Home for the Holidays Booksigning Event - Dec 7!

 I'll be at Davis Kidd Booksellers in Memphis on December 7, 2009, at 6 pm. Local authors are being featured in their "Home for the Holidays" event, and I would love to meet friends, old and new. Check out my schmap, and then stop by and share holiday greetings. 

I recently had the honor of addressing a masters writing class at Overton High School in Memphis. We spoke together from lunch until the day-end bell about writing, publishing, and the industry. What an amazing, determined group of minds!

The teacher, Shannon Marszalek, who arranged for the meeting, fills a necessary role of encourager; it’s obvious she adores and respects the talent of her kids.

I spoke with poets, mainstream writers, and a science fiction writer (in whom I recognized a kindred spirit). Each young adult was as interested in the business of writing as well as writing itself, which I feel is such an important element.

Catch the interview with Jackie Gamber, author of Redheart, and founder of the Humans Against Dragon Stereotypes foundation (HADS). She talks with Choate Road about her efforts to help fight Specism.

As Greg Hall shared, "I recalled a lady I had met briefly months ago. She chucked a metal disc at my head and when I looked over to her booth, she whispered ‘The Dragons. They need you.’ I rubbed my sore forehead and read what wound up being a button. It said ‘FIGHT SPECISM.’"

"This was who I had to interview. Someone who understood the world is a much bigger place than just our hectic little lives."

To read the entire interview, follow the link >> Jackie Gamber Interview

Florida Writers' Assoc Conference
Lake Mary, FL

Jackie has been asked last minute to head down to Florida for the annual FWA Conference. She will be doing one-on-one sessions with some of the talented writers from that beautiful state, and sharing with them some of her insights as an author and as an editor.