Thanks to a generous monetary donation from an anonymous source specifically ear-marked, we have printed 3,500 membership brochures. This updated pamphlet is generic in nature so it has universal appeal for prospective SCWW members. If your chapter or community would like a supply to encourage new membership (there’s even an application inside), please email Membership Chair Steve Gordy (scwwmembership@gmail.com) or Ginny Padgett (scwwpresident@gmail.com). We will get them to you right away.
While I’m here, I want to thank, in advance, our conference faculty members for their blogs. From now until October 21, we’ll have a blog from one of them at least once a week. Be sure to keep visiting here at the SCWW blog page for their tips for getting the most out of your conference experience and other helpful tidbits.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, we are poised on the brink of one of our best writers’ conferences in 21 years. The structure is a bit different this year which we hope will better accommodate more attendees. Our sessions will address a greater variety of topics. Be sure to register as soon as possible to ensure your first-choice appointments for critiques, pitches, and queries. Early-bird rates end September 1. Also, your work for critique must be received by Carrie by September 1.
Showing posts with label membership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label membership. Show all posts
What Does Membership Matter?
We sometimes get questions from our members regarding our policy that individuals who have attended three chapter meetings must join SCWW or cease attending meetings. In hard economic times, this may seem harsh.
There are at least three ways in which we can look at this issue:
The annual cost of an SCWW membership includes a monthly newsletter (The Quill). It also includes the right to submit entries for the annual anthology judging (at no extra cost) and for the Carrie McCray awards (at a small extra fee). A one-year individual membership costs less than the submission fees for some fiction competitions. We wish we could get more of our members to attend our annual conference. A one-year membership comes as part of the deal, for non-members. If I may be permitted to encroach on the territory of one of my fellow Board members, if you want to know why it's a good deal to join SCWW, attend the annual conference. You'll find that there are few occasions in the writing business where you can make as many useful contacts within a short amount of time.
The cost of a year's individual membership does pose a barrier to some potential members. On the other hand, there's no rule against the members of a chapter "passing the hat" to help out a potential member who's in dire financial straits. An individual membership costs less than I paid twenty-five years ago to belong to my major professional association. It's about equal to the cost of one Venti Capuccino per month for a year at Starbucks. We all make our individual decisions about the value of things and conduct ourselves accordingly. If you think it over and decide that SCWW is worth the money, thank you. If not, please let us know why not; we need that information to guide us in planning the Workshop's programs.
There are at least three ways in which we can look at this issue:
- Are we asking people to pay too much money?
- Are potential members aware of what SCWW's done for them?
- Why does it seem that we're always focused on money?
The annual cost of an SCWW membership includes a monthly newsletter (The Quill). It also includes the right to submit entries for the annual anthology judging (at no extra cost) and for the Carrie McCray awards (at a small extra fee). A one-year individual membership costs less than the submission fees for some fiction competitions. We wish we could get more of our members to attend our annual conference. A one-year membership comes as part of the deal, for non-members. If I may be permitted to encroach on the territory of one of my fellow Board members, if you want to know why it's a good deal to join SCWW, attend the annual conference. You'll find that there are few occasions in the writing business where you can make as many useful contacts within a short amount of time.
The cost of a year's individual membership does pose a barrier to some potential members. On the other hand, there's no rule against the members of a chapter "passing the hat" to help out a potential member who's in dire financial straits. An individual membership costs less than I paid twenty-five years ago to belong to my major professional association. It's about equal to the cost of one Venti Capuccino per month for a year at Starbucks. We all make our individual decisions about the value of things and conduct ourselves accordingly. If you think it over and decide that SCWW is worth the money, thank you. If not, please let us know why not; we need that information to guide us in planning the Workshop's programs.
What's In It For Me?
Every so often, people ask me what membership in South Carolina Writers' Workshop will do for them. Having recently answered that question, I decided to devote this post to those benefits. Some of this information came from the Join Us link on our web site, http://www.myscww.org/. I've expanded on that information, so please don't check out on me here.
Benefits of membership include:
Local (or remote) SCWW Chapter meetings
I always find that I write better after meeting with my local chapter. Membership allows you to attend ANY chapter meeting within SCWW, so you can get that shot of energy even while on vacation or out of town on business. I did that last year while vacationing in Myrtle Beach, SC.
Practical advice from other writers
Sources for advice abound. You can locate them in the SCWW blog, from SCWW members, and through free workshops presented by our chapters. A member-only yahoo group is in the works, and it will connect all of our members.
If you read ANY serious writing magazine, you will read that membership in a writing group is extremely important to your success. I've learned so much about my writing style just by tapping into SCWW's available avenues of advice.
