Meetings for 2009-2010

The meeting dates and speakers for the 2009-2010 year are as follows:

Sept. 2, 2009: Dan Smith—author, editor, radio essayist—at Mama Maria's in SAlem.


Oct. 7, 2009: Carol Yopp—wildlife artist—at Montano's in Roanoke.

Portrait of Carol Yopp, painted by Anne Bernard and posted on Carol's website.

Nov. 4, 2009: Ben Williams—playwright—at Mama Maria's in Salem.


Dec. 2, 2009: No speaker (our Christmas auction) at Mama Maria's.

Feb. 3, 2010: Fred First—author, radio essayist, & blogger.


Mar. 3, 2010: Winner of poetry contest
Apr. 7, 2010: TBA
May 5, 2010: TBA
June 2, 2010: TBA

Our meetings will be at either Mama Maria's in Salem or Montano's in Roanoke. When meeting places are confirmed, this post will be up-dated.

June 2009 Meeting

Amy Tate gave the Roanoke Valley Branch of the National League of American Pen Women an enthusiastic talk about her work on her book at the June 10 meeting at The Daily Grind.

Tate, who blogs as The Virginia Scribe, received the Branch's annual scholarship for the second year in a row.

The Roanoke Valley Pen Women will meet again on September 2.

May 2009 Meeting

Pulitzer-nominated journalist Rex Bowman, author of Blue Ridge Chronicles, delighted members of the Roanoke Pen Women during their May 13 meeting.

Rex Bowman reads from his work.

Bowman served as the Southwestern Virginia correspondent for The Richmond Times-Dispatch for over a decade. He is now a book author.

The writer spoke to the Pen Women about the secret of writing. He called that "surprise," saying that writers must surprise their readers by saying something new and surprising or saying something old in a surprising way.

He offered a number of rhetorical devices as part of a writer's toolbox and urged the writers in the Pen Women's group to review this methodology for the apt and appropriate turn of phrase.

Other suggestions included ensuring that landscapes have people in them, using sensory detail (the five senses), writing in the author's voice, writing intimately, using the imperative voice, using periodic sentences instead of loose sentences, and using language appropriate to the story.

Gail Lambert, Judy Ayyldiz and Pat Bijwaard listen to Rex Bowman talk.

The Pen Women discussed their lack of scholarship applications (no one applied) and determined to pass along the $100 prize money to last year's winner, Amy Tate, who is continuing her education again in the upcoming year.

The Pen Women will receive the Perry F. Kendig Award in June for their work to promote the arts.

Branch Wins Kendig Award

The Roanoke Valley (Virginia) Branch of the National League of American Pen Women is proud to announce that the group is the recipient of a 2009 Perry F. Kendig Award as Outstanding Arts & Cultural Organization. The Arts Council of the Blue Ridge makes this prestigious award each year to an organization for its contributions and service to the community. Branch members devote time and energy to numerous projects involving the arts in the form of painting, writing, storytelling, photography and other endeavors. Some of the activities include organizing a project to audiotape 250 children’s books, appropriate for K-5, for use by disadvantaged and/or visually handicapped children; working with a fifth grade class for three years helping them with idea development, and researching, interviewing, photography, writing and editing articles to create a monthly school newspaper. Members also teach art to all age groups in schools, art museums, and outreach programs, raise funds for historic preservation and continuance of programs such as NOVA and The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, and coordinate and judge student essay contests and poetry contests. They also hold workshops on storytelling and encouraging people of all ages to tell their own stories and donating artwork to Roanoke Valley SPCA fundraising projects.

Members of the group are Margaret DuBois, Patricia A. Bijwaard, Becky Mushko, Ethel W. Born, Mildred Sandridge, Anita J. Firebaugh, J. Gail Geer, Judy Light Ayyildiz, Elena DeRosa, Myrtle Hooker, Gail Tansill Lambert, Eslye Moore, June Plunkett Poe, Beth Ann Rossi, Mary Tousman, and Peggy Ann Shifflett.

The Roanoke Valley Branch will receive the Kendig Award on June 24, 2009 at the Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, Virginia.

