Member Newsletter — November 2025

Photo by Niiaz Sabirov on iStock

Hello Writers!

Complicated Truths

My husband and I attended a play recently at Actor’s Theatre called “FDR’s Very Happy Hour.” It sounded like fun, so we headed downtown on a Thursday evening hoping to miss weekend crowds. The security check seemed more intense than usual. We were wanded, and I had to open all the pockets of my purse. But we passed the terrorist test and headed inside. We were told that the seating was general and the “park rangers” would assist us. Ushers dressed as park rangers guided guests to seats. There was a bar set up in the theatre, and guests were lined up to buy drinks. I bought my can of pear apple vodka.

We soon realized this was not the usual Actor’s Theatre play. It was an immersive play with audience participation. It was written and directed by Regan Linton and M. Graham Smith, and this was a world premiere. As the play began, FDR appeared in his wheelchair. He invited us to walk around, partake of the bar, communicate with each other, much like the cocktail hours he enjoyed daily at the White House.

The play focused on some of FDR’s accomplishments as the only four-term President, for example, guiding us during the Great Depression, promoting the New Deal, leading the country through WWII, and forming the National Park Service (which explained the park rangers). The goal of the play was to involve community changemakers, and that night it was Sadiqa Reynolds, President of Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center and former President of the Urban League. She was wonderfully engaging and played right along. It was lighthearted yet clearly poked at some of our current societal issues.

Finally, the dignified, gracious Eleanor Roosevelt appeared. She reminded FDR that his legacy is not simple, there were complicated truths in his life. During WWII, FDR ordered Japanese civilians to be placed in internment camps. He insisted that there were national security concerns, but Eleanor persisted, noting that these camps disrupted the lives of Japanese civilians who technically had not done anything wrong.

The mantra “We have nothing to fear but fear itself,” from Winston Churchill was often quoted during the play. Yet decisions such as this one are based in fear. Eleanor reminded us that life is full of complicated truths. Audience members were encouraged to think about their own complicated truths.

I have thought about complicated truths in my own life since then, and there are some.

Although I value loyalty and seeing tough things through, I sometimes change course when things get complicated rather than sticking it out. I believe that access to healthy food, good healthcare, and good education are rights, not privileges, but I complain about paying taxes. I rally against animal cruelty, but I eat meat.

And the final ironic complicated truth. As I thought about the play, I realized that it clearly had a “woke” tone. That’s fine with me because I consider myself to be in that camp. Many of the people there were from the Louisville Urban League and other Louisville social organizations. I view Louisville as a tolerant city, but was the intense security check related to concerns about possible disruptions? Have we really gotten to the point in this supposedly civilized city that we need increased protection for a play promoting concern and empathy for others? I hope I’m wrong, but . . .

~Colleen Ryan

WRITING PROMPT

Think about the complicated truths, the contradictions in your own life between the ideal and the real. Write about one complicated truth and how you have or have not come to terms with it.

~ Colleen Ryan

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

UPCOMING WWW MEETINGS AND EVENTS

Our November 11, 2025 member meeting will take place at the Middletown Branch of the Louisville Free Public Library, located at 12556 Shelbyville Road. We will begin earlier than usual at 6:00pm and conclude at 7:30pm due to changing library hours. This meeting will be a writing workshop in lieu of peer critique. We are excited to welcome Louisville author, Sarah Landenwich, to lead a workshop on writing body language entitled “Beyond Raised Eyebrows and Racing Hearts: Building Better Body Language.” Workshop participants should bring a 1-2 page excerpt from a work in progress. The excerpt should include at least one character, though for the purposes of our exploration, it may be more instructive to bring an excerpt that features multiple characters interacting. This is a cross-genre workshop that will focus on writing better body language. For the poets in the group, a person described in or presented as the subject of a poem counts as a character.

On December 9, 2025, in lieu of a member meeting, we plan to gather at The Bristol Bar & Grill at 1321 Bardstown Road for our annual Holiday Party and Book Exchange. We’ve reserved a private room upstairs from 6:30 – 9:30pm where we’ll order from the menu and exchange our favorite books. So we can provide an accurate headcount, please let us know you’re coming by registering on our website by November 30, 2025.

