New: Short Stories hit Kindle store!

Just a quick bit of news during this holiday season: my short story collection A Long Way from Disney has just hit Amazon's Kindle store. As you know, I'm a big believer of experiments in publishing and this time I'm trying something new.

I'm releasing my book on the Amazon Kindle store to see what that's about and what kind of sales I can generate. I hope you'll come over to Amazon to have a look at the book. It's a collection of literary stories about growing up in the 80s that I think many of you will enjoy. The collection is priced at just $.99 and you can get it here: A Long Way from Disney on Amazon

Best of all, you don't even need a Kindle to get this collection! You can buy it using any PC computer and this software or an iPhone or iPod Touch using this software. Hope you'll give it a look.
Happy Holidays and all best for a wonderful New Year!

Honoring the mission and vision of California's Community Colleges -- for ALL students

Join the community college discussion in today's SFGate.

Matt Duckworth Underwater

Forum reading 12/4

Forum

CCSF Literary Magazine

is pleased to announce

An open reading

featuring contributors to Forum

Friday, December 4, 2009

1 pm – 2:45 pm

Room 301

Rosenberg Library

Everyone is invited to our celebration. Come read a favorite poem or a selection of your own work, or just come to listen. Snacks and beverages will be provided!

"Boring from Within: The Art of the Freshman Essay"

Wayne Booth's
"Boring from Within: The Art of the Freshman Essay"

Erin and Seth: PodNovels

Read all about it!

12/12 Holiday Party

Dear Colleagues,
Let us give a Huge Thank You to Jackie Davis Martin for opening the doors of her home in the Noe Valley for our annual celebration at Holiday Time. Here are the particulars:

Jackie Davis Martin - Host
4094 25th Street
S.F., CA. 94114
Saturday, December 12
Starting at 7:00 p.m.
RSVP: Bill Mc Guire 452-7257

Alphabet Drill Based on Your Last Name (Please watch this video prior to shopping for food. Thank you.)

A - B Vegetarian

C - F Meat, Fish, Fowl

G - I Desserts

J - L Appetizers

M - R Salads

S - Z Pastas

Of course, bring your own beverage + ice, if needed.

- Guests and Children are Most Welcome
- Your contribution should be enough to serve 10 to 12 people
- Have it ready to serve so you don't tie up Jackie's kitchen
- Have your food carved, portioned, and ready to serve
- Provide your own serving dish(es) and utensils

Needed: a) early crew to set up
b) police crew to clean as we party
c) clean up crew to leave Jackie's home spotless before departing

That's it. Contact me if you have any questions.

At your service,
Bill

William A. McGuire
Instructor of English
Coordinator of Humanities
415.452.7257

CCC Foundation Deals!

CollegeBuys makes it possible for you to receive special Campus Agreement savings on select Microsoft products:

• Office 2007 Enterprise Edition = $45.00
• Windows 7 Ultimate Edition Upgrade = $45.00
• Office for Mac 2008 = $45.00

Terry Galloway at CCSF this Spring!

From Kristina Whalen--
Hello English Colleagues, Before moving to California, I spent 7 years writing and performing as part of a community theater company called The Mickee Faust Club. The founder of that cabaret, Terry Galloway, has been invited to our campus in March as part of Women's History Month. Terry's memoir Mean Little Deaf Queer was published by Beacon Press and released this last June. In March she will perform her hour long show "Out All Night and Lost My Shoes" and read from her memoir. I have been asked to generate an audience for her performance. I hope you will join me in including Galloway's performance in your spring syllabus. Below I have provided a brief excerpt of Galloway's complicated biography as well as reviews of both her performance and book. The performance is scheduled on March 9th from 4:00 -5:30 on R305. If many are interested we can see about securing a bigger venue. I will leave a copy of her memoir in the conference room. You can visit the following as well: www.meanlittledeafqueer.com

The New Notebooks are Here!

Take notes!

