As the holidays approach, many of us turn our thoughts to what constitutes a perfect gift for certain people on our gift-giving lists. Here are some practical ideas as well as some personal and/or whimsical ideas for the writers on your list. Perhaps you'd like to make a copy of the list, highlight the items YOU would like to receive and then leave it in an obvious place for other gift-givers!

Happy Holidays!
Lee Ambrose
SCN Internet Chapter President and Member Services Coordinator

• Items to Inspire the Muse

• Necessities of the Trade

• High-Tech Goodies

• Gifts from the Heart

• Paypal shopping cart:

• Items to Inspire the Muse

  	A gift membership to SCN: National ($35/year): Internet Chapter ($18/year):
  	A book from the growing list of SCN Authors
  	A book of writing prompts and special pen (check out the SCN book of writing prompts, Starting Points, $15, including tax, s/h)
  	Registration fee to one of the SCN sponsored events (like the February 1-3, 2008 Stories From the Heart IV Conference), workshops (like the June 14-15, 2008 WFL workshop), or other activities scheduled for 2008
  	Your Life, Your Story ($15, including tax, s/h), by Pat Flathouse, Catherine Cogburn, Susan Wittig Albert, is a valuable resource for any woman who wants to tell the story of her life, but especially useful for women over 60. It is based on SCN's highly successful, widely acclaimed Older Women's Legacy Circle workshop program.
  	A Priceless Legacy: Writing the Stories of Your Family History, by Pat Flathouse, is a nine-chapter book with exercises, ideas, and ways to help you write the stories of your family history.
  	A writing prompt jar/box (collect prompts either in word or picture form and place them in a special jar or box as a way of offering your writer some daily writing inspiration)
  	Inspiring collection of quotes (for the women writers, try the Believing In Ourselves: 2008 Day-to-Day Calendars)
  	Subscription to the writer's favorite writing related publication (ie Writer's Digest, The Writer, Glimmer Train, Rosebud, Sun Magazine, etc)

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• Necessities of the Trade

  	Colorful gel roller pens in a variety of colors
  	Postage and envelopes for all of those SASE's that your writer will need to enter contests, send out queries, etc.
  	Manuscript boxes for mailing that next best seller to publishers
  	Gift Certificate to local office supply or book store (I don't know a writer out there who wouldn't love to be able to get the office supplies she needs or choose a book or two for herself!)

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• High-Tech Goodies

  	Computer Ink Cartridges make the perfect stocking stuffer (be sure you get the correct cartridge for your writer's computer)
  	Computer discs/ CD's/ flash drives

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• Gifts from the Heart

  	Order some of SCN founder Susan Wittig Albert's mysteries (and benefit SCN at the same time!)
  	SCN member Judy Fettman's notecards
  	SCN member Lisa Shirah-Hiers' hand-crocheted bookmarks
  	Story Circle Network Tshirts: feminine style, periwinkle ($18): size ML1X2X (periwinkle, reg. style) regular style, beige ($12): size L2X3X
  	A donation to SCN made in your favorite writer's name

When winter sets in and 2008 is in full swing, no doubt the writer on your gift giving list will be thanking you many times over for any one of these gifts—gifts that continually validate her desire to write and attest to your belief in her as a writer.