Category: PastEvent06

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IWOSC Annual Winter Party

IWOSC Annual Winter Party

Monday, December 5, 2006

Sugar Plum Fairies are already dancing in our heads! On Monday, December 5, we kicked off the holiday season by returning to the beautiful and historic Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles for IWOSC’s annual winter party. Drinking and dining at Smeraldi’s, the Biltmore’s main-floor restaurant just off the old lobby, with a lavish buffet.

For guests who plan to arrive early, we also arranged two cool, free, pre-party tours.

At 5:30 p.m. one group toured the Los Angeles Central Library. This docent-led tour included the art and architecture of both the historic 1926 Goodhue Building and the new Bradley Wing with its seven-story atrium.

Our second pre-party docent-led tour was of the historic Biltmore Hotel itself. Erected in 1923, this venerable hotel was known as “the Host of the Coast,” and indeed, during the 1930s the Biltmore hosted a half-dozen Academy Awards banquets, among many lavish events. The hotel is famed for its splendid Spanish-Italian Renaissance architecture, and its interior murals created by Italian-born artist Giovanni Battista Smeraldi, who, as a youthful apprentice, worked on several palaces at the Vatican.

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An Evening with Sandra Tsing Loh, in Conversation with Digby Diehl

Discussion
An Evening with Sandra Tsing Loh, in Conversation with Digby Diehl

Monday, November 21, 2006

Departing from our usual formula, we are excited to host Sandra Tsing Loh in conversation with Digby Diehl.   Heard regularly on KPCC, writer-performer-musician Loh is a talented wordsmith who pens in-depth observances about everyday occurrences transfigured into delicious rants. Loh writes for many genres and has interesting experiences and advice to share. No stranger to controversy, Loh was fired from a radio commentator job over an un-bleeped obscenity, which triggered her transformation into a free-speech and First Amendment advocate.

Loh is currently appearing in her one-woman show, “Mother on Fire,” at the 24th St. Theatre (see item below). Previously, she was seen in solo performance at the Geffen Playhouse in “Sugar Plum Fairy.” Her other shows include “Aliens in America,” “Bad Sex With Bud Kemp,” and “I Worry.”

Her books include “A Year in Van Nuys,” “Aliens in America,” “Depth Takes a Holiday,” and a novel, “If You Lived Here, You’d Be Home By Now,” which was named by the Los Angeles Times as one of the 100 best fiction books of 1998.  Her story, “My Father’s Chinese Wives,” received a 1997 Pushcart Prize and was featured in the 1999 Norton Anthology of Short Fiction.  She and her husband Mike Miller also composed the music for Jessica Yu’s documentary short, “Breathing Lessons,” which won an Oscar in 1998.

She has been a regular commentator on NPR’s “Morning Edition” and on Ira Glass’s “This American Life.” Her weekly segment, “The Loh Life,” is heard on KPCC, and her monthly segment, “The Loh Down,” is heard on American Public Media’s “Marketplace.”  Loh is also a contributing editor for The Atlantic Monthly.

The evening will be hosted by acclaimed writer and critic Digby Diehl. Diehl is one of the most trusted and successful literary collaborators in America.  He has written, co-written, rewritten, researched, and edited more than three dozen books. His book credits include:

  • The forthcoming memoirs of Coretta Scott King;
  • “Angel on My Shoulder,” the autobiography of singer Natalie Cole, and a Los Angeles Times #1 bestseller;
  • “Million Dollar Mermaid,” the New York Times bestseller and critically acclaimed autobiography of actress Esther Williams;
  • “Lost Honor,” the sequel to “Blind Ambition,” for Richard Nixon’s former White House counsel, John Dean;
  • Pediatrician Fitzhugh Dodson’s perennial bestseller, “How to Parent;”
  • “Soapsuds,” written with soap star Finola Hughes;
  • “Tales from the Crypt,” the history of the popular comic book, movie, and television series; and
  • “A Spy for All Seasons,” the autobiography of former CIA officer Duane Clarridge.

The founding editor of the Los Angeles Times Book Review, Diehl is a widely respected book reviewer and commentator.  He was the literary correspondent for ABC-TV’s “Good Morning America,” movie critic and entertainment editor for KCBS-TV in Los Angeles, and Hollywood correspondent for the “CBS Morning News.” He now offers regular book commentary on KTLA in Los Angeles.

In addition, Diehl is an advisory board member and former president of the P.E.N.

American Center West, a founding member of the National Book Critics Circle, and, not least, was on IWOSC’s first Advisory Board in 1983.

