MINUTES FROM TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2013, 7 PM at Once Upon a Crime

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT

Susan Koefod read from Burnt Out, her third book in the Arvo Thorson mystery series.

BUSINESS

Elections: Officers for 2014 were elected. They are: President-Rhonda Gilliland; Vice-President-Mickie Turk; Secretary-Barbara Deese. For now, Michael Kelberer, our Webmaster/Social Media person will take on the duties of Treasurer/Membership as well, but will gladly relinquish the membership and treasurer duties if someone else steps up.

Membership: We will not be offering tiered memberships, since the national SinC bylaws do not allow them. At a future meeting, we will discuss a modest raise in our local dues, so that we might offer participation in more events.

Facebook: With our group page becoming available to members only, we will continue to have a website and Facebook fan page open to the public. Our group page will continue to give members a way to get peer advice, share, promote and set up events.

New Business: Communications Workshop: In January, we’ll be offering a free communications workshop, designed to help us promote our books effectively. Look for a posting on this page, with date, details, and a sign-up sheet.

SPEAKERS

Representing Forty Press, Joe Riley, Nick Dimassis and E. Kelly Keady gave a good overview of what their new independent press has to offer.

UPCOMING SINC EVENTS

Holiday party: Tuesday, December 3, 7-9 PM at the Edina Art Center. Details and sign-up to follow.

Thanks to all the Sisters and Brothers in Crime who make this an active, supportive group!

Join Christine at Buffalo Books & Coffee on November 16th from 1-3pm to celebrate the launch of A Death in Lionel’s Woods, book five in the Winnebago County Mystery Series.

About the book:

When a woman’s emaciated body is found in a hunter’s woods, Sergeant Corinne “Corky” Aleckson is coaxed back into the field to assist Detective Smoke Dawes on the case. It seems the only hope for identifying the woman lies in a photo that was buried with bags of money under her body. Aleckson and Dawes plunge into the investigation that takes them into the world of human smugglers and traffickers, unexpectedly close to home. All the while, they are working to uncover the identity of someone who is leaving Corky anonymous messages and pulling pranks at her house. A Death in Lionel’s Woods is an unpredictable roller coaster ride to the electrifying end.

MINUTES FROM TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2013, 7 PM at Once Upon a Crime

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT
Colin Nelson read from Flashover, about a sociopathic serial arsonist/murderer. Flashover is his third Zehra Hassan novel.

BUSINESS

Elections:
A new slate of officers will be presented at the November meeting. They are: President-Rhonda Gilliland; Vice-President-Mickie Turk; Secretary-Barbara Deese; Treasurer/Membership-Bill Anderson and Webmaster/Social Media-Michael Kelberer

Membership:
Once again, we discussed offering a tiered membership. Full Members would be members of both local and national SinC (paid as of Feb. 1.) Supporting Members would be paid members of the local chapter only. Our Facebook group page will soon be limited to full and supporting members only, so this is a great time to join, if you haven’t already. The rationale for this is to boost membership and, by advertising the benefits of membership, to let members know what they’re getting for their money.

Facebook:
With our group page becoming available to members only, we will continue to have a website and Facebook fan page open to the public. Our group page will continue to give members a way to get peer advice, share, promote and set up events.

Anthology:
Mickie Turk reported on the progress of the Festival of Murder anthology. Editors are working with the 18 authors whose stories were selected. Edited stories will be submitted to Nodin Press on November 15 for a spring publication.

New Business:
Killer Cocktails–We are beginning to explore the idea of reviving Killer Cocktails, this time as our own Twin Cities Sisters in Crime event, not attached to any other group.
Writers’ Conference–Another area of exploration is the prospect of hosting a Writers’ Conference, possibly in conjunction with Killer Cocktails. It would be an expensive and labor intensive effort, but the benefits could be huge. If you have ideas for either of these prospective events, please contact any of the officers directly or join the discussion on the group page.

