Membership Highlights

WriteGirls Write! A Few Highlights from our Members’ Accomplishments


Mentees
In just a year and a half, members of WriteGirl have achieved some incredible things, all linked to the development of strong writing skills and working with their mentors. Seven members are going off to college this fall and all were able to include their WriteGirl membership as important elements of their college applications.

Also:
Iris Benitez wrote such a compelling letter that acclaimed author Sandra Cisneros agreed to fly in from Texas to speak at the Belmont High School graduation ceremony. Iris introduced Sandra before a crowd of 5,000. Iris first read Sandra’s acclaimed novel, The House on Mango Street, with her WriteGirl mentor, who introduced her to the book.

Lena Brooks won the prestigious Scholastic poetry Award, one of over twenty selected nationally out of thousands of high school students. She received her award in D.C. this summer.

Perla Melendez was accepted to the prestigious California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA), held on the campus of the California Institute of the Arts.

Talented singer, songwriter and WriteGirl Malie was named a finalist on the talent discovery show “Live at the Apollo,” where she was named weekly winner three times in New York.


Volunteers & Mentors:

WriteGirl Advisory Board member Kate Axelrod wrote for the critically-acclaimed Showtime series Dead Like Me, following her tour on the HBO series The Mind of the Married Man.

Heather Hach scored an exciting hit this summer with the release of her first feature, Freaky Friday, starring Jamie Lee Curtis. Heather is currently working on a new project with producer Lynda Obst.

Founding member Deborah Reber published Run For Your Life, a running guide for women, adding to her long list of book credits. Deborah, publisher of our most recent book, Bold Ink, also sits on WriteGirl’s Advisory Board.

WriteGirl Elizabeth Rodgers and her writing partner, Julie Foreman, are working on a feature project with Carsey-Werner-Mandabach and actor Ashton Kutcher. They are also developing a comedy series for Showtime. A founding member of WriteGirl, Elizabeth sits on our Advisory Board and chaired our June 2003 gala event at the Writers Guild Theater.

Shawn Schepps’ latest project, the feature Drumline, was a big hit this year, enjoyed by audiences all over the country. Shawn’s credits include Encino Man and Son In Law and she recently directed the play Man Ranch in Los Angeles. A touching article about Shawn’s experience with her WriteGirl mentee, Mara, appears in this month’s Written By magazine, the journal of the Writers Guild of America.


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