FWA November 2019 Blog Post

Fall is in the air, and the holidays are right around the corner. But the writing marches on, particularly since November is National Novel Writing Month. Join the thousands of others who will be working on—and hopefully completing—a 50,000 word novel in the next 30 days. Details are on the NaNoWriMo website.

And when you're not writing, you can attend one on these NE Florida FWA writers group meetings"

• Like the weather, there's been a change in the first River City Writers meeting date. As reported previously, the River City Writers group is under new management. Linda Feist has accepted the leadership role, and will launch the meetings on Thursday, January 9 at 7PM at the SE Branch Library. Look for more information next month.
• St. Augustine's Ancient City Writers chapter is back in business after its annual conference break. On Saturday, November 16 at 10AM, Margaret Nicholson, PhD, will discuss using DNA testing and genealogical research to enrich memoirs and historical fiction. Margaret wrote My Surprise Family: Find Your Ancestry Story as a mystery, a memoir, and a manual. The meeting takes place at St. Augustine's Main Library.
• Amelia Island Writers will chat with James Bruner, Esq. about how careers influence a chosen genre, successful publishing, and continuation as a series. Tuesday, Nov. 19, 4-6 pm at Story and Song Bookstore Bistro, Amelia Park. ameliaislandwriters.org
• Love to write, but hate the selling? Then join Nancy Quatrano at the Clay County Writers meeting on Wednesday, November 20 at 6:15PM at the Orange Park Library. In her talk, "Hybrid Marketing 101: Understanding Basic Buzz and Fan-Building," Nancy reveals an alternative path to generating better book sales.
• It's time to share your best work with your peers at the Ponte Vedra Writers Annual Open Mic meeting, Saturday, November 23 at 10:30 a.m. at the Ponte Vedra Beach Branch Library. Participants will have at least five minutes to read an excerpt from their WIP or other work— fiction, nonfiction, poetry, etc. The time will be dependent on the number of people signing up to read. If interested, please respond in advance of the meeting and I'll add you to the list of speakers on a first response basis.

And in other news ...

• A Gathering of Poets meets on the first and third thursday of the months at 2PM at the Ponte Vedra Beach Branch Library. All poets are invited.
• NE Florida Sisters in Crime meets tomorrow, Saturday, November 2, at St. Augustine's Main Library at 10:15AM. They've invited fingerprint experts from the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office to present forensic details for all mystery writers.
• Tickets go on sale today for the Amelia Island Book Festival Gala, featuring a star-studded line-up that includes David Baldacci, Sandra Brown, Robert Crais, Margot Lee Shetterly, and Sharon Robinson. The Gala is the festival's major fundraising event, and takes place on Valentine's night in February 2020, at the Omni Amelia Island  Resort. Click here for ticket information.

That's all for now. I have to start on my NaNoWriMo novel.

Cheers,
Vic

Vic DiGenti
FWA NE Florida Regional Director