2009 Write-in set for Saturday July 25

   The third San Antonio Writers Guild write-in of 2009 will be held Saturday, July 25, at Bethany Congregational United Church of Christ (500 Pilgrim), the guild's usual meeting place. Yes, the write-ins are usually held the second Saturday of every other month, but not this time because our buddies at the San Antonio Romance Authors are having a conference July 11 and everyone is supposed to go there.
   At our July 25 write-in, the doors open at 8 a.m., setup is at 8:30 a.m. and the first writing session will start at 9 a.m. There will be a 10-minute break at 9:50 a.m. Session 2 starts at 10 a.m. Session 3 at 11 a.m. An optional session 4 will start at noon.
   The cost of the write-in is $10 for members and $15 for non-members.
   There's usually food, such as breakfast tacos, pastries, snacks, coffee, tea and other items to eat and drink Those who want can bring snacks, but if you can't bring snacks, come anyway. There's always enough.
   Okay, now with the details out of the way, why should you come and pay $10 for something you can do at home?
   “Honey, can you take out the trash?”
   “Darling, can you take Johnny to baseball practice?”
   Sound familiar? That's why writing at home is a lousy idea when there are other people around, like on a Saturday.
   So come to the write-in and everyone will be there to write. Dig the energy, baby!
   Just think, you can jump start a new novel, complete a short story, or pound out something that's been hanging in your head and really needs to get down on paper, floppy, hard drive, or flash drive...
   Please email James ( jameshenry@frazar.net) or call him at 210-473-5192 if you need a computer to use. A limited number of computers are available but it is absolutely necessary to reserve a computer because James is not going to bring extra computers if no one calls.
   The next write-in is Sept. 12 at the church.
   There are two other write-ins planned in the fall: Oct. 10 and Nov. 14.
   The Oct. 10 write-in will be a picnic. Options for the picnic write-in currently are the city's O.P. Schnabel Park at 9606 Bandera Road (just north of the Maverick Library) and Raymond Russell Park off IH-10 north of Loop 1604 (take the Camp Bullis exit). Cost of renting either site is about $100.
   The Nov. 14 write-in will be in celebration of the National Novel Writing Month and we'll have it either at the church or at someone's house. The write-in will continue pass the usual noon deadline. Maybe as late as 4 p.m. You know, those who come have got to put out a whole bunch of words to make their NnNoWriMo quota. We'll have the usual breakfast items and we'll order up some pizza. I vote for Pizza Hut, but I'll probably decide to bring my homemade pizza pies and cook them up in the oven instead.

Abilene Writers Guild meets July 23

   The Abilene Writers Guild's Thursday, July 23, program will be Nina Romberg aka Jane Archer, author of numerous articles and two books on Indian myths and legends. She'll be sharing a bit of her time with her husband, C.D. Anderson, who is an accomplished fantasy writer. They live in the DFW Metroplex.
   The Aug. 27 program will feature Karen Witemeyer who will step the group through how she got the contract from Bethany House, wrote the first book, and by that time what happened with the revision process.
   The guild meets at the Rose Park Senior Citizens Center, located at 2625 South 7th, in Abilene. Directions: enter Rose Park from the Barrow entrance. Drive up to the door to unload, but will need to park in the parking lot in front of the building. When you go inside the main doors, to to the right to the hall. Classroom B will be on the left.
   Visit: www.abilenewritersguild.org

San Gabriel Writer's League meets July 2

   The San Gabriel Writer's League Thursday, July 2, meeting will feature Joan Upton Hall and her topic, "Creating Short Stories." The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Georgetown Public Library in Georgetown.
   Future programs:


Aug. 6
Speaker: Ray Bronk
Topic: Writing for Magazines


Sept. 3
Speakers: Joan Upton Hall and Sylvia D. Smith
Topic: Effective Marketing


Oct. 24
Workshop/Contest Awards Dinner
Speaker: Christian Romance Author, DiAnn Mills
Topic: The Dance of Character and Plot


   The San Gabriel Writer's League is an eclectic group of published and aspiring writers ranging in age from 18-93, and writing under every genre imaginable including paranormal, Sci-Fi, mystery/suspense, romance, western, memoir, non-fiction and poetry. They meet every first Thursday of the month at the Georgetown Public Library to offer direction, positive feedback, opinions and general support.
   Established in 1989, SGWL is a nonprofit professional writing organization whose purpose is to provide a forum for support and sharing among accomplished as well as aspiring writers, to help improve and market their writing skills and to promote the interests of writers and the writing community. SGWL works in cooperation with other organizations to promote the interest and enthusiasm of writers.
   Visit: www.sgwl.net.