Interesting conversation (not necessarily restricted to writing).
Shoulders to cry on in celebration of your first (or hundredth) rejection letter.
Friends to invite to the champagne party celebrating your first (or fifth) bestseller.
Your chapter friends can help you decide where to submit your work and how to word your query, synopsis, etc.
Fun (and inexpensive) entertainment for a few hours a month.
Some of my closest friends are members of SCWW and not just in the Greenville area. We have over 500 members throughout the US and a few international members.
Discount rate for SCWW conference attendance
Members have the opportunity to sign up for the conference at a reduced rate, plus you can renew your membership at a discount if you do so while registering for the conference. My membership doesn't expire until late August, but I take advantage of the reduced rate rather than wait.
Our conference rates are incredible when you compare them to other conferences. Many conferences offer 1/3 the number of faculty or workshop offerings that we do, and often cost upwards of $600. We strive to keep our rates low so our members can enjoy this benefit.
Our Conference Committee negotiates a fantastic hotel sleeping room rate for our members. We've considered moving to other resorts, but we can't beat what we have at the Myrtle Beach Hilton. In fact, other groups using the same resort are paying much higher room rates.
Our conference has grown from attendance of 150 people to 500+. It offers multiple opportunities for conversations with agents and editors, and last year, Writer's Digest featured the conference in one of their issues. This exposure means that New York publishing is well aware of SCWW, and membership in our organization carries a positive reputation. Last year's faculty kept commenting on the high caliber of writers within our organization. And, if you've somehow missed this fact, agents and editors requested over 50 manuscripts during last year's conference. We know of at least one that has already been published.
Eligible to Compete in Anthology Contest
The Petigru Review gives our members an opportunity to be published. Some of last year's authors were nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Eligible to Compete in the Carrie McCray Memorial Literary Awards
This contest is named after one of our founding members, Carrie McCray. It comes with a $500 first place prize and $100 second place prize. Members must attend the conference to enter. One of last year's judges (an agent) requested the full manuscript from one of the First Chapter entries.
The Quill - SCWW's monthly newsletter
The Quill provides up-to-date information on occurrences within SCWW. Also, we have contests, giving members another way to build their publishing resume.
Now that I've covered the website's benefits list, let me add a few:
Website (myscww.org)
If you haven't visited the web site lately, you should. We have a great new look. Any member who has a website, blog, or published book can have a link, along with the picture of your book, on our site. The site also provides information on contests and other opportunities for writers.
Our Chapter page helps writers locate the local chapter meetings. Plus, you can create a chapter web site through the SCWW site. Our webmaster, can help you with this.
The SCWW Board is exploring the idea of a members only sign-in that provides access to information. One feature will be access to our membership, allowing you to look up CURRENT member listings at any time.
Thanks to several enthusiastic members, you can join our Facebook or LinkedIn groups.
Connections
You get out of SCWW what you are willing to put in. In 2007, I jumped in feet first and gained wonderful connections with several publishing professionals. It's the old adage of networking: What matters is who you know. This week, I sent a partial of my manuscript to an agent who performed my critique last October. Two other publishing professionals have expressed an interest in reading my manuscript. Several published authors, who I met through the conference, have given me valuable assistance and feedback in the past two years. I would never experience these milestones of success if it wasn't for SCWW.
Broader Visibility
Besides the publishing options, you have the opportunity to run for open positions on our Board of Directors or volunteer for a committee position. Volunteering will make you more visible to the publishing world. I co-chaired the conference last year, and the experience opened several doors for me.
Free Workshops
SCWW provides financial support and guidance to local chapters that want to provide a one-day seminar. The chapter provides a service to the community while increasing its contacts and visibility. We have members of the Board who know the ropes and are willing to help you with this process. Because of our grant from SC Arts Council, we must offer a few free workshops each year. The Greenville chapter has one scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 8 from 1 - 3 at the Greenville Main Library. Ray Blackston, author of Flabbergasted and 5 other books, is speaking on "The Twisted Road to Publishing".
Whew! That's a lot! All of this for a $50 membership fee. It's like that credit card commercial:
Membership in SCWW - $50
Contacts with other writers - Priceless
Visibility and Connection with Publishing Professionals - Priceless
Benefits of membership include:
Local (or remote) SCWW Chapter meetings
I always find that I write better after meeting with my local chapter. Membership allows you to attend ANY chapter meeting within SCWW, so you can get that shot of energy even while on vacation or out of town on business. I did that last year while vacationing in Myrtle Beach, SC.
