity is also a wonderful place to find fabulous craft essays for the nonfiction genre.
- Under the Gum Tree is a well-respected quarterly literary journal of creative nonfiction, with a variety of themed sections (shorter) and a feature article in each issue. Two of my students published features in the journal that began with writing prompts!
- Check out The Manifest Station: On Being Human literary blog. Submit poetry, essay, fiction, art, and photography. Submissions are open continuously.
- This clearing house has an amusing name, “Publishing and Other Forms of insanity. The list of submission opportunities is ongoing.
HERE ARE WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT OUR WRITING COMMUNITY!
Become a member (or re-member)—As a community, WWW strives to nurture your writing life. We hope you choose to join or renew as a member and participate in our monthly meetings, author talks, retreats, and workshops. Please share your ideas for future programming! You can attend two meetings as a non-member, before joining for $50. Students 18 and older enrolled in school can become members for $25.
Nominate someone, including yourself, to be on our board of directors—We are currently seeking a treasurer, vice-president, and social media coordinator to serve on the board beginning January 2022. Email president Kimberly Crum at .
Visit our Facebook Page and stay awhile—@womenwhowriteky. Help us exceed 1000 followers. Check out our most recent writing prompt for six-word memoirs and add one of your own! See video interviews of WWW meetings with visiting writers.
Be safe. Be strong. Be peace.
Love your writing life!
The leadership team— Kimberly, Pam, Melony & Alisa