SPEAKER
The Reverend Alika Galloway of Kwanzaa’s Northside Women’s Space, was a dynamic speaker as she painted a detailed and disturbing picture of the pervasive problem of sex trafficking and other sex crimes. To learn more, click here: http://bit.ly/1gqbftG.
(Colin Nelson will also speak on the subject at a Breaking Free event at the Minneapolis Women’s Club, October 10, 5-7:30 PM.)

UPCOMING SINC EVENTS
Twin Cities Book Festival – Saturday, October 12, 10 AM-5PM at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Our chapter will have a table with books for sale and will raffle off a book each hour.

Holiday party: Edina Art Center. More details and signup at next meeting.

Next Meeting:
November 5, 7:00 PM at Once Upon a Crime.

Thanks to all the Sisters and Brothers in Crime who make this an active, supportive group!

Help celebrate the release of Colin Nelson‘s new book, Flashover on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013 @ 4:30- 7:00 at Magers & Quinn Booksellers.

Magers & Quinn is located at 3038 Hennepin Ave. South, Minneapolis, MN (in Uptown).

Books for Sale, including Colin’s previous books Reprisal and Fallout.

Free Food and Live Music!

Parking in ramp one block away on the east side of Calhoun Square and on the street.

MINUTES FROM TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3

It was good to get together after our summer break. With 29 people in attendance, including at least 3 new members, we had to enlarge the circle at Once Upon a Crime. This first fall meeting was planned as a business meeting.

Author Spotlight:
Jessie Chandler read from Pickle in the Middle, Book 3 in the Shay O’Hanlon Caper Series.

BUSINESS
Anthology:
Dan Bernier reported on the progress of the Festival of Murder anthology to be published by Nodin Press. The 19 submissions from TC SinC members are under review. Stay tuned for another update in September.

Treasurer/Membership:
Doug Ernst reported that our bank balance is in good shape. We have between 65 and 90 paid members each year, and even as attendance at meetings increases, membership numbers have dropped a bit. There was some discussion about raising annual membership dues by one to three dollars, so that we might participate in more activities, such as book festivals. We also considered ways to increase membership, and decided to offer different levels of membership—full and associate. Before this is in place, we will let people know exactly what they can expect to get for their dues.

Website/Social Media:
Facebook – Michael Kelberer spoke more about limiting some web portals and our Facebook group to full members. We will continue to have a website and Facebook fan page open to the public, but our group page would give full members an opportunity to have conversation and peer-to-peer advice that would not be viewed by the public. This members-only group page will continue to be the place to share and promote, set up Speakers Bureau events and field trips. The fan page is for publicity, and postings will be made by page administrators only. Before any change is made, we will get the word out: FB group page – members only; FB fan page – public.

Website – Michael reminded us there is an Author News page on the website. Please submit news, such as book launches, reviews, etc. to Michael. Next year we will consolidate to one web hosting service, 1 and 1.com.

Other:
Elections – We will vote for new officers at the November meeting. Doug will be stepping down as Treasurer/Membership Chair.
Holiday party – This year we will have a holiday party at the Edina Art Center, which, thanks to Colin Nelson, is free to us.
Killer Cocktails – We are not doing it this year.
Author Panels – Jessie Chandler will set up panels of 3 or 4 authors to go to Barnes and Noble stores, beginning with the one in Northtown.
Twin Cities Book Festival – We agreed to rent one or two tables at the TCBF on October 12 at the State Fairgrounds. New member, Bill Anderson, will send in the application and coordinate shifts for Twin Cities SinC members, using the template Erin Hart set up last year.

Thanks to all the Sisters and Brothers in Crime who make this an active, supportive group!

Barbara

Next Meeting:
October 8, 7:00 PM at Once Upon a Crime
Our speaker, the Reverend Alika Galloway of Kwanzaa’s Northside Women’s Space, will talk about sex trafficking and other sex crimes.
Our reader will be Colin Nelson.

Barbara Deese introduces Spirited Away (The second in the No Ordinary Women mystery series) Sunday, September 15, 2:00PM at Magers and Quinn in Uptown 3038 Hennepin Ave. So., Minneapolis.

