My Support Network: WWOWW, fur, family, and Debs

WWOWW (= wine with other women writers) has become my new favorite hobby/necessity. I write and write and write for hours all by myself, and at the end of the day, I LOVE to meet with other writers to bitch, laugh, encourage, and commiserate. The best part of being a debut writer — hands down — has been meeting my new support network of women writers. And the thing is, I’m not all that social by nature, so my enjoyment of hanging out with writers is a surprise to me.

It all started with Georgia Clark, author of THE REGULARS (which is available now and coming out in paperback this August). Georgia reached out to me and asked if I was interested in attending a monthly writer group at her apartment in Brooklyn. I said yes, and that was the beginning of a number of brand new friendships with writers. We writers drink quite a bit as it turns out. We work hard and really enjoy a glass of wine at the end of a long, solitary day. The meetings at Georgia are a pleasure, and I am super grateful to her (and to Lindsay!!) for getting the band together every month. (There was even an article written up about us in Brooklyn Magazine.) Here I am with the lovely Georgia Clark at Book Expo in NYC and out on the town with writers Laurie Lico Albanese and M. Elizabeth Lee.

What would I do without fur?

And by fur, I mean, my pets Tucker and Pigeon. I don’t think this one takes much explanation. Tucker is an amazing support to me and is literally by my side all day long. My cat supports me in her own way, and I use the word “support” here loosely. She’s keeps me company, which is nice, but to be honest, most of the time I’m pretty sure she wants to kill me. Tucker keeps me calm, while Pigeon keeps me on my toes.

And what would I do without DEBS?

Oh, the lovely ladies of The Debutante Ball. They are always on SLACK anytime I have a crisis, a question, a tech flop, or just something stupid to say. The Debs have been the best support group EVER to go through debut year ups and downs. [PRO TIP: Applications will be going live at some point soon for the Deb Ball class of 2018, so if your debut novel is coming out between September and August with a traditional publisher, please do yourself a favor and apply!! – Stay tuned!]

And finally, what would I do without my family?

Jeesh, My family (my husband, sons, dad, and sisters) support me, read my “shitty first drafts” (~ Anne Lamott), tolerate my lunacy during rewrite phases, buy ridiculous numbers of my books, and most of all they SHOW UP whenever they possibly can. My family truly keeps me going and makes me feel like I’m never in this alone.

Author: Amy Poeppel

Amy Poeppel grew up in Dallas, Texas and left the south to attend Wellesley College. Since then, she has worked as an actor, a high school English teacher, and most recently as the Assistant Director of Admissions at a school in New York City. Her three fabulous boys are all off in Boston attending school, and she and her husband now split their time between New York and Frankfurt, Germany. A theatrical version of SMALL ADMISSIONS was workshopped at the Actors Studio Playwrights/Directors Unit. She later expanded it into her first novel.

2 Replies to “My Support Network: WWOWW, fur, family, and Debs”

  1. And what brings it all together? Your incredible positive attitude, which I can feel bouncing off my computer screen. I’m so sad I didn’t get to catch up with you and meet in person at BookExpo – hopefully before next year. Be well!

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