Autumn Tea: Nov 3-4

The English Department

Autumn Tea

Tuesday, November 3 and
Wednesday, November 4
English Conference Room
10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on both days

This is a Stone Soup Party: the pot and the water will be there; you provide the good stuff. The table in the conference room will be pushed to one side and covered with a festive cloth. There will be hot water for tea and hot chocolate and the coffee pot will be going. Then, the magic depends on you --

Please bring goodies to share with others, savory and sweet, on one or both days.

The office machines, refrigerator and microwave will be available. It’s fine to bring your lunch. If you can, bring enough to share. Plan to stay awhile and chat.


For further info
Carol Fregly, L560, 239-3882
Pam Petersen, L556, 239-3406
Barbara Scrafford, L526, 239-3523
Ellen Wall, ewall@ccsf.edu, 239-3394.
Or call Ellen at home.

Write or Die: It's Sweeping the Nation!

Write or Die is a web application that encourages writing by punishing the tendency to avoid writing. Start typing in the box. As long as you keep typing, you're fine, but once you stop typing, you have a grace period of a certain number of seconds and then there are consequences. Monica B. found this. Learn more at http://lab.drwicked.com/writeordie.html.

Celebrate with the Banned

Have Lunch with the Banned!
Celebrate the Freedom to Read and Rock Out at the San Francisco Main Library, Oct. 1st

Banned Books Week: Sept. 26 through Oct. 3

San Francisco Public Library will be celebrating the freedom for everyone to read what they want – and rock out as they wish – at a lunchtime music-themed Ban(ne)d Books reading and performance on the Larkin Street steps of the Main Library on Thursday, Oct.1, noon-1:30 p.m.

With readings, songs and readings about songs, this Ban(ne)d Books event will entertain and inspire both minds and ears! An exciting lineup of musicians and writers will be on hand for the event including Joey Altman and the Pimentos, Jack Boulware, Ben Fong-Torres, Kathi Kamen Goldmark & Sam Barry, Penelope Houston & Patricio Johnson, Frank Portman, Richie Unterberger, Roy Zimmerman, emcee Jewelle Gomez and more.

Begun in 1982 by the American Library Association (ALA), this annual event takes place the last week of September and reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted. Since 2001, American libraries were faced with more than 3,736 challenges to materials. A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint, filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness. The number of challenges reflects only incidents reported. The ALA estimates that for every reported challenge, four or five remain unreported.

“Although in San Francisco we are fortunate to receive few challenges to our materials, it is important to recognize and celebrate this democratic freedom and the diversity of materials available at our libraries,“ said City Librarian Luis Herrera. “As our mission statement says, we are dedicated to free and equal access to information and to the joys of reading for our diverse community.”

Among the most challenged books nationwide in 2008 were And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell; His Dark Materials trilogy, by Philip Pullman; Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar; and The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.

Learn more at http://sfpl.org/news/releases/banned_books.htm

Top 10 Worst Teaching Mistakes. Really?

Are these really the top 10 worst teaching mistakes?

We could come up with much worse stuff, I'm sure.

The Decline of the English Department? Not ours.

We should talk about this article . . .

Wiggio--a new group work tool

On Wiggio, you can share and edit files, manage a group calendar, poll your group, post links, set up conference calls, chat online and send mass text, voice and email messages to your group members. Each group member can define how they want to keep informed of group activity.

Word choice, idioms, and prepositions

I just made up this rather basic page on word choice, idioms, and prepositions for native speakers as well as ESL students. I mark these errors so often, and Rules for Writers is only of limited help to students. This page describes how to use Google Books to look up sample sentences that use a word or phrase. I'd welcome any suggestions--this is a first draft. Feel free to use it too.

Works Cited help page

I just created this Works Cited help page for my students. I'd love feedback or suggestions. Feel free to use it, too. Thanks!

Photostory is free and looks very cool

This could be a great presentation tool for teachers and students: images, text, audio.
Try it: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/PhotoStory/default.mspx

Rosh Hashanah

Happy New Year!

On the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, there is a ceremony called Tashlich, a time to release the weight of the past year. Jews traditionally go to the ocean or a stream or river to pray and throw bread crumbs into the water. Symbolically, the fish devour their sins.

