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Frequently Asked Questions |
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The Boulder Writers Alliance—located in Boulder, Colorado, USA—is a nonprofit organization of communications professionals. Our goals are to help our members find work and to increase our marketable skills. The group is structured according to the BWA bylaws.
BWA is open to practitioners of all types of communications—technical writing and editing, copywriting, marketing communications, journalism, fiction and nonfiction writing, on-line help, Web design, desktop publishing, graphic arts, and more.
Membership offers access to job listings, networking opportunities, and training. See our member benefits page for details.
No. However, many of the available writing jobs are for technical writers. Because of this, many BWA members are technical writers. But BWA still offers networking, meetings, e-mail lists, and other benefits for non-technical communicators as well.
Yes! BWA is often featured in the Boulder Daily Camera newspaper and local business journals. When articles are available on line, links will be posted here.
BWA regularly receives requests for permanent and contract writers. BWA job leads are for BWA members only; job leads are not available to the general public.
Visit our Post a Job page where a convenient submission form is provided. You need not be a BWA member to post a job lead. Members who participate in the primary e-mail list can also post leads directly to that list.
The quickest way is to go to the Membership Directory Web page, download the PDF version of the Directory, and print it on your own printer. Alternatively, you can pick up a printed Directory at any BWA meeting. If you're an employer, BWA will mail you a printed Member Directory. E-mail such a request to Linda Woods.
BWA provides members with several opportunities for professional education and networking, such as instructive program meetings, educational workshops, panel discussions, and social events.
Meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of each odd-numbered month—January, March, May, July, September, and November. Meetings take place at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), 1850 Table Mesa Drive in Boulder. See the Calendar page for details.
Meetings start with informal networking, followed by BWA announcements, and then a program. Program topics vary; in the past, they've included such topics as independent contracting, on-line help, Web design, marketing communications, public speaking, computer graphics, editing, and magazine writing. Programs often include members sharing their experiences and showing samples of their work. Read notes from past program meetings.
If there's a meeting this month, its topic will be shown on the Calendar page. To suggest a topic for a meeting, e-mail the BWA President at president @ bwa.org or any BWA officer.
Meeting are free and open to the public. Prospective members are encouraged to attend to learn more about BWA.
Reduced-price workshops are held as often as we can find volunteers to organize them. Past workshop topics include indexing, writing articles for publication, Web page design, graphics, and training in popular software applications. To suggest a topic or facilitator for a workshop, e-mail the BWA President at president @ bwa.org.
We usually have an Expo (formerly a Showcase) each fall where BWA members can meet with communications experts and colleagues, as well as potential employers and clients. Read about the Expo. We also occasionally other social gatherings.
In addition, the BWA Steering Committee meets before each program meeting. All members are welcome to participate in our decision-making processes. If you're a BWA member and would like to attend a Steering Committee meeting, e-mail the BWA President at president @ bwa.org to find out the location and put an item on the agenda.
If you've paid your BWA dues and have an e-mail address, you can join either or both of BWA e-mail lists. The primary e-mail list is for members only; the general discussion list is open to anyone with an interest in writing-related topics. Aside from face-to-face communication, the e-mail lists are the primary means of networking among BWA members. They are used to give each other job leads, point out new resources, and ask each other questions.
To sign up for the primary e-mail list, first you need to join BWA, and then see the E-mail Lists page for details on your options. To sign up for the general discussion list, see the E-mail Lists page for details on your options.
See the E-mail Lists page for instructions.
See the E-mail Lists page for instructions.
E-mail and the BWA Web site are the primary ways that BWA members communicate with each other. If you don't have e-mail and can't access the Web, then you won't be able to get the full benefits of BWA membership. However, there are free Internet kiosks at public libraries, the CU Boulder libraries, McGuckin Hardware, Wild Oats (2584 Baseline Rd), and other locations. And you can get a free e-mail account through companies like Hotmail.
Writers and communicators from anywhere are welcome to join BWA. In fact, several members have moved from the Boulder/Denver area, or are thinking of moving here, and find membership in BWA to be a valuable to stay in touch and/or learn about this area. As long as you have e-mail and Web access, you'll be able to participate in our "virtual community" from anywhere.
Anyone can attend BWA meetings, but BWA membership has additional benefits, as described below.
You must have joined or renewed your membership by January each year (the deadline varies and is announced) for your information to be included in BWA's printed Membership Directory. If you join or renew later in the year, your information will be included in subsequent online (PDF) versions of the Directory.
Yes. BWA members have priority for exhibiting at the Showcase, usually held each fall. In 2005 and 2006, BWA hosted an Expo instead; read about the Expo.
No. The e-mail lists are the primary means of communication among BWA members.
Yes. Several versions of the logo are posted at "writers-BWA" Yahoo!Groups area.
Standard dues are $50/year for new and non-volunteering members. Renewing members who have completed a volunteer activity the previous year pay only $25/year.
See the instructions in How to Join BWA.
Yes, in March 2008 BWA started a low-cost student volunteer membership program for new members only. Student members pay dues of $15 a year and agree to do some volunteer work for BWA each year that they are a student member. Any currently enrolled student pursuing a degree in an accredited institution may join BWA by filling out the online membership and specifying the Student Volunteer Membership option. Student applicants will then be contacted by the BWA Membership Chairperson to arrange for a suitable volunteer assignment and introductions. Student members enjoy the full suite of BWA member benefits.
See the instructions in How to Renew BWA Membership.
It's vitally important that you keep information about yourself up-to-date in the BWA member database. Whatever you have entered here is what prospective employers see when they do a search. See the instructions in How to Update BWA Membership Information.
Since volunteer work is the lifeblood of BWA, we promote it by offering half-price dues to members who have volunteered the previous year. Volunteering
All different kinds! Some are easy, one-time efforts, like taking notes at a meeting or stuffing envelopes. Others require more effort and give back more rewards, like heading a committee, helping with the annual Expo, making a program presentation, organizing a workshop, writing an article for our Web site, or updating one of our Resources Web site pages.
When you join or renew your membership, select the volunteer area that interests you in the Volunteer Interests field of the membership form. (If you don't have a preference, select Other/Whatever Is Needed.) When a need arises, our Volunteer Coordinator can use that information to solicit volunteers. However, don’t wait for someone to contact you personally. Respond quickly when you hear someone mention a volunteer need at a meeting or on the listserv. And feel free to think of new ways you can share your expertise with the group! For more information, contact the Volunteer Coordinator (volunteers @ bwa.org).
BWA has three elected officers: President, Vice President, and Treasurer. The responsibilities for each position are listed in the BWA bylaws. Anyone who has been a BWA member for at least one year may run for office. Elections are held annually at the November meeting. For more information about running for an elected office, contact the BWA President, president @ bwa.org.
The names of BWA officers and committee members are available online so that you can reach the appropriate person for your question by looking up their e-mail address in our membership database. In addition, the footer of each page on this site lists its owner, so that you can contact the responsible person for that area. For questions on website maintenance or organization, contact webmaster @ bwa.org. For other questions, contact info @ bwa.org.
Note: Personal e-mail addresses and mailto links have been removed from this site, and functional e-mail addresses are shown with spaces before and after the @ sign, to alleviate address harvesting by spammers.
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