The historic nature of The Write Stuff reached a new level on Friday, January 9 2009 when some of the principals with the project converged on Houston, Texas for the first meet and greet and audition. No one knew exactly what to expect, but at the end of the day it was agreed that the events were a success!
(Seen above: Authors Joseph Henderson, Elaine Flowers, Sylvia Dickey Smith, P. Elaine Archie, Kia Stokes and Bruce Williams)During the meet and greet dozens attended to find out more about the project, meet the judges and other participants and just to show their support. Among the judges present were (seen below) authors Sylvia Dickey Smith, Kia Stokes, Brian W. Smith, P. Elaine Archie, Elaine Flowers and Joseph Henderson. It was the first time many of them had actually met in person, but you wouldn't have been able to tell by the conversations and the instant connections that were made.
The day of the auditions (Saturday, January 10, 2009) the lines weren't long, however, contestants came from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Orange County, Texas ready to show why they had The Write Stuff.
At the end of the day three contestants were confirmed for the show:
Tommie Townsley
At the end of the day three contestants were confirmed for the show:
Tommie Townsley
Shanedria Ridley
Geremy Howard
Another contestant, Lakeisha Young-Sanders (seen below), showed great promise and will be involved in another activity to see if she will be chosen to be a part of season one.Aside from the actual activites of the weekend, The Write Stuff supporters were able to give back to others as well. Dozens of books were brought in as donations, totally over $450! These will be presented by author Sylvia Dickey Smith to the Georgetown Public Library in Georgetown, Texas.
Houston, TX has begun a new chapter for this groundbreaking project. The countdown is now on! Next will be Atlanta, GA. To see the full photo gallery for the Houston, TX trip, visit this link: http://thewritestufftv.webs.com/apps/photos/album.jsp?albumID=3722507 .To keep up with other events and those associated with The Write Stuff, visit http://www.thewritestufftv.com.