2009 Scholarship

Once again, the Roanoke Valley Branch of the National League of American Pen Women is offering a scholarship to a woman who has returned to college:

Scholarship Requirements:

The Roanoke Valley Pen Women will grant a scholarship of a minimum $100 to a woman age thirty or older who has either returned to college or entered college for the first time, and who is taking one or more classes for credit in the arts, letters, or music at a college or university within 75 miles of Roanoke.

The money is to be used either for supplies (textbooks, art supplies, paper, software, etc.) or for other expenses related to college attendance.

Women interested in receiving the grant for fall 2009 must apply to the Roanoke Valley Pen Women on or before May 1, 2009. The application should include the following:

•Statement of interest:
Contact information at top of page: name, address, phone, email.
A paragraph explaining the recipient’s reason for taking the class or returning to school.
A paragraph explaining the recipient’s career goals.

•A work sample in one of the following:
Letters: an example (2-10 pages) of either published or unpublished fiction (short story, novel excerpt), non-fiction (article, essay), poetry (three poems) or a combination thereof.
Arts: CD or DVD of jpegs of artwork (paintings, drawings, sculpture, pottery, fiber art, photographs, etc.).
Music (composer, performer, choreographer): CD or DVD of performance.
Applicants who want work samples returned should provide a self-addressed mailer with sufficient postage.

•Verification of class enrollment or college acceptance (a photocopy of acceptance letter, student ID, or receipt for payment of tuition).

The scholarship recipient is encouraged to report back to the Roanoke Valley Pen Women, either by mail/email or as a guest at a future Pen Women meeting to inform the membership how the scholarship helped her accomplish a goal.

Send applications to Becky Mushko, 8 Listening Hill Road, Penhook, VA, 24137 or to Peggy Shifflett, c/o Cottage Curio, 622 Colorado Street, Salem, VA 24153.

2009 Poetry Contest

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE POETRY CONTEST DATES HAVE CHANGED. The judge will be announced at a later date.

Entry Deadline: Postmark September 25, 2009
Poems will be accepted from May 1, 2009 to September 25, 2009

Any Subject

Any Form

Line Limit: 40*

RULES:

1)Only original, unpublished poetry accepted. Websites are considered publishing.*

2)Submit 2 copies of each poem, typed on 8 ½" x 11" paper. Name, address and e-mail address on only one copy*. Entry by e-mail is not allowed.

3) Contest entry grants permission to publish winning entries in any future Roanoke NLAPW publications.

4)Winners will be notified by November 20, 2009.

5)Entry Fee: $5.00 per entry*. No limit to number of entries but payment must accompany each entry. Make checks payable to Roanoke Valley Branch, NLAPW.

6)Prizes: $100, $75, $50 and Honorable Mention $5.

7)Winning poems will be read at the February 2010 Meeting of NLAPW. Proceeds from the contest will be used to help fund a scholarship.

8)Names of award winners will be available by e-mail only, no SASE.

Mail entries to:
Co-Chairman, Peggy Shifflett
700 Cherrywood Road
Salem, VA 24153

Visions and Voices, Pens and Brushes, an anthology of previous winning poems, is available for $10.00 each plus $2 shipping. (Virginia residents add .50 sales tax) Please mail requests to Margaret DuBois, P.O. Box 388, Salem, VA 24153-0388.

*Incorrectly submitted poems will be disqualified and entry fees retained by branch.

Please note that winners will be posted at roanokepenwomen.blogspot.com by November 20, 2009.

Programs for 2008-2009

At our first meeting in September, our guest speaker was herbalist, Lovell Najari. We didn't meet in October because so few members were able to attend.

Because the Daily Grind in Salem has closed, we have changed our meeting place and meeting day. As of February 2009, we will meet on Wednesdays and, unless otherwise noted, at the Daily Grind on Rt. 419.

Here are the dates, places, and speakers (up-dated as of January 4, 2009):

Nov 3—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—Leighann Boone (glass jewelry)
Dec. 1—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—Christmas silent auction
Feb. 11—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—Ethel Born (dyes)—12:30-2:00
Mar. 4—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—Vera Dickerson (artist)—10:30-12;00
Apr. 1—Peggy Shifflett's house—TBA—12:30-2:00
May 13—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—TBA (writer)—12:30-2:00
Jun. 10—Daily Grind on Rt. 419—TBA—12:30-2:00

Members are encouraged to bring guests.

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