January 2013 -- Connect Yourself to your Reader

Hey Everyone:

This is my first blog post as co-coordinator with Rene.

I am honored to have the position now. And a bit daunted.

It’s more to take on than I thought – of course! I always do this…

But as a wise person once said to me:

“We are much wiser and greater than we think we are.”

Imagine your higher self-floating over you, capable of doing anything and everything, if just given the time . . . and the space . . .and  . . .what else . . . ah, yes, belief.

I’m not talking about anything religious (that’s a whole ‘nother kettle of fish.)

I am talkin’ about MAGIC and FAITH in MAGIC AND MIRACLES.

Kids love this stuff – they love reading books about this stuff too – need I mention Harry Potter.

But what does all this have to do with the first meeting of the Hollywood Schmooze of 2013? January’s Topic was on Connecting Emotionally with your Reader, ei. Emotional Writing. I would say that all writing that is good is emotional – even non-fiction must push some emotional buttons. Feelings connect us and keep us interested.

Rene presented a great writing exercise – to write about the moment that a child learns that Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy or some other mythical belief is NOT true. Wow! I wish I didn’t have to coordinate and could just participate. I could write a whole story on this – with this moment as the turning point.

Next, I led an exercise on accessing a scene from a painful childhood memory. A few people shared theirs – after sketching the scene or an object from the scene, as a way to remember it.

Everyone seemed to get a lot out of the evening!

See you next month for writing tools and tricks.

The Hollywood Schmooze meets the 3^rd Thursday of the month.

At Rhonda Hayter’s home at 1238 Meadowbrooke Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90019

Call it Hollywood!

June in Bloom in Hollywood

June Hollywood Schmooze
Jennifer Rofe, special guest from Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

Jennifer spoke of how she became an agent and went over opening segments from books she sold. Her stories of working with authors on their revisions and standing by them until they sold their first novel were heartening.

She is warm and intelligent, a young woman who loves her profession, and has the utmost respect (one might even say, love) for writers who she shepherds through the arduous task of first-time publication. And she sticks by her authors as they continue their writing careers.

the flowers on the way to the door

Why does one need an agent?

She replied: Why would you not want an agent?

Going into a deal with a major publishing firm without one, she said, is fool-hearty and naïve. You may get a deal, but it will not be anywhere near what you could have gotten with an agent and you may even get “scre—d.” (This is me paraphrasing, of course.)

So, do not fear the friendly agent. Find one who fits your style and go with it…so what if they take a cut off the top – that’s their livelihood! And that’s how you know that they are working as hard as they possibly can to get you the best deal possible – because they are working for themselves at the same time.

Rhonda Hayter on the left, schmoozing with a participant.

More schmoozing...

Our location...in case you were wondering! Very Hollywoody, n'est pas?
We also had another guest, Rita Crayon. We look forward to seeing your photos, Rita. Thanks for coming!

  

Hollywood Schmooze Critique Night

If you want to see this famous L.A. landmark on your way to the SCBWI Hollywood Schmooze:
Just head East on Wilshire Blvd. past Fairfax Avenue. On the left, you'll see the streets lights
at LACMA (LA County Museum of Art.) Our meeting place is just a few blocks past this spot and  about 5 blocks south. (Not that anyone needs directions anymore with mapquest!)

Last session, about fifteen of us stuck to a tight schedule and provided feedback for 10 minutes each on ten people's work. We accomplished a lot and the format was excellent! Thanks, Rene.

The range of writing being presented (we emailed 5 pages in advance) was remarkable. Great stuff, everyone! There were a few picture books, a few middle grade novels, a few non-fiction pieces and a few YA novels.

And the observations were on target too. I walked out inspired and a bit overwhelmed but very happy to be even to the point in my writing where I could receive such pointed criticism. The suggestions I got were ones I needed to hear -- and  I love that, when you go to a critique session and you hear just what you needed to hear...all the voices inside you that you are trying to ignore, suddenly come alive.

I am not sure if there is much more to say since I can't go into the details about each submitted story, though I would certainly love to. They are all so fantastic and I can't wait to see them in print.

THE HOLLYWOOD SCHMOOZE

THE HOLLYWOOD SCHMOOZE MARCH MEETING TOPIC:
Immediate Goals and Short Term Strategies

It’s hard to think of yourself as a brand but when you are in publishing or media, it seems that’s what you are – as an individual, you need to create publicity for yourself – and it’s not for egotism, it’s for survival as an artist (or if you want to make any money at all) in this digital age.