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Capturing the Stories of Family, Friends and Organizations

Panel
Remarkable Stories and Histories: Capturing the Stories of Family, Friends and Organizations

Monday, Nov 20, 2006

More Americans (and American companies) than ever are researching their roots, often making surprising discoveries — and sometimes they need the help of a professional writer. Please join IWOSC as a panel of history detectives get together to discuss the methods and marketplace for creating family and corporate histories. Learn about the methods and marketplace for family and corporate histories from oral historians, writers, and a genealogist who focus on our ancestry.

The Panel:

Moderator Richard Sherer, working on a family history book and has another waiting to be written. Sherer’s family since his great grandfather is also intertwined with the history of Los Angeles.

Jean Chapman Snow, teacher, freelance writer, genealogist and lecturer, facilitator of Writers’ Group<

Ellie Kahn, creator of Living Legacies.

Teresa Barnett, head of the UCLA Library’s Center for Oral History Research.

Laura Blumenthal, personal historian.

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The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer

Seminar
The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer

Saturday, November 19, 2006

IWOSC is pleased to present humorist and author Michael J. Herman’s workshop, “The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer.” According to Herman, the reason writers are perpetually broke is because they don’t understand that writing is not just an art form or a craft, it is a business, plain and simple. Until you approach it as such, he says, you will never make any money!

In this dynamic, humorous, fast-paced, irreverent, and revolutionary program, Herman will show you:

  • Why your writing isn’t making you more money.
  • How to make more money as a writer, lots and lots of it.
  • Creating, implementing, and stabilizing your plan.
  • How a writing business actually works.
  • The 25 most common mistakes made by 99% of writers.
  • Building your fortune while telling your story.
    and
  • Doing it over and over again. Making the mechanism work for you.

Bring plenty of paper and a sharpened pencil. This is one seminar that keeps its promise to change your life!

The seminar is being taught by IWOSC member Michael J. Herman. Herman’s first book, “Wonders, the Ramblings of a 12 Year Old,” was published when he actually was 12 years old. He has made a profitable career of writing professionally for more than 25 years. His daily syndicated column, “The Motivational Minute!,” is read daily by more than 2.5 million people worldwide. His best-selling book, “Becoming the Complete Champion, One Motivational Minute at a Time,” has been sold in five languages.

Herman’s comedy credits include “In Living Color.” He has written and produced for motion pictures and television, and received a nomination for the Humanitas Award in 1991 for his work on “Doogie Howser, MD.” His current book, “How To Win Friends & Influence People The Jewish Mother Way,” was named Book of the Year at the 2005 Yenta National Convention.

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The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer

Seminar
The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer

Saturday, November 19, 2006

IWOSC is pleased to present humorist and author Michael J. Herman’s workshop, “The Profitable Pen: New Approaches to Making Money as a Writer.” According to Herman, the reason writers are perpetually broke is because they don’t understand that writing is not just an art form or a craft, it is a business, plain and simple. Until you approach it as such, he says, you will never make any money!

In this dynamic, humorous, fast-paced, irreverent, and revolutionary program, Herman will show you:

  • Why your writing isn’t making you more money.
  • How to make more money as a writer, lots and lots of it.
  • Creating, implementing, and stabilizing your plan.
  • How a writing business actually works.
  • The 25 most common mistakes made by 99% of writers.
  • Building your fortune while telling your story.
    and
  • Doing it over and over again. Making the mechanism work for you.

Bring plenty of paper and a sharpened pencil. This is one seminar that keeps its promise to change your life!

The seminar is being taught by IWOSC member Michael J. Herman. Herman’s first book, “Wonders, the Ramblings of a 12 Year Old,” was published when he actually was 12 years old. He has made a profitable career of writing professionally for more than 25 years. His daily syndicated column, “The Motivational Minute!,” is read daily by more than 2.5 million people worldwide. His best-selling book, “Becoming the Complete Champion, One Motivational Minute at a Time,” has been sold in five languages.

Herman’s comedy credits include “In Living Color.” He has written and produced for motion pictures and television, and received a nomination for the Humanitas Award in 1991 for his work on “Doogie Howser, MD.” His current book, “How To Win Friends & Influence People The Jewish Mother Way,” was named Book of the Year at the 2005 Yenta National Convention.

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Grant Writing: Harvesting Generosity

Seminar
Grant Writing: Harvesting Generosity

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Grant writing is truly satisfying work for a writer, but it has a reputation for being a stodgy, bureaucratic form. But during the course of IWOSC’s November Saturday Seminar, Kim Zanti, who has spent two decades in the fundraising, business communications, corporate identity, and public relations sectors, hopes to dispel that notion!

In truth, your well-thought, persuasive and passionate words, sent to carefully-evaluated foundations and/or other funding sources, can result in children being educated, affordable housing being constructed, or an arts program being established. While you are earning money as a writer, you are also bringing hope to people and help to organizations in need.