CLASS Christian Writers Conference set Nov. 4-8

   The CLASS Christian Writers Conference will be held at Ghost Ranch in Abquiu, NM, Wednesday through Sunday, Nov. 4-8.
   There aren't too many details on the event right now, but hey, it's not that far away from Texas.
   Visit: www.classeminars.org/Events/Writers-Conference.

Blue Ridge Christian Novelist Retreat Oct. 4-8

   The Blue Ridge Christian Novelist Retreat will be held at the Ridgecrest Conference Center in Ridgecrest, NC, Sunday through Thursday, Oct. 4-8.
   Requirements are that you have attended a writers conference or class “somewhere” and have a novel in progress, so bring it and you laptop computer.
   All novelists are welcome to come and learn the craft that applies to all novel writing. The faculty is Christian and some emphasis will be directed to the CBA market.
   All sessions will be held in the new hotel, Mountain Laurel (sleeping rooms, classrooms, auditorium), located at Ridgecrest/LifeWay Conference Center, Ridgecrest NC (20 miles east of Asheville, home of the famous Biltmore House and Gardens).
   The second or third week in October is the peak season for leaf color in the mountains of western North Carolina and the perfect time for novelists to come together for inspiration and improving on the skills and gifts God has made available to us. Requirements are that you have attended a writers conference “somewhere” and have a novel in progress.
   Relax on 1,300 acres of Appalachian peace and quiet. And if you get tired of relaxing, enjoy tennis, hiking, laser tag, a climbing wall, disc golf, volleyball, and more. There’s also miniature golf or the quaint little craft stores in neighboring Black Mountain. And Asheville is a short drive away, where you can visit the Biltmore Estate or Billy Graham’s Training Center at The Cove.
   Reserve accomodations when registering for the event. To learn more about LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center, visit: www.lifeway.com/ridgecrest.
   The Retreat program fee is starts at $315, meals are $120, and lodging starts at $64 a night. If you're going, call for costs.
   Call 800.588.7222 to make your reservations.

ACFW conference in Denver Sept. 17-20

   The American Christian Fiction Writers Annual Conference will be held Thursday through Sunday, Sept. 17-20, in Denver, CO.
   "The Premier Christian Fiction Conference" will have Debbie Macomber as the keynote speaker.
   With more than 100 million copies of her books in print worldwide and her novels translated into 23 languages, Debbie Macomber is one of today's leading voices in romance and women's fiction. Readers clamor for her heartwarming books about small-town life, home and family, women who knit, enduring friendship and even stories of humorous angels with earthly missions.
   Macomber loves to tell the story of her struggle to get published, and the five-year search to find a publisher who would buy one of her manuscripts. Dyslexic and the mother of four young children, she wrote those early books in her kitchen on a rented typewriter. But her hard work and determination paid off. Her first manuscript, Heartsong, acquired by Silhouette Books in 1982, became the first category romance ever to be reviewed by the Publishers Weekly. She was soon featured in Newsweek—and demand for her books quickly exceeded her wildest dreams.
   Macomber is best known for her ability to create compelling characters and bring their stories to life in her books. Drawing on her own experiences and those of her family and friends, she demonstrates an almost uncanny ability to see into the souls of women and to express their emotions, values and concerns. In every book her sense of humor enlivens her writing.
   Cost is $499 for ACFW Members and $599 for non-members, assuming you make the Aug. 15 deadline. After that, it goes up to $599 for members and $649 for non-members.
   Visit: www.acfw.com/conference.

North Texas Christian Writer's Conference Sept. 11-12

   The North Texas Christian Writer's Conference will be held in Keller Friday and Saturday, Sept. 11-12.
   The conference will feature a faculty of 21 writing professionals with two full days of classes and 35 elective workshops. Also part of the event will be private consultations, writing contests, networking with other writers, and an evening dinner and keynote speaker.
   E-mail: linda.franklin@ntchristianwriters.com
   Visit: www.ntchristianwriters.com.