Occasionally, people ask what kind of bread crumbs should be thrown. Here are suggestions for breads which may be most appropriate for specific sins:

For ordinary sins
White Bread

For erotic sins
French Bread

For particularly dark sins
Pumpernickel

For complex sins
Multi-Grain

For twisted sins
Pretzels

For tasteless sins
Rice Cakes

For sins of indecision
Waffles

For sins committed in haste
Matzoh

For sins of chutzpah
Fresh Bread

For substance abuse
Stoned Wheat

For use of heavy drugs
Poppy Seed

For petty larceny
Stollen

For committing auto theft
Caraway

For timidity/cowardice
Milk Toast

For ill-temperedness
Sourdough

For silliness, eccentricity
Nut Bread

For not giving full value
Shortbread

For jingoism, chauvinism
Yankee Doodles

For excessive irony
Rye Bread

For unnecessary chances
Hero Bread

For telling bad jokes/puns
Corn Bread

For war-mongering
Kaiser Rolls

For dressing immodestly
Tarts

For causing injury to others
Tortes

For lechery and promiscuity
Hot Buns

For promiscuity with gentiles
Hot Cross Buns

For racist attitudes
Crackers

For sophisticated racism
Ritz Crackers

For being holier than thou
Bagels

For abrasiveness
Grits

For dropping in without notice
Popovers

For over-eating
Stuffing

For impetuosity
Quick Bread

For indecent photography
Cheesecake

For raising your voice too often
Challah

For pride and egotism
Puff Pastry

For sycophancy, butt-kissing
Brownies

For being overly smothering
Angel Food Cake

For laziness
Any long loaf

For trashing the environment
Dumplings

Happy New Year! And l'shana tova to you.

FORUM: The Blog

Forum is City College of San Francisco’s Literary Magazine made by students, for students, and featuring students (but anyone else who want’s to read a copy let us know!)

We have a blog at forumccsf.wordpress.com and are currently accepting submissions for our next issue coming in October. We are welcome all forms of literary work: poems, essays, short stories, screen plays, and pretty much anything else the creative minds of CCSF students can come up with. We hope to eventually create a submission system on this set up but for now please email us at citylitjournal@gmail.com with your submissions and we will respond as quick as possible after reviewing them.

Fall Issue Submission Deadline: October 5, 2009
Submission Guidelines:
-We accept word documents with .doc extension and PDFs.
-Please be aware that formatting types can affect the layout of your piece.

For those who wish to view or purchase the last issue of Forum, you can stop by the English department on the 5th floor of Batmale Hall or once again email us at citylitjournal@gmail.com .

We can’t wait for everyone’s submissions, and please check back for more information and upcoming events!

The Rubber Room

Read it in The New Yorker . . .

Google Opt Out Feature

With all of our recent talk about Google Sites, and with this blog being another Google tool, you may want to consider their Opt Out Feature. Special thanks to Kevin Cook for sharing this option.

Google Opt Out Feature Lets Users Protect Privacy By Moving To Remote Village

F '09 Writing Lab Meeting: Caption Contest

From the August meeting!

Put caption ideas in the comment window . . .

Jib's a Co-Editor

Learn more about this book.

Free UCB Symposium on Multilingual Student Writers: September 26

Hi Everybody,

Just an FYI in case you or any colleagues you know might be interested. My wife, who was an ESL instructor for many years, attended this symposium 2 years ago, and here's her comment: "It was free, well-organized, useful and they included lunch!"

Matt

--- On Wed, 8/19/09, symposium@berkeley.edu <symposium@berkeley.edu> wrote:

From: symposium@berkeley.edu <symposium@berkeley.edu>
Subject: Save the Date: Symposium on Multilingual Student Writers
To:
Date: Wednesday, August 19, 2009, 4:54 PM

Announcing the 2009 Symposium on Multilingual Student Writers:

One Size Does Not Fit All:
Addressing General and Discipline-Specific Conventions for Academic Writing

Guest Speaker:
Randi Reppen, Professor of Applied Linguistics, Northern Arizona
University

Saturday, September 26, 2009
9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Breakfast starts at 8:30 a.m.

