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Recognitions

Joan McNulty Pulver

Welcome to Recognitions, a column dedicated to proclaim the writing successes of Writers' Village University members!

Nannette Croce said, “I've always enjoyed expressing myself in writing, but it wasn't until my teenage daughter started winning awards for her artwork that I realized what I'd missed by keeping my writing to myself. That's when I decided to try writing for publication.”

Attaining that goal many times over, two of Nannette's short stories are slated for publication this summer. "At the Edge of the Woods" debuts in the summer edition of The Rose&Thorn. "The Box of Cereal" hits the newsstands in the July issue of The Writer's Post Journal, a new literary magazine.

“I already had one story accepted for publication by Beginnings, but I can tell you that the thrill does not diminish the second time around.”

Nannette appreciates Ernest Hemingway’s telling dialogue and minimalist style. She loves reading books written by Native American writers, such as Sherman Alexie. Nannette said, “His prose reads like poetry.” She enjoyed reading Jeffrey Eugenides' first novel, The Virgin Suicides, because it is written as tightly as a short story.

A history buff, Nannette takes a lot of small-group educational tours. She says both the history and her fellow travelers have provided inspiration for many of her stories. To learn more about Nannette, visit her website at http://www.homepage.mac.com/nannettecroce. 

Nannette joined WVU in 2001 and has taken a variety courses. She started out with F2K and found it much more valuable than another course she signed up for at a local college. About two years ago, she began volunteering as an assistant editor for T-Zero.

“Editing other writers’ work has taught me to apply a more critical eye to my own writing, and I've learned a tremendous amount about both editing and writing by working under the guidance of Whitney Potsus, Nonfiction Editor.”

Nannette gives this advice to beginning writers: “For those who haven't been published yet, start by submitting where you are most likely to get published––magazines like Beginnings that publish only new writers, for example. Once you've got that one piece in print, it gives you a boost and it's a lot easier to get more pieces accepted.”

Annette Gasper writes non-fiction articles that contribute to the enrichment of others’ lives. “Women in the Workplace: Depression Takes Its Toll” appeared in the monthly newspaper, The Monroe Journal, in March. When Annette joined WVU earlier this year, she initially took only non-fiction courses. Later, she decided that some of the fiction classes looked interesting and took some of those too.

“I cannot say enough good things about WVU, the staff, and the students! Without a doubt the encouragement and information I've received has greatly furthered my writing goals. Being a psychiatric RN for over twenty years has given me a good base of information from which to draw, as well as some very interesting cases! WVU has added much to my life. I've even developed a friendship with another student who has become my mentor and a great writing buddy!”

Lori Libby weaves a tale about a single mother and small business owner who is stepping out to face life without her one true love; a stalker bent on revenge has other ideas. Now and Forever, published by Wings ePress, hits cyberspace in December 2004.

“My first reaction was shock and disbelief. I had to walk away from the computer twice just to see if the acceptance letter was still on my screen.”

She has been a member of Romance Round Table, Word Slingers, Hemingway Hall, and Hole in the Wall Gang study groups at WVU. Lori took Romance Writing, Doing it with Dialogue, and Character Driven Plots, which helped her grow as a writer.

“I have met some WONDERFUL people at WVU. When I joined I had no idea about writing. The classes helped a lot, but so did getting feedback from the others in this community of writers. I've learned so much in a short amount of time.”

Lori married her best friend, Ted, 14 years ago. They live in Maine with their two children, ages 10 and 9. A one-year-old Akita and a beta fish share their household. She teaches seventh grade math by day and writes at night and on weekends.

“My family is very supportive of me. My kids love to tell people I'm being published.”

To find out more about Libby and read an excerpt from her book, please visit http://www.lorilibby.com.

As a member of a discussion forum on a website run by actor Wil Wheaton, Angie Mansfield donated her short story, “Dragon Bait,” one of the stories selected to be in the anthology, Boxer Shorts Redux. This anthology, published in October 2003, came about when caring members decided to help Wil pay for the overage of bandwidth by donating stories for it. Angie contributed her short story, “Hit Man,” to a new anthology in the works by the same authors, tentatively called A Clear Horizon. The proceeds will go to support cancer research. The book will be available in late summer or early fall.

“I drifted around a bit when I first joined WVU. My first ‘permanent’ home was in the now-departed Binary Bards study group. When that group began to disband, I got an invitation to visit Middle Earth. It was a perfect fit, and the support and feedback I've gotten for my work there has been priceless.”

Congratulations, Nannette, Annette, Lori and Angie. We wish you continued success in all your writing endeavors.

We look forward to reading about your writing accomplishments in this column. If you or someone you know received recognition for writing, please send the information to recognitions@wvu.org.  Let us know!

About the Author
Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Joan McNulty Pulver moved to Florida about 30 years ago and decided to stay. She has five children (two girls and three boys) and five grandchildren (four boys and one girl). An Administrative Secretary for the State of Florida, she plans to retire in about seven years and then start her real career, writing. Joan hopes to have at least one novel finished and published by that time. She does a little volunteer work here at WVU and enjoys this community of writers. "I have learned so much here and like helping others learn along with me."