Here is a brief listing of important dates for the Writers Guild for 2011-2012:

2011-2012 Calendar

• August 16, 2011
  Annual Business Meeting
  Executive Board Meeting
• September 20, 2011
  Membership Meeting
  Facebook Posts 101 –Safety and sharing with Rebekah Hatcher
• October 18, 2011
  Membership Meeting
  High School Writing Contest opens
  Science Forensics in Writing with Joan Escamilla
• October 22, 2011
  Writers Guild Members Book Sale At Mushroom Festival
• November 15, 2011
  Membership Meeting
  The First Season with Johnny Carter
  Christmas Anthology submissions due
• December 13, 2011
  Annual Christmas Social – At Bedias Civic Center 6:00 PM
  Student Contest Judges receive submissions
• January 17, 2012
  Membership Meeting
  Winter Anthology Submissions due
• February 18 & 19, 2012
  Texas Writers Book Sale & Signing Combined with Spring Workshop
• February 21, 2012
  Membership Meeting
  Student Contest Awards presentation
• March 3, 2012
  Madison County Arts Council Dinner
  “Winter” Anthology debut
• March 15, 2012
  Membership Meeting
• April 17, 2012
  Membership Meeting
  Annual Report to Membership
  Nominations of Officers
• May 15, 2012
  Annual Meeting
  Elections of Officers
  End of Season Social with guest author
  Guild Choice Awards Presentation

Save the Date!

Saturday, March 3, 2012
at 6:30 PM

Seton Center
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church
Madisonville, TX

You are invited to attend out USO party!

Enjoy 1940′s Big Band Music & Dinner.

Please RSVP by
February 20, 2012
(dinner by reservation only)

Tickets are $20 each.

Contact Glenda Collard to make your reservations:

phone: 936-348-1173 or gkcollard2@yahoo.com

The Madison County Writers Guild invites you to the Texas Authors book Sale and Signing on Saturday, February 18 from 9 a.m. till 5 p.m. at the Kimbro Center. This year, we will be having short story and poetry readings during the book signing, and we invite Arts Council members and their family and friends to come out and enjoy a good old fashioned story or two. Readers will include our very own Burke Landry, Lloyd Perry, Betty Strawther, and more. There is no charge for Saturday’s festivities, and space is still available for authors who are interested in participating.

Then on Sunday, February 19, we’ll host our Annual Writing Workshop from 1:00 p.m. to 5:30p.m. at the Kimbro Center. **note** if you can’t quite make 1 p.m., come anyway!** Our speakers will be Janet McCann, who will lead a poetry workshop from 1:00 to 3:00, and Mark Troy, who will lead a short story workshop from 3:30 to 5:30. Prices for workshop participants are $25 in advance, and $30 at the door. (Guild members get in free of charge.) CLICK HERE to download our flyer.

For more information, contact:
Joan Escamilla – bediasgotogal@ymail.com – 936-395-0728
or Louis Popowskyj – popowskyj@gmail.com – 979-906-0294

Art Affair members Toni Hardy and Rita Spencer recently entered their work in the Brazos Valley Art League/Lone Star Art Guild Judged Show, and made us proud!

You can see all the work from the 3rd BVAL/Lone Star Art Guild Judged Show until February 3rd at The Arts Center at 2275 Dartmouth Street in College Station. It is open Monday thru Thursday 9am – 6pm, Friday 9am – 5pm, and Saturday 10am – 2pm.  For more information about the Arts Center, contact the ACBV at 979-696-2787 or info@acbv.org

It is the support of members like you that allows the Madison County Arts Council to continue its work of promoting the arts in Madison County and the surrounding area. The projects undertaken include the annual scholarship which is awarded to a graduating senior of a Madison County school. This scholarship has been expanded to an award of $1000 for each of two years assuming the recipient maintains acceptable scholastic achievement. Your arts council, through the Arts in Education Committee, also provides grants to the Madison County schools to help provide supplies and equipment used in the various fields of the arts. Your arts council also provides oversight and an umbrella of tax exempt status to the various specialty groups associated with the council.

The annual membership drive is beginning. Remember the MCAC fiscal year corresponds with the calendar year. Rebecca Keefer has volunteered to head the Membership Committee and informs that invitations to renew Madison County Arts Council membership are being prepared for mailing to current and past members of the council. If you have any questions concerning membership renewal or know of someone who might be interested in joining our group please contact Rebecca. Her email address is rebecca@sunfloweranne.com.

Persons interested in serving on the Madison County Arts Council Board of Directors are invited to contact the current board president, Fred Keefer. fredkeefer@windstream.net.

The Writers Guild Christmas Party is tomorrow, December 13, 6:00 P.M. at the Bedias Civic Center

Directions From Madisonville: South on HWY 90 – At Bedias Bank take a left on 1696 1 block on right – red brick Civic Center – across from fire dept.