Texas Christian Writer's Conference Aug. 1

   The Texas Christian Writer's Conference will be held Saturday, Aug. 1, at the First Baptist Church in Houston.
   Cecil Murphey, author or ghost writer of over 100 books, will be the keynote speaker.
   Also featured will be Gail Gaymer Martin, Cyndy Salzmann, Kathy Ide, DiAnn Mills, Janice Thompson, Kathleen Y'Barbo, and Anita Higman.
   There's also a contest. E-mail: marthalrogers@sbcglobal.net for guidelines and entry form.

Meet the Christian Author's Night July 31

   Meet the Christian Author's Night will feature 40 Christian authors in person at Woodsedge Community Church in The Woodlands Friday, July 31, from 6:30-9 p.m.
   Some of the authors scheduled to appear are Cecil Murphey (who has written or ghost-written over 100 books), mystery writer Cyndy Salzmann (Crime and Clutter and Dying to Decorate), novelist Gail Gaymer Martin (Writing the Christain Romance, The Christmas Kit, In His Dreams), author and editor Kathy Ide (Polishing the "PUGS": Punctuation, Usage, Grammar, and Spelling and Christian Drama Publishing -- How to Write a Powerful Script & Get it Published), and fiction writer DiAnn Mills (over 40 books in print).
   The event is hosted by the WoodsEdge Women's Ministry.
   Visit: meetthechristianauthorsnight.blogspot.com.

Boot camp for writers July 25

   Christian writer DiAnn Mills will teach "Boot Camp for Writers" at the Tomball College & Community Library in Tomball from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, July 25.
   Mills launched her career in 1998 with the publication of her first book and currently has over 40 books in print and has sold more than 1.5 million copies. Mills is a fiction writer who combines an adventuresome spirit with unforgettable characters to create action-packed novels.
   Mills is a founding board member for American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Inspirational Writers Alive, Romance Writers of America’s Faith, Hope and Love, and Advanced Writers and Speakers Association. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country.
   The Tomball Library is located on the Tomball College campus on Tomball Parkway (Highway 249). From I-45 N take the FM 2920 (Spring-Cypress Road) exit. Turn left under the freeway and continue on FM 2920. Spring-Cypress Road and FM 2920 will split at the first light. Keep right and continue on FM 2920 through Tomball to Tomball Parkway (Highway 249). Turn right onto Tomball Parkway. Go approximately two miles and turn left into the Tomball College Campus. The library is the first building on the right.

Holiday stories deadline July 31

   A new anthology of holiday stories, both fiction and memoir, will be released in early fall, 2009, and if you're interested in submitting one, you've got until July 31 to enter.
   The title is "Thanksgiving to Christmas ~ A Gathering of Stories"
   Guidelines: all submissions must reflect a Thanksgiving or Christmas theme. Topics can include childhood memories, family gatherings and traditions, humorous stories, holiday adventures, heartwarming moments, difficult times, war years, shopping, pageants and parades – whatever might make for an interesting read. No more than 1,500 words (fiction, memoir, essay) double-spaced Times New Roman font preferred. Send as an attachment with “Holiday Anthology” in the subject line. Include a cover letter and a brief 75 word bio note in the body of the email. Submit only previously unpublished works.
   Rights and Compensation: Contributors will receive one free copy of the anthology and a 25 percent discount on the purchase of additional copies in exchange for first print rights, which includes additional printings in the six months following the original printing date. All other rights reside with the author(s).
   E-mail submissions as Word attachments to: Dixon Hearne at dixonh@socal.rr.com.
   Please note: submissions that do not adhere to guidelines will be deleted unread.
   Visit: www.dixonhearne.com.

