WHY WRITE? Occasionally a person has enrolled in my workshop who says, "I don't want to get published; I just want to write."  This is an ambition to be encouraged and I'd hope would result in the individual's keeping a daily journal and/or assembling family memories for distribution among his offspring.  But my workshops are designed with the goal of "write to sell."  Whatever the individual wants is fine with me, but if he does not want to be published, that person does not belong in my workshops. 

 Members do not have to sell ,or to have sold, to participate, but I do ask that they submit their work to magazines or newspapers.  Once they see their byline in circulation beyond the confines of our workshop, they are normally "hooked," and will try again.  In the four years I've been leading workshops here in Sedona, 26 different members have sold an article to or gained recognition in a contest–lst through Honorable Mention.  This may not be a significant number when you consider that more than 150 people by now have participated either in a class I've conducted or in one of my in-home workshops.  Such successes are encouraging to all members, and the handouts I distribute at every session are meant to give guidelines and enourage submissions. 

Where do you find markets for your work?  Writer's Market is a huge annual that lists magazine and book publishers and their needs.  Monthly magazines such as The Writer and Writer's Digest not only provide "how-to" information but list the latest markets.  Worth looking into if you have not already made a habit of this.–Willma