Calendar of Upcoming Events - Spring Program (Events are for ARWA members only & to be held at the Old Y, unless otherwise noted)
Date	Time	Program (*See below for more information on these workshops.)
18 January 2006	7:00pm - 9:30pm	Polishing Your Profession with Sherile Reilly and Deb Smith Extra Special meeting on Wed. Jan 18, 2006 at 7 PM at the “Old Y”. Would you stumble or be tongue-tied if Donald Maass asked you about your story? Are you able to tell what you write in one sentence and make it interesting? If you answered “no” to either question, then come to the “Old Y” on Wed, Jan. 18, 2006 at 7 PM. We’ll discuss, help each other write, and then practice our one sentence “elevator speech.” (In case you missed the excellent “Networking” session last month, this is how you introduce yourself as a writer.) If there’s time we’ll work on our longer pitches. Please bring pencils, pens and paper and your speech ideas for an hour or two of practice and fun.
21 January 2006	9:00-4:30	Writing the Breakout Novel Workshop with Donald Maass Please note this workshop will be at the Fairmont Palliser and there is an additional fee for this workshop.
26 January 2006	7:00pm - 9:30pm	General Meeting followed by A Round Table Discussion Bring your questions, ideas and brainstorming problems! Also featured this night is A Look Inside a Writer's Toolbox with Darlene Maynard
11 February 2006	9:30-3:00	Tickling Your Tension Bone and Valentine's Day Social As a follow-up to the Donald Maass workshop, we will analyze tension in both your own manuscript and a published novel. Bring the following: 10 copies of page 50 of your manuscript and 10 copies of page 50 of a published novel And your delicious potluck offering to share with the group. (Note: there is an oven, a microwave and a fridge for our use.)
23 February 2006	7:00 - 9:30 pm	General Meeting followed by Discovering Personal Landscapes (Part I) with Judith Duncan This workshop will cover descriptive narrative & setting, using samples and pictures. Be prepared to do some homework! Also featured this night is Punching up the Verbs with Sherille Reilly - Sherille's presentation was postponed to March 23, 2006.
11 March 2006	10:00am to 2:30pm	Personal Landscapes: Deeper into the Scenery of Your Characters’ Lives with Judith Duncan Note: This is a recent change to the schedule. Looking closer at how to bring the reader in closer to who your characters are by using their external surroundings. Ways to reveal their inner landscape, their feelings and philosophies and secrets as your story unfolds. Preparation: Watch one episode of the TV show Roseanne or Desperate Housewives or the movie Miss Congeniality. With the sound off. How are characters revealed through their surroundings, body language, clothing? Bring what you learn for discussion and be prepared to do some development on your own work. Also bring a couple or three pages where both your main characters are on stage in either his or her home. As well, we will work with examples of narrative description, external and internal landscape. Bring a lunch and we'll brown bag it.
23 March 2006	7:00-9:30 pm	General Meeting followed by A Handful of Craft for your Writing Treasure Chest: Painting the Personal Landscape: the artists' tools-wrapping up the workshop with Judith Duncan Squashing Clichés Like a Bug: Ways to recognize and conquer clichés in your work with Deb Smith Punching Up the Verbs: Strong verbs not only make your work sing, they can also help write the music with Sherille Reilly. Sherille's presentation was originally scheduled for February 23, but was moved to this Thursday night.
8 April 2006	9:30-4:00	The Lure of the Pen: Writing Non-Fiction for Fun and Profit with Yvonne Jeffery, award-winning journalist, editor and author Dee Van Dyk, professional journalist and author Shelley Boettcher, Managing Editor of Alberta Views magazine Jacquie Moore, Executive Editor of SWERVE magazine, the Calgary Herald Professionals in the publishing industry share knowledge on how to develop a successful non-fiction writing career. $50 includes lunch. For ARWA members: $20. To learn more about the workshop and the speakers, click here to download a flyer. Register Now! If you wish to register on-line using your credit card: Click Here. If you wish to register with a mail-in form paying with a cheque: Click Here to download the form. It is a pdf document (67 KB).
27 April 2006	7:00-9:30 pm	General Meeting followed by Another Great ARWA Brainstorming Round Robin Bring your questions (about anything), your problems, your worries and solutions to share with fellow writers. This is a great opportunity to discuss writing and get to know your fellow Arwanians. We'll also be having our Used Booksale-bring those you've finished and be prepared to take home more at only $1/book! All proceeds go to adding to our library collection.
13 May 2006	1:00-4:30pm	Herding the Butterflies or How to Tame Your Characters, Plot and Middle-of-the-Night Inspirations into a Working Synopsis with Mahrie Glab, Judith Duncan and Deb Smith This workshop will present three different ways that three different fiction writers have developed to gather all the elements of a plot into a framework. Most of us dread the dreaded SYNOPSIS, but there are as many ways of tackling it as there are writers. Maybe this workshop will help you find a more effective way of writing your own. Or perhaps YOUR ideas will help another writer. NOTE: This workshop will begin at 1 pm and end at 4-4:30.
25 May 2006	7:00-9:30 pm	General Meeting followed by Approaches to Revision with June Baxter, Judith Duncan, Deb Smith and Marlene Dunn. Brainstorming to get organized.
22 June 2006	7:00-9:30 pm	Annual General Meeting and a Death by Dessert Potluck!
* There is a $2 facilities fee charged at the door for Saturday workshops. There is no need to pre-register. This fee is a result of some new and exciting changes to our Saturday schedule. We have increased the number of Saturday sessions from 6 to 9 sessions! Also, we have booked the meeting room until 4:00pm on Saturdays! From 2:00-4:00pm, after the Saturday workshops, we are providing time to network, brainstorm ideas, and discuss writing. Who could be better at offering you inspiration, help and tips on the craft of writing than other writers? This will also be a fantastic opportunity to get to know the other ARWA members!