May Cosmic Raccoon Out

Recovering children's book store owner, Gwynne Spencer has published her May 2009 Cosmic Raccoon. To subscribe contact her by googling Gwynne Spencer or looking on this blog for her web site.

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Always in Print ‘Cuz They’re Print on Demand!

Coming in 2009, Belle’s Star,’ a youth novel from Artemesia Press at http://www.apbooks.net

Cosmic Raccoon up for February

Gwynne Spencer's February Cosmic Raccoon is ready. She has some nice reading tips and thoughts on winter. You can reach her on this blog at her web site.

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Write On Author To Be announcement Debbie Jordan

Debbie Jordan will be on Write On Four Corners in 2009
LOCAL AUTHOR NOW INTERNET COLUMNIST
Debbie Jordan, author of "The World I Imagine: A creative manual for ending poverty and building peace" and "Lion’s Pride," is the Phoenix Progressive Examiner for the internet news website Examiner.com. As she has done for eight years in Arizona City "Independent/Edition," Jordan will share observations on events in Washington and discuss their effect on the Arizona citizens. Jordan posts several Examiner.com items each week. Her latest entry is available at:
http://www.examiner.com/x-1892-Phoenix-Progressive-Examiner

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Always in Print ‘Cuz They’re Print on Demand!

Coming in 2009, Belle’s Star,’ a youth novel from Artemesia Press at http://www.apbooks.net

New Mexico Book CoOp News

BOOK STORE & GRAND OPENING OF FLYING STAR CAFÉ IN BERNALILLO
This is an all-call to anyone who wants to sell some books Labor Day weekend — and best of all it does not cost anything!!!!!!
The new Flying Star Cafe in Bernalillo will have its Grand Opening Labor Day weekend in Bernalillo August 30, 31 and September 1, 2008 and you can have your books there to sell. It costs nothing and you don’t have to be there all weekend. The New Mexico Book Co-op is having a Book Fair/Store to celebrate the New Mexico Wine Festival and the opening of Flying Star Cafe in Bernalillo. The new Flying Star Cafe is located directly across the street from the NM Wine Festival and they anticipate 30,000 people coming, many walking down from the Road Runner station which is a block behind the new Flying Star Cafe. Flying Star Café has given us a store front next to the café and we will feature loads of local books.
If you want to participate here is what you do:
1. bring 10 copies (only 10 and no more) on Friday August 29 between 9am and 11am, the space is locked so do not come before or after these times as there is no place to leave them except in the space when it is open.
2. all books must have a price on them — and we suggest that books be at a discount to help things sell. Take all books out of shrink wrap so people can browse through them.
3. bring an invoice with your name, phone, address and the title and sales price of your books and quantity. You will get 100% of the sales price minus a fee for any sales by credit card (about 4%)
4. if you have any blowups or posters of your book cover (minimum of 11x17) please bring them to help decorate the space.
5. pick up all your books on Monday Sept 1 between 4:30pm and 6:30pm. Books not picked up at these times may not get returned.
The space is located at 240 South Camino del Pueblo in Bernalillo (Main St) across from the San Lorenzo Church and the NM Wine Festival grounds. It is also right next to the new Flying Star Café and the Obama headquarters. The space is right in front of the marquee sign for the Las Huertas Plaza. See the flier on this events at http://nmsantos.com/page10/FYI.html

CALLING ALL BOOKS FOR REVIEW
ReadingNewMexico.com goes live on Monday, September 1, 2008. Almost all of the books we have received will be reviewed with the next batch of reviews coming October 1. Thanks to our speedy group of reviewers, we need more books. If you have a book you’d like reviewed, please visit the website http://www.readingnewmexico for guidelines and address. For those of you participating in the Book Co-op store at Bernalillo Labor Day weekend, you can leave a copy of your book with the staff to be sent on to Reading New Mexico for review. Review copies will not be returned. They will be donated to a library or nursing home or other charitable organization.