Build-a-Book concludes in July

   The San Antonio Romance Authors [SARA] will conclude their Build-a-Book series with a program July 11 in Boerne. The series of four programs is a uniquely designed series of hands-on workshops that educate aspiring writers how to write, sell and promote fiction in the 21st century.
   The fourth workshop is "PR for The Writer & Use of The Media." One session is Building a Presence in the E-world conducted by Judith Rochelle aka Desiree Holt.
   The second workshop is Seven PR Tools for Authors by Jo-Ann Power. It'll be how to prosper in a fluid business or "Higher profit and higher sales."
   The workshop will run from 8:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. and will be held at the Boerne Convention and Community Center in Boerne. Conference attendees should bring a pen and notebook to take notes. Laptops are allowed, but electrical outlets are not readily available.
Visit: www.sararwa.net/conference.html
Where: Boerne Convention and Community Center, 820 Adler Road, Boerne (Off of IH 10 West, about 20 miles north of Loop 1604, San Antonio)
Convention Center Phone: (830)249-2811
Registration fees: SARA members: $12, non-members $20.

   The author of 17 previous mainstream, mystery and romance novels, Jo-Ann Power has won awards and praise from reviewers and readers. Her ability to "cleverly weave politics, murder and romance, creating intense, breath-catching suspense" is a hallmark of her works, says Publisher's Weekly. Earning her novels a place in The Mystery Guild and Doubleday Book Club, her award-winning, "power-ful" style has been ranked with Daphne DuMaurier's and Phyllis Whitney's. Her characters "make readers believe in the power of love" (Old Book Barn Gazette) and her suspenseful plots "keep readers up till the wee hours of dawn." (Gothic Journal) Missing Member is her first novel in the Me & Mr. Jones series-and the second, Baring Arms, debuted Nov. 11.

   Judith Rochelle grew up in Maine, a beautiful place to live, then lived in the Midwest and Florida and now makes her home in the Hill Country of Texas, with her husband, David, her very own cowboy. He's a sixth generation Texan, tracing his roots back to the time when Texas was a Republic.
   Rochelle has done sports reporting, managed rock bands, and worked for universities.
   "If I’m not writing I’m reading anything I can get my hands on, or watching football, my other obsession," said Rochelle. She has a football romantic suspense series started that she hopes to finish one of these days. "Right after I finish my series on cowboys, heroines with psychic gifts and my mercenaries, and… well, you get the idea."

WD Short Short Story Competition deadline Dec. 1

   The 10th Annual Writer's Digest Short Short Story Competition is accepting entries! We're looking for fiction that's bold, brilliant ... but brief. Send us your best in 1,500 words or less. The deadline for entries is Dec. 1, 2009.

PRIZES:
First Place: $3,000
Second Place: $1,500
Third Place: $500
Fourth Through Tenth Place: $100
Eleventh Through Twenty-Fifth Place: $50 gift certificate for Writer's Digest Books

   The names and story titles of the First-through Tenth-Place winners will be printed in the May/June 2010 Writer's Digest, and winners will receive the 2010 Novel & Short Story Writer's Market. Plus, all winners will receive a free copy of the 10th Annual Writer's Digest Short Short Story Competition Collection.
   Plus, the 1st- through 25th-place manuscripts will be printed in the 10th Annual Writer's Digest Short Short Story Competition Collection.

The Rules

1. The competition is open to manuscripts of 1,500 words or fewer (word count includes title of entry). Entries outside the word limitation will be disregarded. Type the word count on the first page of your entry along with your name, address, phone number and email address. No refunds will be issued for disqualified entries.
   
2. The entry fee is $15 per manuscript. You may enter as many manuscripts as you wish. If you are submitting your entry via regular mail, you may send one check (in U.S. funds) and one entry form for all entries. There will be a $10 charge for all returned checks or declined credit cards. Credit cards will be charged within 90 days of the contest deadline. Charges will appear on your statement as “F+W Contests.”
   
3. All entries must be in English, original, unpublished, and not submitted or accepted elsewhere at the time of submission. Writer's Digest reserves one-time publication rights to the 1st- through 25th-place winning entries to be published in a Writer's Digest publication.
   
4. If you are submitting your entry via regular mail, all entries must be typewritten and double-spaced on one side of 8-1/2 x 11 or A4 white paper. Manuscripts will not be returned. Entries must be stapled.
   
5. Entries must be postmarked by Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009.
   
6. Winners will be notified by Feb. 15, 2010. If you have not been contacted by this date, you may assume that your entry is not a finalist and may be marketed elsewhere.
   
