Chattanooga Writers Guild

CWG News & Announcements:

Thursday, April 30, 2009
CWG NEWSLETTER -- FRIDAY, MAY 1

The TaleSpin Festival, featuring national and regional storytellers from all walks of life with stories of adventure, mystery and southern humor, will be held Friday, May 8th from 6:00 - 11:00 p.m. and Saturday, May 9th from noon - 11:00 p.m. at Miller Plaza. For tickets and a detailed schedule, visit www.downtownchattanooga.org or call (423) 265-0771.

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Judy DiGregorio, who spoke with Jim Johnston at the April CWG meeting, will be one of three writers featured at the Knoxville Writers' Guild June 4th meeting on creative nonfiction. Judy's recent speaking engagements include the Council of Hospital Volunteers, Knoxville Kiwanis Club, Norris AARP, Oak Ridge Author's Showcase, OR Chamber of Commerce, and Christian Business Women's Organization. Website: http://www.judyjabber.com/ Order Judy's new book at: http://www.celticcatpublishing.com/ .

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Twitter's Impact More Than Numbers (Wired/Epicenter)
John Abell: Twitter more than doubled U.S. visitors last month to 9.3 million (19 million worldwide), making it the fastest-growing site. Numbers that impressive mean Twitter is more than just the net's latest craze -- it means the service has become an inescapable cultural phenomenon. --From MediaBistro

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News Related to Writers from Media Bistro
Investors Bet on Small-Market Papers (WSJ) While big newspapers across the country fight for survival, the slice of the industry that serves small markets is drawing new investment from industry veterans. The buyers' confidence reflects the divide between big-city papers and their relatively healthier brethren in smaller cities and towns.
Publishers Seize on iPhone as Great Digital Hope for Print (AdAge) Nat Ives: Can the Jesus phone resurrect print's hopes for paid digital content? Several players, from ambitious software developers to arcane auditing bodies, are suddenly converging this spring to hasten the arrival of a long-awaited "iPod for print." It might just be the iPhone.
Death of Newspapers Foretold by Warren Buffett (Slate) Jack Shafer: Perhaps the most prescient voice on the fate of newspapers has been Berkshire Hathaway Chairman of the Board Warren E. Buffett. In a Feb. 28, 1992, letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, Buffett declared that media properties were losing their status as profit-spewing franchises.

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Top 5 Writing Lessons--Jurassic Park and E.R. Creator the Late Michael Crichton
http://writersdigest.com/article/michael-crichton-top-5-writing-lessons

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Romance Writers of America Annual Conference
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel – Washington, D.C. July 15 – 18, 2009
Join best-selling authors, editors from major publishing houses, and top agents at the 2009 RWA Annual Conference - the place for individuals involved in the romance fiction publishing industry to network and do business in a professional atmosphere, with more than 100 educational sessions for authors, editor/agent pitch sessions, and book signings. Check out the schedule of events: http://www.rwanational.org/cs/conferences_and_events .

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Controversial Book on the Met
http://www.headbutler.com/books/rogues-gallery.asp

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Literary Agent's Blog, of Special Interest to CBA Writers
http://chipmacgregor.com/
You can subscribe to be emailed new posts.

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End Poetry Month Celebration with a Threebie by Updike
http://poem-a-day.knopfdoubleday.com/2009/04/30/john-updike/

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Beyond the Book
Listen to a podcast of a panel discussion on the future of the books recorded April 25th in NYC. (About an hour) http://beyondthebookcast.com/publishing-has-a-future-yes-says-round-table-panel/

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More Media Bistro Writing News
U.S. Journalists Must Stand Trial in North Korea (Guardian) North Korea has decided to put two US journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, on trial. They have been under arrest since they were detained on March 17 on North Korea's border with China. The pair, who work for Current TV, were reporting on Korean refugees living in China.
Meacham to Write Bush 41 Biography (NYP) Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham, whose day job is running Newsweek, has already picked his next project. He will write a biography of former President George H.W. Bush. The book is not an authorized biography, but the Bush family is believed to be cooperating.
How E-Pulitzers Can Elevate Journalism (CSM) Roy Harris: Founder Joseph Pulitzer's idea to elevate the best US newspapers helped usher in an era of excellent journalism. Today, if the Pulitzers recognized excellence across a wider range of print and electronic content, they could help lift journalism once more. FishbowlNY: Prizes are no solution to the problems facing journalism, says Sig Gissler.

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What Price Liberty?
Pay what you want. You can download the book and pay anything you want for the book. Such a deal! This is the latest example of publishers letting readers download books from the Internet for free -- or in this case anything you think is fair. Why? Because they hope they will sell more print copies. Read more: http://www.whatpriceliberty.co.uk/

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Excerpts from Charlie Rose's Interviews with Writers, Including Grisham
http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/9534?pagenum=1

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Poets and Writers List of Literary Journals
16 new Literary Journals are looking for writings from you:
http://www.pw.org/literary_magazines?apage=*