Join editors having fun

On April 28 I will be participating in a panel discussion about club newsletters during the Central States Numismatic Society’s annual get-together at the Renaissance Convention Center in Schaumburg, Ill.

It begins at 10:30 a.m. and lasts for two hours.

I hope you will come.

Lest you think I might be bragging, I will hurry to add that I am mentioning this event at the request of Ray Lockwood, the education director of CSNS. He wants you there.

There will be five of us on the panel. We all have something to do with numismatic journalism.

Our purpose as Ray has put it is to present “the ins and outs of newsletter editing with helpful tips on how to write a club newsletter, how to generate news items, how to interview coin collectors, where to find stories, e-mailing newsletters and what a local club newsletter looks like.”

Even with the aid of the Internet, one of the hardest jobs to fill in numismatics is that of the club newsletter editor.

It seems the standard approach at a club meeting is to elect or appoint someone and then everyone else dashes for cover.

It should not be that way, but it often is.

The good newsletter editors have perfected a blend of talents, ranging from being able to cajole reluctant writers to put some thoughts down for use, to accessing a flow of consciousness from their own brains about personal experiences.

Importantly, newsletter writers who recognize the fact that each and every member of a club has a tale to tell means that there is a rich vein of stories at hand. All that needs doing is to begin mining it.

There stories range from what happened at the most recent show, to how they began collecting, what they collect, their first time at a coin club meeting, who they have met and what mistakes they might warn others not to repeat.

Just think of how numismatics has interacted with everything else in your life and you will find that the interesting thoughts will bubble up in your mind that could be shared.

A club newsletter editor is the person to share your thoughts with.

Perhaps the biggest talent of newsletter editors is the ability to get the job done. There are deadlines.

The notice board aspect of meeting dates, show dates and other club events means these deadlines must be met.

The deadline for this CSNS educational forum and workshop is coming up fast. Admission is free. Ray would like to see a room full of people.

I had better tell you who else will be there so you can make an informed choice.

The four other panel members are Beth Deisher, retired editor of Coin World; Steve Roach, editor at large for Coin World; Gerald Tebben, editor of Central States’ own journal, The Centinel, and Wayne Homren, editor of E-Sylum.

I would like to thank Ray for organizing this event. He is a retired teacher who knows the value of education.

He is doing a bang-up job as the CSNS education director. I plan to tell him so when I see him at the convention.

I hope to see you there even if you are not currently a newsletter editor. Making new friends is another helpful aspect in the life of every editor and I enjoy meeting people.

Please help Ray out by registering ahead of time.

There is no cost, but it does help to have a head count to assure the event will be held with appropriate accommodations.

To do this, send Ray an email.

His address is: sunrayofmarion@aol.com.

If you do come, we will let you in on a little secret: Editors do have a lot of fun.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper has twice won the Numismatic Literary Guild Award for Best Blog and is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."

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