Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Organizations Galore

I belong to a whole bunch of writing organizations. I’m also considering the possibility of joining at least one other.

Yikes!

Am I an addict? Not to joining things, but I’ll admit addiction to the camaraderie, networking and information I glean from each of them.

Which am I talking about? Well, I currently belong to the Romance Writers of America, and to two local chapters: Los Angeles Romance Authors and the Orange County Chapter. I belong to the Mystery Writers of America and its Southern California Chapter. I belong to Sisters in Crime, and to its Southern California Chapter. And, I belong to the Thriller Writers of America.

I’m definitely not addicted to paying dues, but I do so anyway for most of the organizations--and additionally for most of their chapters to which I belong.

I’m also a lawyer and pay bar dues. That’s different from my writing but is a necessity for my other career.

I attend meetings, too. Time consuming? Yes, especially since, as I mentioned, I belong to four local chapters of various organizations. But I don’t go to every meeting, only those where I think I’ll get helpful information from the speaker. Although I do sometimes attend just because I want to meet with fellow writers, compare experiences, get out and about with friends.

Is it all worth it? It is to me. For one thing, I owe my first book sale, indirectly, to Romance Writers of America and my attendance at one of its national conventions. I still go to many RWA National annual conferences and always find them great for networking and more.

I spend a lot of time in front of my computer, so seeing flesh-and-blood people now and then, besides family, is a good thing.

There are plenty of other writing organizations that intrigue me, too. But some restraint is necessary here. Maybe.

What about you--do you belong to any professional organizations, writing or otherwise? What do you like about them most? Any dislikes?

7 comments:

NL Gassert said...

I was a member of MWA for some years (until that recent brouhaha) and am a member of Sisters in Crime. I was a founding member of their Oahu, HI, chapter and can’t wait to move back to rejoin that group of awesome writers. I love the camaraderie and the creative energy. It was easy to feel isolated on Hawaii; joining SinC was a great way of meeting like-minded folks. Not only did I make friends, but we had some really fantastic guest speakers.

Nadja

Linda O. Johnston said...

I really enjoy SinC too, Nadja. In fact, I was at the most recent meeting of the L.A. chapter on Sunday--and learned a lot!

Terri Thayer said...

MWA, SinC, two quilt guilds, San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. I think that's it. My groups are invaluable. Having peers who 'get' me is the best.

Linda O. Johnston said...

They all sound like great groups, wonderful resources, Terri!

Betty Hechtman said...

I belong to MWA, SinC, RWA and the California Writers Club. I didn't renew my membership to SCWBI this year.

I also belong to the Crochet Guild of America.

Janie Emaus said...

Hi,
I belong to SCBWI, RWA & LARA. And then several online writing loops. I've made great friends throughout the years.
Oh, and I'm a member of a fabulous critique group!

Linda O. Johnston said...

I agree that your critique group is the greatest, Janie!