WIW Becomes AIW

Writers are passionate about what they do, whether published or not. They are driven to write, even if their words never see the light of day. This is called “the creative impulse,” and this impulse begins a creative process. 

 

When writers aren’t actually writing, they’re thinking about writing. Words, ideas, concepts, and stories are the tools of the writer; these are what we use in the process writing.

 

When writers aren’t thinking about writing, they are studying writing and getting to know each other. Writing is a solitary pursuit, yet, it is all about building connection with others. Building connections is why we will be changing, which is another kind of process.

 

Traditionally in many cultures, when a young person enters a new phase of his or her life, they choose a different name to reflect their new place in the world. As Washington Independent Writers (WIW) enters the next phase of its life, we will also take a new name: American Independent Writers, or “AIW,” which reflects our new place in the world as a national leader of our profession, our craft, and our calling.

 

This new name reflects the expansion of our organization into a nationwide professional association. July 1, 2008 is our starting point; it will take a few years to get established across the country and to create all the new services we have envisioned for our members, but we already have 156 members outside the DC area, so we are off to a good start.

 

By expanding our membership nationally, we will not only widen our network, which is increasingly easier with electronic communications and social media, we will have access to a broader array of grant opportunities. By positioning WIW to receive more institutional support, we will serve an important financial need of our members: keeping dues as low as possible while delivering more and more of the professional services that our members have asked us to provide.

 

Growth is our best option for continued success, and the WIW Board of Directors is committed to the work necessary to make this happen.

 

We welcome and encourage every WIW member to become part of this exciting time in our organization – we have several committees members can join, a newsletter that could benefit from more volunteer staff writers, and ad hoc projects that need doing. Like anything in life, you get out of your professional association what you put into it. I invite you to join us in making our organization the best writing association it can be.

 

If you are not currently a member, you can join online, or learn more about us, at www.washwriter.org

Comments

[Beth from Avenue Z]

Thanks for the update on this group. Those of us outside the Washington area appreciate the expansion of thinking. Sounds like it's time for me to join.

Beth