Flavors of Life: Writing for the Travel, Health, Fitness, and Food Markets

IWOSC General Meeting
Monday, February 26
7:30 p.m. Sharp
Veterans Memorial Building, 4117 Overland Avenue (Culver
City)

Lifestyle writing offers independent writers a wide
selection of writing styles and topics. Like ingredients
found in flavorful dishes, the words of lifestyle writers
can enhance their readers' savory exposure to one or more
fields. For this program, a melange of seasoned writers
and editors who have successfully bridged more than one
style of writing will discuss opportunities in the various
lifestyle genres, synergies between the different topics,
and how to adapt your writing to connect with readers of
particular lifestyle markets.

The panelists are:
Former Gault Millau Guidebooks editor James Burns, an
expert on food, wine and travel writing;

Health writer and editor Elisabeth Deffner, Executive
Editor, FMAware Magazine, published by the National
Fibromyalgia Association (NFA);

Award-winning food and travel writer/editor Barbara
Hansen;

Roy Wallack, a nationally-known bicycle journalist who
writes about health and fitness; and

New York Times bestselling author Devin Alexander, author
of "The Biggest Loser Cookbook," which accompanies the NBC
TV show.

After a decade working editor jobs at various sports and
sporting goods publications (California Bicyclist,
SportStyle, Actiona Sports Retailer, Bicycle Guide, and
Triathlete), ROY M. WALLACK became an independent writer of
health, fitness, and travel stories, and athlete profiles,
for many national magazines (Outside, Men's Journal,
Playboy, Bicycling, Triathlete, and others). He also writes
a regular biweekly fitness gear column in the Los Angeles
Times Health section, and frequently contributes other
features to the Health, Calendar, and the now-defunct
Outdoors sections of the paper.

An endurance cyclist and runner, Wallack has toured the
Soviet Union by bike and has completed the Eco-Challenge,
the 1,200 km Paris-Brest-Paris bike ride, the 400-mile
Trans Alp Challenge mountain bike race, the 2002 Badwater
Ultramarathon, and other endurance events. Wallack is the
author of "The Traveling Cyclist," a how-to book featuring
20 of his bike trips around the world, and the co-author
of "Bike for Life: How to Ride to 100," a game plan for
super-fit longevity through cycling, now in its fifth
printing.

DEVIN ALEXANDER is a veteran in the fight against obesity
and she's winning the war with her unique approach to
healthy cooking. Having maintained a 55-pound weight loss
for over 15 years, she lives and eats her message: you
don't have to deprive yourself to be fit and healthy.

Alexander has shared her secrets for unbelievably decadent,
yet healthy foods through frequent appearances on "Good
Morning America," "The View," "The Biggest Loser,"
Discovery Health, HGTV, USA, Style Network and others shows
and networks, and through over 100 magazine features in
Prevention, Women's Health, Shape, and Healthy Cooking, to
name a few. Alexander's first cooking show, "Healthy
Decadence with Devin Alexander," will start airing on
Discovery Health Channel on March 29.

Alexander has served as culinary advisor to Men's Fitness
magazine and is currently the cooking expert for Women's
Health magazine. Her recently released cookbook, "Fast
Food Fix," was featured as an editor's top pick in USA
Today. And in October she released "The Biggest Loser
Cookbook."

For the IWOSC "Flavors of Life" panel, Alexander will
discuss how she transformed her chef secrets into articles
and story ideas, and how she works with TV producers, print
editors, and publishers.

Lowell Thomas Award-winning food journalist JAMES BURNS is
a one-man-band of food and travel writing in print and on
the Internet. He created the award-winning Cyber Kitchen
weekly magazine, and has edited and/or written several
hundred articles in Self, Westways, L.A. Style, Los Angeles
magazine, Los Angeles Times Magazine, the Philadelphia
Enquirer, Newsday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the
Minneapolis Star Tribune, and the Miami Herald, among other
publications. He was the Editor-in-Chief of "Underground
Wine Journal" which garnered six award nominations under
his watch. He was Senior Editor at the Los Angeles Times
Syndicate, where he edited "FoodStyles," "World's
Fare," "Berger On Wine," and Cooking Light magazine's
syndicated material. Now an independent writer and
publishing consultant, Burns has also been the editor for
various books, including "Cooking Without Fat" and "Baking
Without Fat," both books by George Mateljan which have sold
a combined 670,000 copies so far.

Along with her stewardship of FMAware Magazine, ELISABETH
DEFFNER also is the editor of NFA's e-newsletter, FMOnline.
As an independent writer, Deffner has contributed to
various national and regional publications, including the
Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register, American
Profile, Catholic Digest, and National Geographic KIDS.
Her topics have ranged from Gulf War Syndrome to in vitro
fertilization and frozen embryos to recovery from sexual
abuse. She will provide valuable insight into how to pitch
to editors, what health magazines are looking for from
independent writers, and any differences between web-based
and non-web-based content.

Food is BARBARA HANSEN'S profession and passion. Founder,
editor and writer of www.TableConversation.com, Hansen
brings to her cyberspace readers mouth-watering self-tested
recipes, information about traveling to faraway places, and
explorations of the various ethnic foods found in Los
Angeles. For many years, Hansen wrote food features,
restaurant reviews, and travel articles for the Los Angeles
Times. In 2004 she won a James Beard award for an article
on mezcal in Oaxaca. Mezcal is a distilled liquid made
from the hearts (pinas) of various maguey (agave) plants.
She was also nominated previously for a Beard award for an
article on cooking with Chinese medicinal herbs. Hansen
has written for Bon Appetit, Saveur, and Cuisine
magazines. So far, she's produced five cookbooks: "Cooking
California Style," "Good Bread," "Barbara Hansen's Taste of
Southeast Asia," "Southeast Asian Cooking," and "Mexican
Cookery." She will discuss what it takes to develop food
and travel websites, as well as how to approach food and
travel editors with story ideas.

COST: IWOSC members, FREE; General admission: $15.

RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR IWOSC'S PROGRAMS -- Space is
limited, and the reservation deadline is NOON, Monday,
February 26.

For information or to RSVP, call 1-877-799-7483, or e-mail
info@iwosc.org. Reservations will be honored up to ten
minutes before the meeting begins.