HOLIDAY BOOKSELLING OPPORTUNITY AT ZIA ARTS & CRAFTS SHOW
The NM Book Co-op with leadership from Jill Lane is hosting a Book Sale Emporium at the Zia Art & Crafts Show at the State Fairgrounds in Albuquerque, November 21- 23. This is an opportunity to have your book at a large holiday show and we hope it is seen and bought for holiday gift giving. If you are interested in having your title there for three days the fee is $15 for the 1st title and $5 for each additional title if you sign up and reserve space before September 15. The price goes up on September 15. You are not expected to be there except to deliver and pick up your books. We will have a sales staff. To sign up email us your Name/Email/Phone/Address/Title and author for each book. To pay for your space for this event go to http://nmbookcoop.com/page18/page104/page104.html


New Mexico Book Coop
925 Salamanca NW
Los Ranchos, NM 87107
505.344-9382
info@nmbookcoop.com

http://www.nmbookcoop.com

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Always in Print ‘Cuz They’re Print on Demand!

Coming in 2009, Belle’s Star,’ a youth novel from Artemesia Press at http://www.apbooks.net

Write On Four Corners Sean Murphy June 25 and 27 KSJE Farmington

The Write On Four Corners Schedule for June, 2008 KSJE FM




June 25 and June 27 Sean Murphy The Time of New Weather Delta Trade Press


Write On Four Corners runs on Wednesdays at 10:30 am and Fridays at 2:30 pm Mountain Time on KSJE FM 90.9 You can listen on the web at www.ksje.com in real time by clicking on listen live, or by going MP3 Archives, Write On Four Corners, and the program you wish to hear. We usually send up the podcasts a little after the Wednesday broadcasts.


Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Coming in 2009, Belle’s Star,’ a youth novel from Artemesia Press at http://www.apbooks.net

Gotsch Reviews Book

Host of KSJE FM's Write On Four Corners, and author of the novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouth Full of Shell, Connie Gotsch has reviewed a book by Sabra Brown Steinsiek. 'Annie's Song', published by Whiskey Creek Press is the delightful story of young love with a healthy dose of New Mezxico and New York to add to the joy. Drop by http://www.thenewbookreview.blogspot.com/ to read the review.

Sabra will be on Write On Four Corners, KSJE's Author Show in 2009.

Ann Wylie's Writing Tips

Wylie's Writing Tips
_____________________________________________

May 7, 2008
Publisher: Ann Wylie, Ann@WylieComm.com
Copyright Ann Wylie, 2008

_____________________________________________

"You can taste a word."

-- Pearl Bailey,
popular American singer,
quoted in Newsweek

_____________________________________________
In this issue
_____________________________________________

* Quick tips: Create a new word; use the 'voice of the reader'; and change media, vehicles
* Make it meaningful with metaphor: Communicate complex concepts through metaphor
* Make your message more believable: People find stories more credible than statistics
* Increase your rate of return on information: Move up the Data-Information-Knowledge-Understanding-Wisdom scale
* How to make readers fall in love with your publication: Saint Luke's patient magazine jumps nearly 20 points in popularity
* Check out Ann's touring schedule: Polish your skills when you catch Ann on the road
* Keep up with Ann's calendar: Find out when Ann's coming to your neighborhood

___________________________________________

"I'm a doctor -- I can add 'ectomy' to any word I choose."

-- Doctor talking to a patient
in a Paul Noth cartoon
for The New Yorker

_____________________________________________
Quick tips
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Play with your words
_____________________________________________

Create a new word, use the 'voice of the reader,' and change media and vehicles with these three tips from Rev Up Readership, Ann's premium toolbox for communicators:
http://tinyurl.com/hklye

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Create a new word
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Freshly minted words get more attention than tired coinages. Tap that truth to "brand" your next product, study or idea.

One way to do so: Create a new word by gluing two familiar words together.

