Girls can write, too

Watching the Golden Globes this year and looking at the list of Oscar nominees, I was struck, as I always am, by the monoculturism (did I just make this word up? I like it) of the nominees for best screenplay. So many white men. What is it that makes white guys movies' so much more award-worthy? Don't ask me, I'm just a woman.

Being a woman, I can't really think of a clever segue right now, so I'll just get to the point. 

Write Girl, one of the coolest non-profits going, has their annual gala event coming up in just a few short days (Jan 29 to be exact). It's the Bold Ink Awards, where they honor some of our favorite non-male writers for their stellar achievements. Even better, they welcome members of the public to attend and find out more about the organization. 

If you don't give a crap about anything besides your own writing career, think of it as a chance to hob-nob with these snazzy writers:

Wanda Coleman, Poet

Jennifer Crittenden, Screenwriter

Naomi Foner, Screenwriter

Gigi Levangie, Novelist/Screenwriter

Sonia Nazario, Journalist

Gina Prince-Bythewood, Screenwriter/Director

Carolyn See, Novelist

Dian Warren, Grammy-winning Songwriter

More info on the Write Girl website.

Call this number for tickets 213-253-2655. Mention you were referred by Celine Malanum for a super-duper extra discounted rate (keeping in mind that if you happen to be a very rich person, the proceeds go to the foundation, so you could consider paying the full ticket price).

Write Girl in Sierra Madre

There's a very exciting event you could attend if you're in the Sierra Madre area the evening of March 3. It'll be full of inspired reading of inspired writing by teen girls who have been a part of Write Girl and are published in Write Girl's latest anthology "Lines of Velocity". Oh, and I will probably be there, so come have a chat!

No boys allowed

As most of you know, I volunteer for Write Girl. I'm fairly new to it, but it seems like an excellent organization, so if you've ever thought you should be a little less self-involved and give something back to the community, now is the time. Here's a message from Write Girl:

WriteGirl, a creative writing and mentoring organization for teen girls, is seeking volunteers for our new season to help with everything from event planning to public relations to mentoring and more. With more than 30 events annually, and a membership of more than 200, joining WriteGirl means joining a dynamic community of women and girls. In addition to women writers, we welcome professionals in all fields to contribute talent and time to this vital program for girls. Deadline to apply is January 8th. Please visit our website for an application and more information:
www.writegirl.org

Go on. You'll be glad you did.

Things that are clogging my arteries
In Canada, we have this thing called Cheezies. They're like crunchy Cheetos, but a little less radioactive-looking. Whenever Canadians visit us, they brings us bags and bags of them. They're yummy. They're orange. And they're clogging my arteries.