Slate and Style 
The Magazine of the National Federation of the Blind Writers' Division
Summer, 2022
Slate and Style submissions Email: S-andS-@nfbnet.org
Alternate Email or questions: Queenofbells@outlook.com
Web Site: writers@nfb.org
Slate and Style and Writers' Division Updates: (940(249-2517
Follow us on Twitter: @nfbwd
National Web Site: nfb.org 
National Phone: (410)659-9314
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Your 2021/23 Leadership
Shelley Alongi, President
Chelsea Cook, Vice President 
Shawn Jacobson, Treasurer 
Board Members 
Barbara Hammel
Miss Ruth Williams
Tiffany Smith 

Table of Contents
Editors Musings Shelley Alongi
Presidential Bell Notes Shelley Alongi
Writers' Round-Up at Convention Shelley Alongi
The Remaining Schedule for the Writers'   Division for 2022
The Writers' Division Launches a Bookclub by  Staff Writer
New Horizons by Katelyn Siple
Red Eye by Shawn Jacobson
Stratton Press: The Publishers That Scam   Authors by Marinella Ortiz 
Slate and Style Guidelines
Join the Division
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Blindness does not hold you back. You can live the life you want. 
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Editors Musings
by Shelley Alongi

The principal activity of the day as this issue goes to press, after making endless to-do lists, catching up on book club and personal readings, preparing various notes for Bible study lessons, arranging music for our church choir and keeping up with the changing fortunes of baseball teams is planting myself under the airconditioner in order to exist under the heat adivisories and hundred degree temperatures. Summer hit north Texas with its ridges of high pressure and intermittent, fickle thunder storms twenty-one days before the official start of summer. Summer officially begins on June 21st according to the experts who prognostacate such things. It's also along with being hot and sticky and generally disgusting, the longest day of the year. The moon wanes, information I picked up from Sky Safari Pro and my latest novel languishes in its folder on the computer. According to the wisdom of the "Weather Gods" "snow is unlikely. I'd say a resounding yes on that one; if it snows I'd be surprised and I'd probably work it into a story. 

Stay tuned in this issue for details about what to expect at national convention in two weeks. Along with plans for convention, you will find two separate writer journeys in this issue: one about being wary of a publishing company and one concerning learning how to navigate the world of relationships and new adventures with blindness.  
Bring your favorite dish, a cat of your choice and enjoy the journey through the summer issue. Consider adding to that journey by looking through our guidelines and submitting an article of your own to the panthian of adventures. Enjoy the read! Keep writing! 
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Presidential Bell Notes
by Shelley Alongi

Welcome to the summer issue of Slate and Style! 
Before the July 7 meeting join us for our June 26 regular meeting and join our discussion of the book The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun.  

It is also time to renew your dues or join us for the first time or after a long hiatus. You can send a check for $10 to Shawn Jacobson, treasurer
19541 Olney Mill Road 
Olney MD 21230.
Or, you can visit our web site at writers.nfb.org and pay using the PayPal link. You do not need an account to pay dues. You can enter a credit card. The site will accept your payment as a donation. We will count you as paid. 
See you in New Orleans!
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Writers' Round-Up at Convention
by Shelley Alongi

You might be wondering what we'll be doing at our meeting on July 7? I'm glad you asked! In two short weeks, Thursday July 7 to be exact, the Writers' Division will convene for its first in-person in three years plus a few more. We will be announcing our 2022 Writers' Division contest winners. We'll be talking to you about leadership for the next two years, hopefully having a few readings from some of our members, and answering questions. The year 2022 happens to be the forty-first anniversary of the founding of the division. In the year 2023 we will elect new leaders. In addition to talking about our past we'll address the future and update you on the goals and mission of the Writers' Division. As important as all this is, this time will be for paying dues, renewing memberships, networking, sharing accomplishments and asking questions. The Writers' Division will host a table in the exhibit hall at the Sheridan hotel so drop by on Wednesday July 6 and the morning of July 7 and say hello, introduce new members to the division, and renew old aquaintances. Come hang with us and keep cool! 
Consult the online agenda at http://www.nfb.org/convention for more details about the division and the rest of the convention. 
Don't forget to stay masked and safe. 
If you have questions at convention you can email me at the email at the top of this issue. I'll have my phones with me and as long as we get a good signal I'll be happy to answer questions. Put "Writers' Division" in the subject line.  
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Writers' Division Launches its own Book Club 
by Staff Writer

We are excited to announce that yet another book club is on the horizon. The Writers' Division members present at the March 27 meeting voted to start an official Writers' Division book club. We all know that readers make good writers. Since we talk about books at our board meetings we thought it might be fun to read a book together and discuss its merits and all kinds of other things about it. Great conversations start this way! Please join us for our inaugural book discussion at the June 26 meeting.  We will be discussing the book The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, by Lilian Jackson Braun. Written in 1966, this book is the first in a series of twenty-nine books known as the Cat Who... Jim Qwilleran and his two cats Coco and YumYum help him solve mysteries in the town where he has settled down into the job as newspaper reporter for the Fluxcon. I have not read all these books so I can't give you any spoiler alerts. We will begin our journey into literature as a Writers' Division with this book. On the horizon are books from the Chronicles of Narnea and other books. Please submit your suggestions to Queenofbells@outlook.com. You can also call our update line with suggestions. Our phone number and email addresses can be found at the top of your Slate and Style issue. You can simply reply to this email with suggestions. It is our plan to cover a variety of subjects.  
The next Zoom conference/book club meeting will be September 25. 
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The Remaining Schedule for the Writers'  Division for 2022
 by Staff Writer

