June 2015 BCATW Buzz

BCATW Association News

The board is currently reworking the membership section of the constitution to expand the definition to include bloggers, as well as review criteria to establish what constitutes travel writing. If you are interested in contributing to the discussion, please contact BCATW Secretary Chris Millikan.

BCATW 2015 Symposium Blog Contest

Rebecca ColemanOur symposium blog contest is now closed. Thank you to the five bloggers who submitted posts on the subject of our April 18 event.

The contest will be judged by blogger and social media expert, Rebecca Coleman. We’ll announce the winners of the contest on June 8th, so please stay tuned.

Here are the contending blog posts:

BCATW Symposium 2015 Takeaways by Joan Boxall

BCATW 2015 by Jami Savage

Brave New Worlds await traditional writers, bloggers alike by John Geary

Three simple tricks anyone can use to take share-worthy travel photos  Christina Newberry, Vancouver Travel Examiner

June BCATW Meetup

A FAM and Photowalk in New Westminister
June 11, 6 pm
Meet at Avil Center, 3rd Floor

Tourism New Westminster invites you to come explore its historical streets and modern architecture in a familiarization Tour with Tej Kainth of Tourism New West.

The evening will also be a photowalk with photographer Brian Keith Smith who will give us image-making tips along the way.

We’ll meet on the 3rd floor of Anvil Centre at 6pm for a complimentary glass of wine with a meat/cheese platter compliments of Anvil, before getting a tour of the centre.

At 7pm, we’ll walk over to the River Market for appies and more touring along the river front.

This special event is limited to 25, so please RSVP now at the BCATW Meetup page.

Be sure to bring your camera as the area will be beautiful at that time of the evening!

BCATW Member News

UPDATE: Ruth Kozak had an article about some mysterious islands in Greece, published in Europe Up Close.

Ruth will be reading from her historical novel SHADOW OF THE LION: BLOOD ON THE MOON at the main branch VPL on June 10, 7 pm and at the Kitsilano Branch library June 18.

Roberta Staley will be in Kabul, Afghanistan for about five weeks from June to July to shoot film footage for a documentary titled Mightier than the Sword – The Emergence of Afghan Female Journalists and Documentary Filmmakers and the Impact on Gender Perceptions in Afghanistan. The documentary will analyze the impact of young women in the media, such as 20-year-old Mubareka Sahar Fetrat, who is an outstanding example of Afghan youth and deeply committed to helping the country’s gender-segregated society evolve into a more egalitarian one. Fetrat is an emerging documentary filmmaker whose film credits include Do Not Trust My Silence!, about Afghan women living with day-to-day harassment on the street and in the workforce. She is also a co-founder of the Independent Female Society Organization, a non-profit that works to strengthen civil society and empower women in Afghanistan. Staley will be blogging about her stay in Afghanistan starting June 10 on Journeys to the Edge.

Randi Winter’s month was global travel across Canada, the US, Turkey and Israel. From Capadocia to 3 weeks in Israel, she met film makers, educators, politicians, soldiers, and students. She was at army bases and hospitals, Yad Vashem, met the Canadian Ambassador and Parliamentarians, wined and dined at the Vatican’s Notre Dame Hotel, met the Charge` to the Pope and Architect for the Vatican. A wine spa, markets, visits to vineyards and amazing cuisine provided food for “Israel’s New Food and Wine Culture.” Many stories following for Hello Vancity, Orah and Luxe Beat Magazines as well as guest blogs.

In early May, Peppa Martin went down to Los Angeles to attend ParisPhoto LA 2015, an international photography art fair. She wrote about the thrills and chills in a review for the Association of Women Art Dealers (AWAD), London UK. You can find her impressions and highlights of the fair posted on her website and facebook (‘Likes’ to Facebook are most welcome and appreciated !)

Joan Boxall’s been tinkering with blogposts— a couple from BCATW’s ‘Tread Softly, Write with Impact,’ which was such a great day, and one from Desolation Sound on www.joanboxall.com where she’s ‘researching’ up-&-coming articles for ‘Senior Living’ on topics related to outdoor pursuits, kayaking & bicycling.

Darlene Foster is enjoying life on the Costa Blanca in Spain, and has just moved into her permanent abode.  Pictures of Casa Foster are available here. Darlene has recently had a story published in Travel Thru History about a visit to a Medieval Market.  Her bilingual novel, Cerdito a juicio/Pig on Trial has been published (English and Spanish) and is available on Amazon. When she is not visiting cultural events, relaxing on her sunny terrace or sipping coffee at an outdoor café, Darlene is working on her next novel, Amanda on the Danube – The Sounds of Music.

Mari Kaneescalatewp.small has just published her second ebook about WordPress and is offering it as a free gift to subscribers of her blog, Blogsite StudioEscalate Your WordPress Website: Twelve Ways to Blog at a Higher Level is the long-awaited follow up to Create a WordPress Website in Ten Easy Steps. The ebook is loaded with advanced techniques to make your site more useable, your blog posts more sharable, and all your work more searchable on Google. Subscribe to Blogsite Studio and get this valuable ebook!

(This month’s featured image by Mari Kane of winemaker Bailey Williamson was taken at the recent Blue Grouse Winery opening media event.)

Spain continues to inspire John Thomson. “Our Madrid Tapas Tour” appears in the June issue of Senior Living and “Dutch Treat,” a whirlwind tour of Amsterdam, is scheduled for its July edition. Two stories on Toledo and Seville will appear in Offbeattravel.com though John says the e-zine is no longer paying for submissions. “It was a month or two ago. It was a difficult decision to make,” editor Neala McCarten told him. Competition, plus a drop off in advertising spurred the move. Neala says the publication still accepts fam trip articles although it won’t write assignment letters.

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