It’s open to all, so please come and bring your friends for a short reading, discussion, wine and refreshments.

Ethan’s plan, Changes in Time, will be staged by the 20% Theatre Company beginning May 11th.

The Twin Cities chapter of Sisters in Crime is accepting short stories for our first anthology, the working title of which is “Festival of Crime.”  It will be published by Nodin Press of Minneapolis sometime in 2014.  The theme of the collection will be fairs, festivals and public events set in Minnesota, past and present.  We are looking for engaging, well-written stories with interesting characters.

The anthology editors are Christine Husom, Mickie Turk, and Michael Allan Mallory.

Dan Bernier will serve as the story collector and approver of festival settings.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:  This initial message is a general announcement of the project.  To be considered for the anthology you must send Dan—and only Dan—an e-mail by May 1, 2013 to register your interest in submitting a story and listing your first and second choices for a festival setting.

Your setting must be approved by Dan.  He will follow up with manuscript guidelines and other information.  See Requirement #7.

REQUIREMENTS:

1.    All contributing authors must be both a current member of the Twin Cities chapter of Sisters in Crime and a current member of the Sisters in Crime national organization.  The anthology is sanctioned by the national organization and subject to its rules.

2.    Stories must incorporate a Minnesota fair, festival or public event in a significant way.

3.     Fair/Festival/event settings must have prior approval.  We seek variety and wish to avoid having all stories set at only one or two big events like the Minnesota State Fair.  Only one story per festival will be allowed.

4.    Stories must involve a crime, mischief or other mayhem.

5.    Word count not to exceed 3,000 words.

6.    Deadline for story submissions will be August 1, 2013.

7.    Special Requirement: To be considered for the anthology all interested authors  MUST send an e-mail to Dan Bernier by May 1, 2013 at dan.bernier@yahoo.com. (That’s dan-dot-bernier-at-yahoo-dot-com).

• In the subject line say:  TCSINC ANTHOLOGY
• List your first and second choices for a fair, festival or event setting.  Dan will respond with approval of your story setting or ask you to make another choice. Manuscript guidelines and other instructions will be e-mailed to those who e-mail Dan by the May 1^st registration deadline.

With a limited number of story slots and a goal to be as impartial as possible, the anthology editors will use a blind submission process to select the stories.  In order to preserve author anonymity for the story review process, the editors cannot know which festival was selected by which author, hence Dan’s role in the process.  ALL E-MAILS SHOULD GO TO DAN BERNIER.

Meeting was held on April 2, 2013

Business:
Mickie Turk reminded us to use our Facebook page as a business tool to promote and inform, not to chat. If we have specific questions, we should directly contact officers or committee heads via E-mail or FB message: Rhonda Gilliand, TC SinC President; Mickie Wowchuk Turk, VP, Monthly Programs; Doug Ernst, Treasurer; Barbara Merritt Deese, Secretary/ Workshops; Susan Koefod, Speakers’ Bureau/Library/Bookstore (Mickie Turk temporarily filling in); Michael Allan Mallory, Anthology; Michael Kelberer, Website and Social Media; Marilyn Rausch, Guest Speakers/Field Trips; Allen Eskins, Promotions/Brochures & Flyers.

Michael Allan Mallory gave us an update on the planned Twin Cities Sisters in Crime anthology. The theme is “Festival of Crime,” featuring Minnesota fairs, festivals and events. Short stories are due in July. To avoid repetition, please let Michael know which event you would like to base your story on. Look for more news about Festival of Crime on this page.

Author Spotlight:
Ethan Boatner read from his debut novel, M-O-T-H-E-R Spells Murder.

Program:
Laura Lively, a writer and expert in financial crime prevention and investigation, spoke about the kinds of characters we might create when writing mysteries involving identity theft and bank card fraud.

Next meeting—Please note change of venue:
Tuesday, May 7, 7 PM at the Edina Art Center.

We had a good turnout, despite the date change.