* That's what Weber Shandwick did in its study on advocacy. The PR firm combined two words -- "bad" and "advocate" -- to create a new one: "badvocate."

* The newspaper industry has used the same approach to define its USA Today-inspired graphic stories: "Chart" plus "article" equals "charticle."

* And designer Richard Owens has coined a term for his upscale rock-and-roll look: "Grunge" plus "glamour" equals "glunge."

Rev Up Readership Gold and Silver members, get more tips for developing wordplay that goes beyond twist of phrase:
http://tinyurl.com/rsooe

Gold members, get more than 40 tipsheets on how to surprise and delight your readers with wordplay: http://tinyurl.com/y6vmj5.

Not yet a Rev Up Readership member? Join now:
http://tinyurl.com/hklye

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Use the 'voice of the reader'
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Readers like to hear from other people like them.

Letters to the editor, reader feedback and other first-person, reader-generated copy -- the "voice of the reader" -- attracts readers more than the "voice of the paper," according to The Poynter Institute's Eyetrack07 study.

"Voice of the paper" content includes editorials, op-ed columnists and other copy by the publication's own staff members.

Among readers of broadsheets, or papers formatted like The New York Times:

* "Voice of the reader" pieces drew 68 percent more attention than expected based on the number of those elements available to be seen.

* "Voice of the paper" elements received 38 percent less attention than expected.

To get more "voice of the people" content into your publication, let the reader speak through:

* Letters from customers
* Drawings, poetry and essays from customers and clients
* E-mail missives from a global team
* Diaries and journals from people like the reader

Rev Up Readership Gold members, find more than 60 articles about how to come up with fresh angles for tired topics:
http://tinyurl.com/23mqmv

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Change media, vehicles
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Having trouble getting your message approved? Try switching media or vehicles.

Approval-process pros have learned that some media and vehicles are easier to get approved than others.

For instance, conventional wisdom in big PR firms is that press releases require rigorous approval, while pitches require … well, sometimes, no approval at all. PR pros in these firms put their most creative material in the pitch, then share it informally by phone or e-mail -- thus end-running the formal review process that releases go through.

Communicators also find that face-to-face and online communications require fewer approvals than print.

So make the switch. If your approvers won't sign off on your piece, see whether you can get the word out via a pitch, a meeting or a Web page instead.

Rev Up Readership Gold members, get more than 60 tipsheets on how to improve approvals:
http://tinyurl.com/shwwj

______________________________________________

"Words are the hummingbirds of the imagination."

-- Elbert Hubbard,
American writer, editor and printer

______________________________________________
Make it meaningful with metaphor
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Communicate complex concepts through metaphor _____________________________________________

Communicators too often think of metaphor as a poetic doodah that has no place in serious nonfiction writing.

Wrong!

Metaphor is a workhorse of all meaningful writing. Metaphors help audience members understand new, complex information by means of something they already understand. Specifically, metaphor can help you:

* Take the numb out of numbers
* Replace clichés
* Communicate complicated information
* Bring a tired topic to life

Now you can get more than 60 articles packed with tools, tips and formulas to help you write better metaphors -- all on RevUpReadership.com. Plus, as a Gold member, you'll have access to more than 1,300 articles in total, all exhaustively indexed and easy to find.

Whether you're looking for metaphor do's and don'ts, questions to ask to find analogies in interviews or step-by-step tips for crafting compelling comparisons, you'll find it on RevUpReadership.com.

Learn more:
http://www.revupreadership.com/

_____________________________________________

"[RevUpReadership.com] is the best industry resource for taking academic theories and proposing models of application. No need to understand balance theory when you have the model of writing about benefits and not features!"

-- Kristi Jones
Raleigh, N.C.

______________________________________________
Make your message more believable
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People find stories more credible than statistics _____________________________________________

It's counterintuitive but true: People believe information more readily if it's delivered in a story rather than through statistics, according to Peg C. Neuhauser's Corporate Legends and Lore.

