Category: Writer Life
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Why Writers Need An Online Presence
Forget the hubbub about building an online following… how about the concept of providing connection? Kelly Q. Anderson, VP of OCWW I was pleased to be featured in this week’s About Write, Off Campus Writers’ Workshop’s column on craft. In it, I discuss why writers need to have a place for readers to follow their…
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University of Iowa Alumni News & Happy Friday
It was a delight to be featured in Alumni News for my alma mater, the University of Iowa. I spent four glorious years writing in Iowa City and the many hours of critiquing and workshopping are nostalgic and smile-inducing to this day. Moreover, I’m so pleased at the shoutout for Off Campus Writers Workshop (my…
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Making the Short List: Fiction Prize
Looks like I forgot to share this nugget of delicious news. Last week I found myself echoing a familiar statement, “I’m not really a fiction writer. It’s not my strong suit.” A writer friend lovingly pointed out that I was recently shortlisted by Five South Literary for a Fiction Prize. She wasn’t wrong. I was…
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Book News: Writing About COVID w/ Capsule Stories
Let’s get real: it was excruciating to write about COVID while existing through COVID. Whatever I managed to get on the page never felt right and it usually didn’t follow any kind of format, likely because I felt like I was drowning- drowning in e-learning, in uncertainty, in anxiety, and just about every other stressor…
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eBook Sale: Get Turning Points for $2.99
I’ve got high-give kind of news- the eBook for Turning Points is on major sale this week: just $2.99! (yes, cheaper than that latte you are holding). This is a great opportunity to add the Anthology to your Kindle or eReader device. As always, thank you for being a supporter of my writing and the…
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Three Fun Things: Book Launch, Workshop & Pizza
Book Launch: This past Sunday, Off-Campus Writers’ Workshop celebrated the official book launch of ‘Turning Points,’ our 75th Anniversary Anthology. Over 125 participants gathered on Zoom for curated readings, remarks from our President, and info on Summer programs (we move to monthly workshops and then pick up again in September). I auditioned and was selected…
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Book Release: Turning Points
It’s been a surreal week and I was able to do something I’ve dreamt of for so long: walk into a book store and hold a copy of my book. In sharing this news, I think it’s important to infuse this caveat: I’ve had many other writing/book projects fail. I had a children’s book and…
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At Long Last, Some Book News
It is delightfully surreal to share that I have a book coming out. My short story ‘Outfit of the Day’ will be published in an Anthology titled ‘Turning Points.’ The backstory: I am a member of Off Campus Writers’ Workshop in Winnetka. The group is marking its 75th Anniversary as a longstanding Chicago writing group…
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Elegy in a Pandemic: Letter to myself
(today I participated in a workshop through Off Campus Writers Workshop and there were some brilliant grief prompts presented by Chen Chen, who served as instructor/moderator. Here is what came out) Dear ambitious scholar, Grief is my dog’s collar tucked away in a box, high on the shelf in my closet. My favorite shirt, the…
Kelly Q. Anderson 