7. Enclose a self-addressed, stamped postcard with your entry if you want to be notified of its receipt. We cannot notify you personally of your story's status before the winners are announced. If entering online, you will receive a confirmation email for each entry you submit.
   
8. Winners' names will appear in the May/June 2010 issue of Writer's Digest magazine. Afterwards, their names and story titles will be posted at www.writersdigest.com.
   

NOTES:
Q: What if I wanted to submit only part of my novel into the competition (to stay with in the maximum number of words)?
A: If you submit a portion of a novel please understand that it will be judged as a complete story, not part of another work, so it needs to a complete story in and of itself.

Visit: www.writersdigest.com/competitions.

Choosing the Writing Life Sept. 12

What: Choosing the Writing Life: Art and Practice with Kathleen Allen-Weber & Ann McCutchan
Date: Saturday, Sept. 12, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Location: Writers' League of Texas Office, 611 S. Congress Ave, Suite 130, Austin
Phone: 512.499.8914
Cost: $99 WLT members / $159 nonmembers
Deadline for registration: Sept. 4
Visit: www.writersleague.org.
   Whether you are thinking about becoming a writer or living the writer's life but desperate for a booster shot, this six-hour intensive workshop offers the ideas, tools and inspiration for turning desire into flow, and flow into finished manuscripts. Team-taught by essayist, journalist and three-book author Ann McCutchan, a professor of creative writing at the University of North Texas, and licensed therapist and writer Kathleen Allen-Weber, Ph.D., "Choosing the Writing Life" addresses the three critical components of the writer's way: awareness, commitment, and practice.
   Topics include:

• developing self-knowledge
  
• building technique
  
• seizing ripe opportunities
  

   With more than four decades combined experience as professional writers and popular, results-oriented workshop leaders, McCutchan and Allen-Weber are guaranteed to offer fresh, insightful, practical approaches to creating a "best life" as a writer.
   Students should bring writing materials, a book by a favorite author, and a playful spirit. Expect to work hard. Expect to be surprised.
   Kathleen Allen-Weber, M.A., Ph.D., L.P.C., practiced psychotherapy at the Center for Relational Care in Austin before establishing a private practice. A published writer, editor, and translator, as well as a former professor of English and French, she has long been attuned to the psychological dynamics of the writing process.
   Ann McCutchan is the author of three books, including The Muse That Sings: Composers Speak About the Creative Process, and Circular Breathing: Meditations From a Musical Life. A former journalist and editor, she has taught creative writing at Cornell University and the University of Wyoming, where she was founding director of the MFA program. She currently teaches at the University of North Texas and is prose editor of the American Literary Review.

SAWG Weekly Wednesday Workshops

   The San Antonio Writers Guild, in partnership with the San Antonio Library system, conducts writing critique sessions most Wednesday nights at either the Maverick, Igo, or Cody libraries.
   Writers (both SAWG members and non-members) can have a piece read and the group will critique the piece.
   Normally, there is a list of people who plan to read, so you just can't show up and expect your piece to be read. We suggest that you come one time, size up the group and the critiques offered, and then sign up to be read.

Rules:
   If you wish to have a piece read at the Wednesday session, please bring at least 14 copies of up to 10 pages, double spaced. (If it's 11 or 12 pages, that's okay, too.)
   We have as many as 18 people, such as the Barnes & Noble session Feb. 11 and as few as 13 people, such as session at the John Igo library Feb. 25.
   We usually have a list of people ready to have their piece read, but we always encourage people to bring their work just in case the people who are planned to be read don't show up.

Dates:
   We meet the second through the fourth (and if it happens, fifth) Wednesday of the month. We don't meet the first Wednesday of the month because that's our guild's meeting week. (We meet the first Thursday of the month.)
   We will more or less rotate between the John Igo, the Maury Maverick and the Edmund Cody libraries in San Antonio. The rotation is not the same each month because of scheduled activities at the libraries, So you need to check the schedule. Also, things may come up at the libraries (such as the Texas Legislature calling for a special election) that may throw a monkey wrench into our schedule.

