NEWS RELEASE

Contact: David West (west@alpha.nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

2/14/2001

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES - Classes on landscaping, organizations and writing are being offered in March through NSU's Office of Continuing Education.

"New Ideas for Landscaping Your Home" will be taught on Thursday evenings from 6:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. from March 1-22. Cathy Hills McCurdy will give tips on how to combine flowers and foliage for year-round color in your landscape. Participants will also learn about great low maintenance plants that are available. There is a $45 fee for the class.

Instructor Ross Williams Jr. will teach "Organizational Excellence for the Non-Profit Center on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from March 13-22. The class is from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. The fee is $75.

In the course, participants will learn organizational development, financial management, fundraising as well as collaborating and building alliances.

Learning the piano is not a time consuming task. A course, "Instant Piano for Hopelessly Busy People," will be presented on Tuesday, March 13.

The class will be held in Room 304 of the Old Wing of the A.A. Fredericks Center for Creative and Performing Arts from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. The fee for the class is $49 plus a $20 material fee. David Haynes is the instructor.

Topics to be covered include: How chords work in music, musician's shortcuts, how to speed read sheet music, how to derive major, minor and seventh cords, how to handle different keys and time signatures, simple techniques of counting and how to substitute for 12,000 complex chords.

The class is designed for beginners who only know how to find middle C. Participants will learn all the chords needed to play any pop song, any style, any key.

Four courses on novel writing will be offered on March 23-25. The classes will taught by editor Michael Garrett in Room 218 of Russell Hall on Northwestern's Natchitoches campus. Garrett has worked with authors including Stephen King, Joyce Carol Oates and Lawrence Block. He has set up a website at www.manuscriptcritique.com.

Garrett will teach "Short Story and Novel Feedback," on March 23 from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. The fee for the course is $49. Garrett says many manuscripts are rejected in the first few pages rarely with an explanation. In the class, Garrett will evaluate manuscripts, explain why rejections were likely and teach how the problem can be corrected. Participants who choose not to have works reviewed can listen to evaluations of other students' work.

"Writing a Novel that Sells," will be presented from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 24. There is a $75 fee for the course. In the workshop, Garrett will discuss what it takes to become a published novelist. He will teach the keys to success in today's competitive publishing industry, including marketing techniques that move writers close to publication.

Later that day, Garrett will teach "Common Mistakes that Lead to Rejection," from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.

In the class, Garrett will reveal which errors editors are most sensitive to and help writers move closer to publication by eliminating these problems prior to submission. The fee for the class is $49.

On March 25, Garrett will present "Creating a Novel from Scratch" from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. The workshop will provide ideas for producing a marketable novel. Garrett will brainstorm with those in the class to develop a novel outline, characters, appropriate viewpoint and structure. The fee for the class is $75.

For more information on the classes or to sign up, contact the Office of Continuing Education at (318) 357-5682 or (800) 376-2422.

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