'Getting published' is artists' first step

For many young artists, writers and photographers, getting published is the first step toward larger artistic goals. \nFor those artists at IU, a free informational session sponsored by The Bloomington Area Arts Council tonight will focus on how to get published in different genres and print formats, according to a press release.\nArtists After Hours is a monthly networking session held by the art council and is presenting "Getting Published" from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. tonight at the John Waldron Arts Center, 122 S. Walnut St.\n"If you want to get recognized, (getting published) is a good start," said junior Ashley Fragomeni. \nFragomeni said she's been drawing, painting and making ceramics all her life, and recognizes the importance for artists to get exposure.\nMary Speaker, poetry genre editor for the Indiana Review, a literary magazine graduate students at IU manage, encouraged students to attend the session.\n"I would recommend that students attend something like this so they could see what their options are," she said.\nThe session will consist of an hour of discussion followed by socializing. The council's press release encourages attendees to bring any questions they might have to the session. \nEvent attendees will also listen to several speakers who will discuss different options for getting one's work published, including self-publishing and national publishing options.\nTom Britt and Lee Sandweiss will bring publishing experience to the session. Britt does publicity for AuthorHouse, a Bloomington-based self-publishing firm that has sold more than 3 million books to date and represents more than 25,000 authors, according to a press release. Sandweiss has been publishing for 20 years at the IU Press. \nMichael Wilkersonand Elsa Marston, both renowned writers, will also speak. \nWilkerson is a columnist for The Bloomington Herald-Times, has published numerous short stories and coordinates various cultural activities on campus. Marston recently won the Middle East Outreach Council award for fiction for her book, "Figs and Fate: Stories About Growing Up in the Arab World Today." John Bower, a local photographer who focuses on images of Indiana, will round off the group of presenters.\nThe council's development director, Diana Corrigan, encouraged anyone interested in writing or publishing to come to the session and said the council supports all artists, regardless of the medium with which they work.\n"It's all art to us," she said. \nInterested students can learn more about the council and future events at www.artlives.org.