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October 2026

Members: See our Special Events page

for very important information about upcoming FREE events...

including a Jordan Rosenfeld Workshop.

​

And see our Member Publications page to read all about

three of our members' new books.

​Our Next Open-To-Everyone Meetings will be held on

November 8 at the beautiful​

Look here for

Writing Opportunities

Please use our Contact Us

page for questions and

comments.

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44850 Comptche Ukiah Road

Mendocino, CA 95460

(707) 937-5615

EKPHRASIS

 

The annual pairing of writers

and artists​ was a huge success!

 

The Two-Day Event Was Held

October 10 at the Artists' Co-op of Mendocino

October 11 at the Matheson Performing Arts Center

​

Ekphrasis is a Greek word that, loosely translated, means art describing art. Think “Ode on a Grecian Urn.”

 

Two events celebrated the 15-year collaboration of the Writers of the Mendocino Coast and the members of the Artists' Co-op of Mendocino to produce an ekphrastic experience.

 

Ten gallery artists created art in their medium for ten writers to respond to. Ten writers have initiated one page of writing for ten artists to respond to. These pairs were anonymous until they were revealed at the Artists’ Co-op gallery on October 10.

 

The Artists' Co-op of Mendocino is located at the corner of Kasten and Albion Streets. It is open daily from 11:00am-4:00pm.

​

You can see our artists' and writers' contributions to Ekphrasis now through November 2. They will also be accessible indefinitely on the Artist’s Co-op website artcoopmendocino.com.

 

​

WMC meetings are held the second Sunday of every month * at

the Stanford Inn and are open to members and non-members. 

​

* Exceptions are June [members only meeting] and December [no meeting]​

Did You Participate 

in Matthew Long's Film Project? 

​​The entry deadline has passed.

Now we wait.

Watch this space for updates.

Everyone who participated will be

credited as a writer.

The 2027

Writers of the Mendocino Coast Anthology

 

Ericka Lutz is the new editor of our anthology. Once the Board of Directors made its theme selection, Ericka sent them an email. Here's part of it: "I think [the theme is] evocative: Things stuffed away, old, dusty, but also things to be revealed. What does it mean to be in the box? To think out of the box. Or boxes, the verb: Who is boxing in the attic?"

​

As Ericka takes the helm of Boxes in the Attic, we wish her well in what promises to be a busy several months.. At the same time, we offer our sincere thanks to Elizabeth Vrenios, whose untiring devotion to editing our anthology for the past three years resulted in

three of our most popular publications. We're pleased that Elizabeth will stay with us as a member of our Board for the upcoming year.

“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.”

-  Louis L'Amour

Writers of the Mendocino Coast

Policy Regarding Use of

Artificial Intelligence​

​

The WMC Board of Directors has established an official policy regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in members' writing.

 

It is as follows:

Writers of the Mendocino Coast does not and will never accept work that was written, created, or developed, in whole or in part, using generative AI. This includes prose, poetry, and all mediums of art and photography. The policy extends across all our activities including our annual anthology, Ekphrasis, Smatchup, and

public readings and workshops.

AI may have its place, but that place is not

within the creative fields. At Writers of the

Mendocino Coast, we value human creativity and expression, abhor plagiarism, and are keenly aware of--and deeply concerned about--the writers, artists, editors, and other creators whose copyrights and livelihoods are increasingly compromised by the use of artificial, non-human, intelligence.
By submitting your creative work and/or participating in our club activities, you pledge that no AI was, or will be, used.

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​​​Remember...

We've added two special features to our Stanford Inn meetings.

Come by a little early -- say, 1:30 -- and see for yourself.

We think you'll enjoy these.

 

Let's Talk About Writing

We'll sip a beverage, enjoy fine Stanford Inn

snacks, get to know one another, and talk

about our writing in a small-group setting.

​​​​​​

The Little Free Library

Members, lend a book you've written.

Borrow one, too, then return it

with comments for the author.

​​​

Can't get to the meeting? Join us live on our 

Facebook page! Just log on to Facebook
to Like and Follow. We are also on Instagram! @writersofthemendocinocoast.

Members, please check our bio​ page.

​If you aren’t featured, just jot

down a bit about yourself in 50 (or

thereabouts) words, then email your bio

and (optional) headshot to writersmendocino@aol.com.

​

If you are already featured, and your

information needs to be changed, please

send necessary updates to writersmendocino@aol.com
 

Thinking of joining

Writers of the Mendocino Coast? 

