West Virginia Writers Podcast

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eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 01:23:00 +0000

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Episode 26: CONFERENCECAST 2010

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 05:03:00 +0000

The WV Writers ConferenceCast 2010 (a.k.a. Episode 26) is now online.

In it we reveal the full list of presenters for the 2010 Summer Conference. We'll also have information on the guest editors who will be there as well as on the pitch sessions and one on one critique sessions they are offering.

We'll also reveal the exact date we will begin pre-registration for the conference, (as well as when Cedar Lakes will begin accepting pre-registration forms for rooms and meals). A hint: it's VERY soon.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers ConferenceCast (a.k.a Episode 26) Part 1

West Virginia Writers ConferenceCast (a.k.a Episode 26) Part 2

LINKS FOR THIS PODCAST
Our 2010 Summer Conference Page

This week (shhhh!)

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 21:59:00 +0000

There is a rumor going round, that I may or may not have started, that says this Friday's episode of the WV Writers Podcast will be chock full of information concerning the upcoming Summer Conference.

The rumor mentions something about a full list of presenters being revealed.

It continues that information on guest editors and the pitch and one on one critique sessions they will be conducting will also be revealed.

It goes on to say that workshop descriptions and quite possibly a full schedule are in the works for release in the very near future.

It wraps up that the exact date when registration will be opened is also a revelation to be imparted.

One might say that it will be a very good episode to download and that one would be wise to do so this Friday (or perhaps late Thursday if one subscribes with iTunes).

Just what I heard.

Episode 25: CONTESTCAST 2

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 05:03:00 +0000

Now that we're a wee bit past the mid-way point for the 2010 WV Writers Annual Writing Contest, we thought it would be prudent to check in with our contest coordinator, Steve Goff, to find out how things are going and answer some more of your frequently asked questions, discuss the list of contest judges and reveal some of the categories in which your odds are better for winning this year.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Contestcast 2 (a.k.a Episode 25)

LINKS FOR THIS PODCAST

Contest Judges List
Patsy Pittman's BLOOD KIN AND OTHER STRANGERS

Download Contest Entry Forms

Entry Form (.doc) Entry Form (.pdf)

Student Entry Form (.doc) Student Entry Form (.pdf)

THIS WEEK...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:17:00 +0000

...our CONTESTCAST 2 episode, marking the half-way point of the 2010 Annual Writing Contest. We'll cover some frequently asked questions, discuss the list of contest judges and reveal some of the categories in which your odds are better for winning.

Join us for Episode 25 this Friday, February 19, right here (or late night Thursday on iTunes).

Bonus Show 8: Writer's Toolkit

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:03:00 +0000

Our 8th bonus show is extry short, but is important if you're going to be in the Charleston area on February 13 and if you're interested in improving your writing.

The Writer's Toolkit event will be taking place at the cultural center, featuring free writing workshops for fiction, nonfiction, poetry and nonfiction research. The event is brought to you by the WV Division of Culture and History in collaboration with the WV Library Commission. You can find specific details about it at our BLOG, but get an overview by listening to the bonus show.

PLEASE NOTE: According to the Charleston Gazette, State Poet Laureate Irene McKinney will not be able to attend the annual Writers' Toolkit as originally scheduled due to weather concerns, but the program will still continue with the authors below and poet and essayist Doug Van Gundy will step in to take the workshop spaces left by McKinney.

As an added bonus to the bonus, you also get to hear the host of the show play his brand new cigar box guitar and the cohosts of the show supply their critique.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Bonus Show 8

This Week...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 05:03:00 +0000

...there is no new podcast. Awww.

Cause the wife and I will off celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. Yay!

Back in a couple.

Bonus Show 7 featuring Sal Buttaci

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:03:00 +0000

Our 7th bonus show is an extry-long entry into our Recorded Live Reading series. (Q: "But if it's recorded, how can it be live?" A: "Ahhhh, mind your Ps and Qs, Mack.")

