APW Central Chapter Meeting – 1/10/26 with Karen Lateiner
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: APW Central Chapter – The Importance of Telling Our Stories with Karen Lateiner
Date: Saturday, January 10, 2026
Time: 10:00 AM Arizona MST
Zoom Meeting: Members have been sent the link for the meeting. Guests are welcome and should contact Jaimie Bruzenak for the link if they desire to attend.
Bio- Karen Shiffman Lateiner, M.Ed. is an author and LGBTQ+ ally. Throughout her personal life and professional career as a developmental psychologist and mental health clinician, she has actively advocated for safe and nurturing school and home environments for all children, especially for those at-risk for marginalization and bullying. Karen served on the Affirmative Action Committee and LGBT Task Force of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, as well as the Phoenix Task Force on Bullying.
Understanding the transition of her own child from male to female during the mid-1990’s and then grappling with her new daughter’s tragic death two years later, motivated her to share what she experienced and what she learned about transgender issues, as well as life in general. Her compelling book, Timeless Dance: A Story of Change and Loss, is a memoir, biography, and primer on gender diversity. Since its publication in 2018, telling her story in a variety of educational, social, religious, and corporate venues, and appearing as a guest author at book groups, provides an opportunity to open important conversations about LGBTQ+ issues, past and present.
A native of New Jersey, she moved to New York City in her teens, where she later met and married her husband of more than fifty-five years. After spending a year living on a kibbutz in Israel, they returned to New York, then ultimately settled in Montclair, New Jersey, where they raised their two children. Upon retirement, she and her husband traveled the country for two years by motorhome before making Arizona their new home to be near their younger daughter. Combining her love of writing and the Sonoran Desert, Karen created a Hike and Write program to encourage others to write as a means of expressing their thoughts and telling their own unique stories. Currently, she is a member of Arizona Professional Writers where she manages a book group, and serves as president of her homeowners association. In her spare time she enjoys gardening and baking sourdough bread.
APW Central Chapter Zoom meeting with Katrina Shawver 9/13
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Writing Lean – Make Every Word Count
Date: Saturday, September 13
Time: 10 a.m. Arizona
Join Zoom: Members have been sent the Zoom link. It is also posted in the Members-only section of the website. https://arizonaprofessionalwriters.org/members-only/apw-virtual-meetings/ Contact your chapter chairperson well in advance of the meeting if you have forgotten the sign-in or have lost your invitation.
Nonmembers are welcome to attend and should send an email to Marie Fasano mafasano1 @ gmail.com or Jaimie Bruzenak calamityjaimie @ gmail.com requesting the link, Please request the link by Wednesday, September 10.
Topic: Writing Lean – Make Every Word Count. From newspapers to novels, it’s critical to be frugal with words for maximum impact. Katrina will share tips and tricks to make every word count.
Author Bio:
Katrina Shawver is an experienced writer, speaker and long-time history geek. As a journalist, she wrote for The Arizona Republic, Arizona Parenting, Phoenix Downtown, and other publications for many years. In 2002, she met Henry Zguda, a Polish Catholic survivor of German concentration camps, and soon offered to write his incredible story. She spent over ten years researching Poland, World War II, and the Holocaust. Her award-winning book, Henry: A Polish Swimmer’s True Story of Friendship from Auschwitz to America, is available in English, Polish, and Czech.
Katrina is a seasoned Toastmaster and has presented to many audiences. She served as a writer in residence at the Glendale Public Library in Glendale, Arizona. In previous lives she worked as a project manager in software support, a paralegal, a tax preparer, answered phones for a forensic psychiatrist, hiked the Grand Canyon three times, and still wishes sweet potato fries counted as a vegetable. For more information, visit katrinashawver.com.
APW Central Chapter Zoom Meeting 6-14-25 Carol Baxter
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Carol Baxter – At the Intersection of Wordsmithing and Art, One Woman’s Journey
Date: Saturday, June 14, 2025
Time: 10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81862254003?pwd=KFVyqUyfiQcc9yHzQkoAieOnCmCftQ.1
Meeting ID: 818 6225 4003
Passcode: 979135
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbFsjuLHKR
Topic- At the Intersection of Wordsmithing and Art, One Woman’s Journey
Peer inside the mind of an award-winning author who wears (too) many hats. Carol Baxter will regale you with how she went from crafting stories in her head, to being a features reporter at the Payson Roundup Newspaper, to writing grants, to curating content for art supply companies, to website creation, to writing memoirs for people to give to their children and future generations, to trying to crack the first draft of a novel. Carol has a fun, quick, writing exercise planned. You can download the PDF and print it out on your computer: https://www.talesofalifetime.net/memoir-starter-questions-examples-musings-carol-baxter-blog/my-lil-memoir-zine
Website: www.talesofalifetime.net/
Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/caroljeanbaxter/
Blog: medium.com/@rainofstars.carol
Winners At-Large Communications Contest!