Why?

* Readers connect with the people in stories. It's the Peer Principle of Persuasion: People believe that if something worked for someone else, it will work for them, too.

* Readers are cynical about numbers. Audience members know that organizations can twist numbers to say whatever the organization wants them to say.

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Add narrative to numbers
---------------------------------------------------

But that doesn't mean it never makes sense to use statistics. In fact, one very credible combination is to:

* Lead with an anecdote that illustrates your point.
* Follow up with a statistic that demonstrates the scope of the issue.

Add a story to your statistic, and you'll make both more powerful.

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Master the Art of the Storyteller
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In fact, storytelling is "the most powerful form of human communication," according to Peg Neuhauser, author of Corporate Legends and Lore.

Find out how to you can put this power tool to work in your very next piece at the Public Relations Society of America's May 22 teleseminar, "Master the Art of the Storyteller."

You'll learn:

* Five places to look for stories
* How to get people to bring you their stories
* The key question to ask during an interview to elicit juicy anecdotes
* How "WBHA" can help you find anecdotes in the making
* A quick, easy-to-remember template for building an anecdote
* The best place to start an anecdote -- and the worst place

Sign up or get more details:
http://tinyurl.com/58ou49

Learn about Ann's other upcoming teleseminars:
http://tinyurl.com/zk289

_____________________________________________

"We're supposed to be tellers of tales as well as purveyors of facts. When we don't live up to that responsibility, we don't get read."

-- William Blundell,
author of The Art and Craft of Feature Writing

_____________________________________________
Increase your rate of return on information
---------------------------------------------------
Move up the Data-Information-Knowledge-Understanding-Wisdom scale _____________________________________________

In 1989, systems scientist Russell Ackoff created a hierarchy of information, from least valuable to most:

* Data
* Information
* Knowledge
* Understanding
* Wisdom

Despite this, most organizations still invest the bulk of their resources on accumulating and moving data, the least on wisdom.

That's expensive.

To increase your rate of return on information, consider Ackoff's hierarchy before you press "send." Is your copy just adding to the pile of facts -- data -- in your organization? Or is your message likely to help your audience members find knowledge and understanding?

As the data deluge threatens to engulf your workplace, your company needs communicators who add value to information instead of just repackaging it, who translate instead of regurgitate, who inform instead of disseminate.

Do that, and you can serve as an organizational alchemist who transforms a flood of facts into a stream of knowledge. Wisdom, even.

And that's the gold standard of the Information Age.

Learn more ways to overcome information overload: http://tinyurl.com/6nuw7e

___

Sources: Ann Wylie, Overcome Information Overload, Wylie Communications Inc., 2005: http://tinyurl.com/6nuw7e; "The Too-Much Information Age," Seed Magazine, January/February 2008

_____________________________________________
How to make readers fall in love with your publication
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Saint Luke's patient magazine jumps nearly 20 points in popularity _____________________________________________

When Saint Luke's Health System recently asked readers what they thought of Health magazine, 95.5 percent gave it top scores.

That contrasts with 78.5 percent in the 2002 survey.

What happened in the interim?

Saint Luke's brilliant marketing executives brought in Wylie Communications to revamp the magazine, changing everything from the name to the design to the editorial lineup to the writing quality.

Since then, Saint Luke's has invited Wylie Communications to create, revamp, write and produce other newsletters, magazines and reports as well.

At Wylie Communications, we love publications. And we'd love to help you with yours. So drop me a line if you need help:

* Writing any or all of your publication copy
* Improving readability
* Finding your creative direction
* Launching a new publication
* Revitalizing a tired one
* Identifying opportunities for improvement
* Creating an anniversary publication or other special edition

Check out how we've helped others:
http://tinyurl.com/2jahpk

Or let me know how we can help you:
Ann@WylieComm.com

____________________________________________
Nothing but the truth
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What people say about Ann's writing workshops _____________________________________________

"Great step-by-step instructions on how to do it right."