This IWOSC-sponsored grant writing seminar offers writers enough information to pursue freelance (or permanent) employment with non-profit organizations. The seminar will cover writing grants, letters of inquiry and annual appeal letters. A broad overview of how funding in the non-profit arena operates is followed by specific ways in which a writer can earn steady, substantial income while helping organizations meet their fundraising goals. Informative hand-outs will be given to attendees. The two-hour session (with 15-minute break) will be followed by a half-hour Q & A.

Zanti has 20 years experience in communications in the non-profit and corporate sectors. She has developed and managed successful strategies in fundraising, public and media relations, marketing, employee communications and corporate identity. Currently, she works as a freelance writer, helping several non-profits in California and Arizona to achieve their fundraising goals. Recently, Zanti served as Managing Director of the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, California where she restructured the theater’s administrative systems, reinvigorated the fundraising efforts and established relationships with individuals, foundations and government agencies. Previously, Zanti served as Vice President of Marketing and Communications at a leading corporate identity consultancy in San Diego, California. She has also crafted key marketing messages and developed sales strategies for the medical products division of W.L. Gore & Associates (makers of Gore-Tex products worldwide), a Fortune 500 company. Zanti is a graduate of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission Arts Leadership Initiative for Arts Administrators (2006) and holds a BS degree in Psychology

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The Marketplace for Ethnic Writers and Writing

Panel
The Marketplace for Ethnic Writers and Writing

Monday, Oct 30, 2006

Los Angeles is one of the world’s most culturally-diverse cities. But does that bode well for ethnic writers? Is the market for ethnic writing growing, or not? A multi-cultural panel of writers in a variety of genres will discuss their success stories and the most promising market segments, as well as exploring inter- and intra-cultural conflicts.

Moderator Julio Moran was part of the Los Angeles Times team of reporters, editors, and photographers who won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize For Public Service. The winning work was a 21-part series on Latinos in Southern California. Today, Moran is Executive Director of the non-profit Chicano News Media Association, and serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Journalism teaching news writing and reporting.

Among the scheduled panelists are:

  • Author and news reporter Karen Grigsby Bates, a Los Angeles-based correspondent for the “Day to Day” show on NPR Public Radio and the author of several books.
  • James Lujan, a distinguished playwright who focuses on Native American themes.
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The Marketplace for Ethnic Writers and Writing

Panel
The Marketplace for Ethnic Writers and Writing

Monday, Oct 30, 2006

Los Angeles is one of the world’s most culturally-diverse cities. But does that bode well for ethnic writers? Is the market for ethnic writing growing, or not? A multi-cultural panel of writers in a variety of genres will discuss their success stories and the most promising market segments, as well as exploring inter- and intra-cultural conflicts.

Moderator Julio Moran was part of the Los Angeles Times team of reporters, editors, and photographers who won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize For Public Service. The winning work was a 21-part series on Latinos in Southern California. Today, Moran is Executive Director of the non-profit Chicano News Media Association, and serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Journalism teaching news writing and reporting.

Among the scheduled panelists are:

  • Author and news reporter Karen Grigsby Bates, a Los Angeles-based correspondent for the “Day to Day” show on NPR Public Radio and the author of several books.
  • James Lujan, a distinguished playwright who focuses on Native American themes.
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Perfect Pitch: Queries and Book Proposals that Sell

Seminar
Perfect Pitch: Queries and Book Proposals that Sell

Saturday, October 21, 2006

So, you have a great idea for a book. Now you need to sell that idea to an editor and publisher! In this IWOSC seminar, Marvin J. Wolf, the author of a dozen books and hundreds of magazine articles, presents the art and science of writing successful book proposals.

A book proposal is a sales pitch, the information (both form and content) that publishers use to decide whether they want to publish your book and how much money they will devote to it. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to write an irresistible cover letter that will compel an agent or acquisitions editor to ask for more, a proposal that will make editors beg to publish your book, and a marketing plan that explains how and where your book will find large, receptive audience.

You will learn about the key elements of a successful book proposal, which include the executive summary, the narrative description, table of contents, the marketing plan, sample chapter(s), and, not least, the author’s credentials.

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True Fiction: How to Write Creative and Literary Non-Fiction

Seminar
True Fiction: How to Write Creative and Literary Non-Fiction

Saturday, September 30, 2006

A key in nonfiction magazine and book writing of the past several decades is the increasing use of creative and literary writing techniques in the telling of a true tale. Instructor Deanne Stillman is a widely published writer whose book of literary nonfiction, Twentynine Palms: A True Story of Murder, Marines, and the Mojave, was an L.A. Times Book Review “best book of 2001.”