So, how do we as Children’s Book Writers market ourselves?
Well, the usual suspects appeared: Facebook, Twitter Etc.
It’s all out there, one just has to figure out how to use it and use it to your advantage.

We learned some interesting details:

1) Famous People, Celebrities etc. who tweet probably are not the ones doing the actual tweeting. They hire publicists who do this for them.

2) Also, numbers matter: how many friends you have on Facebook, how many hits you get on your website this all speaks to whether you can generate traffic or not, whether people are interested in you or what you have to say.

3) A site where teen stories are published was mentioned. And a lively discussion ensued on the need for more online magazines for young people…

4) Questions were raised about time management and the time consuming aspect of social media. Certain time strategies were proposed and shared for dealing with this:

            a) separate the various parts of your life into different email accounts
            b) only open your Facebook page when you have time for it.
            b) Facebook does not have to be a total obsession. It can be used strategically.
            c) make a website that is interactive.

5) We went around the room and stated our short term goals – what we wished to accomplish in the next two or three months.

6) to make some money in the short term, submitting to magazines was suggested.

Additional comments and feedback welcome!  

The Westside Writers Schmooze "MAKE YOUR OWN PICTURE BOOK DUMMY" Workshop led by Special Guest Speaker Laura Lacámara!!

On Wednesday, December 8th, 2010, more than thirty Westside Schmoozers gathered for a truly festive holiday treat, as special guest speaker Laura Lacamara led us through the process of making picture book dummies.

Laura with her two published picture books,
"Floating on Mama's Song," which she wrote,
and "Runaway Piggy" which she illustrated!

Laura is the author of Floating on Mama’s Song / Flotando en la Canción de Mamá, a bilingual picture book inspired by her mother, who was an opera singer in Havana. Floating on Mama’s Song, illustrated by Yuyi Morales, was released by HarperCollins September 1, 2010 and has already received its first starred review--from Publishers Weekly! Laura also recently illustrated The Runaway Piggy / El Cochinito Fugitivo, a bilingual picture book for Piñata Books, an imprint of the University of Houston’s Arte Público Press. The Runaway Piggy, written by James Luna, debuted November 30, 2010. You can learn more about her at http://lauralacamara.com/

Laura regularly attends the Westside Schmooze, and we were thrilled to have her lead this workshop! As both a picture book author and illustrator, Laura is uniquely positioned to look at picture book manuscripts with an eye for both text and illustrations, and was the perfect expert to guide us in creating our own picture book dummies.

Lee introducing Laura - and setting the serious tone for the evening

Laura prepared fantastically for this schmooze. Before everyone arrived, she had already set each "place" with its own large Book Map to creating a picture book dummy, a WONDERFUL handout on "Tips for Determining Page-Turns in your Manuscript"--full of concrete, very clear tips!--and individual, precounted stacks of 16 sheets of paper. Each table had communal scissors and staplers. In addition, schmoozers were asked to bring in two copies of their own picture book manuscripts (or any favorite text) to work with. For attendees who did not bring in texts, Rita typed up "manuscripts" from existing, already published picture books, so everyone could join in the fun.





Spirits were high, and baked goods and snacks kept arriving. THANK YOU, everyone, for not only bringing in your manuscripts, but also contributing such a wonderful holiday FEAST! WE LOVE YOU ALL!!



As soon as we were settled in, we were ready to go!

To start, Laura had us each decide whether our picture books would have "portrait" or "landscape" orientations, and we stapled our papers accordingly. Regarding orientation, Rita recalled Mo Willems once suggesting at a conference that character-based stories were better suited to portrait, and stories about location were better suited to landscape--and, furthermore, that concept, or "arty," books could go square. :) Something to think about!

Laura then guided us through the process of determining where the page turns would fall in our manuscripts.


She talked us through her handout, holding up and reading from published picture books to give examples of each tip.




She even showed us a few pages from the dummy she had made for her own picture book manuscript prior to it being illustrated by Yuyi to make her points!

We then paired up and read each other's manuscripts, to give feedback on the flow of each other's stories, and on page turns. It was wonderful seeing everyone engaging in each other's stories on this level!