-- Stacy Mayo,
assistant account executive,
Rhea + Kaiser

_____________________________________________
Where in the world is Ann?
---------------------------------------------------
Cut your training costs when you piggyback your program _____________________________________________

Save money when you piggyback your workshop by scheduling it when Ann is already "in the neighborhood." Book your program the day before or after another organization's and split Ann's airfare and ground transportation with the other group.

Ask about piggybacking on Ann's upcoming engagements in:

* Chicago: May 8-9, Oct. 3
* Denver: May 28
* Kansas City, Mo.: June 9
* Philadelphia: May 16
* Phoenix: June 4
* Port Washington, N.Y.: June 23
* Portland, Ore.: July 21-Aug. 22
* Quad Cities: Sept. 10
* Saratoga Springs, N.Y.: June 21
* Taunton, Mass.: June 12
* Washington, D.C.: May 19

Save even more: Ask about Ann's communication association discounts and second-day fee reductions.

Contact Ann to discuss piggybacking:
Ann@WylieComm.com

_____________________________________________
Ann's touring schedule
---------------------------------------------------
Polish your skills at one of these events _____________________________________________

Alas, I can't invite you to the in-house seminars I present for private organizations. But everyone's invited to these upcoming public seminars in:

* Chicago on May 9. "Beyond the Inverted Pyramid" and "Think Like a Reader," two sessions for Ragan's Corporate Communicators Conference:
http://tinyurl.com/3a8c9j

* Chicago on Oct. 3. "Rev Up Readership," a keynote for the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Business Writing Conference:
http://tinyurl.com/2gcdwx

* Philadelphia on May 16. "Rev Up Readership," a keynote for the IABC Business Writing Conference:
http://tinyurl.com/ytjzhn

* Portland, Ore., on Aug. 7. "Think Like a Reader," a half-day workshop for the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)/Portland:
http://tinyurl.com/59hwhx

* Saratoga Springs, N.Y. on June 21. "Make Your Copy More Creative," a one-day workshop for the American Horse Publications annual conference:
http://tinyurl.com/33rwr3

* Washington, D.C., on May 19: "Writing That Sells," a one-day workshop for PRSA:
http://tinyurl.com/258apo

Would you like to attend? Please contact meeting planners directly for details.

Can't make these events? If you'd like to bring an Ann Wylie workshop to your organization, contact her at Ann@WylieComm.com

_____________________________________________
Keep up with Ann's calendar
_____________________________________________

Want to find out when Ann's coming to your neighborhood, learn when you can sign up for one of her programs and otherwise keep up with her calendar? Check out:
http://tinyurl.com/zk289

_____________________________________________
What are we up to?
_____________________________________________

The folks at Wylie Communications have been enjoying:

* Writing magazine, newsletter and report copy for Northern Trust and Saint Luke's/Kansas City:
http://tinyurl.com/hgjlg

* Serving as creative consultants for marketing magazines and newsletters for Northern Trust and Saint Luke's/Kansas City:
http://tinyurl.com/fgv5m

* Presenting writing workshops for Verizon Wireless and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA):
http://tinyurl.com/kyfun

* Presenting teleseminars for the Cooperative Communicators of America and PRSA:
http://tinyurl.com/eh3up

_____________________________________________
For more info --
_____________________________________________

--- about Ann Wylie's seminars, publication consulting or writing and editing services, please contact Ann at:
Ann@WylieComm.com

Or visit:
http://WylieComm.com

_____________________________________________
Please forward this issue --
_____________________________________________

-- to two of your colleagues. They'll thank you -- and so will Ann!


About This E-zine

Ann Wylie's Writing Tips is a whenever-Ann-sends-it e-zine for clients, colleagues and other friends who want to reach more readers or produce better publications and Websites.