Practical advice from other writers
Sources for advice abound. You can locate them in the SCWW blog, from SCWW members, and through free workshops presented by our chapters. A member-only yahoo group is in the works, and it will connect all of our members.
If you read ANY serious writing magazine, you will read that membership in a writing group is extremely important to your success. I've learned so much about my writing style just by tapping into SCWW's available avenues of advice.
Interesting conversation (not necessarily restricted to writing).
Shoulders to cry on in celebration of your first (or hundredth) rejection letter.
Friends to invite to the champagne party celebrating your first (or fifth) bestseller.
Your chapter friends can help you decide where to submit your work and how to word your query, synopsis, etc.
Fun (and inexpensive) entertainment for a few hours a month.
Some of my closest friends are members of SCWW and not just in the Greenville area. We have over 500 members throughout the US and a few international members.
Discount rate for SCWW conference attendance
Members have the opportunity to sign up for the conference at a reduced rate, plus you can renew your membership at a discount if you do so while registering for the conference. My membership doesn't expire until late August, but I take advantage of the reduced rate rather than wait.
Our conference rates are incredible when you compare them to other conferences. Many conferences offer 1/3 the number of faculty or workshop offerings that we do, and often cost upwards of $600. We strive to keep our rates low so our members can enjoy this benefit.
Our Conference Committee negotiates a fantastic hotel sleeping room rate for our members. We've considered moving to other resorts, but we can't beat what we have at the Myrtle Beach Hilton. In fact, other groups using the same resort are paying much higher room rates.
Our conference has grown from attendance of 150 people to 500+. It offers multiple opportunities for conversations with agents and editors, and last year, Writer's Digest featured the conference in one of their issues. This exposure means that New York publishing is well aware of SCWW, and membership in our organization carries a positive reputation. Last year's faculty kept commenting on the high caliber of writers within our organization. And, if you've somehow missed this fact, agents and editors requested over 50 manuscripts during last year's conference. We know of at least one that has already been published.
Eligible to Compete in Anthology Contest
The Petigru Review gives our members an opportunity to be published. Some of last year's authors were nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Eligible to Compete in the Carrie McCray Memorial Literary Awards
This contest is named after one of our founding members, Carrie McCray. It comes with a $500 first place prize and $100 second place prize. Members must attend the conference to enter. One of last year's judges (an agent) requested the full manuscript from one of the First Chapter entries.
The Quill - SCWW's monthly newsletter
The Quill provides up-to-date information on occurrences within SCWW. Also, we have contests, giving members another way to build their publishing resume.
Now that I've covered the website's benefits list, let me add a few:
Website (myscww.org)
If you haven't visited the web site lately, you should. We have a great new look. Any member who has a website, blog, or published book can have a link, along with the picture of your book, on our site. The site also provides information on contests and other opportunities for writers.
Our Chapter page helps writers locate the local chapter meetings. Plus, you can create a chapter web site through the SCWW site. Our webmaster, can help you with this.
The SCWW Board is exploring the idea of a members only sign-in that provides access to information. One feature will be access to our membership, allowing you to look up CURRENT member listings at any time.
Thanks to several enthusiastic members, you can join our Facebook or LinkedIn groups.
Connections
You get out of SCWW what you are willing to put in. In 2007, I jumped in feet first and gained wonderful connections with several publishing professionals. It's the old adage of networking: What matters is who you know. This week, I sent a partial of my manuscript to an agent who performed my critique last October. Two other publishing professionals have expressed an interest in reading my manuscript. Several published authors, who I met through the conference, have given me valuable assistance and feedback in the past two years. I would never experience these milestones of success if it wasn't for SCWW.
Broader Visibility
Besides the publishing options, you have the opportunity to run for open positions on our Board of Directors or volunteer for a committee position. Volunteering will make you more visible to the publishing world. I co-chaired the conference last year, and the experience opened several doors for me.
Free Workshops
SCWW provides financial support and guidance to local chapters that want to provide a one-day seminar. The chapter provides a service to the community while increasing its contacts and visibility. We have members of the Board who know the ropes and are willing to help you with this process. Because of our grant from SC Arts Council, we must offer a few free workshops each year. The Greenville chapter has one scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 8 from 1 - 3 at the Greenville Main Library. Ray Blackston, author of Flabbergasted and 5 other books, is speaking on "The Twisted Road to Publishing".
Whew! That's a lot! All of this for a $50 membership fee. It's like that credit card commercial:
Membership in SCWW - $50
Contacts with other writers - Priceless
Visibility and Connection with Publishing Professionals - Priceless
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