Susan Dlugach…

Sumner Blanchard is a retired speech/language pathologist whose professional career has involved both hospital practice and university teaching. To date, he has only published research in communication disorders, but now wants to write fiction somehow drawing upon his interests and experiences in military aviation, sculling, travel, communication issues, and music. His recent membership in CWC has encouraged the hope that new writing skills can be learned to begin a new chapter.

John Patterson started working as a kid. He’s worked in a variety of service, retail, as well as light and heavy blue-collar gigs for almost a decade. After law school and clerking at the California Supreme Court, he practiced law for almost twenty years before going into education for almost twenty years. He retired from public secondary education teaching and administration positions. He’s served on six boards, including our CWC-Sac Board for two years.

He hosts our Open Readings, which he started five years ago. He’s written for work, but now he is currently writing a memoir based on his childhood. When not seeing family, writing, or travelling, he tells true stories. He’s had short pieces in three publications. Contact him at: 2johnpatterson@gmail.com

When you want your words and characters to fly off the page and into people’s headphones, consider having a chat with audiobook voice actor Dena Kouremetis. 

A veteran copywriter, blogger, and ghostwriter by trade, she also maintains a blog on healthy aging for Psychology Today called (R)Aging with Grace. A few years back Kouremetis took her vocal talents and began narrating audiobooks. She enjoys voicing anything from self-help books to historical novels to murder mysteries to memoir and beyond. And while she gets work as a narrator for ACX/Audible, she adores working up-close and personal with local authors.  Feel free to call her at 415.235.2891 or visit her website at www.DenaKouremetis.com, which she swears is a great bathroom listening experience.

Making words come alive. That’s what floats audiobook narrator Dena Kouremetis’ boat. Whether it’s a memoir, a fantasy, or a novel replete with character accents and mood-altering scenes, she considers it her job to make an audio “movie” out of your written word.

Having been a professional writer for more than 25 years, Kouremetis is unique in the voice-acting world. Her name has appeared on articles and blogs ranging from the Sacramento Bee to Forbes to the New York Post to Psychology Today, where she maintains a light-hearted blog titled (R)aging with Grace — a Nora Ephron-esque column on aging well.

“Narrating audiobooks is an honor for me,” she says. “I have a special understanding of how authors wear their hearts on their sleeves. My job is to handle their words with both imagination and care.” Find a collection of Kouremetis’ colorful narration talents at DenaKouremetis.com.

Nida is a regular contributor to CAUpdate.com, an online magazine, with articles about her travels and life in the Philippines and the United States.

Nida currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Sacramento Youth Symphony (SYS). Her articles about SYS have been published in Valley Community News. She is a Distinguished Toastmaster and has served as District 39 Area Director and as President, Treasurer, Public Relations Officer and Secretary for different Toastmaster clubs. She is the Treasurer for the International Philippines Association.

Nida was born in Larena, a town in the enchanting and mystical island of Siquijor, Philippines.  She earned her bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication at Silliman University. As a reporter for the Weekly Sillimanian, the official student newspaper, she covered the office of the University President. She worked as a summer intern in DYLA in Cebu City. After college, she worked as a writer for the Tourist Research and Planning in Metro Manila, Philippines. In 1980, Nida migrated to Northern California. Before joining the California Highway Patrol (CHP) where she worked for 22 years, she worked for Verbatim Corporation and the U.S. Postal Service.  At CHP, Nida rose through the ranks and attained the position of Commander for the CHP’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity. Before retiring, she accepted a promotion at the Department of Correction and Rehabilitation as a Program Manager then as Chief of their Office of Civil Rights.