The happy sounds of scissors, staplers, chatting, and enjoying good food all filled the room as everyone got busy assembling their stories into picture book dummies.




As the night came to a close all too soon, we also took a few minutes to share insights with the room at large about what we had discovered--about our stories and about pictures books--through this process. One Schmoozer brought up the idea that the tips for determining page turns might also be applied to longer format stories (MG, YA), regarding chapter breaks.



THANK YOU again, Laura, for guiding us through such a joyful, fun, and truly informative workshop! We all learned so much--and are better story creators for it!

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Rita and Lee

P.S. Please join us in the new year on Wednesday, January 12th, when the Westside Schmooze will meet to discuss,

"Hope is not a plan": Outlining your story and your career.

"Hope is not a plan." --CNN Host Anderson Cooper. It's a new year. Where do you want your writing to take you, both within your story and in life? Come share in advice for outlining our manuscripts, setting goals, and plotting out the trajectory of our writing careers! For Picture Book through Young Adult, fiction and non-fiction.

Hope to see you there!

p.p.s. all photos by Rita Crayon Huang

The Westside Writers Schmooze meets to discuss "VOICE: The End-All Definition"

These books have it. Voice. So just what IS "it?"

Schmooze Recap: Part 1
Note: This first half of this Schmooze recap first appeared on Rita's personal blog at rhcrayon: The Blog! the morning after the October 13th Schmooze.

All right. So here's the promise Lee and I made to the world in our latest e-blast about the SCBWI Westside Schmooze.

Subject: The SCBWI Westside Schmooze -- Wednesday, October 13th at 7 PM

Does October mean thrills, chills, and suspense to you? Well, it should if you attend the next meeting of the SCBWI Westside Schmooze! Because on October 13th, at 7 PM, we will meet to unmask . . .

VOICE: The End-All Definition

That's right. Editors and Agents often say that while they can fix everything else in a manuscript, Voice is that one special quality a manuscript must have from the start, for them to fall in love. Yet when it comes to defining what Voice IS, even the greats flounder, with many falling back on the axiom "You know it when you see it."

What is THAT about? Are we in the business of describing things or aren't we?? At the next Westside Schmooze we aim to settle this mystery once and for all--AND come up with an End-All Definition--by showing great examples of Voice, analyzing WHAT IT IS, and sharing exercises that will help each of us find and perfect our own. For Picture Book through Young Adult, fiction and non-fiction. Let's do this. It's time.

Now, I'll admit I've been frustrated in my life lately, and I wrote this email with a mad gleam in my eye when the weather had taken a turn for the worse.

But.

I think it's hilarious to set out to do "impossible" things--especially because (in my experience) 60-65% of the time, it totally works. Most of the time, the only reason anything is perceived as "impossible" is because it's unlikely you'll get enough people to back your vision. Once you have that, the thing itself is easy.

We had 41 people attend this Schmooze, and I really thought we were going to do it. Not come up with an "End-All" Definition like I'd advertised (that would be impossible!) but come up with a definition that we 40+ children's book writers could live with, which we would then throw down in cyberspace like a gauntlet to the world. I wanted to stir things up.

We had . . . an excellent discussion, full of impassioned, articulate insights. It's not true that no one knows what Voice is, or can define it in a few pithy words. Plenty of people can--and did tonight. It's just that every time someone put theirs out there, we all agreed with and then rebutted it. The spirit was willing, but the time ran out.


(Also, I think a lot of people like that Voice is an ineffable mystery and subconsciously sabotaged our efforts.)


I've been fed up lately with how no one can agree on what Voice "is," in a few blunt words, even though we do all recognize it when we hear it. Lee and I and Karol read examples from books tonight that gave everyone thrills and chills. Few people had the view of the room we did. 41 grownups turned into rapt little children, falling under a spell, every. Single. Time. Grr.

Sigh.

I had a vision of us gathering like tribal leaders that would go down in history.


Nathan Bransford, for your excellent post on Voice written May 10th of this year, I bow at your feet.

r


Schmooze Recap: Part 2

Here is a small sampling of the suggestions that came up during this night's impassioned discussion.


VOICE IS . . .

. . . authority. Letting the reader feel--through specificity of word choice and details used--that they are in good hands. That you, the Author, have Authorial Control.

. . . performance. Imagine your readers eating popcorn as your story unfolds.

