Meet See Jane Tweet Speaker Erin Shaw Street

Erin Shaw Street is actually the reason See Jane Tweet ever came about. At See Jane Write's inaugural event Street started chatting with a few of the ladies at the dinner about the many advantages of Twitter. Minds blown, they were eager to know more. Pretty soon they were all asking for a Twitter 101. Well, ladies, ask and you shall receive. 

Street, with the help of Kristen Record Heptinstall, will be leading Thursday's See Jane Tweet seminar. (If you haven't signed up, it's not too late. Just email me at javacia@georgiamae.com.) Street is Associate Editor at Southern Living Magazine and board member of the Alabama Social Media Association (ALsocme). Read on to learn more about Street and why she's crazy about Twitter. 

A Chat with See Jane Tweet Speaker Kristen Record Heptinstall

Kristen Record Heptinstall (@kristenheptin) is Senior Producer for Social Media and Community at al.com, executive director of the Alabama Social Media Association (ALSOCME), and she blogs at southernwebgirl.blogspot.com. So when it comes to social media, this girl knows her stuff. Lucky for us, she'll be sharing her web wisdom with us on April 28 at See Jane Tweet. Read on to learn more about Heptinstall and the power of social media.

They Like Us, They Really Like Us

I would like to thank RSS Birmingham and Magic City Manifesto for showing us some love this week by helping spread the word about See Jane Tweet. And speaking of See Jane Tweet, be sure to check out a recent blog post by one of our esteemed speakers, Erin Shaw Street. Erin and Kristen really want you ladies to get the most out of this seminar, so they're asking those who plan to attend to let them know if you have any specific topics and questions you'd like them to address on April 28. 


And if you haven't reserved your spot at See Jane Tweet, what are you waiting for? Email me today at javacia@georgiamae.com and get signed up!


Be sure to stop by tomorrow for a special Q&A with See Jane Tweet speaker Kristen Record Heptinstall.

Making the Ordinary Extraordinary

As promised, I'll be posting poetry writing prompts occasionally throughout April in celebration of National Poetry Month. Here's one adapted from The Poet's Companion by Kim Addonizio and Dorianne Laux:


What do you do every day -- or on a regular basis? Write a poem about showering, or jogging, or cooking, and so on. Try, in the poem, to get at the particular way you perform this activity, that might be different from someone else. 


Here's a poem by Al Zolynas for inspiration:


The Zen of Housework


I look over my own shoulder
down my arms
to where they disappear under water
into hands inside pink rubber gloves
moiling among dinner dishes.


My hands lift a wine glass, 
holding it by the stem and under the bowl.
It breaks the surface
like a chalice
rising from a medieval lake. 


Full of the grey wine
of domesticity, the glass floats
to the level of my eyes.
Behind it, through the window
about the sink, the sun, among
a ceremony of sparrows and bare branches, 
is setting in Western America.


I can see thousands of droplets
of steam -- each a tiny spectrum -- rising
from my goblet of grey wine.
They sway, changing directions
constantly -- like a school of playful fish,
or like the sheer curtain
on the window to another world.


Ah, grey sacrament of the mundane!

See Jane Tweet

On April 28 See Jane Write will present its second event: See Jane Tweet!


See Jane Tweet is a seminar designed to help women writers discover ways to use Twitter and other social media tools  to promote their work, connect with other writers, and get published. Our speakers, Erin Shaw Street and Kristen Record Heptinstall, will also teach participants more about digital branding. 

Erin Shaw Street (@erinshawstreet) is Associate Editor at Southern Living Magazine and board member of the Alabama Social Media Association (ALSOCME). She also has a thing for gold shoes. You can find her writing at www.erinstreet.com. 

Kristen Record Heptinstall (@kristenheptin) is Senior Producer for Social Media and Community at al.com, executive director of the Alabama Social Media Association (ALSOCME), and a Walt Disney World fanatic. She blogs at southernwebgirl.blogspot.com. 

See Jane Tweet will be held Thursday, April 28 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Matthew's Bar & Grill. This event is free but you must RSVP by Tuesday, April 26 to attend. To be added to the participant list simply email me at javacia@georgiamae.com. 




See Jane Write presents See Jane Tweet
at Matthew's Bar & Grill, 2208 Morris Ave. 
Thursday, April 28 at 6 p.m. 


6-6:30 p.m. -- Networking (Time to grab some grub from the bar and mingle with other local female writers)
6:30 - 7:30 p.m. -- Presentation (Erin and Kristen talk Twitter, digital branding and much more)
7:30 - 8 p.m. -- Q&A session


Special thanks to our venue sponsor Matthew's Bar & Grill. 

Not someday, do it now

Most of us have our someday speech well prepared, that list of reasons that explains why we aren't pursuing our dream project now but will do it "someday." I'll write that book someday, but I can't now because I don't have enough time or enough talent. I'll start that business someday, but right now I don't have the money or the knowledge that I need to do it. 


If this sounds all too familiar take a few minutes to read "The Someday Speech", a recent blog post by food writer Monica Bhide. She says sometimes we all need a "swift kick in the behind" to push us to fight for our dreams. Read this post and consider yourself kicked. 

April is National Poetry Month

In honor of National Poetry Month, I will post poetry writing exercises and prompts throughout April. 

Today try your hand at writing haiku in English. Inspired by the Japanese poetic form, a haiku in English is usually written in three lines with five syllables in the first line, seven syllables in the second, and five in the final line. Japanese haiku usually include a season word, but many English-speaking poets writing haiku do not adhere to this convention.   

Below is one of my favorite English haiku by Sonia Sanchez:

i have caught fire from

your mouth now you want me to 

swallow the ocean