Page 25 - Amarillo Senior Link Magazine Winter 2020- Online Magazine

cookbook. She remembers that, drop ‘Professional’ from the name
when she joined in 2001, the club
had 300-500 members, depending
on the year. She was volunteering
for a workshop and was assigned
to be chauffeur for one of the
guest speakers, who was with
a publishing house. During the
course of the weekend, while they
were driving, the agent asked if
Phyliss had any work to share.
Long story short, the wannabee
cookbook author did six romance
anthologies with them and,
from that weekend on, was the
speaker’s escort whenever in
town.
Advice from these three on
becoming an author? 1) It’s
absolutely crucial to join a local
writers’ club and critique group
if you’re serious about a writing
career. You’ll learn the craft
through hands-on training. 2)
Interface with other writers. 3)
Belong to a national organization
for your genre of writing. 4) Enter
contests to get experience, money
and exposure. 5) Learn as much as
you can, however you can.
According to the website, “In
2015, in an effort to position
the group as an aid to both
professional and beginning
writers, another name change was
proposed. The board decided to
Members today are as talented
and settled on the new name of
Texas High Plains Writers.”
The group has dropped the
contests and workshops in lieu
of having professional editors,
journalists, publishers and
authors as speakers on a bi-
monthly basis. The meetings are
in the morning, and members are
invited to come back after lunch
for critique groups.
An interesting side note is that
you are never too old to begin
a writing career. Writers come
in all ages, from 4 years old to
100. Some write for a career, but
many members write simply for
enjoyment.
Janet Taylor, Treasurer for 2019
and a past president, is one of
those people. She and Mike Akins,
last year’s president, are part of
the current group working to
inspire a whole new generation of
authors and writers. In an effort
to create a vibrant club connected
through media and moving
through the next 100 years, they
are continuously looking at ways
to inspire the public. In 2018, the
club was instrumental in bringing
books and authors to the Amarillo
Arts Fest. After all, the written
word is truly an art form.
and involved in community as
were the founding women of
PPW. Today, men and women
are involved. Journalists,
songwriters, editors, publishers,
poets, authors, and novice writers
are all on the roll. Classes on
non-fiction, fiction, traditional
and self-publishing, and editing
are examples of what you can
glean while attending their
meetings. As their website states,
“In the spirit of our new name,
we seek to promote writing and
support writers all across the
Texas Panhandle and surrounding
areas.”
If there’s one legacy that has been
passed down through 100 years of
this organization’s existence, it’s
the group’s consistent persistence
in supporting the writing
community. It embodies the heart
of this club.
Congratulations on 100 years,
Texas High Plains Writers.
May your next 100 be as inspiring
as the last.
To learn more about the club, go
to texashighplainswriters.com
Amarillo Senior Link 25