Registration will open on August 26. Check for updates and directions at
http://writing.berkeley.edu/newsite/symposium.htm.

Description:

What does it mean to teach writing? Writing is definitely not a case of
one size fits all. General writing courses like freshman composition are
filled with students from a variety of backgrounds and writing abilities
who are heading into a range of different disciplines. So, how can these
courses balance general composition requirements with students’ need to
later master disciplinary writing? During the symposium, we will look at
some ways to address both general and specific aspects of writing,
including equipping students with tools to help them become autonomous
writers. Specifically, we will explore how writing teachers and also
students can look at the writing expectations and conventions of various
disciplines and use that information to shape writing instruction and the
writing that they produce. Information from corpus linguistics will be
used to identify characteristics of disciplinary writing.

Format:

The 2009 Symposium will include breakfast, a morning session featuring a
short presentation followed by working groups, and an afternoon session
synthesizing and building on the conversations begun in the working
groups. We hope this format will give participants time to discuss and
collaborate with colleagues from colleges and universities throughout
northern California.

Please forward this note to interested colleagues.

We hope to see you next month.

Best,
The Symposium Committee
College Writing Programs
University of California, Berkeley

The Symposium Series is sponsored by The College Writing Programs
(Undergraduate Division of the College of Letters and Science), Technical
Communication (College of Engineering), and Academic Services (Residential
and Student Service Programs) at The University of California, Berkeley.

Dig it! New Department Chair Page

Jessica's Brother's New Book

Dear friends and lovers of Cuban music,

Jessica's Nelson brother, John Radanovich, just published a biography of the greatest singer Cuba ever produced, and it is now available on Amazon. The book launch party is October 18 at Books & Books in Miami, where they will have rum, cigars, and a 14-piece salsa orchestra led by Benny's grandson, and Tito Puente Jr. Please feel free to spread the news!

Billions for Community Colleges

According to President Obama, “We believe it's time to reform our community colleges so that they provide Americans of all ages a chance to learn the skills and knowledge necessary to compete for the jobs of the future.” Meaning . . .

• $9 billion in competitive grants to community colleges and states over ten years
• $10 billion loan fund to expand community college facilities
• $50 million to expand online learning options

The President might announce his plan during his address to a community college audience in Michigan on July 14. The anticipated proposal follows today’s release of the President's Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) report, entitled: Preparing the Workers of Today for the Jobs of Tomorrow, which highlights important attributes of a well-functioning education and training system that can provide U.S. workers with the skills needed for current jobs as well as those that will be created as a result of the Recovery Act and economic growth over the next decade. The report may be found at http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/Jobs_of_the_Future.pdf?tr=y&auid=5067542.

The expected proposal is speculated to have largely been structured on a May 2009 report from the National Center on Education and the Economy, entitled TRANSFORMING AMERICA’S COMMUNITY COLLEGES -- A FEDERAL POLICY PROPOSAL TO EXPAND OPPORTUNITY AND PROMOTE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY, may be found at http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2009/0507_community_college_goldrick_rab/0507_community_college_full_report.pdf.

The President’s op-ed may be found at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/11/AR2009071100647.html.

This is in The Chronicle of HE blog: http://chronicle.com/news/article/3980/obama-says-community-colleges-key-to-economy

And on MSNBC--
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31908274/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/

BUT WILL HE PLAY IT COOL?

Oh my.

What's going on?

$$$$$$$

7 Universities Providing Access to Free Literature Courses Online

Since all classes at CCSF will have a Moodle shell for online class management and instruction (see insight.ccsf.edu), think about how you might tech-enhance your classes by looking one or more of the free online literature courses offered at universities like MIT and UC - Berkeley.

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (mit.edu)
Major English Novels Course
MIT's OpenCourseWare program offers access to more than 80 free English language and literature courses. One of the most recent is the Major English Novels Course, which features readings, assignments and concentrated study of the novel genre. Registration is not required.

