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The Enchanted Writing Forest: TWC’s Spring 2019 Retreat

The Enchanted Writing Forest: TWC’s Spring 2019 Retreat

by Laura Romain If I had to tell you what distracts me from writing, I’d say everything. And I mean everything: email, dishes, laundry, news sites, social media, snack time, whatever’s happening outside my window, my dog, not to mention my dog’s hair, which gets…

The Writers Circle Celebrates Poetry Month

The Writers Circle Celebrates Poetry Month

Just yesterday we celebrated our annual Tea & Poetry event at MONDO – TWC’s sixth consecutive year of marking National Poetry Month with a reading and open mic. This year, we partnered with Tiferet Journal and had a record-breaking audience of some 30+ avid poetry…

How to Be a Good Literary Citizen

How to Be a Good Literary Citizen

by TWC Founder/Director Judith Lindbergh As writers, most of us accept that our work is a lonely business. But when we raise our heads from our manuscripts, we love to know that there is, in fact, a lively community out there, cheering us on. That…

Publishing Trends and Why My Book Didn’t Sell to the Big Five

Publishing Trends and Why My Book Didn’t Sell to the Big Five

by Michelle Cameron This is one of a continuing series as TWC Director Michelle Cameron goes through the publishing process with hybrid publisher, SheWrites Press. A number of my SheWrites Press (SWP) Spring 2020 cohort have commented on how much they are learning about their…

Winter at the Vineyard with Wine & Words

Winter at the Vineyard with Wine & Words

Winter is an unusual time to visit a vineyard.  The air is cold and dry.  The fields are brown and the vines are bare.  But it’s a perfect time to enjoy the fruits of the vintner’s craft, especially when there’s a roaring fire in the…

Making Every Word Count

Making Every Word Count

When SheWrites Press (SWP) accepted my novel for publication, there was one caveat. They do not publish anything that exceeds 120,000 words. And Beyond the Ghetto Gates clocked in at 135,000. Now, when it comes to historical fiction, my word count is not excessive. In…

Some Avocados Were Harmed in the Making of this Film

Some Avocados Were Harmed in the Making of this Film

by Rebecca Kilroy, TWC Intern As a writer, I appreciate unbelievable stories, and the story of how I saw something I wrote turned into a film is certainly that. It started this past summer when I was interning at The Writers Circle’s Summer Intensive. Every…

Presenting our 2019 Kids Creative Writing Contest WINNERS!

Presenting our 2019 Kids Creative Writing Contest WINNERS!

Back in October, we put out the call for creative writing on the theme of Portals. Some 23 young writers enthusiastically responded – eighteen in the 3rd-5th grade category and six in the 6th-8th grade group. We were treated to a rich array of stories…

In Praise of Beta-Readers

In Praise of Beta-Readers

by TWC Founder/Director Judith Lindbergh For anyone who doesn’t know what a “beta-reader” is, just think about software launches.  How often do you get a warning that you’re using the beta version of an app and are invited to share your experiences using the software? …

The Magic of a Writing Retreat: 2018 Recap

The Magic of a Writing Retreat: 2018 Recap

The weekend of November 9th through 11th, an intrepid group of writers gathered at St. Marguerite’s Retreat Center in Mendham for The Writers Circle’s annual weekend retreat. As you might recall from last year’s recap, the retreat features plenty of quiet time to write—along with…

Three Strikes and You’re Out – Making My Publishing Decision

Three Strikes and You’re Out – Making My Publishing Decision

By Michelle Cameron, TWC Director In my last post on this topic, I reported how I’d gone rogue before my agent subsequently dumped me and had two possible publication paths practically in hand – a small press who was reviewing my work, and the hybrid…

The Business of Being a Writer (Jane Friedman’s book, and the actual thing…!)

The Business of Being a Writer (Jane Friedman’s book, and the actual thing…!)

by TWC Founder/Director Judith Lindbergh As TWC’s writers and their works mature, more and more of you are submitting for publication.  We cheer you on and share your hopes and dreams, as well as rejection letters, hard decisions about self-publishing, embarking on yet another draft,…