If you were to drop in on one of the bi-weekly Friday meetings of the Front Range Writers, you would think you were seeing a gathering of old friends: drinking coffee, eating snacks, and chatting. Then they get down to business.

Each in turn shares a little of what her or his passions have produced since they last met: science fiction, a travel essay, a funny crone novel, a memoir, a mystery, a puppy book, youth and young adult books, or stunning poetry.

The works are diverse but the group is united by a common dedication to the art and craft of writing. They encourage, critique, and inspire each other to refine their work so that readers of all kinds can learn and enjoy.

This website is about this engaging group of writers. There are short biographies for each writer and, in some cases, links to other websites or additional information about them.

Each month or so, a different writer will be featured for recent or special achievements. There's also a news section describing related individual or group activities.

Finally, there is a page to tell you how you can get in touch with these nice folks.         

After attending a Hospice-sponsored seminar on dealing with grief, Judie Freeland started writing her father's story. The result, a book titled Try to Remember, is comprised of stories he told to anyone who would listen, even as Alzheimer's took its toll: stories about his boyhood in the early 20th century in a small village in Minnesota; of summers as a young boy traveling with harvest crews throughout the grain-belt states; of his early adulthood during the Great Depression and dust bowl years. There are stories of his joys during courtship, marriage, and fatherhood; of his triumphs as an entrepreneur; and of his life-long love affair with horses. Alzheimer's took away his memories of the "now"; memories of "back-then" survived. Try to Remember, published by iUniverse, can be ordered through local bookstores.

Judie's current projects continue to be influenced by important things in her life, past and present. She has written four murder mysteries, drawing on her experiences as a university administrator in one, as a breeder of Paso Fino horses (prior to her husband's passing) in two, and as a caregiver for family members with Alzheimer's disease in the fourth one. These books are awaiting publishing opportunities.

Judie has raised and showed golden retrievers for many years. Her current canine companion and registered Therapy Dog, Echo, is included under an alias as a character
in some of Judie's novels.

-- February, 2008