Congratulations to APW members who won awards in the At-Large Division of the NFPW Communications Contest this year! Arizona Professional Writers no longer has it’s own contest, but instead competes against entries from 20-some state affiliates that also do not have their own contest. Winning and placing is quite an honor! First place winners go on to compete at the national level contest. Winners of the national contest will be announced in June.
Carol Baxter
First place in Public Relations materials for “Day Tripping”
Chrisann Dawson
First place in Writing novels for adult readers for Congo Ebola
Jody Sharpe
First place in Novellas for adult readers for The Dog Who Came For Christmas
Nancy Marshall
Second Place in Writing novels for adult readers for Finding Zachariah in a Community Garden
Susan Anderson
Honorable mention in writing fiction children’s books for Cool, Cool Cactus Critters
-
- Carol Baxter
-
- Carol Baxter, At-Large – Arizona 3rd Place – Public Relations Materials > 53 Catalog, Manual, or Handbook for “Day Tripping”
-
- Chrisann Dawson
-
- Chrisann Dawson, At-Large – Arizona 2nd Place – Fiction for Adult Readers > 11A – Novels for “Congo Ebola”
-
- Jody Sharpe
-
- The Dog Who Came for Christmas – Jody Sharpe – https://www.amazon.com/Dog-Who-Came-Christmas/dp/0988562057/ref=mp_s_a_1_1
-
- Nancy Marshall
-
- Finding Zachariah
-
- Susan Clair Anderson
-
- Cool, Cool Cactus Critters
APW Central Chapter Zoom Meeting 3/8 – Virginia Mohler
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: “To Retire or Retread, That is the Question.”
Date: Saturday, March 8, 2025
Time: 10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81633563990?pwd=rGSwTTbQi414NCHk4nHbPzgs59rf25.1
Meeting ID: 816 3356 3990
Passcode: 415018 – You will need the passcode at sign in.
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcFBAgQFqq
To Retire or Retread, That is the Question
Author Virginia Mohler retired from teaching in June of 2020 after over 50 years in the classroom. She presently writes children’s books that inspire and encourage young minds, as well as history and humor for adults. Virginia writes a weekly blog on her website to inform and entertain. These funny stories and little-known historical facts are meant to encourage and uplift those of any age.
Central Chapter meeting 2/8/25 with Betsy Love
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: “Remaining Positive and Creating Achievable Goals” with Betsy Love
Date: Saturday, February 8, 2025
Time: 10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84304161514?pwd=kb5ux0A4VsDkC5QaJJ3JYH0UIEs2hD.1
Meeting ID: 843 0416 1514
Passcode: 402179 You will need this to join the meeting
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcSDkvwBkS
Betsy’s Bio:
Betsy Love has loved to write from the moment she could hold a pen and has been creating stories since she was in elementary school. In high school, her creative writing teacher told her one day she would be published.
After raising her family, she graduated Suma Cum Laude from Ottawa University with a bachelor’s in English and Secondary education. Besides, her family, she loved teaching high school theater and English.
When not sitting at her computer pouring her heart and soul into her novels, she loves spending time with her family. She is the mother of eight children and at last count, has 21 grandchildren.
If she had a horse, she’d ride it. If she had a pool, she’d swim in it. But since she doesn’t have either, she writes. And her amazing husband has accepted that pajamas are an acceptable attire for her profession.
APW Central Chapter 11/9 meeting – Pelletier
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: APW Central Chapter Meeting 11/9 with John Jay Pelletier
Date: Saturday, November 9, 2024
Time:10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81257561499?pwd=BPoEc6bXhQW9NKIas718C8UiT0a2cM.1
Meeting ID: 812 5756 1499
Passcode: 206055
John Jay Pelletier has had a life full of adventure, starting out in Boy Scouts where his Troop raised enough money selling fireworks to travel down the Grand Canyon on a river trip. He became an Explorer, worked at Disneyland as a Matterhorn climber, and joined the Army where he became a Green Beret. He attended survival schools and eventually became an Instructor at the Air Force Academy teaching survival skills. Now retired, he teaches desert safety and survival at the Superstition Mountain Museum and has written the Desert Safety and Survival Guide. John will speak about desert safety and survival in Arizona.