2. Western Governors University (wgu.edu)
Literature Course- Parts I and II
Western Governors University's Liberal Arts Department offers downloadable bachelor-level literature courses that are free to everyone. Course topics are split into ten modules and include everything from poetry and drama to fiction and literary ethics. Registration is not required.

3. The University of Utah (utah.edu)
Introduction to Shakespeare
The University of Utah's free literature course is a comprehensive introduction to the works of Shakespeare. The course is easy to download and includes seven lessons, reading assignments and other accessible resources. Registration is not required.

4. University of California, Berkeley (berkely.edu)
Shakespeare Course
UC Berkeley webcasts select courses every semester. The Shakespeare Course includes 32 lectures on Shakespeare and readings of his best works. All webcasts can be downloaded in mp3 format or heard on a free version of RealPlayer. Registration is not required.

5. University of Sheffield (shef.ac.uk)
Criticism and Literary Theory Course
The University of Sheffield's Department of English Literature provides free access to a great literary theory course designed for bachelor-level literature students. Course materials include an introduction, notes from lectures and links to relevant articles and resources. Registration is not required.

6. Open University (open.ac.uk)
Approaching Prose Fiction
The free English literature course offered by the UK's Open University introduces you to studying literary texts at a university level. The course takes about 20 hours to complete and includes several units of study. Registration is not required.

7. Utah State University (usu.edu)
Introduction to Writing
Utah State University doesn't offer a free course completely devoted to literature, but you can access an online interpretation of the university's English 1010 course. Materials include a PDF of the English 101 handbook, reading assignments and more. Registration is not required.

Leah Garchik on CCSF, 5/25, sfgate.com

City College of San Francisco threw its eighth annual fashion show last week, in the campus' new Wellness Center. Bleachers were crowded with students sporting an array of shiny pants, dirndls, ruffles and fishnet flourishes that reflected major interest in the subject at hand.

The show's energy and pizzazz were all the more impressive because it was totally student-produced, and I was also captivated by descriptions of the student designers provided in the program.

City College has more than 100,000 students, with 100,000 backgrounds, including Sara Axelrod, a Google ad saleswoman with a bachelor's degree; Stefanie Barriere, Jonathan Ochoco and Linda Lingren are lawyers; Lauren Davidson is a faculty assistant at UCSF; Shelly Foster has a bachelor's degree from Stanford and a San Francisco State teaching credential; Liza Hebb has a degree in biology; Ukraine-born Olena Holoulina works at the Ukrainian Consulate and has a master's in computer science; Caroline Jacopy, from France, has a degree in sociology; Juliana Loo is an Abraham Lincoln High School student ... I can't mention every one. But City College makes following one's passion affordable to all.

P.S.: Elisa Stephens, president of the Academy of Art University, which held its own polished fashion show a few weeks ago, was there cheering on the City College students, and announcing that her institution was giving a full scholarship to CCSF student Antonio Luna.

Liam Greger!

--from Laury Fischer of DVC--

The phone rang with some wonderful news this morning that you will all want to celebrate:

William Albin DuLaney Greger (no hyphen for this one) was born this morning, May 25, 2009 at 2:31 am Alta-Bates hospital. The baby — Liam to the world — is by all accounts simply wonderful: 8 lbs 4.5 ounces of perfection, 21.25”, and Apgar Scores of 8 and 9 — all excellent. Dad is doing great; mom is exhausted but completely excited and exhilarated -- having gone into the hospital at 3:30 am Saturday morning and finally giving birth this morning.

For now, as excited as we all are, Keri and Christoph are welcoming emails and preferring them (please no phone calls — and please no hospital visits until Keri can rest up). They think they’ll be in the hospital for three or four more days before heading home, if you want to send a card or something else wonderful.

What a blessed way for all of us to start the summer. Congratulations to Christoph and Keri — and Liam — we welcome you.

Area Man First In His Family To Coast Through College

MINNEAPOLIS—At first glance, Daniel Peterson seems no different than any other student: Wearing a ball cap, he's spent most of the evening browsing YouTube. Soon his buddies will . . .

My Precious

Live like a Hobbit . . .

JACK WAKES UP in stores now!

