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BERKELEY

At 1 p.m. Sept. 20, the California Writers Club, Berkeley Branch, will begins its fall speaker series by welcoming literary agent Andy Ross. Tickets are $5 for CWC members, $10 for non-CWC members. Tickets and info about CWC are available at cwc-berkeley.org. Andy will discuss the steps authors need to take before beginning work with a literary agent, including:

  • deciding whether their projects are right for commercial publishers;
  • writing effective query letters and book proposals;
  • researching the best agents for themselves;
  • and how agents negotiate book contracts

Ross is a literary agent in Oakland. Before becoming an agent, he was the owner of the legendary Cody’s Books in Berkeley for 30 years. Andy represents books in a wide range of nonfiction genres, including narrative nonfiction, science, journalism, history, popular culture, memoirs and current events. He also represents literary, commercial, historical, crime, upmarket women’s fiction and young adult fiction.

Authors Ross represents include Daniel Ellsberg, Susan Griffin, Fritjof Capra, Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, Gwen Strauss, Mark Goldblatt, Anjanette Delgado, Elisa Kleven, Tawni Waters, Randall Platt, Mary Jo McConahay, Gerald Nachman, Michael Parenti, Paul Krassner, Milton Viorst and Michele Anna Jordan.

Ross wrote “The Literary Agent’s Guide to Writing a Nonfiction Book Proposal.” As well as being an agent, Andy also works as a literary consultant and freelance editor for writers not represented by the agency. You can read more about Andy at his website at andyrossagency.com and on his popular blog “Ask the Agent” at andyrossagency.wordpress.com.

— CWC, Berkeley Branch

City, county need poll workers for Nov. 3 election

Help support a fair, safe election in November by signing up to be an Alameda County poll worker. Poll workers play a critical role in making voting accessible to all community members — and get paid to do it.

Poll workers are paid volunteers from local communities who perform tasks such as setting up and closing a polling place; helping voters understand their rights; and protecting ballots and voting equipment. Training will be provided by Alameda County — poll workers will be paid for training as well as their time served working polls. Depending on the assignment, a poll worker can earn up to $400. Workers are needed in Berkeley and throughout Alameda County from Oct. 31 through Nov. 3, Election Day.

No special skills are required. Anyone is eligible to be a poll worker who is a registered California voter, legal permanent resident/green card holder or eligible high school student. Bilingual poll workers are especially needed. In Alameda County, assistance is provided to voters in Chinese, Khmer, Korean, Punjabi, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese. Those fluent in any of these languages may be eligible to earn additional bilingual poll worker pay.

The online application at acvote.org/community/become-a-poll-worker is simple and can be completed in just a few minutes. To apply, you’ll need to provide your name, address, date of birth and phone number. You can also provide more information to let the county know where you are willing to work, what languages you’re fluent in and whether you have your own transportation. The Alameda County Registrar of Voters will contact qualified applicants to discuss training, days, times and locations at which they can work and which roles are available. For more information, call the county at 510-272-6973.

— city of Berkeley

EL CERRITO

Pastel demonstration to examine use of aerial perspective

On Oct. 12, the El Cerrito Art Association will host pastel artist Dug Waggoner, who will demonstrate his work examining the use of aerial perspective. Instead of vantage point perspective to show distance, he will show how atmosphere can achieve the same vision through a variety of techniques. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. on Zoom. Please go to elcerritoart.org to find the link, and sign on 10 minutes early so the meeting can begin on time.

El Cerrito Art Association meetings are free and open to the public. Visitors and new members are always welcome. For further information about this program, see elcerritoart.org or email contact@elcerritoart.org.

— El Cerrito Art Association

RICHMOND

Give to Main Street Initiative PPE fundraiser till Sept. 30

Richmond Main Street Initiative has partnered with Travis Credit Union Foundation and four local Richmond-based manufacturers to raise funding to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to local residents and businesses in need. Travis Credit Union will match each donation up to $20,000 through Sept. 30 with the goal of raising $40,000 in funding for PPE production. The local businesses include LeChat Nails, producing hand sanitizer; Leftside Printing, creating print designs on masks designed by Richmond youth; Five Star Cleaners, sewing and cutting masks; and Fab Lab at Kennedy High School, producing face shields.

The local manufacturers have not only pivoted their businesses during the pandemic but have also been able to employ 57 Richmond residents altogether while they work to keep the local community safe. With $20,000 in donations and Travis Credit Union Foundation’s match, Richmond Main Street Initiative will be able to provide the local community with 3,000 branded cloth face masks, 3,000 bottles of hand sanitizer and 960 face shields. Donations can be made through Sept. 30 at tcufund.org/ways-to-give (choose an amount, then select “Richmond Main Street Initiative” under the “I would like to support” menu).

— Richmond Main Street Initiative

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