Below is listed the remaining Zoom meetings for the Writers' Division for the fast flying year 2022. Please join us for all the fun. We will not meet in July due to our meeting in New Orleans. Our last meeting for the year will occur in October. We will resume meetings again in January. If you have ideas for subjects, speakers, or things you'd like to talk about at these or next year's meetings please feel free to submit them to our Queenofbells@outlook.com email. 

Sunday August 28 8:00 pm eastern: Zoom meeting 
Sunday september 25 8:00 pm eastern: Zoom meeting 
Sunday oct 23 8:00 PM eastern Zoom meeting 
See you there!
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New Horizons
by Katelyn Siple

	Blindness is only one part of me. It’s one characteristic of a whole person but a part of me that definitely changes my perspective and the way I enjoy life. As of April 6th, I will be a graduate of the Louisiana Center for the Blind, holding and ringing a freedom bell that means so much to me. In the three years I’ve been a member of the national Federation of the Blind, this organization has given me my freedom and a place for my passion to grow. I decided to attend training because I was stuck. My independence, my relationships, my mental health, and philosophy about blindness were all stuck in a dark place, and I knew something needed to change. At LCB, I discovered that independence is the ability to make your own choices while finding ways around navigation barriers. 
	Not only did I find independence here in Ruston Louisiana, but I have also had the joy of falling in love and navigating the joys and challenges of a relationship. I have definitely realized that God’s plans are nothing like I could have imagined.  
	I am part of a weird and wonderful blended family, with a spunky, sassy driven 15-year-old sister and two step siblings on each side who all mean the world to me. Family has always been important to me and some of my favorite moments include being surrounded by all of them even if we have our struggles sometimes or we’re different. 
	Recently, my favorite hobbies have included exploring nature, singing, listening to music, and of course writing. I write anything from news articles, random thoughts and feelings, stories, or social media posts. Journaling about new experiences has always helped me process and has been a huge inspiration. I also love exploring new places and doing things like swimming, walking, and ceramics when I can. Even though I love people I am an introvert who enjoys taking time by myself to watch a favorite TV show or read an inspiring book. 
	I am currently pursuing a degree in communication which I will return to after I complete my training. Writing has always been and will always be a part of my life, but I don’t think I will do that full time. I do love taking my own experiences and the experiences of others and weaving them into stories, but I also like being a part of the stories of others and helping people in a more personal way. I have considered going back to school to be a counselor or midwife after my bachelor’s degree. 
	I am not yet a published author, but I have several ideas I am working on. I found the Writers' Division while searching for meetings to attend at my first convention. There was a lot to choose from, but I chose the writers division because of my love for writing and my desire to connect with other writers with more experience who love words as much as I do. 
	I can’t wait to see what the future holds for me and for the National Federation of the Blind and I plan to be part of the organization for a long time. I want to use my passion and God-given talents to be a help to the community and the federation and I can’t wait to see what that looks like. 
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Red Eye 
by Shawn Jacobson
[Shawn is the current division treasurer. He appears to be enjoying retirement considering all the travelling he's done since June of 2021.] 

Lavender light dims
as we climb into the sky
of the LA night
The plane ascends; I see nothing.
Window shades are closed; shutting out the world
an invitation for sleep to enter here.
I strive too hard for respite,
How shall I restore my strength to face tomorrow.
Flight attendants pass through the cabin
ginger ale bubbles in the cup they give me.
cookies and soda are the last libation of the night
They are consumed and I chase sleep again.
And again, blessed rest elludes my grasp; I remain wakeful.
Airplane times passes strangely.
Midnight becomes pre-dawwn in an instant.
Is the night already over, the new day here?
 The shuttered portals tell me nothing.
My body has been made a liar by the clock.
The flight attendants pass this way again.
now is the time of coffee and wakefulness
for the will to do what needs be done
my part to end the journey I will take
The plane descends; I face tomorrow.
Cold Baltimore light greets me as I disembark
Tomorrow is here.
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Stratton Press: The Publishers That Scam Authors!
By Marinela Ortiz
[Marinela is a visually impaired writer. She looks up to writers such as Jim Butcher, Mimi Jean Pamfiloff, and Kaz Lefave. She runs the blog Nerdy Shique Universe and works as an Assistive Technology instructor during the day. She is currently studying at George Mason University to pursue her Master’s in Assistive Technology and continue her Backwards Fairy Tale series.]