Please see our Membership tab

at the top of this page.

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Painting by Janis Porter

All members receive one complimentary copy of our 2026 anthology; additional books are $12.00. If you need them mailed, contact Elizabeth Vrenios at evrenios1@gmail.com. ​
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Listen now to our members read their one-minute plays!
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i am from the ocean by windflower Townley
I Could Not Stop for Covid  by Holly Tannen
Something New & Murder She Wrote by Philip Zwerling
The CWC website includes a calendar of monthly meetings for all state branches. Any of our members can attend the meetings of any other branch for free or for the same fee as their membership pays. To view their meeting topics (many are still on Zoom), click on 
https://calwriters.org/events/.
Writers of the Mendocino Coast is Proud to be a Branch of the California Writers Club 
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The CALIFORNIA WRITERS CLUB is a 501(c) (6) educational nonprofit dedicated to educating members and the public-at-large in the craft of writing and in the marketing of their work.

California Writers Club: 
https://calwriters.org/
California Writers Club calendar for other branch's events:
https://calwriters.org/events-month

Members! The Mendocino Community Library wants your book for its permanent Local Authors Section.

 

If you would like to donate your book (or books)

to the library's collection, please sign it and bring 

it to the library with a note requesting it be added

to the Local Authors Section. 

 

The library is located at the corner of Little Lake

and William Streets.

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Member Publications

All Available for Purchase at
Gallery Bookshop - 319 Kasten St, Mendocino, CA 95460 - (707) 937-2665

In the fictional Northern California city of San Andreas de Pacifico, the ground is unstable. In these twelve unexpected love stories, so are many of the people. A woman hears the elephants speak, but only before earthquakes. A long-married couple scales a cemetery wall to regain their passion. A young mother dreams of planting a poison garden. An old man, losing himself to dementia, finds an abandoned baby. Strangers meet on an overnight bus and alter each other's lives. A struggling writer gains freedom in her effort to rescue a beached whale.

Award winning author Ericka Lutz will be discussing 

San Andreas at Gallery Bookshop on

Thursday, October 22 - 6:00-7:00pm

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San Andreas is available for preorder almost everywhere...in

paperback, ebook,

and audiobook.

 

Release date: October 6

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LandslideBooks.com/books

Join Catherine at Gallery Bookshop on Thursday, November 5,

6:00-7:00pm, to learn more about her life-changing experience,

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​For a young, ambitious feminist, the 1970s were not the good old days. Recently graduated from college and newly divorced, Catherine moves from the Midwest to the San Francisco Bay Area hoping to launch a new life, but finds herself stuck in a boring, dead-end job as a bank teller. 

​

When she meets a charming man at a disco, she quits her job and takes off with him. 

​

No Longer Needed explores gender roles in a patriarchal marriage, the challenges of a husband and wife building a business together, and the devastating impact of domestic violence. 

Catherine Marshall’s creative nonfiction short stories have been featured in anthologies and magazines including the Noyo River Review, Tales of Our Lies, Fostering Families Today, and the Writers of the Mendocino Coast Anthology.

​

No Longer Needed can be pre-ordered now in paperback or as an ebook.

​

Release date: November 2

​

catmarshall.net

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Ginny Rorby's  ninth book is ​

Time After Time,

set at the Point Cabrillo Light Station in 1934 and the village of Mendocino in 2012.

"A heart‑warming, adventurous

read that balances friendship, environmental stewardship, and

a time‑slip mystery." - Goodreads

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What Kirkus Reviews says about Dot Brovarney's Mendocino Refuge:

" … prose dotted with flights of vivid lyricism."  

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Fran Schwartz'
novel, Mila Eclipsed, 
is the riveting story of a woman just beginning to learn the shocking truth about her family and herself. 
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Karin Uphoff's Wild Heart "moves through the reader like the seasons ... [With] poems of the author’s communion with nature as a child, which nurtured a sense of belonging that carried into adulthood where she explores loss and grief, resilience and gratitude with a sprinkle of whimsy and humor." [www.Finishing Line Press.com] 

​Maria Ashford of Book-Shelfie.com says Marianne Villanueva's book is "A gripping yet at times unsettling collection of short fiction that moves fluidly between myth and history..."

 

Find Residents of the Deep at Gallery Bookshop.​​

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Copyright 2026 Writers of the Mendocino Coast

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