Roanoke Library Book Sale May 27-30 (Good Books, Cheap)

The always-enthusiastic, always-talky Laura Wickstead of the Roanoke City Library has this announcement for those of us who just can't pass up a good book sale:

Roanoke Public Libraries will hold its annual Book Sale on Memorial Day Weekend, May 27 to 30, in the Hospitality Room of the Main Library on South Jefferson Street downtown, kicking off with a Friends of the Library Preview on Thursday from 3 to 6 p.m. This one costs $10 and is a fund-raiser for Friends.

Sale hours on Friday and Saturday (which don't have an entry fee) are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday noon to 4 p.m. Thousands of books will be for sale, in every genre: paperbacks and hardbacks, for children and adults, fiction, non-fiction, cookbooks and reference works. Books will sell for 50 cents an inch. Stack them high and bring your ruler. For example, an 8-inch stack of books--usually four to six books--is just $4. Sunday is $1 Bag Day, meaning $1 will get you a plastic shopping bag o' books.

Proceeds go to the Roanoke Public Library Foundation to support the work of the library system. For more information call Laura Wickstead 540-853-2073 and she'll tell you what you just read.

Conference Speaker's Movie To Be Made

Sara Elizabeth Timmins (above), an opening night speaker at the 2010 Roanoke Regional Writers Conference, has the green light on her movie, "Lake Effects," which will be shot at Smith Mountain Lake, near Roanoke, later this year. She had intended to film the movie last fall, but funding fell short. She has worked intensely since then to secure full funding and she now has it, she says.

Says Sara: “I am honored to have such a wonderful group of investors and for the abundance of community support over the last year.”

The flmmakers (LifeOutLoud Films) will now move on to attaching recognizable talent, a key elementin the film’s success, and continue working with the community. “Without this community 'Lake Effects' would not be possible," says Sara, "and so we will continue to promote local businesses, incorporate Virginia professionals and encourage people to participate hands on in the creation of this film which will showcase the beauty of this region.”

There are many ways for the community to get involved, Sara says. “We are looking for people who have significant frequent flyer miles that want to sponsor a cast or crew members flight, restaurants that want to cater a few meals on set in exchange for advertising and, of course, we will need tons of volunteers and extras.”

Timmins says anyone who is interested in getting involved, receiving the newsletter or making a resource or service donation to sign up on the Life Out Loud Films website here.

Photo Editing Classes for Writers at Arts Council

Valley Business FRONT Publisher and Artistic Director Tom Field (right) will conduct the first in a series of three workshops on electronic photo editing for writers Tuesday, May 18 at the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge.

The workshops, which graduate from introduction to advanced techniques, will be held the Arts Council’s offices on the second floor of Center in the Square. Space is limited, so early registrations are important.

Those attending should have with them a computer, photo software they either use or have available and their digital camera.

Field has been a professional designer for more than 20 years and is behind the FRONT’s popular and imaginative cover images for each issue. He is a Salem native and a graduate of Roanoke College.

The three workshops will include:

• Taking good digital photos and the basics of editing, May 18, 6-7:30 p.m.
  
• Introduction to Photoshop & Picasa, June 15 , 6-8 p.m.
• Photoshop, Advanced Methods, July 20, 6-8 p.m.

Workshop fees are:

• No. 1, $15 non-members/ $5 members;
• No. 2, $20 non–members/$7 members;
• No. 3, $20 non–members/$7 members;
• Package for all 3 workshops $45 non-members/$19 members.

No refunds given if a class is missed.

Get in touch with Rhonda Hale (540-224-1205 or e-mail rhale@theartscouncil.org) at the arts council to reserve your spot.

Grant-Writing Seminar Set in Roanoke

On May 11 more than 100 nonprofits from Charlottesville to Roanoke to Abingdon will benefit from a free grant writing seminar, presented by Rutherfoord and The Hanover Insurance Company in Roanoke.

The seminar will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at The Dumas Center for Artistic and Cultural Development.

The event will provide the non-profits with training on how to recognize appropriate grants and introduce strategic planning tools for identifying short and long-term funding needs. The seminar is one of the largest pro-bono services to bring together nonprofits from across the region to address a common challenge.

According to Ed Winstead, vice president, account executive at Rutherfoord, the seminar is a direct response to a major need by nonprofits throughout the region. “As the economy has struggled, the means by which nonprofits have been able to serve their communities have shrunk dramatically," he says. "While these organizations recognize the critical importance of new funding sources to achieving their goals, many simply don’t know how to get started.

