Date: Fri 28-Jul-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDREA

Quick Words:

writers-Sprung-Hoover-computer

Full Text:

Two Newtown Writers Find Each Other In Cyberspace

B Y A NDREA Z IMMERMANN

When Joan Sprung flips on her computer and begins to explore the layers of

possibilities, she said she feels like Alice in Wonderland. Not only has she

been able to communicate with other established writers, but actually "met"

one of her Newtown neighbors during an "open chat" on the computer July 4.

"Someone in Georgia said her fireworks were cancelled because of heavy rain.

Then someone in Virginia said, it was true there, too," explained Ms Sprung.

"I said, 'Something is coming down the east coast, which probably means

Connecticut will have rain tomorrow.' And someone I didn't recognized asked

where I lived in Connecticut."

That's when she first "met" Becky Hoover, an aspiring author, who lives on the

other side of town. They introduced themselves, in person, two weeks later

over a cup of coffee at Sharon's Coffee and Tea.

"I am totally amazed ," said Mrs Hoover, who just hooked up to the computer

service two months ago. "I looked through menu and found the writer's group

listed. They also have message boards where they post things that might be of

interest to writers and they had a notice about a children's writer workshop

in Vermont." That's where she met yet another Sandy Hook resident.

"It's almost like 'Six Degrees Of Separation,'" she laughed.

How It Computes

All three women subscribe to the computer service America On-Line and tap into

the Writers' Club. This club offers a one-hour Tuesday night Children's

Writers' Chat that may be structured with an agenda to discuss a particular

style, agents, or other topic of interest. Or they may schedule an "open chat"

where as many as 40 people from all over the country get on-line at the same

time and freely converse.

"I thought I would find 'wannabe' writers in the club, but these are absolute

icons in the children's writing program!" said Ms Sprung, who had her first

article published in 'Teen magazine and most recently in Hop Scotch . "Marilyn

Singer has a million books out and just sold her latest one to Disney. She's

someone I've become friendly with and we correspond regularly."

Ms Sprung also met someone through the Writers' Club bulletin board with whom

she swaps stories and offers criticism. "We correspond almost daily. We have a

joke now that 'Mr Repetition has reared his ugly head again.' We've gotten

pretty good at nailing for inconsistencies," said the author. "His ten

year-old daughter wanted to get into the act, so now I correspond with her ,

too."

Ms Sprung is planning to visit her new friends in Pennsylvania, and looks

forward to meeting Marilyn Singer at a writers' conference in Manhattan this

fall. This all helps balance a profession that is traditionally "not very

social," said Ms Sprung.

"The biggest thing [about the computer] is connection," said the author. "It's

getting to know and talk to 'word' people, bright people who have gone through

all the steps [to be published]."

The computer has such potential and the service offers so many opportunities

to explore, "there is the initial impulse to get suck into it, totally,"

laughed Ms Sprung. But then you realize you have to get back to the work of

writing.

"There's something magical about children's stories," she said. Right now she

is starting a third novel, a young adult romance that spans two periods. "I

grew up before TV. And I think it's the biggest gift you can give to a child -

to read to them."

Mrs Hoover is rewriting a teen novel, and hopes to focus on picture books in

the future. The new computer acquaintances are thinking about organizing a

group in Newtown for those interested in writing for children.

"This is so funny because I never would have met Becky if this woman's

fireworks hadn't been cancelled in Georgia!" said Ms Sprung.