COLIN GALLAGHER
Since the 6th grade there has been within my nature an affinity for the appreciation of good writing. I wanted to express noble thoughts with my own pencil. I soon realized that there were rules for good writing, it wasn’t just conversation put on paper. It took me years to polish my writing ability to where I was happy with it, and most of the credit goes to a wonderful Professor at LA Pierce College. She was full of ideas, and gave me new insight into my writing. In 1981 I received an AA Degree from LA Pierce College, and then completed two semesters at CSUN.
I tried to publish a 150 page Fantasy Adventure in the early 1990’s without success. It has just been in the last year that I have tried to publish a short story. In all my writing: Poetry, Short Stories, and Fiction Novel, I have tried to spice it up with a little Spirituality usually as a conclusion, moral, or pick-me-up.
I have been a member of Self-Realization Fellowship since 1983. I enjoyed services at the SRF Lake Shrine Windmill Chapel for a few years then attended regular services at the Fullerton Temple in Orange County for eighteen years. SRF plays a big part in my life today.
As far as work goes, I have worked for various companies at different skill level and always managed to get by. For volunteer work, I enjoyed the Treasurer’s office at the City of Anaheim for ten years. Also, for over a year, I did volunteer work on a phone help line for the LA Free Clinic.
In conclusion, I like to write it gives me a tremendous sense of freedom, putting my ideas on paper, so they are not fleeting thoughts, but become tangible.
(Text last updated: June 7, 2014 — 6:52 am)
SAM GLENN
ANAT GOLAN-WENICK
(Text last updated: 1-4 2021)
PIRHIYA GOLDSTEIN
(Text last updated: 1-4 2021)
KAREN FAYE GORBACK
WEBSITE: karen-gorback.com
A club member since 2008, Karen has served on the board as a member at large, publicity chair, program chair, CWC-SoCal representative, Zoom host, and president. Two of Karen’s memoirs have been published in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Her novel Freshman Mom is available on Amazon. Karen is proud of her four grown children, their spouses, and nine, amazing grandchildren. Contact Karen at karen-gorback.com
(Text last updated: September 10, 2023 11:35 am)
LISA HAHN
(Text last updated: 4-16 2024)
ANNE HANSELL
I was born and grew up in Southern California,USA. As a child, I attended the Mary E. Bennett Elementary School for the Hard of Hearing, As a teen, I went to the California State School for the Deaf, Riverside. Then I went to Gallaudet University for my Bachelor of Arts degree in history and psychology and then to CSUN for my graduate studies in history and special education but I graduated with a Master of Arts in special education. Worked as a substitute teacher for a number of years before becoming a para educator. This makes it easier for me to concentrate on my studies in writing. Hence my CWC membership.
I’m a third generation Japanese American whose family originated in Hiroshima, Japan.
Thanks for your time.
(Text last updated: March 14, 2015 — 11:23 am)
KAY HENDEN
WRITING AS: Ellen Keigh (Historical, General), Allyn Keigh (Science Fiction)
EMAIL: CWC@Henden.com
WEBSITE: EllenKeigh.com, AllynKeigh.com
PUBLISHED WORKS: Streets of Silver
Kay Henden is a retired attorney/educator turned novelist, an avid amateur historian, and a peripatetic researcher.
She practiced law in northern California, specializing in the intricacies of taxation and trust law. That led in time to the study of property transfers and the rights of married women in the 19th century, topics that produced some surprising insights into the daily life of women of that time.
San Francisco history, particularly the lesser-known period between the Gold Rush and the Earthquake of 1906, was at first a passing interest, then an ardent pursuit. She realized that the story of The City during those ‘lost years’ was even more rich and complex than the times preceding and following it. And ultimately, of course, the history of San Francisco’s adolescence led inevitably to Virginia City, Nevada, and the spellbinding story of the Comstock Lode.
She continues to be fascinated by all things San Franciscan, especially during the latter half of the nineteenth century. In fact, she often sets her writing there just so she has an excuse for an extended visit…
KATHERINE HIGHCOVE
EMAIL: kghighcove@gmail.com
GERALDINE M. JABARA
EMAIL:geri.jabara@att.net
DAVIDA SIWISA JAMES
EMAIL: hamiltonheightsbook@gmail.com
WEBSITE: www.davidasiwisajames.com
I am a Philly native and grew up alternately between my hometown and Manhattan. In addition to L.A., I also lived in the Mojave High Desert and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. I have an English degree from UCLA and attended Penn State Dickinson Law in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. My various careers have spanned being a university public relations director, a freelance journalist, and a 20-year arts management career, including with the UCLA Center for the Performing Arts.
My most recent historical nonfiction book, Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill, will be released on April 2, 2024 and is available for pre-order. It is being published by Fordham University Press in New York, one of the nation’s oldest university presses. I will have an exhibitor booth at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on April 20-21, 2024 at USC.
Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill traces four centuries of the landmark West Harlem neighborhood where Alexander Hamilton built his home, The Grange, in 1802, now a national landmark. The stunning homes erected in the late nineteenth century make it one of the most architecturally significant sections of Manhattan. From George Washington’s encampment during the start of the American Revolution, it has been home to Duke Ellington, Norman Rockwell, Thurgood Marshall, and George Gershwin. Both First Lady Eleonor Roosevelt and Queen Elizabeth II visited it.
