The Chesapeake Chapter holds a monthly luncheon meeting with a speaker usually on the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a holiday, venue scheduling, or convention conflict. Occasionally, the chapter offers a field trip or special event instead of a luncheon. Upcoming meeting dates are listed below. You will receive an email notice in advance of the meeting, along with a registration form and menu choice (if applicable). To reserve your place at a meeting, follow the directions as stated on the email notice or on the meeting’s announcement on this website. Guests and non-members are welcome to attend.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
SATURDAY, JULY 22, 2017
9:00 am – 5:00 pm
WRITING MARATHON
NOVA-Loudoun
21200 Campus Drive
HEC Building, Room 204
Sterling, VA 20164
You’re invited to a July writing marathon!
Do you need to put in some quality writing time on your latest story or book? Looking for a chance to start something new? Interested in trying out this writing thing? Then join your fellow SinC and MWA members and start typing away.
And if you’ve never been to a writing marathon, just bring your laptop or your yellow legal pad and your muse. We’ll provide tables, chairs, and a quiet space for you to work. We’re also planning a few optional breakout sessions for those who are interested.
The whole idea of a writing marathon is for a group of writers to gather together to write–independently, but encouraged by each other. We’ll provide writing prompts for anyone who wants to try them, but they’re optional. If you already have something to work on, then bring that and all of your ideas.
And the best part–IT’S FREE! (Though you’ll have to provide your own snacks and beverages.)
Thank you to chapter member Josh Pachter has arranged to host this writing marathon at NOVA’s Loudoun Campus.
(Older GPS units may not show Campus Drive. If you have that problem, use 1000 Harry Flood Byrd Highway. See more detailed directions below.)
The marathon room will be open from 9 am to 5 pm, and you’re welcome to come for the whole day or just a few hours. It has a number of power outlets, but we’d love for as many people as possible to bring power strips, to make sure we can all plug in. And there is free wifi on campus. It’s okay to eat and drink in the room, but please be prepared to clean up after yourself. Josh will provide a hot water heater and a coffee maker, but it’s BYO mug, teabag, ground coffee and any snacks you need to feed the muse. In addition to the big room, there are two smaller conference rooms for people who want more quiet–or for a small group that might want to help peach other brainstorm.
When lunchtime comes, you can try the campus cafeteria or one of the many nearby off-campus options. The wide variety of lunch options are right across Rt. 7 (Panera, 5 Guys, a Mexican restaurant, Wendy’s, a Mongolian BBQ place, a steakhouse chain, Friendly’s), and within a two-minute drive there are dozens of other options (Santini’s deli, Chinese, Irish pub, Lebanese, Wing Stop, pizza, Dunkin’ Donuts, and the hits just keep on coming.)
We have space for a large number of writers, but if we get an overwhelming response, participation will be first come/first served. So to make sure we have a place for you, please RSVP to our secretary, Becky Hutchison: bookgaia [at] comcast [dot] net and indicate whether you plan to come for the morning, the afternoon, or both. If you’d like to volunteer to help with setup or cleanup, please notify Becky.
**In the event of inclement weather, the event will be on as long as the NoVA campus is open. If we’re forced to cancel, we’ll try to notify everyone who signs up, so when you RSVP, please make sure Becky has your current email and phone.**
DIRECTIONS: From just about anywhere, the goal is to get onto Rt. 7, which is Harry Flood Byrd Highway.
From DC or MD, take the Dulles Toll Road to the Rt. 7 exit and head towards Leesburg. We’re about a mile or so past the intersection of Rt. 7 and Dranesville Road on the right.
From Fairfax, take Fairfax County Parkway to Rt. 7 and turn towards Leesburg, and then it’s the same thing.
From Leesburg, we’re on the left, about a quarter of a mile or so past the Cascades Parkway turnoff.
Enter the campus either from Rt. 7 or from Potomac View Rd. (The main entrance from Rt. 7 is best.) Turn off Rt. 7, make an almost immediate right, then almost immediate right again into a parking lot. Spaces are plenty, and parking is free.
Stand with your back to Rt. 7 to see a big glass-walled building very slightly off to your left. That’s the HEC Building. Come in and up the steps. Turn right at the head of the steps, and Room 204 is to your right.
AUGUST 5, 2017
Time: Noon
CELEBRATE SINC’S 30TH ANNIVERSARY
Positano Ristorante Italiano
4948 Fairmont Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20814
(301) 654-1717
It’s SinC’s 30th anniversary party!
The Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime invites you to toast SinC’s three decades of “serving as the voice for excellence and diversity in crime writing” with a celebration on Saturday, August 5, at Positano Ristorante Italiano, featuring distinguished speakers, free food and drink, and lots of opportunities to share memories with your fellow Sisters—and Misters too!
Guest speaker Sarah Weinman, editor of Women Crime Writers and Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives, will speak on the dawn of domestic suspense, the work and lives of the women who pioneered the subgenre, and the impetus for what became Sisters in Crime, including little-known details from her own research into SinC’s archive, located at the University of Rutgers-New Brunswick. Additionally, two chapter members who have served as SinC National Presidents—our “goddesses” Elaine Raco Chase (president 1995-96) and Marcia Talley (2009-10)—will offer brief reflections on their terms and on how the organization has enhanced and supported their own careers over the years.
The chapter has arranged for hors-d’oeuvres, drinks, and an anniversary cake as well—all for FREE!
Members are invited to bring guests, and the event is open to the general public as well, but please RSVP (see below). Help us to spread the word on SinC’s many accomplishments and the great work we continue to do, and help us to bring new writers and readers into our ranks too!
Sisters in Crime began in 1987 in a Soho loft with founding members including Sara Paretsky, Margaret Maron, Nancy Pickard, Dorothy Salisbury Davis, and more, uniting together with a clear mission—to help “women who write, review, buy, or sell crime fiction.” Much has changed in the years since, thanks to hard work of everyone involved with SinC, now boasting more than 3600 members in more than 50 chapters across the country and beyond the U.S. In 2016, Mystery Writers of America honored the organization with the Raven Award for “outstanding contribution to the mystery field.”
Please join us this August to celebrate these accomplishments and look ahead toward even more success in years to come!
DETAILS:
Menu includes several types of crostini, several kinds of pizza, homemade mozzarella with tomatoes and basil, meatballs, fried calamari, stuffed mushrooms, and melon/prosciutto wraps.
p and open to the public, but please RSVP for planning purposes, since space is limited.
RSVP TO:
Art Taylor at art@arttaylorwriter.com before Tuesday, August 1st.
FUTURE MEETINGS
SEP 9 — Emily Hovermale, MD State Director, Humane Society (rescheduled from April), Positano’s Restaurant, Bethesda MD
OCT 7 — Adam Meyer, screenwriter (on screenwriting!), Duncan Branch Library, Alexandria VA
NOV 4 — Annual Chapter Author Panel, Ellicott City Branch Library MD
DEC 2 — Annual Chapter Author Panel, Reston Regional Library VA
CHAPTER AUTHORS’ EVENTS
SEP 16 — SinC author panel – Light Street library, Baltimore MD
SEP 30 — Lorton Library – Lorton Workhouse, Lorton VA
OCT 8 — Taneytown Branch Library, Carroll County MD
NOV 12 — SinC Author Panel – Crofton Community Library, Anne Arundel County MD