“This is a valuable opportunity for nonprofits to learn what types of grants are available to them, the tools that exist to help them pursue those grants, and to gain insight about creative methods to help them stand out from the crowd.”

The training will be led by New Mexico-based Resource Associates, a national leader in grant writing education. Topics include:Understanding good grants from bad grants, and knowing which grants to pursue

• Black and white vs. creative ways to determine alignment of an organization’s needs with a grant competition
• Understanding funding streams and grant types
• Reviews of federal, state, and private agencies, and sample RFP’s that align with the needs of typical non-profits

“We all benefit from the existence of nonprofits in our communities. The services they provide improve all our lives,” says Winstead. “We feel part of our responsibility at Rutherfoord is to assist these organizations as best we can, to ensure they have the knowledge and access to resources they need to continue advancing their missions.”

Cara Modisett, Keith Ferrell To Open RRWC IV

Keith Ferrell (above) and Cara Modisett (below) will open RRWC IV in January.^

The Roanoke Regional Writers Conference IV, scheduled Jan. 28 and 29 at Hollins University in Roanoke, will kick off on Friday evening with a keynote address by long-time Blue Ridge Country magazine editor Cara Ellen Modisett.

Cara has announced that she will step down at the end of May as the full-time editor but will remain involved part-time with the magazine as she pursues an MFA from Goucher College in Baltimore. She says her topic will likely have a good bit to do with transitions writers often make.

Keith Ferrell, the former editor of Omni Magazine, will open the evening with a talk titled “Why Caring About Your Writing Is More Important and Valuable Than Ever, Or: Write Like Your Life Depends Upon It – Just Don’t Depend on Your Writing for a Livelihood.” Keith enjoys both the long form and the cheerful, as his title exemplifies.

Cara moved to Roanoke in 1998 as an intern after graduating summa cum laude from James Madison University with degrees in piano performance and English education. That internship turned into a full-time editing position with Leisure Publishing, and since 2004 she has been editor of Blue Ridge Country.

Besides her work at the magazine, she is a producer and reporter for WVTF public radio, music leader at St. Elizabeth's Episcopal Church and a performing classical pianist. She written text for two books of Blue Ridge Parkway photography; blogs at RidgeLines; state, national and international awards for writing, editing, radio production and photography; named among the Top 20 Under 40 in Western Virginia by the Blue Ridge Business Journal; has interviewed figures ranging from Ted Koppel to Joan Baez; and is founding co-producer of Studio Virginia.

Music performances have included recitals at University of Richmond, Hollins University, Radford University, Washington & Lee University and Ferrum College; pit orchestra work at Mill Mountain Theatre, Radford University and Washington & Lee; major choral accompanying for St. John's Music on the Corner.

She has taught workshops for Tennessee Mountain Writers, Virginia Highlands Festival, Roanoke Regional Writers Conference, Roanoke County Schools; and she is a member of American Society of Magazine Editors, Society of Environmental Journalists, Society of Professional Journalists, and the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge.


The author of more than a dozen books, including novels and biographies, Keith Ferrell has also written more than 2,000 magazine, newspaper, and encyclopedia articles and essays on scientific, technical, historical, cultural, and political topics.

From 1990 to 1996 Ferrell was the editor of OMNI Magazine, the world’s largest circulation science magazine; additionally he was editorial director of the Compute family of books and magazines, as well as senior vice president of parent company Penthouse/General Media International.

In 1994 Ferrell oversaw the launch of OMNI On-Line, the first major magazine to make the transition to Internet publication. As a freelancer, Ferrell has written and co-designed several interactive computer games as well as articles, essays, and books.

He has spoken to business, government, and educational audiences in the United States, Europe, and Asia, and has appeared frequently on television and radio throughout the world. Recent publications include articles on the history of glass, the perils and inaccuracies of Internet-based information, the challenges and dangers inherent in surveillance technologies, the variety of crises in corporate governance, the inappropriateness of teaching intelligent design as science and the necessity to teach the fact of biological evolution, and the origins of unusual words.

He blogs on information security issues for Informationweek SMB and his personal blog can be found here.

Organizers are working as we speak in lining up teachers--and there are some good ones on the way. Keep a watch on this blog for registration information and for complete details, including a list of teachers.