Testimonials
There is no doubt about it. Being a member of the High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club has changed lives for the better. Following are the experiences of some of our members.
From Robert Foster:
I was reluctant when I joined HDCWC. It never occurred to me that I might enjoy writing. As an elementary school principal, I wrote all the time and did not enjoy it. But, I had a passion to share my thoughts about public education.
My friend, Mary Langer Thompson, invited me to a critique group. I was hooked. These people became my friends. Their encouragement, critiques, suggestions, and help were more valuable than gold. I started attending the club's monthly meetings and found I was learning about writing, editing, social media, and anything related to the craft of writing.
I had to move five and a half hours north of Apple Valley. Yet, I continued to attend my critique meetings twice a month. The value I received exceeded the hours of driving. I was able to publish my book this year.
One of my friends in the critique group is Richard Zone. We decided to challenge each other. It started out as a challenge to write 500 words a day for 90 days. That challenge stretched us beyond our comfort zones and helped up accomplish far more than we imagined. We are now half way through our second challenge.
I was reluctant when I joined HDCWC. It never occurred to me that I might enjoy writing. As an elementary school principal, I wrote all the time and did not enjoy it. But, I had a passion to share my thoughts about public education.
My friend, Mary Langer Thompson, invited me to a critique group. I was hooked. These people became my friends. Their encouragement, critiques, suggestions, and help were more valuable than gold. I started attending the club's monthly meetings and found I was learning about writing, editing, social media, and anything related to the craft of writing.
I had to move five and a half hours north of Apple Valley. Yet, I continued to attend my critique meetings twice a month. The value I received exceeded the hours of driving. I was able to publish my book this year.
One of my friends in the critique group is Richard Zone. We decided to challenge each other. It started out as a challenge to write 500 words a day for 90 days. That challenge stretched us beyond our comfort zones and helped up accomplish far more than we imagined. We are now half way through our second challenge.
From Hazel Stearns:
Procrastination is a common thing. A sad thing. A wasteful thing. A thing I wallowed in most of my life--when it came to writing. First, and for the longest length of time, was the excuse, "I don't have time." Then, after retirement and reading about how to write a book, I added several other good reasons:
My story doesn't fit the rules.
It doesn't have a plot.
It has no beginning and no ending.
I don't want to outline my story because it'll take away the creativity.
Who will be my target audience?
If I do write, should it be in first or third person?
My content will be "touchy" in some areas; should I use a pen name?
If so, does a pen name have to be registered or something?
So, with all of these questions, my answer was to do nothing.
And then one day, I discovered that a friend, Roberta Smith, belonged to a writers' group. I asked if I could attend, and that was the beginning. I joined the High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club and, shortly after, joined one of their critique groups. With an every-two-week' deadline, my book began to develop until, one day, there it was: 347 pages between a glossy cover with my title and my name on it: Shaping Kate by Hazel Stearns. A lifelong dream-come-true.
I'm nearly certain that, without the writers' club, my book would have remained in the procrastination closet. I encourage anyone with a desire to write to join a writers' group as soon as possible. The camaraderie with like-minded people is wonderful. They are supportive, encouraging, and helpful. Never fear that your written secrets, saddest moments, greatest fears, or most farfetched ideas will be safe with fellow writers—maybe nursed, tweaked, condensed, or expanded, but safe—never laughed at or ridiculed.
And a bonus is, they never roll their eyes like other friends do when you say, "I'm going to write a book."
Procrastination is a common thing. A sad thing. A wasteful thing. A thing I wallowed in most of my life--when it came to writing. First, and for the longest length of time, was the excuse, "I don't have time." Then, after retirement and reading about how to write a book, I added several other good reasons:
My story doesn't fit the rules.
It doesn't have a plot.
It has no beginning and no ending.
I don't want to outline my story because it'll take away the creativity.
Who will be my target audience?
If I do write, should it be in first or third person?
My content will be "touchy" in some areas; should I use a pen name?
If so, does a pen name have to be registered or something?
So, with all of these questions, my answer was to do nothing.
And then one day, I discovered that a friend, Roberta Smith, belonged to a writers' group. I asked if I could attend, and that was the beginning. I joined the High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club and, shortly after, joined one of their critique groups. With an every-two-week' deadline, my book began to develop until, one day, there it was: 347 pages between a glossy cover with my title and my name on it: Shaping Kate by Hazel Stearns. A lifelong dream-come-true.
I'm nearly certain that, without the writers' club, my book would have remained in the procrastination closet. I encourage anyone with a desire to write to join a writers' group as soon as possible. The camaraderie with like-minded people is wonderful. They are supportive, encouraging, and helpful. Never fear that your written secrets, saddest moments, greatest fears, or most farfetched ideas will be safe with fellow writers—maybe nursed, tweaked, condensed, or expanded, but safe—never laughed at or ridiculed.
And a bonus is, they never roll their eyes like other friends do when you say, "I'm going to write a book."
From Ann Miner:
People told me for thirty years that I should write a book. I tried, I began, I quit. I loved to write, but life kept getting in the way. I was invited to visit the California Writers Club, High Desert Branch, a few years ago. I discovered a wonderful, friendly and talented group of writers. Some were not yet published, some were well published, others were somewhere in the middle, with all genres represented.
I came, I saw, I learned. The result is that I have now published three books and have two more in the computer. I remember how it felt - and still feels – to say, “Why, yes, I am a writer.”
I could not have done this without the workshops, conferences, critique groups, and personal contacts afforded by this large and growing High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club.
People told me for thirty years that I should write a book. I tried, I began, I quit. I loved to write, but life kept getting in the way. I was invited to visit the California Writers Club, High Desert Branch, a few years ago. I discovered a wonderful, friendly and talented group of writers. Some were not yet published, some were well published, others were somewhere in the middle, with all genres represented.
I came, I saw, I learned. The result is that I have now published three books and have two more in the computer. I remember how it felt - and still feels – to say, “Why, yes, I am a writer.”
I could not have done this without the workshops, conferences, critique groups, and personal contacts afforded by this large and growing High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club.