As writers, we not only write but also do it for a chance to end up on websites like Amazon to have our book to be purchased or on bookshelves at our local bookstore, or even available for our blind friends on Bookshare. One thing we don’t expect is that we become prey for scams, especially publishing ones.
I almost fell for one of these publishing companies who is known for being a scammer and they are known as Stratton Press. Their website claims to provide services to authors through self-publishing for a certain fee, and get a new book cover which most companies do offer. Sounds harmless doesn’t it? It is not due to what I found out about them through other bloggers and the Better Business Bureau.
	My tale begins with one evening, I get a call out of nowhere from a Delaware number and it was someone from Stratton telling me that his boss read my book, Love Found in Cinders, which is the first in my Backwards Fairy Tale series, and loved it and wanted to re-publish it to paperback and I was really excited like anyone else. My husband was also excited thinking that it would be a great break for me. What I wasn’t expecting was the calls afterward. I received calls from this person at weird times in the evening asking me questions about my book such as the idea, the story behind it, and the characters. Even asked me about the sequel and when it will be finished, which I started on when he first called. It did get weird at times when he asked if I believed in the paranormal and about my blindness and how I could get around for event purposes if I was at a signing or at a writers event. 

What got me into looking into them was a call they made the Friday my friend visited me and my husband to celebrate his birthday. He overheard some of my call and explained it was about my political views, especially my feelings about George Floyd and my party association. My friend asked me, “What does it have to do with your book?” He did have a point since my book was a fantasy book with a boy meets girl idea. 

I decided to research Stratton and was surprised with my findings, especially with the complaints made against them on the BBB. After hearing them being read out, including having no refunds issued and having a book’s format printed wrong, I had to pull the plug and did it by blocking the number that called me. A few days later, another number tried calling and I blocked it as well. 
	I managed to get my book re-published as a paperback and changed into a Bookshare book for easier access. 

I thought my story ended except Stratton decided to call me again. I was heading home from work in October and got a call from a Delaware number. This time it was a woman trying to tell me the same spiel. I asked where she was from and she said she was from a publisher in Delaware. I asked her if she was from Stratton. She asked me how I knew. I felt that she thought I was not smart enough to know what she was up to and got mad and told her off. 

My co-worker and driver were a bit scared since they never heard me get mad and asked if I was okay. I explained in a calm voice what had happened about who they were and we all left it at that. I did call back the number and told them off and blocked it for good. I was glad they never called me again. 

I would say to you dear readers that this company is willing to scam anyone if they don’t watch their backs. I would say research into publishers if you’re hoping to be on the shelves next to your favorite writers. Anyone is able to take your money and run with it and print out a poor product in the end. I was a little disappointed but protected myself in the end. I also don’t like the idea of rushing to my next book by being asked when it’s done. As a writer, a story has to grow and the writer is the only one who knows when it’s finished.
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Slate and Style Guidelines

Here are the guidelines for Slate and Style
They include submission deadlines, contact information, requirements for your bio and cover letter, general information and word counts for genres. Enjoy. 

Submission Dates 

Spring Issue: March 21st---Submissions close February 28th

Summer issue: June 21st---Submissions close May 31st

Fall issue: September 23rd----Submissions close September 2nd

Winter issue: December 21st---Submissions close November30th

Please read through all the guidelines carefully. Submissions that do not follow these guidelines may not be considered for Slate & Style. 

Submission guidelines are as follows:

Length requirements are: articles, 1500 words or less, fiction and memoir/personal essay, 4000 words or less, book reviews, 1000 words or less, poetry, 36 lines or less.

Again, send ALL submissions as email attachments no matter the genre. Include a cover letter along with your submissions with author's name, title of piece(s) and contact info-phone, email and address included. Also include a bio with your submission(s). Your bio should be no more than 150 words. Do not send an entire history, just include key items you feel are important for readers to know. Send as an attachment as well. More than one submission is allowed per email but do list all submissions in the required cover letter. 

Send submissions to s-and-s@nfbnet.org 

In the subject line of your email, write: Slate & Style submission, your name, and number of submissions. Example: “Slate & Style submission, Myrna Badgerow, 3 submissions”.

Use Microsoft Word or create an RTF document for all submissions. No other formats are accepted, and therefore will not be considered. 

Proofread and check your grammar and formatting before submitting. 

Slate & Style will consider all submissions for publication. However, please be careful with graphic sexual and violent content as well as language and -religious, anti-gender, anti-racial and anti-homosexual orientation content. Characterization and plot often require this type of material, but it must serve a purpose. Gratuitous material with no purpose or meant only for derogatory reasons, will not be considered. Material will be published according to the discretion of the editing staff.

Please direct questions and comments to the email address listed above for submissions, in your subject line, please include your name and simply write: “QUESTION”. Then write your question in the body of the email.

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Join the Division

Join a group of creative, active writers involved in all aspects of writing: educational reviews, poetry, short stories and novels. We have writers in
all phases of the craft. We have some who enter contests, some who self-publish, and some who have worked with mainstream publishers. We are always looking
for writers with new ideas.

It’s only $10 to join. Pay online by going to 
writers.nfb.org our division web site. Click on the button that says “PayPal”. If you’re new to a screen reader, you can search for the word “pay” on the site till you find PayPal and
then click on that button. The PayPal information encourages donations, but this link can also be used to pay dues.
The End.