. . . to writers what "Style" is to photographers: the subject matter you choose to show, plus "how" you show it. In photography, "'how" means camera/equipment settings. In writing, this means favorite writing techniques.

. . . soul.

. . . a figment of the Reader's imagination. It's what readers always SAY they like when--for any reason--they like what you've written.

. . . tone. (Which sparked a discussion on Mood as well, and whether these differ.)

. . . what makes your work unmistakably, recognizably yours, even when your name isn't given. (Examples abounded. David Mamet came up a couple times!)

. . . possession. That thing--the mysterious Muse--that takes us over as we write, for which we are merely the conduit.

. . . difficult to distinguish from masturbation--meaning: once you've found your Voice, how do you know when enough is enough? (From here we segued to the "Moderation" section of Nathan Bransford's excellent blog post on "How To Craft A Great Voice," which was an article we reference many times that night. Speaking of which, Rita also shared this comment Nathan Bransford wrote in the Comments section to that post: "I think voice is there when it's adjustable. Can you dial up or down certain elements? . . . [I]s it enough of an entity that you can think of it apart from the elements it's describing?")

. . . the Holy Grail.

. . . trending towards the sarcastic and snarky these days.

. . . determined by your audience. (For example, do you write for just one person? How well do you know your audience?)

On this, Rita also shared M.T. Anderson's fascinating suggestion--from Lee's exclusive interview on Lee's blog this summer: M.T. Anderson said that he imagines voice going TOWARDS the reader in MG, but coming FROM the narrator in YA and adult.

. . . when an editor or agent says, "I want your book!"


Throughout the evening, the group also discussed

the Voice of the author vs. that of characters,

whether authors each have one "true" Voice or whether each of one's works possesses its own. (One nice analogy was made to actors: some actors are highly visible and dependable in what they deliver, and some disappear completely into each new character they play.)

the helpfulness of "tone" and/or "mood" in defining Voice (is there a
difference?);

the distinction between Literary Writing and Commercial, and so much more.

Mary Kole's blog was also brought up as an excellent resource for us all, in addition to Nathan Bransford's mentioned above.

We ended the evening by sharing some thought-provoking exercises to take home.

We also tried THIS fun exercise during the last minutes of Schmooze itself--
which you can do now, too!

Every Schmooze attendee spent two minutes writing down their own opening line to "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." (The moment when Goldilocks is at the bear's door.)

As the final moments of the Schmooze ticked down, volunteers raised their hand to share their opening lines, and we all marveled at the truly spectacular, different Voices that came shining through--and at the wildly different tellings of "Goldilocks" that each next Voice promised!

Have your own insights on Voice to share, or your own first line to "Goldilocks and the Three Bears?" Please post them in the comments; we'd love to hear from you!

Yours,
your Schmooze co-Captains

Rita Crayon Huang and Lee Wind

P.S.

Please join us at our NEXT Westside Writers Schmooze on Wednesday, November 10th
at 7 PM, when we meet to learn more about

Library, School and Bookstore Author Visits with Ann Wagner, Elisabeth Abarbanel and Sharon Hearn.

Most authors don't make their full income from book sales alone. Many see author visits (to libraries, schools and bookstores) as a critical part of their career.

So whether you're already published or just planning for the road ahead, come hear our expert panel discuss "What makes a good author visit" and "how do you, as an author, get that opportunity?"

Our expert panel: Ann Wagner is a Youth Services Librarian at the main branch of the Santa Monica Public Library. Elisabeth Abarbanel is a middle and upper school librarian at Brentwood School, an Independent School in Los Angeles. And Sharon Hearn is the owner of Children's Book World, an independent children's book store in West Los Angeles.

Hear what works (and what doesn't), find out what they're looking for and learn how to set yourself up for success. For Picture Book through Young Adult, fiction and non-fiction.

Hope to see you there!

Westside Writers Schmooze Talks Writing Tips, Tricks and Techniques

On Wednesday Sept 15, 2010, 40 of us gathered in a giant circle in Santa Monica's Fairview Branch Library Community Room to share our best writing advice. There was so much good stuff, including:

respect your own creative process (whether you think best in the shower, or walking the dog, or doing a jigsaw puzzle!)

writing down your ideas right away because "the creative mind has no memory,"

"don't be afraid of using technology,"

read authors you love to get inspired,

three senses make a scene come alive,

give yourself a deadline,

eavesdrop to improve your dialog,

failure is an option - that's how great strides are made,

record yourself reading your work out loud,

and perhaps most importantly...