TWO RIVERS RETREAT RECAP

Photo by Megan Thompson

We wrote, we read, we hiked, and then we wrote some more! On October 25-26, several of us gathered at General Butler State Park for a productive weekend of writing among friends. Some of us came with goals that we met (Congrats on finishing a first draft of your new novel, Elizabeth!), while some of us came with no goals, but nevertheless persisted in accomplishing various things we’d been meaning to for some time (Looking at you, Kim!). We’re gathering feedback from our retreatants to use for planning our next overnight retreat. Stay tuned, and please consider joining us next time!

Photo by Elizabeth Roach-Smith

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Congratulations to member Leah Tenney whose poem entitled “Compassion” was selected for inclusion in “A Kinder Kindling than Most,” a poem anthology published by Workhorse Publishing in Lexington and edited by Arwn Careaga and Jon Thrower. Leah writes poetry & fiction, and loves all things ancient. She lives with her husband and two cats in the green grass of northern Kentucky. You can find Leah’s website here and follow her on Instagram at leahjoy_stitching.

WWW BLOG

Women Who Write features a blog on our website to showcase our community’s talent. We want to publish your writing or republish a recent publication of yours (given that reprints are permitted). Please send us your short stories, poems, and essays! No more than 2,000 words.

Browse our web blog now! Publishing on our blog will expand your writing platform. For more information, email and pitch your story or poem—the one you’ve written or the one you want to write! We may provide suggested edits, for flow and clarity.

Photo by Debby Hudson on Unsplash

SUBMISSION OPPORTUNITIES & LOCAL EVENTS

Kentucky Monthly’s Penned Literary Contest: Kentucky Monthly is seeking high-quality poetry, fiction and nonfiction prose by Kentucky writers for its annual literary issue in February 2026. Their definition of a Kentucky writer is anyone who currently lives in Kentucky, has lived in Kentucky or uses Kentucky as subject matter. Deadline for entries is December 5, 2025. More info here.

If you’re looking to write 50K words this November but don’t know where to begin since NaNoWriMo shut down earlier this year, consider one of these new options based on the same premise: NaNo 2.0 or Novel November with Prowritingaid.

One of our favorite retreat locations, Valaterra in LaGrange, has begun hosting regular Work From Valaterra days and Lazy Sundays, among other unique activities designed to recharge your mind and body.

Kentucky’s Poet Laureate, Kathleen Driskell, is now hosting a monthly podcast called Kentucky Writer’s Notebook. Have a listen!

Regular local events:

• ‘Zine Lunch with Sarabrande Books, monthly on Fridays at noon
• Carmichael’s regularly hosts authors and poets in the evenings
• Axton Reading Series with UofL Creative Writing Department

Submission directories:

• Submittable
• Duotrope
• Poets and Writers’ list of literary magazines
• NewPages

Women’s publications seeking women writers:

• Landslide Lit(erary) (by WWW members Kimberly Crum and Bonnie Omer Johnson)
• HerStry, literary essay/memoir blog
• Ashes, an online magazine of personal essays
• Brown Sugar, online magazine for women of color
• Bi Women Quarterly, bisexual+ women’s publication
• Literary Mama, journal dedicated to motherhood
• Persimmon Tree, online magazine for women older than 60
• So To Speak, an intersectional feminist journal

SUPPORT OUR WRITING COMMUNITY!

Become a member or renew your membership—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. Our membership coordinator will notify anyone due to renew. Regular annual membership is $50. Student annual membership is $25. Scholarships are available. Membership entitles you to discounts on workshops and retreats.

Attend our monthly member meetings on the second Tuesday of each month for a brief program, peer critiques, and conversations about the writing life. Not currently a member? You can attend two meetings before deciding to join.

Visit our webpage WomenWhoWrite.com.

Visit our Facebook Page—@womenwhowriteky. Don’t forget to like us and follow us.

Thank you, WWW members, for joining our nonprofit group, for sharing your unique voices, and for supporting each other with open hearts and minds.

Your Leadership Team

Megan, Erin, Holly, Colleen, Liz, Irene, and Nancy