“Why does one begin to write? Because she feels misunderstood, I guess. Because it never comes out clearly enough when she tries to speak. Because she wants to rephrase the world, to take it in and give it back again differently, so that everything is used and nothing is lost. Because it’s something to do to pass the time until she is old enough to experience the things she writes about.”
Dear Woman, Who Writes—
Together, we will soon round the bend that will take us to 2021; thus, the “time flies” artwork included with this newsletter. Indeed, this will be the sixth month we have held our monthly meetings on Zoom. Time has hardly flown during this epic pandemic. But here we are.
Women Who Write is a community with a common interest—the written word. Consequently, we provide links to writing resources, reading— help for the writer’s life. This month, we are including a link to an article about the young novelist and short story writer, Nicole Kraus—from The Atlantic, “Nicole Krauss on Fame, Loss, and Writing About Holocaust Survivors.”
All genres. All skill levels. All writing aspirations are welcome at our table!
Our next Zoom meeting is Tuesday, September 1, 6:30 to 8 PM
On September 1, we will begin our meeting with a playful icebreaker, follow with announcements of upcoming activities, and provide strength-based peer critique for up to five pieces (no more than 1200 words each). Please send a manuscript by 5 PM Monday, August 31 to as a Word attachment. The host will post each manuscript on her desktop, as a screen share so we can all follow along. We have saved a few trees in these Zoom months, —a sliver of silver lining.
Zoom meeting information can be found in the emailed newsletter, or contact us at .
Our October 6 Zoom meeting will include an author reading and discussion with Susan E. Lindsey—former director of Women Who Write!
Here is one review about her nonfiction narrative, Liberty Brought Us Here released in July 2020 by University Press of Kentucky.
Lindsey takes a history that is two dimensional and makes it come to life, in a very human way. Even on the very first page of the first chapter, you can feel how human the characters are— characters that are traditionally not portrayed as humans, but property, survivors, bundles of fear and oppression. They feel real and alive, and as people, we could’ve known in a past life, in a way that is rarely executed effectively.”
“Beautifully written and meticulously researched,” as Alan Huffman calls it, “nuanced, poignant, right on time. An entertaining, heartfelt, cleansing, and educational piece.”
“The book is not only a rare, forgotten perspective of history but also an engaging piece of accessible scholarship
Join us for our annual retreat to Hopscotch House—October 10
We will retreat again at the Hopscotch House on Saturday, October 10—all day—with an overnight option on Saturday night. Cost is $20 including one boxed dinner (no potluck). WWW will provide individually wrapped snacks and each participant will bring a sack lunch. We can accommodate a maximum of ten persons for the day and five persons overnight. Registration for the retreat is open now!
Of course, we will comply with health department guidelines, masks on inside except when eating or reading our work aloud (in the early evening,) spaced at a minimum six-foot distance. We will bring our own sack lunches.
The October weather should enable us to spend a lot of time outside on the back deck and walking the lane, the fields, the labyrinth. Sigh!
Submit your writing for the Women Who Write blog—
Our website https://womenwhowrite.com/ now features a blog that posts writing by the membership. Essays about the writing life, craft or process are preferred, but we will consider prose and poems as well. Members are welcome to pitch a blog idea by e-mail by writing to .
As a community, WWW strives to nurture your writing life. We hope you join or renew as a member and participate in our monthly meetings, author talks, retreats, and workshops. Please share your ideas for future programming!
Be safe. Stay strong. Write forward!
The Leadership Team— Kimberly, Terri, Pam, Alisa, and Melony