This live reading was recorded at a poetry reading given by Salvatore Buttaci at the Princeton Public Library on December 3, 2009. Sal is the author of A Dusting of Star Fall: Love Poems, Boy on a Swing and Other Poems, A Family of Sicilians: Stories and Poems, Sun Sparks The Day and Sal Buttaci's Greatest Hits 1970 - 2000 published in the Pudding House books Greatest Hits series. He is also the author of Painless Poetry, which is a workshop for educators teaching poetry appreciation and creative writing. His most recent book is called Flashing My Shorts a collection of flash fiction.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Bonus Show 7

LINKS
Salvatore Buttaci's website
A Family of Sicilians

No podcast this week...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 17:27:00 +0000

...due to the double-sized nature of our first two of the year. Please join us here next week for podcast bonus show #7, featuring a recorded live reading of WV Writers member Sal Buttaci's December poetry reading in Mercer County.

In the meantime, please enjoy this video of the smaller of my two bonus show co-hosts, recorded this past autumn.

Episode 24: Keith Pitzer Tribute with Pops Walker

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 05:03:00 +0000

“It’s with a heavy heart that I write to you today, for we have lost a great friend and performer, Keith Pitzer. Keith passed on this morning after a courageous fight with cancer. His wife Joan, and his four grown sons mourn the loss of their loved one, as do I, Bobbi, and anyone who knew Keith.” -- Pops Walker

This is the opening paragraph from a letter written by Keith's friend and our podcast composer, Pops Walker. Written on December 22, the day Keith passed, it is how many of us first learned the news. Keith was not only a friend of this podcast, but he was a friend of our organization as well.

I thought for today’s special double-sized podcast it would be nice to speak with Pops in tribute to Keith. I wanted to get Pops' perspective on Keith the man and hear about his tireless work with Friends of the Cheat, and also hear of his skill as a musician. We'll also hear some of the outtakes from my interview with him last June, including some of the amazing music he made alongside his wife Joan.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 24

LINKS FOR THIS PODCAST

Episode 23: THE 2010 CONTESTCAST

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 05:03:00 +0000

For our first new episode of 2010, we're doing a gargantu-sized two part episode we're calling THE CONTESTCAST. That's right, this is your primer for all things related to the WV Writers Annual Writing Contest, which began accepting entries mere days ago.

Joining us for the podcast are WV Writers President Terry McNemar and Adult Contest Coordinator Steve Goff.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Contestcast (a.k.a Episode 23 Part 1)

West Virginia Writers Contestcast (a.k.a Episode 23 Part 2)

Download Contest Entry Forms As Reference for the Podcast

Entry Form (.doc) Entry Form (.pdf)

Student Entry Form (.doc) Student Entry Form (.pdf)

THIS WEEK!

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:39:00 +0000

For the first new episode of the new year, we'll be talking up the WV Writers Spring Writing Competition 2010. Our guests for this special extra-sized episode will be WV Writers President Terry McNemar and Contest Coordinator Steve Goff.

If you have any questions about the contest, likely they'll be answered as part of this podcast. It also serves as a great introduction to the contest in general. And stick around for the end of the episode when we'll have a sneak preview of some of the guests for the 2010 Summer Conference.

Join us here this Friday for Episode 23.

Episode 9: Keith Pitzer (REBROADCAST)

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 05:03:00 +0000

This week we're rebroadcasting Episode 9 of the podcast in honor of the recent passing of musician Keith Pitzer. We spoke with Keith last June in preparation for he and his wife Joan's appearance at the WV Writers Summer Conference 2009. Unfortunately, Keith and Joan were unable to attend last year because of a sudden turn in Keith's health stemming from the cancer that took him on December 22, 2009.

The WV Writers Podcast will soon have a brand new episode dedicated to celebrating Keith Pitzer as a performer and human being, including an interview with Keith's friend and friend of the podcast, Pops Walker. We will also be including some outtake material from that interview.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 9 (REBROADCAST)

Bonus Show 6

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 05:03:00 +0000

Our 6th WVW Podcast Bonus Show features a recorded live reading from Lee Maynard's appearance at the WV Book Festival, in October. Mr. Maynard reads the first chapter of his new novel-in-memoir-form The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life, published by West Virginia University Press.

