ChicagoWrites.org

If you build it, they will come.

That, at least, is my hope for the new website of the Chicago Writers Association, ChicagoWrites.org.

For the past several months, I've been working with a small but dedicated group of writers in building something that I think is quite special. Mind you it has not always been easy. When you're dealing with creative minds there are bound to be creative differences. There were. When you're dealing with computers, there are bound to be technical problems. There were. Many times I had serious doubts that the site would ever get off the ground. But it did.

In this case, the adage that things worthwhile rarely come easily could not be more applicable. But I'll let you see that with your own eyes.

If you've never heard of the Chicago Writers Association, you're not alone. Up until a year ago, I'd never heard of it. I was a writer inhabiting Chicagoland but didn't know where to go. I stumbled upon the CWA and found a comfortable home. Now our not-so-little group (we've got around 140 members) founded by Diana Laskaris is starting to spread its wings a little. Personally, I can't wait to see where those wings take us.

Update on Thursday, March 23, 2006 at 02:35PM by Randy Richardson

There's a nice write-up about the Chicago Writers Association by Alice Maggio on Gapers Block today. Pretty cool seeing the CWA in that bold print.

Update on Wednesday, April 26, 2006 at 08:12AM by Randy Richardson

Thanks to the promotional spirit and the artistic talents of Jen Wilding, you can now purchase ChicagoWrites.org gear.   

Comments

[Hugh Rosen]

Although I'm not from Chicago, author Randy Richardson has made this new website sound so appealing that I hope to visit it often and be a part of any e-zine spin-offs, should that occur. I am from Philadelphia. After retiring, having had published six non-fiction academic books by mainstream publishers, I earned an MA in creative writing and completed my first novel, "Silent Battlefields," which I had published by iUniverse.

This group's website shows promise of being a bonanza to writer's everywhere, with all due respect to local Chicagoans.I gather it was hard work -- not surprised -- but here's wishing you full success with it. Hugh Rosen