June 24 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
July 8 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
July 15 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
July 22 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
July 29 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
Aug. 12 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
Aug. 19 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
Aug. 26 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
Sept. 9 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
Sept. 16 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
Sept. 23 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
Oct. 14 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
Oct. 21 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
Oct. 28 @ John Igo Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
Nov. 11 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
Nov. 18 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
Nov. 25 Thanksgiving break: no session
Dec. 9 @ Maverick Library, 8700 Mystic Park
Dec. 16 @ Edmund Cody Library, 11441 Vance Jackson
Dec. 23 Christmas break: no session
Dec. 30 New Year's break: no session

Locations:
   The Edmund Cody Library is located on 11441 Vance Jackson, which is south of Huebner and and north of Wurzbach. The library is between Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church and School and Howsman Elementary School. For Google maps, try: 11441 Vance Jackson
   This San Antonio public library has one conference room. When you walk into the library, past the vestibule, it's the room on the right through the brown doors.

   The John Igo Library is just south of Loop 1604 NW. Between Bandera Road and IH-10, take Hausman south and turn right on Kyle Seal Parkway. Take the first left into the library.
   For Google maps, try: 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
   This San Antonio public library has two conferences rooms and we'll be in one of them. When you enter the library's vestibule, the library is on the left and the conference rooms are on the right.

   The Maury Maverick Library is located at 8700 Mystic Park. Mystic Park. Take Bandera Road and (depending on if you are coming from Loop 410 or Loop 1604), Mystic Park is just north of the Guilbeau and Bandera Road intersection. Once you hit Mystic Park, go west. You'll see the library. The Google map link is: 8700 Mystic Park
   This San Antonio public library's conferences room is immediately to the left when you walk through the doors.

About the guild:
   The San Antonio Writers Guild meets the first Thursday of each month at Bethany Congregational Church at 500 Pilgrim in San Antonio, Texas. The meeting starts at 7:30 p.m. The program follows a short business meeting. After the program, there are critique sessions for fiction, non-fiction, children's and poetry.
   Visit: www.sawritersguild.com for more information about the guild.

Upcoming programs at the monthly SAWG meetings

   Programs planned for the monthly meetings of the San Antonio Writers Guild:

July 2
Stewart Smith, "Acts of Submission-Electronically"
   The July program will demonstrate the use of the Duotrope on-line database in the process of submitting a short story for publication.
   Stewart Smith is SAWG's program director and we all know he enjoys reading and writing a good science fiction yarn. Once you've got something written, you want to get it published. You can use the Duotrope website to find markets.

August 6
Chris Roberson, "Everyone Else is Crazy"
   Chris Roberson’s books include the novels Here, There & Everywhere, The Voyage of Night Shining White, Paragaea: A Planetary Romance, X-Men: The Return, Set the Seas on Fire, End of the Century, Iron Jaw and Hummingbird, The Dragon’s Nine Sons, Three Unbroken, and Dawn of War II and the comic book mini-series Cinderella: From Fabletown With Love.
   His short stories have appeared in such magazines as Asimov’s Science Fiction, Postscripts, and Subterranean.
   Along with his business partner and spouse Allison Baker, he is the publisher of MonkeyBrain Books, an independent publishing house specializing in genre fiction and nonfiction genre studies. He has been a finalist for the World Fantasy Award four times—twice for publishing, and once each for writing and editing—twice a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, and three times for the Sidewise Award for Best Alternate History Short Form (winning in 2004 with his story “O One”).
   Chris and Allison live in Austin with their daughter, Georgia.
   For more, try: www.chrisroberson.net.

Sept. 3
Damien Broderick
   Damien Broderick has been described as the dean of Australian Science Fiction writers. He has a recent book on the paranormal, Outside the Gates of Science. His story, "The Qualia Engine," is in the August 2009 issue of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine. Damien divides his time between Melbourne and San Antonio.

About the guild
   The San Antonio Writers Guild meets the first Thursday of each month at Bethany Congregational Church at 500 Pilgrim in San Antonio, Texas. The meeting starts at 7:30 p.m. The program follows a short business meeting. After the program, there are critique sessions for fiction, non-fiction, children's and poetry.
   The guild also cosponsors Wednesday critique sessions at selected San Antonio Libraries. There should be a listing of those meetings on this blog. (See "Weekly Wednesday Workshops")
   Visit: www.sawritersguild.com for more information about the guild.