WordFest will feature three very different women writers telling three unique stories at the next event on Tuesday, June 13, 6:00-8:00 pm, at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 1428 22nd Avenue in Longview.
Tiffany Dickinson will read from her second middle-grade novel, A Mink’s Tale. The farm is the only home Malinka has ever known, but when a stranger arrives, she realizes that her home is not the safe haven she thought it to be. Accepting the truth of what life on a fur farm means for her, she must make a choice to remain in her comfortable world at risk to herself and her young kits, or to run for freedom. And if they do run, will freedom be worth the costs?
In the tradition of Watership Down and the Warriors series, A Mink’s Tale takes readers on a journey of adventure, courage, and loyalty, making a great read for ages 9-12 and for all animal love. People can connect with Tiffany at www.tiffanydickinson.com or on Facebook at Tiffany Dickinson Author.
In a departure from cozy mystery writing, Jan Bono will discuss writing television movie scripts. After reading a stack of books on the subject, taking two professional 10-week screenwriting classes, navigating script formatting software, as well as participating in numerous online seminars, workshops, and the Willamette Writers’ monthly “Happy Hour in the FilmLab” gatherings, Jan will share how she went from being totally clueless to completing two TV movie scripts in 11 months.
Amid her 30-year teaching career, Jan also wrote a bi-weekly humorous newspaper column that garnered 11 state awards in 10 years. A collection of the columns became her first published book. She has published 17 books, including a 6-book cozy mystery series set on the Long Beach Peninsula, and is among the top five contributors to the Chicken Soup for the Soul books, with 57 acceptances. She’ll be teaching a workshop on writing for Chicken Soup at this year’s SW Washington Writers’ Conference at Centralia College on September 9th.
Sally Jones began penning poetry and stories when she was 11 years old and she has never lost the enthusiasm for writing. During her a 38-year career in 9-1-1 communications, and as a long time volunteer for domestic violence shelter programs, she wrote professional reports, grants, manuals, and media releases. During this time she also continued writing poems, a few of which were published in college and local literary publications.
At retirement she began a book of stories based on her experiences as a 9-1-1 worker, the relationships of coworkers in the dispatch center and in the field, and in her personal life. Beginning with, “9-1-1, what is your emergency?” each chapter plunges the reader into the intimacy and urgency of a 9-1-1 caller’s crisis and the calm response at the other end of the line. The call taker’s life at home echoes the chaos of her work and her calm response, which she comes to recognize as a kind of addiction, as she takes the first step toward rescuing herself. At WordFest, Sally will read selections from her manuscript in progress.
An open mic will follow the presentations.
The monthly gathering of readers and writers meets the second Tuesday of each month, 6:00-8:00 PM, in the fellowship hall of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. The events are free and open to the public.