I have several things to comment on this issue.

First is a reminder of our 9^th Annual Authors Fair on November 9 at the Mt. Shasta Mall from 10 to 4. We couldstill possibly need volunteers by the time this goes to press, so please check our online volunteer sheet at http://tinyurl.com/kr9h47g. You are encouraged to drop by any time during the event to socialize (and buy books). We have filled the available tables (we are limited to what the Mall provides) with authors from near and far; as far North as Montague, as far East as Reno, and as far South as Alameda.

Next is NaNoWriMo, an acronym for National November Writing Month. It is a free annual novel writing project that brings together professional and amateur writers from all over the world. Several Forum members have challenged each other. Details can be found their Website at http://nanowrimo.org/ and once registered, online support is available.

The third announcement is that our dues will increase from $20 to $25 for new members and renewals effective January, 2014. This is the first increase in years and years (I have been a member for nine years and I heard it had been that price long before). We had actually dropped the $15 initiation fee several years ago, but recent increases in the cost of doing business (like the yearly insurance we recently started carrying) have forced our hand.

Last is that I had the honor, and pleasure, of representing Writers Forum at the Harris Studios 24-Hour Scriptwriting Competition the evening after our morning meeting on October 12. It was a blast! From the dozens of writing samples submitted, five were selected. When the competition started Friday, the writers were sequestered for the night; our own Jessica Fletcher Wiechman was among those (by Saturday night she commented that she had been up for 38 hours). Then Saturday morning the teams of three actors and one director started rehearsing their lines, and that night they performed their fifteen minute skits to a packed house at Old City Hall Arts Center. The four judges were chosen from the local community, the audience got to pick their favorite, and at the end plaques were awarded for Audience Fav and Judges’ Critical Acclaim. Jessica’s play, a spoof of the Mad Hatter Tea Party, was the audience favorite.

See ya at the Fair.

Larry Watters,

Writers Forum President