Hope to see you at our next schmooze which is going to be about VOICE. And maybe we'll even come up with a definition!

Happy Writing,

Lee and Rita
Your Westside Schmooze Coordinators

Westside Writers Schmooze Talks Villains, Antagonists, Quiet Books, and what moves YOUR story forward

Lee sported a Dick Dastardly moustache,
but this is the closest to a photo of it we could find!

38 of us gathered Wednesday night May 12 to schmooze and talk craft. We reveled in home-baked cookies, muffins, and flowers (THANK YOU, EVERYONE!!), and settled down in a big circle to get to the dastardly content of our characters.

We started out by noting that most stories contain both internal and external conflict (as in the picture book "A Visitor for Bear"). Then we discussed different, classic models for external conflict, and shared picture book, MG and YA examples of each. Here's a taste:

Character versus Another Character (conflict with villains, antagonists, and rivals)

The Harry Potter series (MG fantasy)
A Series of Unfortunate Events (MG fantasy)
Roald Dahl books such as Fantastic Mr. Fox (MG)
and even picture books like "Don't Let The Pigeon Drive The Bus"




and "The Monster At the End of This Book," which cleverly pit the main character against the reader


Character versus Themselves

Grumpy Bird (picture book)

or versus their addiction... as in "Wintergirls" (YA, dealing with eating disorders)




Character versus Society

"Skin Hunger" (YA fantasy)

"Horton Hears A Who" (picture book)






"The Little Engine That Could" (picture book)


Character versus Nature

"Hatchet" (MG adventure)





Character versus Technology

Life As We Knew It, by Susan Beth Pfeffer (YA)





And other classic themes for conflicts:

Youth versus Age

Physical Obstacles (like mishearing someone, as in the picture book "Falling For Rapunzel"


We also discussed quiet books with seemingly no conflict, like "Every Friday"



and concept books for the very young about exploring the world.


This led to a discussion of the range of villainy we find in children's books, from the cartoony to the epic to the idea that, once you get to know them, most bad guys aren't so bad after all. This led to a lovely discussion of genre, age range, and setting up the rules, expectations, and worldview of your book.

As a group, we looked at this simple example:

a girl goes to an ice cream story to get an ice cream, she gets it and it's delicious

and noted that while that may make for a lovely afternoon, it's not much of a story.

We put the story through our "complication machine" (a box drawn on a piece of paper) and brainstormed all the obstacles that could keep our main character from achieving her goal too easily.

What if she has to clean her room first? ("Youth vs. Age")
She loses her money on the way to the store?
The store is closed?
The electricity goes out and the ice cream starts to melt? (everyone liked the ticking clock element of this one!)
The old person in line in front of her can't make up her mind.

Rita brought up a point from Nancy Lamb's chapter "The Mid-Story Crisis" in The Writer's Guide to Crafting Stories for Children, that there often comes a moment when--for any number of reasons--your main character can no longer get what he or she wants. Each time this happens, it gives rise to a new, even more powerful motivation. (And this can happen many times!)


And as an example of how this might work in our going to the ice cream store example, Greg Pincus suggested that maybe the ice cream brainwashes everyone who eats it and so instead of the girl wanting an ice cream, now she wants to find out who's behind this dastardly plot- so she can make ice cream safe to eat once again!

There was much talk of the Emperor behind Darth Vader in Star Wars, and the heirarchy of rival, enemy, and ultimate villain of the Malfoy son, father, and Voldemort in Harry Potter.

One attendee recommended the book The Power of the Dark Side: Creating Great Villains, Dangerous Situations, & Dramatic Conflict, by Pamela Jaye Sm

Lee brought up some of the three-dimensionalizing exercises for antagonists from Creating Characters Kids Will Love, by Elaine Marie Alphin


Rita brought up the suggestion from The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories, by Christopher Booker, that all villainy ultimately comes down to one, universal trait: selfishness. Villains (to the extent that they ARE villains) want something that benefits only themselves. Our hero, on the other hand, is always striving for something that goes beyond his or her self interest.