Be sure to check out Episodes 21 and 22 for our podcast of the conversation between Lee and Cat Pleska.

DOWNLOAD PODCAST (Right click and Save Link Target As)
WVW Podcast Bonus Show 6

Links mentioned in Podcast:

The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life

This week...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 18:53:00 +0000

No podcast today. In fact, our December podcast schedule may be a bit light due to the holiday season, though there are still some goodies on the way. However, Cat Pleska has informed me that her radio interview with Lee Maynard will be broadcast on WV Public Radio, Monday morning between 7:30 and 8. This is not repeated material from the recordings we used in the podcast, but is a complete standalone interview, as yet unheard, recorded specifically for WV Public Radio.

An expanded version of that interview will also be made available on the WV Public Radio website (along with a mention of the podcast interview).

Check it out Monday morning.

Episode 22: A Conversation with Lee Maynard, Part 2

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 05:03:00 +0000

Episode 22 of the WVW Podcast continues with Part 2 of the conversation between WV Writers 1st Vice President Cat Pleska and Lee Maynard. Lee is best known as the author of the book Crum, and its followup Screaming with the Cannibals. He has a new novel-in-memoir-form called The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life, published by West Virginia University Press.

This week some of the topics covered include the truth layered in a fictional memoir; the true threat of retirement; fictional violence in service to story; influences; and the answer to the question "What two things do you know for sure?"

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 22

Links mentioned in Podcast:

LeeMaynard.com

Cat Pleska.com

The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life

Lee Maynard Video Podcast Live Readings on YouTube

Cat Pleska heard in Podcast Episode 4

Podcast Bonus Show 3

Episode 21: A Conversation with Lee Maynard, Part 1

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:03:00 +0000

Episode 21 of the WVW Podcast features a conversation between WV Writers 1st Vice President Cat Pleska and Lee Maynard, author of the book Crum, its followup Screaming with the Cannibals and the new novel-in-memoir-form The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life, published by West Virginia University Press.

As those of you who've attended Lee's workshops at previous WV Writers Summer Conferences well know, he's an extremely talented writer who specializes in gut-level writing. This week's part of the conversation explores some of that as well as his writing discipline, his philosophy on truth in memoir vs. storytelling and his feelings about West Virginia.

DOWNLOAD PART 1 (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 21

Then CLICK HERE for Part 2.

Links mentioned in Podcast:

LeeMaynard.com

The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life

Chuck Kinder

Coming This Friday...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:26:00 +0000

...we'll be playing the first part of an interview WVW's own 1st VP Cat Pleska conducted last month with Lee Maynard. They'll discuss Lee's latest book The Pale Light of Sunset: Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life.

Tune in this Friday.

Bonus Show 5

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 05:03:00 +0000

Our 5th WVW Podcast Bonus Show features a recorded live reading from the October Literary Tea series at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in Lewisburg. The reader in question is Tim Armentrout, WV Writers Region 3 Representative. Tim reads from his book-length work in progress poem entitled Someone Screaming Out.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
WVW Podcast Bonus Show 5

LINKS TO TOPICS MENTIONED IN PODCAST
Tim's Blog, Breath Made Visible
Tim's Chapbook, All This Falling Away
Tim's Blogger Profile
Tim's CD, Pilgrim of the Neo-Dark Ages
The Livestock Barnyard
MacBeth Curse Info

Episode 20: Cheryl Denise Interview

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:03:00 +0000

Episode 20 of the WVW Podcast in which we speak with poet Cheryl Denise, author of the collection I Saw God Dancing.

We talk to Cheryl about her upbringing in Canada as well as the origins behind some of her poetry. And, of course, we hear her recite some of that poetry.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 20

Links mentioned in Podcast:
I Saw God Dancing
Garrison Keillor Read's Cheryl's Poem "They'll" on the Writer's Almanac
More of Cheryl's poetry courtesy of the Hamilton Stone Review
More of Cheryl's poetry courtesy of Mennonite Life.