To update your Ann Wylie's Writing Tips name and e-mail address:
http://www.mailermailer.com/x?oid=21528q

To unsubscribe/change profile:
http://www.mailermailer.com/x?u=36112782e-8907fd23

To subscribe:
http://www.mailermailer.com/x?oid=21528q

Invite your pals to subscribe, send them this link:
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Note: Ann never sells or shares her e-mail list. Period.

Ann Wylie's Writing Tips is copyright 2008 by Ann Wylie. All rights reserved.

Ann Wylie, Wylie Communications Inc., 4618 Warwick, Ste. 7A, Kansas City, MO, 64112

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Lisa Lenard Cook Signs Book at Maria''s Book Store in Durango

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Libby Cowles


Staff and Community Relations Manager


Maria's Bookshop


libby@mariasbookshop.com


(970) 247-1438





book signing with lisa lenard-cook, author of The mind of your story,


at maria's bookshop




DURANGO (May 1, 2008)- Maria's Bookshop at 960 Main Avenue in Durango will host a signing on Tuesday, May 13th from 6:30 to 7:30 pm for former Durango resident Lisa Lenard-Cook, who has just published The Mind of Your Story:
Discover what Drives Your Fiction.



The Mind of Your Story takes writers beyond the basics and guides them through the foundations and the nuances of story creation, allowing them to create fiction that grabs the reader and doesn't let go.



Lenard-Cook's first novel, Dissonance, won the Jim Sagel Prize for the Novel while in manuscript. After its publication by the University of New Mexico Press in 2003, it was selected as a book of the year by such diverse libraries as the Tucson-Pima County Public Library and the Cincinnati Public Library. In 2004, the book was both a NPR Performance Today Summer Reading Choice and the countywide reading selection for Durango-La Plata Reads, and in 2005 it was short-listed for the PEN Southwest Book Award. Lisa's second novel, Coyote Morning, was published by UNM Press in 2004, was selected a Southwest Book of the Year, and was recently short-listed for the New Mexico Press Women's Zia Award.



Lenard-Cook has just finished her next novel, begun over twenty years ago.
Her monthly column at www.authorlink.com, The Art of Fiction, has been called "a refreshing approach to the art of fiction writing." She also reviews books for the independent Weekly Alibi in Albuquerque, and has had short stories published in a number of journals, most recently The Southwest Review . She is a faculty member at the Santa Barbara Writers Conference and Narrative Art Center , and, in addition to being a popular conference and workshop speaker, she teaches fiction writing in private classes, works as a freelance writer and editor, and takes particular joy in mentoring both beginning and more experienced fiction writers.

Lisa Lenard-Cook holds a B.A. with departmental honors from SUNY Buffalo and an M.F.A. in fiction writing from Vermont College. She was a member of the English department faculty at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado throughout the 1990s

For more information about the event, call (970) 247-1438 or visit www.mariasbookshop.com

Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

Gwynne Spencer's May Cosmic Raccoon

Hi Everyone,

Write On Four Corners family member Gwynne Spencer's May Cosmic Raccoon is up. To subscrube go to
http://www.gwynnespencer.com or find the link on the right hand side of this blog. Gwynne continues her adventures in the pacific Northwest where she has moved.




Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com

The Write On Four Corners Schedule for April, 2008 KSJE FM


April 30 and May 2 Janet Heller How the Moon Regained her Shape Sylvan Dell Publishing


Write On Four Corners runs on Wednesdays at 10:30 am and Fridays at 2:30 pm Mountain Time on KSJE FM 90.9 You can listen on the web at www.ksje.com in real time by clicking on listen live, or by going MP3 Archives, Write On Four Corners, and the program you wish to hear. We usually send up the podcasts a little after the Wednesday broadcasts.


Connie Gotsch www.conniegotsch.com Host Write On Four Corners KSJE FM, Farmington NM www.ksje.com Author two award winning novels Snap Me a Future and A Mouthful of Shell available www.dlsijpress.com