Since the July meeting date fell on July Fourth, the next meeting of the Orlando Writing Group (Florida Writers Association) is scheduled for Wednesday, August 1, at the University Club of Winter Park. Local author Lynn Butler Schiffhorst will be featured at the meeting, discussing thoughts on the topic “Tips for Submitting Children’s Literature: How to Pull Out Your Hair a LITTLE Less.”

Lynn is a poet, storyteller, and teacher who grew up in New York City before moving to Central Florida. In 1989, the University of Central Florida Contemporary Poetry Series published her book of poetry for adults, Planting the Voice. She is now a writer of children’s fiction, most recently, It’s Great to be a Ghost. As a children’s author, Lynn is active in SCBWI, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

It’s Great to be a Ghost is a collection of nine short stories that feature Giggle, a nine-year-old, third-grade ghost who, according to one Wisconsin reviewer on Amazon.com, “works magic, plays tricks, rescues animals, and even goes to the moon! She is also friends with two humans, Rusty and Lenore, as well as a six-year-old wind from the North Pole named Gusty. Giggle also has some grown-up neighbors that include a piccolo-playing ghost, a wise ghost from the synagogue, and a motherly lady skeleton. Giggle and her family are happy spirits who live in the bell tower of Father Boyle’s church.”

Join Lynn and the Orlando Writers Group on Wednesday, August 1, from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at the University Club of Winter Park. The University Club is located at 841 Park Avenue North, on the northwest corner of Park and Webster Avenue. The program is free and open to the public. For additional information, visit the group blog at www.fwa-orlando.org or contact Stephen Evans, group leader—ImYourEditor@hotmail.com or 407-898-4299.