APW Central Zoom – 3/9/24 – Bart Ambrose
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
TOPIC: APW Central Speaker: Historical Author Bart Ambrose talks about his inspiration and writing process.
DATE: Saturday, March 9, 2024
TIME: 10:00 AM Arizona
ZOOM: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86810532103?pwd=OElOMkRRNEFCRkVHdEJvdzBFRzhZUT09
Meeting ID: 868 1053 2103
Passcode: 352300—
One tap mobile
+17193594580,,86810532103#,,,,*352300# US
+12532050468,,86810532103#,,,,*352300# US
TOPIC- Historical author Bart Ambrose talks about his inspiration and writing process.
BART AMBROSE
Arizona native Bart Ambrose grew up on an Arizona cotton farm where he spent his nights reading novels and teaching himself to play guitar. He graduated from ASU and worked as a natural resource conservationist throughout the West and the Pacific basin. A second career took him to Nashville, writing and teaching songwriting and guitar. He relocated back to Arizona to pursue his writing interests with a focus on Arizona and the Southwest.
His first two novels are historical fiction set in early to mid-twentieth-century Arizona. Both take readers on vivid journeys and adventures in a fascinating era of the state’s history. Bart and his wife live near Tucson, Arizona. His hobbies include writing haiku, travel, and the pursuit of the perfect chili relleno. More information about Bart, his books, and his music is available on his website at BartAmbrose.com.
APW Central Zoom – February 10, 2024 – Paula Winskye
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Paula Winskye will be speaking about marketing her books.
Topic: APW Central Speaker: Paula F. (Pfeiffer) Winskye
Date: Saturday, February 10, 2024
Time: 10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84015258039?pwd=RmcvWWd6Zk9ORzJuRERLZ2pzTFA3QT09
Meeting ID: 840 1525 8039
Passcode: 750457–
One tap mobile +16694449171,,84015258039#,,,,*750457# US
Topic: “An author with a fair book & a great marketing plan will sell more than an author with a great book & no marketing plan.”
Bio:
Paula F. (Pfeiffer) Winskye, a North Dakota native, began writing stories about horses at age 12.
More than 30 years later, in 2003, she published her first novel. Poachers in the Park is her 26th and her second book for younger readers. She is currently working on her 13th Tony Wagner mystery.
Winskye has also penned three Randy McKay mysteries, two Lunar Enforcement science fiction mysteries, three romances, and four volumes of the Collins family saga.
Winskye and her husband John live near Snowflake, Arizona, where she is a Navajo County Sheriff’s Auxiliary Volunteer.
APW Central Zoom – 1-13-24 Words are Power with Jacque Hillman
Susan Anderson is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: APW Central – Words Are Power!
Date: Saturday, January 13, 2024
Time:10:00 AM Arizona
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89255011123?pwd=QmZWY21qRW5COWtkdjVrUlhGSlBYUT09
Meeting ID: 892 5501 1123
Passcode: 588274
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kc69sTy2Ey
Words Are Power: Jacque Hillman, book editor and CEO of The HillHelen Group, says the right words zing into the readers’ minds. She shows how she plugs her writers into their power and how top writers view their success, sharing five tips to access the energy of words.
Bio- Jacque Hillman, of Mesa, Arizona, is senior editor and CEO of HillHelen Group Publishers LLC. A top writer and editor at The Jackson Sun for 23 years, now she edits and publishes books for authors nationwide. She also writes for her clients.
Hillman co-authored Captain of the Tides: Gunner Morgan, with Charles D. Morgan, a novel about his grandfather, US Navy hero, Charles “Gunner” Morgan, 1865-1959. The book won the Military Writers Society of America 2022 Bronze medal. Kirkus Reviews says: “An impeccably researched and engaging tale of an authentic war hero.”
Hillman edited and published the award-winning book, Why Can’t Mother Vote? Joseph Hanover and the Unfinished Business of Democracy by Bill Haltom. Joseph Hanover was a Polish Jewish immigrant from Memphis, who kept together the votes needed to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment in the Tennessee legislature. The book is up for the American Book Fest Legacy Award.
She’s a member of the Independent Book Publishers Association, the Historical Novel Society, the National Federation of Press Women and the Mesa Art League. During her years living in Jackson, Tennessee, she was named a 2014 Sterling Award Winner: 20 Most Influential Women in West Tennessee. She served as president of Business and Professional Women of Tennessee. She is co-founder of the Tennessee Woman Suffrage Heritage Trail.
Arizona Professional Writers 