THIS WEEK...

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:03:00 +0000

There is no podcast bonus show this week because things are rather hectic around the Mister Herman studios.

Instead, please accept this picture of a ridiculously cute puppy (the very source of all things hectic, not to mention quite a bit of dog urine.) He may also be a future third-chair co-host for the bonus shows.

Fortunately, he slept through my entire interview with poet Cheryl Denise, who will be our featured guest on the podcast next week.

Episode 19: Literary Tea Recorded Live Reading with Willa Izzo

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:59:00 +0000

Episode 19 of the WVW Podcast in which we air the fourth of our patented recorded live readings. (Q: "But if it's recorded, how can it be live?" A: "One of us is asking too many questions.")

This recorded live reading comes from the October 8th session of the Greenbrier Valley Theatre's October Literary Tea series and features Willa Izzo reading from her honorable mention win in the humor category of the 2009 WV Writers Writing Competition. (I'd like to thank Belinda Anderson for recording this session while I was out of state stuffing my face in Austin.)

The Literary Tea series for 2009 continues with a special Kids Tea on October 29 and a community poetry Tea on November 5. These take place at 5:30 p at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in downtown Lewisburg.

If you're a member or extended friend of WV Writers, Inc. we invite you to submit your own live readings to wvwpodcast@gmail.com.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 19

Links mentioned in Podcast:
WV Writers Annual Writing Competition
Greenbrier Valley Theatre
Irish Pub on Washington Street

Bonus Show 4

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Our 4th WVW Podcast Bonus Show features trimmings from our Episode 12 interview with Pops Walker. We also pass along the results of the Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest and Songwriting Contest, which we talked to Pops about in Episode 12.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
WVW Podcast Bonus Show 4

Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest and Songwriting Contest Announces Winners

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:16:00 +0000

As heard about on this very podcast from our music composer Pops Walker, the Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest and Songwriting Contest has announced its top three winners.

Those songwriters are: 1st place: Bryan Elijah Smith, of Dayton, VA, for his song, “The Other Side of Town”. Bryan won $500, six hours of studio time, and a future gig with Performing Arts of Luray.

2nd place: Judith Avers, of Weirton, WV, for her song, “Raining”. Judith won $300 and a guaranteed future booking.

Con Burch, Fort Valley, VA, for her song “Maybe Someday”. Con won $200.

The finals competition took place on October 3, 2009, at the BB&T Center for the Performing Arts in Luray, VA.

Be on the lookout for news about next year’s show and competition. Details are forthcoming at: http://www.popswalker.com/ and http://www.performingartsluray.org/.

Episode 18: Literary Tea Recorded Live Reading with Belinda Anderson

eric.fritzius@gmail.com (E. Fritzius) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Episode 18 of the WVW Podcast in which we air the third of our patented recorded live readings. (Q: "But if it's recorded, how can it be live?" A: "Hey, I don't come to your house and question you about your podcast, so cut me some slack.")

This recorded live reading comes from last week's session of the Greenbrier Valley Theatre's October Literary Tea series and features Belinda Anderson reading from her two prize-winning children's book manuscripts, "Fly Away Story" and "Jackson vs. Double W Making Kid Soup." These won second and third place, respectively, in WVW's 2009 Annual Writing Contest.

The Literary Tea series for 2009 continues this month on October 15, 22 with a special Kids Tea on October 29 and a community poetry Tea on November 5. These take place at 5:30 p at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in downtown Lewisburg.

If you're a member or extended friend of WV Writers, Inc. we invite you to submit your own live readings to wvwpodcast@gmail.com.

DOWNLOAD (Right click and Save Link Target As)
West Virginia Writers Podcast Episode 18

Links mentioned in Podcast:
Belinda Anderson
Greenbrier Valley Theatre
West Virginia Book Festival
"Putting Flesh on the Bones" Book Fest Workshop
Book Festival Workshop Schedule