That's right, everybody, you can now buy JACK WAKES UP in stores everywhere and on the web here: You can also get free audio, and buy your copy here:
http://sethharwood.com/jack-wakes-up

Want to give it a trial first? Here's where you can read the first three chapters:

Open publication - Free publishing - More thriller

Hope I'll see you at a reading event soon!
http://booktour.com/author/seth_harwood

Seth

NY Times Piece on Higher Ed.

Web 2.0 to Book Deal in 3 Minutes

Re: posting this from Open Culture with thanks to Dan Colman.

After Seth Harwood got his MFA at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, he began publishing in traditional magazines and journals, as most young writers do. But those publications were slow to launch his career. Things changed, however, once he started publishing online. And they really changed when he released his crime novel Jack Wakes Up as a free podcast (via iTunes, RSS Feed, & MP3) and distributed it through social networks. Web 2.0 broadened the reach of his work, attracted fans worldwide, and ultimately landed Harwood a nice book deal with Random House. (RH will be publishing Jack Wakes Up in print early next month). In the short video above, Harwood gives you a quick look inside the making of his podcast, and how it brings exposure to his work. If you’re an up-and-coming writer, there’s certainly something here to think about. You can find out more about Seth’s work at SethHarwood.com.

This guy went to CCSF!

Jon Hammond, CCSF student, circa 1972.

NYTRB to review my novel JACK WAKES UP

YES!! I just found out today that my novel JACK WAKES UP (out May 5th from Three Rivers Press/Random House) will be reviewed in the Sunday NY Times Book Review on May 10th!!

Help me celebrate by hooting when you read this! (Please.)

I'll be giving a series of readings in SF and around the Bay Area that you can find out about here: sethharwood.com/readings Look for postcards about these events to show up on Diane's desk very soon, as well as COUPONS to buy the book at a discount from Books, Inc.
You can also view the postcard here.
All best!
Seth

Plugging My Blog: "Matt Duckworth Underwater"

Dear Fellow Faculty and Students,

I have started a blog that I invite you to check out. Here, I have started a collection of mini-essays, postcards, ruminations, artwork, favorite quotations, short-short fiction, and bibliographical annotations (more fun than it sounds!) in a forum organized, sometimes loosely, around an aquatic theme.

http://mattduckworthunderwater.blogspot.com/

I hope you will be amused, at least.

Thanks,

Matt

Lunch with writers?

Greetings, fellow wordsmiths!

In addition to our work at CCSF, we (Anna Mills and Erin O'Briant) are
both writers and are interested in socializing with other writers (of
any stripe) on campus. Therefore, we're planning an informal lunch at
PCR at noon on Thursday, April 30 for all who are interested in meeting
other self-identified writers who work here. If it goes well, we'll do
it a couple of times per semester.

At the first lunch, we can all talk about what we'd like to get out of a
regular writers' lunch--support, check-ins, a chance to seek out
critique partners, or just the opportunity to think of ourselves as
writers for an hour. We can also consider different times.

Sound fun? Please email Erin at eobriant@ccsf.edu or Anna at
amills@ccsf.edu by Monday, April 20 so we'll reserve enough room at PCR.
Staff, faculty, and administrators from all corners of CCSF are welcome;
please forward this email as you see fit. Of course, we have no funding,
so folks will have to buy their own lunches. Maybe there's something in
the stimulus package for writers eating salad together?

Happy writing,
Anna Mills and Erin O'Briant

Ocean-Balboa Progress? Maybe . . .

Argumentation!

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Intro - Brawl Street: Get Ready to Buy Low! And Sell Die

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

Responding to Student Writing

Harvard Study
Underscores
Importance
of Feedback

The Batmale Hall Food Chain: High Fructose Corn Syrup Contaminated w/ Mercury

Why have I been such a sucker for those Batmale junk machine Pop Tarts for all these years? Because I love the sweet ambrosia of mercury-laced hfcp and its side-effects . . .

A Fructed-Up Factory. Yum.

--a list of problem food products
--a press release summary of the problem
--more info
--The SF Gate story
--The UK Guardian