Some Past Speakers

2012: September
2010: July
2009: October : November

Our speaker in April of 2013 was Austin-based editor/anthologist and essayist Rick Klaw. His topic will be Apes & Rayguns: A Conversation with Acclaimed Editor Richard Klaw about the 21st Century Anthology.
Richard “Rick” Klaw is editor of Apes of Wrath and the forthcoming Ray Guns Over Texas, a pair of speculative fiction anthologies. He also is co-founder of the pioneering Mojo Press, one of the first publishers to produce both graphic novels and prose books. After leaving Mojo, he became the initial fiction editor for RevolutionSF, where he still serves as an editor-at-large. He is called “the smartest mouth on the Internet” (Michael Moorcock) because of his popular columns on pop culture for SF Site and his acclaimed blog The Geek Curmudgeon.
Over the past decade, Klaw has written for a variety of publications including The Austin Chronicle, The San Antonio Current, Moving Pictures Magazine, The San Antonio Business Journal, Geek Dad, The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Tor.com, The Steampunk Bible, Steampunk, King Kong Is Back!, Conversations With Texas Writers, and Cross Plains Universe. His essays and observations were collected in Geek Confidential: Echoes from the 21st Century.

 

Jordan Dane will discuss

September 6, 2012: Jordan Dane (http://www.jordandane.com/)

Jordan discussed Writing for the Young Adult Market – Where do I begin? (One author’s journey)

Interested in writing for books for one of the hottest markets in the publishing industry? Young adult thriller novelist Jordan Dane (Harlequin Teen & HarperCollins) shares what she’s learned about the Young Adult market for teen readers, the unique voice, how to create believable characters, & where to get ideas for books targeting teens 12-18 years old. She will touch on several of the topics covered in her non-fiction author craft book geared for the Young Adult market – One Author’s Aha Moments. And for one lucky member in attendance, she will do a full critique of the first chapter of a Young Adult novel.

July 1, 2010:  Kolleen M. Guy, Ph D

Kolleen M. Guy, Ph D. presented "Breaking and Making Silences" at the July meeting of the San Antonio Writers' Guild. Her talk will cover how to deal with silences--those things that are not said, can't be said, are never said--in writing and how to think about the ways in which we might be silencing ourselves as writers.

Guy is the author of an award-winning book on the history of the champagne industry and numerous articles on food, wine, and history.  She is currently a professor of modern European history at the University of Texas at San Antonio. 

November 2009: Michael B. Druxman

Michael B. Druxman has been writing his entire life and is still remembered up in Washington State where he graduated from the University of Washington. He is a machine when it comes to writing! 20 years in Hollywood as a screenwriter, promoter and film historian prepared Mr. Druxman to become the professional writer he is. He is the author of 6 produced stage plays, 7 non-fiction published books and several produced screenplays. Mr. Druxman knows his craft and is passionate about communicating the best of what fiction writing can be in almost every genre.

A few of his stage, TV and movie credits include: Dillinger and Capone (1995), Cheyenne Warrior (1994), Keaton's Cop (1990), Jolson (1987-88 and 1997). Mr. Druxman also wrote and directed a horror film filmed in Ireland titled The Doorway: starring Roy Scheider. This is a supernatural thriller/black comedy. He is presently working on several new screenplays and another novel. Mr. Druxman completed a musical with his son in 2007 titled Hail On The Chief which was given a reading at the Stella Adler Theater in Hollywood.

The Center Press is proud to have published three works by Mr. Druxman including How To Write A Story...Any Story: The Art Of Storytelling, Cheyenne Warrior: The Original Screenplay and Nobody Drowns In Mineral Lake which is Mr. Druxman's first novel. His second novel, Shadow Watcher, was published in early 2008.

Michael Druxman's latest  book is  Once Upon A Time in Hollywood and will likely be available for sale at the end of the meeting.

  

October 2009: John Picacio

JOHN PICACIO is a World Fantasy Award-winning artist and has illustrated covers for books by Michael Moorcock, Robert Silverberg, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Dan Simmons, Harlan Ellison, Robert Heinlein, Frederik Pohl, James Tiptree, Jr., Jeffrey Ford, Nancy Kress, Jack Skillingstead, Mark Chadbourn, and many more.

He has created cover artwork featuring the STAR TREK and X-MEN franchises. He has previously won the Locus Award, the Chesley Award, and two International Horror Guild Awards, all in the Artist category. He won this year's Chesley Award for Best Paperback Cover Illustration (FAST FORWARD 2). He's been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist the last five consecutive years and is again a nominee for the 2009 World Fantasy Award in the Artist category. John and his wife Traci live in San Antonio, Texas. For more info, please visit his blog, http://johnpicacio.com/blog.html.