My other publications include: Senior Services for the Financially Challenged; Life in Brief, a collection of short stories, essays and poems; and my memoir The South Africa of His Heart. My short story “The Commute” was published in the Pushcart Prize-winning 2000 issue of the international literary journal “The Caribbean Writer.”
I was a former member-at-large on the board of the CWC-High Desert Branch. I am also a member of the Women’s National Book Association (WNBA), and the American Historical Association (AHA), a national organization.
(Text last updated: February 4, 2024 — 1:15 pm)
DIANA M. JOHNSON
EMAIL:
gesk1304@uvtomail.com
WEBSITE:
www.SuperiorBookPublishingCo.com
Diana M. Johnson, a direct descendent of the great Medieval king, Charlemagne, is a member of the Order of the Crown of Charlemagne in the United States of America, for which she was 2002 Keynote Speaker at their annual meeting in Washington D.C. She is a member of First California Company, Jamestowne Society, which she served as Secretary and Newsletter Editor, and the Conejo Valley Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) where she served as Recording Secretary.
A Life Member of the California Writers Club, Diana has served the San Fernando Valley Branch, as president and treasurer, as well as a delegate to the State Board of Directors, and State Treasurer. In 1995 she received CWC’s prestigious Jack London Award for service to the writing community. In 2006 she became the founding president of the West Valley Branch of CWC.
A fourth-generation Californian, Diana was born in Los Angeles, attended Occidental College, graduated from UCLA, and earned her master’s degree from California State University, Northridge. She taught music in the Los Angeles and Beverly Hills Unified School districts. She and her husband Bill live in the San Fernando Valley. Both hold private pilot’s licenses. Avid travelers, they have traveled most of the United States by private plane as well as more conventional means. They have also, over the years, traveled Europe from France to Poland, Germany to Italy, and all the countries in between, as well as Great Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia, China, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, the Baltic States, and a bit of Russia. Diana, a frequent flute soloist, also enjoys singing in the church choir and playing bridge. Writing is her second career. As an author, Diana has written five adult historical novels, as well as one for youth, all based on members of her family tree. Her most recent novel is Wagons to Hangtown, the story of her great, great grandfather’s journey to California during the Gold Rush.
RICHARD JONES
JENNY JORDAN
EMAIL: jennyjordan2@gmail.com
LESLIE KAPLAN
How did I get from there to here? Well, in 1988 my husband of twenty eight years passed away. Needless to say…this was a life changing event. I had an import business at that time which took me to exotic places all over the world, designing jewelry and accessories using the arts and crafts of the countries I visited, mostly Asian. I met some wonderful people in my travels who are still in my life today. I didn’t know at that time that I might be writing about them some day.
As exciting as this period was…after Sy, my husband died, I decided to close this chapter and begin the next one…not knowing where it may lead.
Recalling my love for dancing when I worked as an instructor for the Arthur Murray studio years ago, I joined a tap dancing class at Every Woman’s Village. This led me to a singing class which led me to a performance workshop. My director Bobby Keane and the class of students enjoyed my impromptu monologues about some humorous or touching events in my life. They encouraged me to combine them with music and song in several performances. One of the themes was my fifty plus dating life…some very funny…some very painfull.
My work and travels through Asia inspired my monologues in which I created a performance… singing, “Slow Boat To China.” Applause became a strong incentive and a desire to write better monologues…so I joined a life writing class.
My teacher Bernard Sellings, inspired me to reach back to my earliest recollections. I wrote, “My Daddy.” He suggested writing in the first person present tense. This technique brought me into the situation emotionally. From Bernard’s class I heard about the California Writers club and was invited to join. I submitted “My Daddy,” for the CWC anthology entitled “Childhood Memories.”That child was given a voice, and the beginning of my memoirs.
My circle of friends now included performers and writers. The writers club then led me to a critique group facilitated by our president Dave Wetterberg. In one of the meetings he suggested we consider using more sensory images. Well…I’ve a bit of a hearing problem because I thought he said, “Sensuous Images.”
So…I wrote this sexy thing titled, “That Man.” After I read it to my singing class, my coach said, “This is a performance.” It became part of a show in which I added background music and a song.
I write for the joy of writing and performing open mike at small cabarets, retirement hotels, book stores, private homes and mostly at the California Writers club. Because…if my peers like what i write…what an incentive it is to keep on doing it! My goal now is to publish more than one hundred memoirs, poems and essays into a book. Five of my writings have been accepted in four anthologies. My other claim to fame is winning three contests which were published in three Scribe Newsletters.
So now I have gone from my child’s voice to my sexy voice. It feels as though I’m reliving my life all over again.
I would like to encourage everyone who writes to join a critique group. It not ony helps to refine and define what I write…but forces me to write something before the next meeting. Before long I noticed that all of the writers in our group have a recognizable style. For example…If everyone threw their unsigned work in the middle of the table, I’m sure I could easily identify each author.
P.S.
… after 10 years of writing my memoirs my book entitled “Forever … Until” – a hard cover with over five hundred pages was finally published in 2015. One Hundred copies sold quickly by word of mouth. Am now in the process of converting to a paper back to be sold on line.
(Text last updated: November 5, 2016 — 10:21 am)