November 2023

Message from the President

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STORYFEST: THE BRAND

There are iconic brands in business, names that far surpass their expectations: Facebook, YouTube, Apple. The name becomes so much more than the product.

Storyfest became that last weekend. Somehow, over the course of three days, the brand thought up by Paul Davis, VP of Events & Education, and Robert Leventhal, advisor to the SCWA Board, became BIGGER than its name.

Storyfest was the journey. Storyfest was the experience. Storyfest was the opportunity. Storyfest was the sharing and hearing and seeing and believing that the identity of our organization is STORIES.

Whether the story was National Book Award Winner Jason Mott laying supine on the floor of a plane, or the rumor that Walter Mosely snuck in to hear that keynote speech, we all told stories last weekend. We told how we learned about the conference and how we came to join SCWA. We told how we decided which chapter to join and which of our books we were trying to publish.

We Open Mic'd about family trips to graveyards, attending AA, getting stoned on the lake, and playing a tense round of golf. Then we slushfested those same stories and waited, breath held, to see whether the agents' hands would go up before the page was done.

We drew kid art pictures of our expectations for the weekend and on Sunday, we looked back on those predictions and laughed about how they'd manifested. We played out new stories.

On the internet they say IYKYK – if you know, you know – and those Storyfest players, the ones who took a chance on an unknown idea, who came to Columbia open and willing to explore and try and learn and maybe, just maybe, be changed, those Storyfest players know. The Chapin Chapter knows.

Storyfest was a HUGE success. SCWA invested in an experience that can and should grow beyond its initial intention. SCWA should commit to an annual event that brings together the best storytellers we can find and weaves a tapestry of opportunity for our members.

Thank you for making Storyfest one of those iconic brands that surpasses expectations. As USC Press's Michael McGandy volunt-told us, "Let’s do it again next year!"

Kasie Whitener
President, SCWA Board of Directors

Events and Education

2023 STORYFEST WAS A HIT!

More than 140 people gathered at the Columbia Metropolitan Conference Center last weekend to talk about writing at SCWA's 2023 Storyfest.

They came from New York, Florida, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
In South Carolina alone, attendees from 40 towns and cities registered for the conference, from Beaufort to Chapin and Greenville to Charleston.

A whopping 30 novelists, short story writers, poets, screenwriters, journalists, agents and editors talked to attendees and shared writing tips, personal stories and publishing secrets with the group.

"The classes were great," said one attendee.

"I learned so much!" said another.

"The best food I've ever had," added another.

Good food, fellowship and great information – what more could you ask for in a conference?

We're already working on the next conference program. We'll ask you shortly what you liked about the conference – and where we can improve.

For now, I want to thank everyone who helped make 2023 Storyfest the biggest SCWA conference in years. Please tell your fellow writers to join us for our next one.

Finally, I enjoyed meeting everyone. Hanging out with writers is the best

Thanks!

Paul Davis
VP/Events & Education

Visit SCWA's Calendar for Updated Events

Membership

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: MARJORIE HUDSON

Each month, we spotlight one of our members, selected at random. This month, we recognize Marjorie Hudson. She was born in a small town in Illinois, raised in Washington, D.C., and now lives in rural North Carolina. Her new novel, Indigo Field, explores the untold stories of the people and history of the rural South, hidden under the surface of an abandoned field. Called "mesmerizing" and "redemptive" by Sue Monk Kidd, Hudson's novel has been shortlisted for the Crooks Corner Award for Debut Southern Novel, and the Women's National Book Association just announced Indigo Field as a 2023 Great Group Read.

Hudson's story collection Accidental Birds of the Carolinas, shortlisted for the PEN/Hemingway Award and the Novello Fiction Award, reveals the lives and struggles of newcomers in the South, and her creative nonfiction book Searching for Virginia Dare explores the fate of the first English child born in America.

Hudson has been touring with Indigo Field since March and says the "sweet spot" for her is talking to book clubs throughout the South. For more information, visit www.marjoriehudson.com.

NaNoWriMo UPDATE

NaNoWriMo has started and the fun's begun! We are excited about this challenge and participating as a community. Whether editing, writing, revising or going for the full 50,000 words, come and join us for this special event. If you are on the NaNoWriMo website, add us as a buddy: SC Writers Association. Let's write together!

GIVING THANKS

During this Thanksgiving season, let's pause to express our sincere gratitude to the people who support us as writers. To our steadfast families, eagle-eyed editors and proofreaders, fellow writers, and the cherished readers who turn our words into worlds — we thank you.

Raegan Teller
VP/Membership

Have comments or questions about your SCWA membership?
Contact us at Membership@myscwa.org. We'd love to hear from you.

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November 2023

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