In this context the group brought up books featuring less than selfless main characters, for us to debate:

Diary of A Wimpy Kid
I Am A Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to be Your Class President

We discussed how every character thinks they're the star of the story (like the Apothecary in the movie Shakespeare in Love,) and how the villain doesn't necessarily know they're the villain - to them they may be the hero.

This led to our final exercise for the evening, which was to challenge everyone to put their own characters through the "complication machine." (Remember, draw that box on a piece of paper!)

We had people do this for their antagonist - defining what that character wants (writing that in the box) and then brainstorming obstacles to them getting that.

And now, at home, even if you were there, you can do it for your main character as well.

Overall, it was a lively, engaging evening, and we all learned a lot - and gained some inspiration - from an evening talking about the bad stuff that makes your story GOOD.

Thanks to all the bakers and attendees and to all of you reading this blog post as well - it's a wonderful community we've got here!


Join us next month on Wed June 9th, when we meet to discuss... (drumroll...)

"Getting Published: Query Letters, Networking, and What You Need To Know"

Query Letters. Cover Letters. Writing that darn synopsis. Business Cards. Blogs. Web sites. Conferences. How do you find out which editors and agents are looking for what? And how do you gain access to them? Which reference sources have the information you need? How do you not get overwhelmed by all the information? Come talk about the business side of being a writer. For Picture Books through YA, non-fiction and fiction, writing your manuscript is only the first part...

Please RSVP to WestsideSchmooze@hotmail.com if you plan to attend. This is the topic everyone wishes we did *every* month. We hope to see you there!

Rita and Lee

Westside Illustrators April Guest Speaker

Westside Illustrators Schmooze
Monday Evening, April 19, 2010
7:00pm - 9:00pm
11624 W. Pico Blvd.,
Los Angeles, CA 90064


Get Up-Close & Personal with Agent...

Jamie Weiss Chilton
of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency
We've written AND illustrated

our own stories, with 'dummies' ready to sell.
Art rep OR lit agent OR publisher? Get the low-down
on agencies and representation.
This will be a great evening for both writers and illustrators!

Jamie Weiss Chilton represents children's books exclusively: teen novels,
middle grade fiction, graphic novels, picture books, and narrative nonfiction.
Her specific interests include contemporary literary fiction with
intense emotional content (character-driven, not issue-driven plots);
smart thrillers and mysteries; science fiction; surreal stories and
magical realism;and sweet, funny, quirky picture books.

Jamie's career in children's books began in 1998,
with an editorial internship at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers,
followed by positions as an Editorial Assistant and Assistant Editor at
Bantam Delacorte Dell and Knopf & Crown Books for Young Readers,
divisions of Random House Children's Books. After returning to her
hometown of Los Angeles, Jamie pursued her love of children's books
in a new arena, as Conference Manager and Golden Kite Award Director
at the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI)
before joining the Andrea Brown Agency in 2008.

Her recent sales include ORCHARDS, a YA novel in verse by Holly Thompson (Delacorte); FALL INTO ME, a debut YA by Jennifer Castle (Harper Collins); BAD FOR YOU, a graphic novel by co-creators Kevin C. Pyle and Scott Cunningham (Holt); JAMMY DANCE, a picture book by Rebecca Janni, to be illustrated by Tracy Dockray (FSG); and Tracey E. Fern's nonfiction picture book BARNUM'S BONES to be illustrated by Boris Kulikov (FSG).
for more info; www.AndreaBrownLit.com

Voluntary $5.00 donation for this event...Thank You!

Come prepared to participate, ask questions and be inspired!
Let's enjoy a fun creative evening together & move forward in our common pursuit
of making a contribution to the world of children's illustration and literature!

RSVP???... YES...if you can... SoozyEB@aol.com

WHERE???... 11624 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
This is a large gray building with ivy & bamboo on the facade.
The sign near the door reads - "Alliance Francaise."

DIRECTIONS???... http://maps.google.com/maps?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLR,GGLR:2006-05,GGLR:en&q=11624+W.+Pico+BLvd,+Los+Angeles,+CA+90064&um=1&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&resnum=1&ct=title

PARKING???... Street parking only. You don't have to feed meters after 6pm. Do NOT park in the electrical warehouse parking lot next door OR the parking lot behind the building on the corner of Federal Ave. You will be towed...FAST.

Looking forward to seeing you all!
xoxo...suzy
cell... 818 389 1950

come visit me at... http://www.SuzyEngelmanBlock.com