Business

1. Barbara DaCosta stepped down as TC SinC secretary and Barbara Deese agreed to take on the duties.
2. The Minnesota Book Awards will be held this year on April 13, 7 PM at the Hilton in Minneapolis. If enough people are interested, we will reserve a table of 10 for $450. If you’d like to be in on the table, respond to the FB Group post or email mailto:webservant@twincitysinc.org
3. Mille Lacs Community Library in Isle, MN won the random drawing of $1000, from the SinC National We Love Libraries Project. On April 17, at 7 PM, Mickie Turk, Pam Leonard, and Christine Husom will be at the library for a panel discussion, and to present the check. All are welcome. So far, besides the panel participants, Rhonda will also attend. See calandar at right for more info.
4. Monthly Speakers: Mickie Turk is lining up the June Meeting speaker. Subject: Sex Trafficking.
5. TC SinC short story anthology. Michael Allan Mallory is gathering participants for an Anthology. Various themes suggested, such as Twin Cities Events, from the St. Paul Carnival to Aquatennial to local music festivals to small town celebrations. Send ideas for a murder-centered theme to Christine Husom by FB message.

Monthly Reading
Barbara Deese read from Spirited Away, the second in the No Ordinary Women mystery series, to be published this fall.

Program
We conducted 3 Mock Panels, subjects covered: How much to share –moderator, Michael Allan Mallory. Story as influence – moderator, Barbara Deese. Characters – moderator, Mickie Turk. Participation was lively. Jessie Chandler followed up with suggestions on better ways to answer questions, giving everyone equal time, and how a moderator can keep the pace up. We will do more Mock Panels in the future.

Next meeting: Tuesday, April 2, 7 PM

Submitted by Barbara Merritt Deese, Secretary

While our monthly meetings are on the first Tuesday of each month, this month we are meeting on March 11th at Once Upon a Crime mystery bookstore, 7:00 pm.

This month will feature Colin Nelson in the Author’s Spotlight reading from Fallout.

Our program this night will be a Practice Speakers Panel to help us be prepared to speak at our Speaker Bureau events.

Everyone welcome!

Once again our Twin Cities Sisters in Crime chapter joined other exhibitors at the annual Twin Cities Book Festival sponsored by Rain Taxi.

We spent the day chatting to festival goers, selling and signing our books, and spreading the word about Twin Cities Sisters in Crime.

Thanks to everyone who came to help out at our table!

Our local chapter was a co-sponsor of KILLER COCKTAILS @ MLA, an annual event that’s become part of the Minnesota Library Association Annual Conference, held from October 3-5, 2012. This year’s venue was the atmospheric James J. Hill Reference Library, on Rice Park in downtown Saint Paul.

Our planning committee, headed up by vice-president Jessie Chandler,  got together with MLA’s fabulous local event committee, who went all out with decorations. Each table was set up with handcuffs, lead pipes, and other props. Twin Cities Sisters in Crime helped organize author tables as well as some fun activities and prizes for attending librarians.

We rented a photo booth and set up a table with mystery props. Linda Koutsky designed our great new brochure, and an autograph sheet that doubled as a drawing entry form. Cheryl Ullyot worked on swag bags for attendees, assisted by Mickie Turk, who also took some of these swell pictures. Stan Trollip worked on gathering prizes for drawings, and made some good-looking certificates for the winners of the Speakers Bureau appearances.

Signature cocktails were the order of the day. Offerings included the Killer Cosmo, Dirty Rotten Scoundrel Martini, Tequila Murder at Sunrise, and of course the Manhattan Murder Mystery.

Everyone had a great time, and we got to meet some wonderful librarians from all across the state!

We went on a field trip to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension on Thursday, April 5, touring their facility on Saint Paul’s East Side, and learning about all the facets of their work.

Our April 5 group tour of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was great; everyone seemed to enjoy it and learned so much from our great tour guides, Denny Owens and Eldon Ukestad. There were a number of people who couldn’t make the April tour, so we’re going to book another, perhaps in June. More on that later…

Here are a few pictures from the tour… I’ve posted additional photos at the Twin Cities Sisters in Crime Facebook Group.